Going under the knife...

[Gman]

I'm hoping to break out of the hospital today.

[cableguy11]

I think we need a "COAR-15 Gimpy Old Bastards Club". At least hats or sumpthin'......

Put me down for one!!

Hope you get out today Gman! I was only in for a couple of hours thank god, and it was driving me nuts. Probably had to do with me being there due to complications and kind of ruined my day!

[Great-Kazoo]

I think we need a "COAR-15 Gimpy Old Bastards Club". At least hats or sumpthin'......

I have a doctors note.

[Gman]

Just a quick update:

I was able to escape the hospital on Sat. Lots of pain in the surgical area and numbness in my feet and legs. I have to use a walker to get around the house. I had a pretty positive recovery day yesterday and was up and moving quite a bit. Having a rough day of it today. It sure would be comforting to get the feeling back in my legs and feet since I didn't have this issue prior to surgery.

[cableguy11]

Just a quick update:

I was able to escape the hospital on Sat. Lots of pain in the surgical area and numbness in my feet and legs. I have to use a walker to get around the house. I had a pretty positive recovery day yesterday and was up and moving quite a bit. Having a rough day of it today. It sure would be comforting to get the feeling back in my legs and feet since I didn't have this issue prior to surgery.

Don't push it too much, you can over do it no matter how good you feel. Sunday, I was just chilling with the wife in the living room and next thing I know my bandage is saturated with fluid! Had to go in on Monday and have them re-do the darn thing. I hope you get the feeling back in your legs and feet ASAP! Keeping everyone in the prayers!

[Gman]

The surgeon had put in a drain, which is why I had the extra day in the hospital. Sounds like you had some drainage on Sunday.

I slept really deeply last night. Today things feel 'different'. I'm having some weird pains shooting down my right leg every so often. I'm getting the impression that the nerves are healing.

Thanks for the encouragement and you hang in there cableguy. You're in our prayers.

[cableguy11]

The surgeon had put in a drain, which is why I had the extra day in the hospital. Sounds like you had some drainage on Sunday.

I slept really deeply last night. Today things feel 'different'. I'm having some weird pains shooting down my right leg every so often. I'm getting the impression that the nerves are healing.

Thanks for the encouragement and you hang in there cableguy. You're in our prayers.

Yep, had a drain since they opened me back up. Hopefully it comes out tomorrow! I feel ya, those pains move around and feel weird as heck. I have a pain that feels like a bruise that moves around on me, but no bruise. Its amazing how the human body heals itself. The technology today is something else too. Stay strong and thanks for the prayers!!

[roberth]

Thanks for updates guys.

Hang in there.

[Gman]

Good luck and best wishes. I'll want to hear about your experiences as I'm contemplating lumbar fusion and laminectomy.

Make sure that you've done your research in selecting a neurosurgeon. Don't settle for someone that is too busy to give you the attention that you deserve.

Just a heads-up, but depending on severity, it really is a process. I've never had something this disabling in my life before. I could usually just 'tough it out'. I get glimpses that I'm healing, but it's not something you just power through. This is something that just takes time, so try to focus on the positives and don't push yourself beyond what your Dr. expects from you.

In hind-sight, I wish I'd have known that I'd be dependent on a walker just getting around the house. I would have re-arranged some things in the bedroom while I could. You might want to have a conversation with your doc to understand the potential circumstances around your recovery. My pain and leg weakness issues ramped up really quickly, so the urgency to get me in for surgery had a pretty short time-line.

I wish you the best in getting some relief!

[Hummer]

Gman, thanks for the update and the advice. You're at 10 days which I imagine is early to expect any reduction in pain or increased mobility. I don't know what all the recovery process involves but my doc said it would be ten months to a full year. And I'd be restricted to lifting no more than 10 lbs. during that time. Taking a year out of my active, hard working life seems to be a crazy thing to enter into voluntarily. Even with the continuous pain and leg burning. I've had it for 35 years and it's getting worse. Your experience is very sobering but it's also what I've imagined and feared. Do I take the chance of 15% serious complications, permanent disability or death at age 65, or should I wait until 70 when healing will be harder?

I'd like input from others who've gone through this and are now at one, two and three years after. I want to know about their resulting abilities, range of motion, conditioning and strength. I'm no Seal but have always been a tough hard working guy and have engaged physical life adventures with zeal. I'm reluctant to give that up. The past two days I've been wading the river with a chain saw to remove some very large spruce trees that had fallen across. Tomorrow i work on the roof. They're some of those things I can't do in recovery, and maybe never again.