Thank-you all for the good wishes. Someone was asking about recovery. It entails 6 weeks on crutches with only toe weight bearing. Then transition to full weight bearing. I'm sure the 6 weeks is plus or minus. (knowing my body, plus)
3-5 days in the hospital, with the surgery lasting 1 to 1 1/2 hours. This amount of hospital time is used to recover from the pain, but also to learn how to walk to protect the operative site from too much movement. During this recovery period I can be active for simple day to day activities, like moving around the house, but I doubt I'll be vacuuming or doing laundry with the crutches!
At 12 weeks a CT scan is done to hopefully demonstrate final fusion of the site. Oh, I just pray this surgery delivers me ultimately from pain. I am so beat down by the pain, like so many of us are. I almost hate to hope for the relief, for fear of huge disappointment. (this is where the mind starts to play games) 1 week, 1 day. The countdown begins.