Nairek L5-S1 ALIF Fusion January 2009

[Terry Allen Blackburn]

WOW Karin:

I am so happy for you that your surgery is done and you are going to be on the other side. The recovery will seem like a roller coaster ride with ups and downs but, you are one tough lady and will get through it in style.

It sounds like you had an excellent surgeon and good care from him. The rest of the hospital sounds a little nuts but, par for course at some places.

You hang in there and let your family and friends take care of you and nurse you back to health.

Keep posting as well so we can be apprised over your continued progress.

Terry Newton

[Nairek]

So I went for my 2 week post-op follow up last Thursday. I had to ask a friend of mine to go down to NYC with me since family members had to work. There is nothing I hate more than to bother people to accompany me to my appointments.

Anyway, so we took the train down to NYC & then took a cab to the doctor’s office. My friend was uncomfortable taking the subway & I really didn’t feel like getting hit in the back or stomach for that matter. I still have a bit of trouble getting in & out of a car so it was a very interesting ride to & from Grand Central.

I thought that I would have to go for x-rays when I got to the office but was surprised when they handed me the pain scale paperwork & said “no x-rays”. I filled out the pain questionnaire for my pain management doctor & was able to say that the surgery reduced my pain by 75% but now I have a “new” pain since the surgery which is quite painful.

I met with my pain management doctor & we decided that I could come off of the Oxycontin (which now I wish I didn’t) & to stay on the Percocet. I explained that the “new” pain that I felt was now in the lower left part of my back & that it felt like something was almost pulling/tearing. He prescribed a Lidocaine patch to apply to the area.

I then met with a rep from Biomet who showed me how to use a bone growth stimulator. As I understand it, I will wear it 24/7 for at least 12 weeks. It wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t have an adhesive allergy (laughing).

I then met with the man himself, Dr. Bitan. Now when I was in the hospital, I know that I asked a few times if I had staples closing the incisions in my back. I was told on a few different occasions that I did have staples. Imagine my surprise when Dr. Bitan said no that wasn’t the case. All this time I thought I did & thought that was the reason why I had this “new” pain in my back & I was wrong. I swear he must think I’m a loon! I know that I feel like a fool. (Needless to say, when I went back out into the waiting room, my friend was like gee that was quick & I had to tell her that there weren’t any staples. I’m still getting a razzing about it from her & several other friends).

So I said to him, if I don’t have staples tugging at the incision site, then what is this horrible pain that I now have? He told me that the muscles are inflamed in my back & more than likely the pain is being caused from that. So I asked him a few other questions which I received short responses to & more or less was on my way. He is a man of very few words which I’m not use to. Sometimes it is a bit uncomfortable but I know that he’s the best around with spinal surgery so I try to put that aside.

Before I left the office, I got a letter to carry with me so if I set off metal detectors I can prove that I have metal in me. We’ll see if I do in a few weeks when I go to Florida. I also have a card for the bone growth stimulator but I have a feeling that I won’t be able to carry it on the plane with me.

So it was back to Grand Central to catch the train home. My friend teased me that I was a pro at hailing cabs & teased about the no staples thing again when I remembered that I totally forgot to ask the doctor about something. I have steri-strips covering the 2 incisions in my back as well as the incision in my abdomen. I also have 2 lines of suture sticking out about 1 ½ inches from either side of the incision in my abdomen. I have no idea if those are suppose to just disintegrate & fall out, or if I need to have them removed. Does anyone have any experience with this? I joke that if I pull on them hard enough I may just open it up like a dog food bag & have everything fall out. I shouldn’t joke about that though since it still hurts.

OK, that’s enough. I’m supposed to be studying for the notary public exam & not posting on the board. I’ll try to update more often.

[Cindylou]

Nairek,

Thank-you for your update. I know I am stating the obvious, but did you write down your questions for Dr. Bitan before your appt? I think it is so important to do that, as we can get easily flustered trying to remember everything "in the moment" of the appointment. Especially if he is a man of few words, that can throw one off their game. That said, I have learned this by my own trial and error as well! I have even had one of my very close girlfriend's come into the room with me during the appt, and she took notes and asked other questions I hadn't even thought of. Very helpful. Those friend's are few and far between, I know. I am sorry I don't know the answer to your question, but someone here surely does, and will chime in soon. I do think what the doctor said is plausible about your muscles reacting, causing this new pain. The body faces so many new traumas during a surgery to "fix the problem," that is it any wonder we come out of the anesthesia with a host of new complaints? The body also wants to heal itself, so hang on during this recovery period of ups and downs. And if you discover it is too soon to come off the Oxycontin, you should contact your pain management doc with your concerns. You certainly will delay your healing if you are miserably in pain. We're pulling for you Nairek!

