2nd Major back Surgey Log Blog and Expeirence

[grantwb1]

Hello fellow spinys, my name is Grant. I am lying in a hospital bed in Anaheim memorial hospital. It is day 4 after my l5-s1 revision from a bi-lateral pars fracture repair attempt. Story will bounce around a bit but hopefully some questions will guide me to the things people need to know first. For those that don't know like I didn't look, up the pars fractures then look up pars fracture repair you can tell what my previous problems where.

I will be updating this as I go for others to benefit from this one cause I sure did benefit from this site tremendously. Without this site I would have really made some of the most regrettable decisions of my life. Without this site I would not have found Mark Mintzer who for me is one the most important persons in my entire life. I will try and cover my whole story and hopefully people will ask questions and I can fill it in as I go.

I am 4 days post op from a l5-s1 PILF by Dr.Frank Coufal. Who I absolutely love and trust, he is and absolutely great doc to deal with.Takes all the time you need to answer all your questions, and my Moms and Girlfriend. They really like the guy too. He is sincere and genuinely cares to take his time. I am now off the IV meds and just receive injections and a boat load of narcotic pills with some antibiotics for a fever that they still have no real definite answer for. They say that people coming out of major surgery like this often have fevers for various reasons.

The pain that I had in my right leg felt like heavy pressure that started form my upper butt ran down the back of my thigh then out the side of my calf around to my big toe . My left leg had random pain in the same areas as well. Rarely did I have burning or tingling or numbness. I did have some hellish lower back pain. I was aggravated by sitting and not as much by moving but both could both get just as bad.

Well after this surgery I have found out that my l5 neural canals were absolutely crushed and that I had a ton of scar tissue build up from the hardware that was supposed to hold l5 together while it was supposed to grow back together but did not. It took Dr. Coufal 7.5 hours to due the total surgery, I tell you what it sure felt like he did seven hours of connoisseur bone carpentry on me the days following. It was hardware removal and fusion. The good thing is that Doc said that he thinks that he found and eliminated all of my pain generators which was the instability of the l5 vertebral body and the scar tissue/bone growth from the failed pars repair. OH YA BABY! The first surgery had a scar of about 6-7 inches top to bottom, I think this one is two inches. I have not seen this one but i can tell you the surgeon can make a big difference on how you muscle tissue feels following the surgery. It is only day four and I can tell you my muscles didn't feel this good till like 6 weeks after the last one.

My pain levels coming out the first day were controlled okay I was anywhere from 6-10. Day two was crazy good cause it was the day when I knew I made the right move cause my pain was 7 highest all day. Then that night till all the way to day 4 I was hitting 9-10 a lot. The nurses let my meds lapse and run out at least 3 times for more than an hour plus, which let the pain skyrocket and then the muscles tighten, well yall know the drill.(dilaudid pc pump). I was also on 60 mg of avinza and 3-4 norcos a day for about a year before hand so pain was hard to tackle. I also too was on lyrica which was a god send cause that help with the nerve pain in my legs better than anything else i was taking or had tried.

Getting tired and loopy so I will ramble more and answer more tomorrow

I REALLY DO HAVE LOVE AND COMPASSION FOR ALL OF THE SPINYS I MEET SO IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE ASK IM IF YOU NEED TO!!!!!

till next entry.. and please if you have advice I would live to hear it!!! I am really scared and hopeful as well!!!

[dshobbies]

Welcome Grant,

I'm glad you found this site and more so that it was a help to you. Many agree with your assessment of Mark. Can't say where my journey would have taken me without him.

You're still in the hospital and under careful supervision. At this time, the only advise I offer is to take is slow and careful. Back surgeries heal better when not pushed too much. Our mantra - slow and steady wins the race.

Good luck in your recovery and please keep us posted.

Dale

[Maria]

Welcome to the forum!
I met Dr.Coufal back in 2006 when the State of CA.appointed him to be my 2nd surgical opinion thru WC and Mark accompanied me to this super important visit re WC.

I too thought Dr.Coufal really nice and very thorough. Mark hit it off with him and I actually feel like this appointment totally went in my favor and largely thanks to Mark ~ and this was really one of the most important recent WC decisions that could be made for me.

While the decision rendered was for a hybrid surgery with fusion at L5S1 and ADR at L4 I was hesitant as I had suffered a failed surgery back in '92 that left me much much worse than I was before the surgery so I've long been scared off of more surgery.

However in the hands of a most excellent surgeon and I do believe that Dr.Coufal is one of them perhaps I might have had a very good chance at excellence with surgery/recovery.

Well, I still have time for more surgeries if the spine still warrents it.. so never say never.

Back to you~ wishing you the absolute best with recovery and take it slow and steady as mentioned and bombs away!!! Hope you do wonderfully!!!

[grantwb1]

Well I am finally home and on the couch as I write this. I did not get to speak with the doc today. I always like the assurance of speaking with him. Making it home was quite a journey. Thank God that I have family helping me, the first surgery i had no idea how disabled I was going to be. I still have only been to one doctor that has actually conveyed to me how bad this was really going to be. I really think that these docs have really taken the cliche its all relative and ran with it when they tell you the effects and the possible outcomes. I almost jumped at one doctor cause the answers he was giving me were just so much more negative that what the rest of the other docs I had seen were saying. This is one of those areas where I really used Mark almost endlessly. He really did help me fish through all the bullshit some of these money collecting doctors were saying.
Well I am waking up really stiff. some meds coffee and a small stroll takes care of that though(not completely). I am now in the all day hunt in trying to find the best resting/sitting/tv/video game position I can find. Man there are a lot of variables to adjust back there to make happy, and ooohhh weee let me tell you that if you twitch wrong it almost feels like you just had a major muscle group removed instantly. The most difficult thing for me is the nerves supposedly waking back up. Well how do I make them filet mignon and eggs with cinnamon rolls? WOW this can eat your brain with the thoughts of what did I do or Is that permanent, or is this going to stay like this and then get worse?!!!!!!!?!!!?!! The doc opened me up quite a bit so I am tryiny to fight off the the tyrannosaurus of runaway paranoia. I am having a pulling nerve pain on the outside back part of my thigh that was not there pre op right now that I am going to ask the doc about. It only happens when I am moving strangely to try and not move the way I am not supposed to

