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Hello everyone,
I haven't been on here as much since things have been going well in my recovery, but I thought I'd stop by and provide an update for those who are less far out or are considering having surgery:
Overall I'm very happy that I had the surgery because the pain I was in before is gone and the surgery-related aches are finally diminishing. I feel like it took longer for me to recover since I'm under 40 and was in good shape going in to this, but the ordeal has taught me a huge amount of patience. At my 1-year checkup, Dr Rand removed all restrictions so there's a few things I'm looking forward to doing e.g. ride a bike outside (if we ever finish winter), lift weights and regain strength/endurance since I'm nowhere near back to pre-surgery levels. Anyhow, good luck to anyone planning to undergo surgery and hang in there to those who are still healing...
aileen
I haven't been on here as much since things have been going well in my recovery, but I thought I'd stop by and provide an update for those who are less far out or are considering having surgery:
- I had 20 hours of surgery (2 x 10hr operations, fused to T3 to sacrum) and was off work for 5 months.
- Recovery for me felt like long plateaus, with unpredictable steps up in improvement. They seem to have occurred every 1.5 months and were marked by a step down in pain and/or increase in movement.
- I had my biggest improvement around the 10 month point and it seems to be accelerating since then. My movement started to get much better and mentally I felt a lot clearer, as if I were really waking up.
- I've stayed active throughout the recovery period, starting with outdoor and pool walking, then graduating to swimming, elliptical and stationary bike. I added the treadmill around the 9 month point when it got too cold and snowy (I live in the Boston area and we have plenty of winter).
- I did PT from about 6 months until 10 months post-op. I found it helpful to have someone teach me how to move with my new spine.
- I was able to return to the ballet-style barre classes (Bar Method) at 11 months. I need to do a fair number of modifications, particularly for the abs section, but it's been a great full-body workout. At the 1-year point I was able to do my first plank on my elbows - I couldn't hold it for long but I did it long enough to admire my surgeon's handiwork. Dr. Rand gave me a kickass spine!
- I took my first flight at 11.5 months - 4 hrs direct to Puerto Rico. Was very happy to go through the imaging scanners and I felt fine on the plane, though I was perhaps a bit stiffer/slightly sore the next day.
- I also caught my first cold at the end of the trip and have been coughing pretty hard for 2 weeks. I'm thankful that it happened now and not 2 months ago because I can't imagine being in pain and coughing - now it's just uncomfortable. It's around this time that I stopped taking daily Aleve.
Overall I'm very happy that I had the surgery because the pain I was in before is gone and the surgery-related aches are finally diminishing. I feel like it took longer for me to recover since I'm under 40 and was in good shape going in to this, but the ordeal has taught me a huge amount of patience. At my 1-year checkup, Dr Rand removed all restrictions so there's a few things I'm looking forward to doing e.g. ride a bike outside (if we ever finish winter), lift weights and regain strength/endurance since I'm nowhere near back to pre-surgery levels. Anyhow, good luck to anyone planning to undergo surgery and hang in there to those who are still healing...
aileen
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