[cls]

Hi Karin,

I know that you have a TENS unit and I am thinking that you might want to dig that out again and give it a try. Yesterday I received an Interferential Unit in preparation for my MIS TLIF so I decided to give it a try so that I would know what it would feel like after surgery. In addition to my L5-S1 DDD I also tore two shoulder muscles. My shoulder pain rivals my back pain so I thought I would try the unit on my shoulder. WOW, I can't believe that it really reduced the pain. My understanding is that the unit is stronger than a TENS unit so if your pain persists maybe you can inquire about this product. The rep said that there are a lot of competitors out there so you should be able to find a source if you are interested. I plan on using it on my shoulder until the surgery since I can't get to an orthopedic surgeon until after my fusion. It would be so great if my shoulder healed without having to go to yet another surgeon!!!!

Hang in there Karin and take it easy!
Christine

[dshobbies]

I too think a TENS unit is great but was told it's a no go with ADR surgery. Don't know about fusion but I'd check with Doc before using it.

[Justin]

Nairek,

Thanks for the update. It was a funny read about the staples. It sounds like you are doing exceptionally well. Good luck on your notary public exam.

Remember to take things slow and don't cut back on the pain meds too soon.

[Terry Allen Blackburn]

I agree with Justin about the pain medication. Many people want to; "Suck it up" and be brave about pain or, they are so afraid of getting addicted that they want off of them as soon as possible. This is the least of what you should be focusing on in recovery. Strong pain interferes with the healing process. There is plenty of time to get off of them in the future. Now it is important to allow them to block the pain messages to the brain so that your body can heal. This also helps to keep you in a spiritual place of taking care of yourself. I am so happy that you are working towards a successful recovery.

That was funny about the staples. As far as those little pieces sticking out, I cut mine off with a pair of scissors. They were the dissolvable ones from inside but, left little tabs sticking out. They would catch on shirts and pull, so it was easier to just cut them off. Use sharp scissors so you don't pull them and hurt yourself in the process.

Hang in there and post when you can. If you have any problems, or weird things happen, post it so we can help normalize what you are going through.

Terry Newton

[Jakea222]

I am also torn with the same possible surgery. The pain I have is horrible even I don't know how I do what I do and stay 110% cooking like I do witht he long days. I actaully scared myself out of surgery after discussing my option with a friend and former colleague that told me a doc actully quit practicing medicine and opted NOT to have the surgery due to the results how mixed they can be....so when my last doc that consulted with me and my wife told us that he was no longer going to take my insurance - it was an easy way out for me. Reading your very real descriptive story also makes me want to live with this pain. I have focused my mind off my pain when i work - it is when I can't focus that mkaes me almost scream with pain. I admire all of you for going through this "grey" non black and white surgery. So many people with so many different results.

[Kathy]

Karin, Thanks for the SI joint education. I had somehow envisioned that they were like facet joints, all down the spine. Now I know where they are.

That is nice that you are moving to Florida, it is beautiful there. I did notice that alot of people there are not from there. It is a huge melting pot, which I really liked. I did talk to a ton of people that were really nice and interesting. Since you are used to the honking, it won't faze you, like it did me. By the end of the trip, we would just be driving down the road and start honking for no reason. It was a good laugh, although it hurt my belly at the time! I am a very patient driver, I may cuss about something; but don't get mad and honk or road rage.

I remember getting our last house ready for sale and all the work. I hope you have some help getting all the loose ends tied up. We packed up and filled an entire large storage building with 'extras' that our Realtor wanted out. This made the closets very empty, which made them look bigger. Took out extra furniture, emptied cabinets, etc. Did all the touch up painting, re-caulking, fixing the things we had put off for a rainy day and more. We worked for a week and a half, day and night (hubby just night and weekend when he was off work). The crazy thing is that the house was only 4 years old, we had done a bunch of improvements, had kept up all the maintenance and I was crazy OCD clean at the time; so it would seem that there wouldn't be much to do- wrong! I had worked in real estate prior to selling our house and knew that although doing all this stuff wasn't required; but that it would lead to a quicker sale and that it is a fact that the faster a home sells for, the more money you get. We put our house on the market on a Wednesday, it snowed on Friday and Saturday and didn't clear up until Tuesday (which in Texas means no one gets out, so it didn't show). It didn't show until the following Thursday night, and then on Saturday we had 3 showings scheduled and we had a full price offer that night. We had it sold in 11 days for the full asking price, which was good because we had already got into contract on another house. I'm sure if you have a great kitchen (which is a huge factor in selling a home) and have done extras, that you will have a fast sell too. That elbow grease will pay off and you will have it sold and be in your new home soon! Good Luck.

Please do take it easy and have help. I hope you have people helping you pack, or better yet, maybe your hubby has one of those great jobs that has a 'moving package' where they pay for the move, hire movers (who pack and move it for you) and help sell your home (and make up the difference if you don't get fair market value). When I was in real estate, we loved it when we had the 'big wigs' with these packages, as it made it so easy on us. If your like us and you don't have such a thing, have help and lots of beer 'to pay' your helpers!

Take it easy and don't overdo it, Kathy

[Nairek]

Kathy,

No worries on getting help on packing. My husband gives me such grief if he feels I am doing something that I shouldn't! I am becoming a bit more active but I know that I have to do it in moderation. I keep telling myself that I have gone thru too much & come too far to screw this up. I REALLY don't want to go thru that surgery again.

Karin