I am now on just oral meds and will call the pain doc first thing Monday morning to re-access. I thought I hated moving up on meds, lol they asked me to move down and I am still cussing them about it. I really wish I could carry around 5 minutes of my pain in pills, would probably get a lot more communicated but would also probably have to carry around diapers and tissue paper for the babies!!!!!!

[dshobbies]

Hey Grant, give yourself a break. After 5 days out, you want to decrease your meds???? The best thing you can do for yourself right now is to stay comfortable. Your recovery is in the infancy stage and you have quite a long way to go. This is not a 6 week and you're good to go surgery Give yourself the time to get there and you'll be grateful. Trying to deal with the pain serves no purpose.

Take the drugs, be grateful for them and try not to be impatient. This can take more time than you're willing to give it which will only create more anxiety. Try to relax.

Be sure to tell you pm doctor everything you're experiencing and try to be open to the recommended drugs.

Dale

[grantwb1]

No, Dale I am not wanting to decrease on my meds. I am still wondering why they first take me off IV meds after two days, then at five days the doctor is sending me home on about the same amount of meds as the day I went in the hospital. I do not understand this. Honestly I am going to have to listen to my PM doc cause she really has taken wonderful care of me for the last year. I was able to work the whole time up to surgery.

Here is a questions for the vets, they gave me these compression leggings that seem to be like wearing steel wool jock strap. They are cold always and do not dry and itch like a MF. Are there any alternatives or remedies to help with these sheeths from hell???? Please help?!?!

[Maria]

Grant,
RE post surgery I wish I had a forum such as this or any other to have posted on because many of my feelngs were exactly what you've written.. Vent away man because what you're saying is totally understood.

Re the compression stockings it sounds like the nerves invovled are really feeling beat up by the pressure or at least feel that way. Have you put in a call to your doctor to let him know how the legs feel w/the stockings on?

I realize what they are for and trying to prevent however torturous they may be tho just want to make sure that your surgeon is aware of your level of discomfort and response to the pressure.

I didn't wear compression stockings long post op first surgery or at all for 2nd so back to the Vet's who has fusion and can tell you all about it.

Wishing you the best even tho it's slo go re recovery here's hoping it gets better soon!

[mmglobal]

Grant, I have some important advice for you....

You'd best be practicing your fade away... nobody drives on me...

(At least not 30 years ago... before you were alive!)

Practice up buddy...

Mark

[grantwb1]

Ok day 7, .... oh how I wish it would come out easy!! Taking a pooh is like gettysburg to the civil war. I am stopped up pretty good, and all I can do is eat these little pills that are not working very well at all, then I can try the wax bullet(these were made as a practical joke). Ohhh ohhh then if that doesn't work I get to use these baby seal feeder bottles and shove one in my bum ,and get this put something more in my bum. This is just getting better as I go along. I got some fools water in my bum and it is making me feel like a twelve pack of corona'a has found the wrong exit and doesn't care... well I decided not to argue. Just the corona though, oh wait a minute..... what felt big just a pebble. Here is where the fools water is going to start coming into play. I really feel that if i push hard enough that there is something worth fighting for. So I endure two people pulling me in half for a while thinking this pain is worth it, really should pooing ever hurt this bad. That fools water keeps saying almost there mean while i am just crying cause it hurts so much and that is it. I had to give up on finishing my pooh! I am hoping that the gods smile on me and this is easier tomorrow, it doesn't hurt i have doubled up on all the pooh meds. I have not had trouble pooh this entire last year I was suffering.

Well I am now having some nerve differences that I have read other people have post op from fusion. I am still really worried about them. The main one right now seems to be on my left leg on the outside of my calf then follows up the back outside half of my thigh. My mother was putting some dressig on the wound and I found that if you press on the wound. I guess I am hoping someone can say oh ya that sounds like mine and that it goes away soon,

So far so good, if you are rootin for me thank you! This was defiantly the most difficult decision that I have ever had to make. Now with each new pain in my legs or back I am reminded just how close I am to utter agony.They really can be little panic attacks. I really do feel from the way the muscle tissue loosing up a lot faster than my first surgery that I had a surgeon that is just that damn good and cared. My back feels solid and my legs don't feel mega presure on them. Now with the Surgeon doing that good of a job hopefully I will not ruin his work by twisting or bending wrong.

If I lay on the bed flat on my back it presses on the bandageand I can feel it in my left leg.... is this normal. Is there anything I would be able to feel now that will definantly be a permanent problem??

Well it is too late and I am falling asleep writing this...... you up Mark???
I will reedit this tomorrow, I WISH ALL SPINY'S THE BEST

G

[kelly from ontario]

just an old remedy a pediatric doctor used to recommend
try 1/2 glass gingerale with 1/2 glass prune juice.add tablespoon brown sugar.put in lots of ice and stir.should get results in 12 hours.u get to like it after drinking daily for a while.hope it helps kelly