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"I dropped it"... how long after surgery were you (finally) able to pick it up?

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  • "I dropped it"... how long after surgery were you (finally) able to pick it up?

    If I drop a coin, I leave it. (What can one buy with a coin these days?) If I drop a dollar bill I'm likely to consider leaving it as a donation to whoever follows in my footsteps. A $20 bill will encourage me to drop to both knees so that I can pick it up. I'm curious: at what time in your recovery were you able to pick things up from the floor without "taking a knee"?

    (T4-S1 with pelvic fixation)

  • #2
    After 6years, I still go down on my knees to pick up small things from the ground. Including dollar bills and car keys..
    T10-pelvis fusion 12/08
    C5,6,7 fusion 9/10
    T2--T10 fusion 2/11
    C 4-5 fusion 11/14
    Right scapulectomy 6/15
    Right pectoralis major muscle transfer to scapula
    To replace the action of Serratus Anterior muscle 3/16
    Broken neck 9/28/2018
    Emergency surgery posterior fusion C4- T3
    Repeated 11/2018 because rods pulled apart added T2 fusion
    Removal of partial right thoracic hardware 1/2020
    Removal and replacement of C4-T10 hardware with C7 and T 1
    Osteotomy

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by jackieg412 View Post
      After 6years, I still go down on my knees to pick up small things from the ground. Including dollar bills and car keys..
      I guess that means I should invest in a pair of stylish, fashionable, comfortable knee pads... oh, well.

      Comment


      • #4
        Time to stretch

        Originally posted by mkatz View Post
        I guess that means I should invest in a pair of stylish, fashionable, comfortable knee pads... oh, well.
        I'm fused T9-sacrum w/ pelvic fixation and am one year out. I frequently will "take a knee" but am finding that I am doing it a bit less often as I continue to work on stretching my quads. Giving yourself a greater range of motion in your legs is a big plus. I recommend buying a stretching strap (Amazon and sporting goods stores sell them) and using it as part of your workout routine.

        Risë

        Comment


        • #5
          Don't remember when, may be a year out. I squat, lean forward and pick things off the floor. Strong quads help.
          I am stronger than scoliosis, and won't let it rule my life!
          45 years old - diagnosed at age 7
          A/P surgery on March 5/7, 2013 - UCSF

          Comment


          • #6
            Mark, Why is everyone dropping cash? Wow! I can come up and help with that problem. I know, I can quit my job, go hang out at UCSF and dive for all that cash that the scoli patients drop. If I’m lucky, I wont tackle the statue of Hippocrates that’s out on the front lawn. If I get hurt, I’m there. Double bonus. (smiley face)

            I started squatting with vertical spine when I ran out of dishes. It’s the only way to get down to unload a dishwasher. If your single in recovery its squat or starve.
            ,
            If I say 2 weeks, the ladies will cringe...(Cheech and Chong kitchen sink)

            I think it was around 10 days post.

            Its probably time to start stretching. Do this slowly......soft tissue injuries hurt like hell.... I did it with a stool, one foot up, hanging my arms down reaching for the shoelaces....no pulling down, no resistance, no weights in the beginning. Establish range of motion first......Just a few reps on each in the very beginning.....this is a slow process....8-12 months post.

            Arm bike is a good thing. Pedal with no resistance. This helps toughen the soft tissues running over the upper and mid thoracic screw heads. Start slow.....You can emulate without the machine and graduate to soup cans. I did this from 8-12 months post. 3 minutes forward, 3 minutes backward increasing to 10 minutes after 2 months.

            Ed
            49 yr old male, now 63, the new 64...
            Pre surgery curves T70,L70
            ALIF/PSA T2-Pelvis 01/29/08, 01/31/08 7" pelvic anchors BMP
            Dr Brett Menmuir St Marys Hospital Reno,Nevada

            Bending and twisting pics after full fusion
            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/showt...on.&highlight=

            My x-rays
            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...2&d=1228779214

            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...3&d=1228779258

            Comment


            • #7
              Mark: Call me when you are going on your walks in NW Portland and I will follow you in my wheelchair/crutches and pick up your unwanted bills or Susan B Anthony dollars.

              Susan.....retirement doesn't cover everything! Lost Cash accepted!
              Adult Onset Degen Scoliosis @65, 25* T & 36* L w/ 11.2 cm coronal balance; T kyphosis 90*; Sev disc degen T & L stenosis

              2013: T3- S1 Fusion w/ ALIF L4-S1/XLIF L2-4, PSF T4-S1 2 surgeries
              2014: Hernia @ ALIF repaired; Emergency screw removal SCI T4,5 sec to PJK
              2015: Rev Broken Bil T & L rods and no fusion: 2 revision surgeries; hardware P. Acnes infection
              2016: Ant/Lat Lumbar diskectomy w/ 4 cages + BMP + harvested bone
              2018: Removal L4,5 screw
              2021: Removal T1 screw & rod

              Comment


              • #8
                You guys crack me up... this has been so entertaining! Mark just needs some lessons on how to hold onto his money - ha ha ha. (BIG SMILE). Or he can send it to any number of us instead... I still go for the old "oh look, a lucky penny" ruse when I see one. Some of us are penny pinchers. A dollar, and you leave it? I'm with Susan C-- I would come follow you around if I lived closer.

                Alternate ways include the golfer's reach (how they bend over to get the ball out of the cup-- they let one leg go up in the air a bit, but you might need to practice that. I really can't manage unless I have a little something to hang onto, but maybe you wouldn't.) And I do what I call my old lady squat which works fine for me even though I look a bit like an idiot. Heh heh. I just need a kind of wide stance and squat down. Otherwise when I squat it's not as easy to get back up. I do that quite easily. But I'm at the 8 year mark. Best wishes. You'll get there. And I used to carry a reacher in my van... I was afraid I would drop my keys or something (thinking of everything, right?) But then thought what if I'd already locked my van? So many problems to consider. Where I shop is 40 minutes from where I live in the boonies. Yes, of course I would have asked for help. (Smile)
                71 and plugging along... but having some problems
                2007 52° w/ severe lumbar stenosis & L2L3 lateral listhesis (side shift)
                5/4/07 posterior fusion T2-L4 w/ laminectomies and osteotomies @L2L3, L3L4
                Dr. Kim Hammerberg, Rush Univ. Medical Center in Chicago

                Corrected to 15°
                CMT (type 2) DX in 2014, progressing
                10/2018 x-rays - spondylolisthesis at L4/L5 - Dr. DeWald is monitoring

                Click to view my pics: pics of scoli x-rays digital x-rays, and pics of me

                Comment


                • #9
                  Funny comments!

                  About 3 months after surgery, I used a vending machine. The change tray was way too low to reach and I didn't have anyone with me. I saw a little boy nearby & showed him where he could 'find' some treasure!

                  I leave coins on the ground, but I've dropped coupons & scooted them with my foot until I found someone to pick them up.
                  I carry grabbers & also worry about dropping my keys with the grabbers locked inside my car!

                  I hope to tie my shoes - someday (or year)!
                  Peg
                  61 yrs old
                  75 degree lumbar curve with thoracic kyphosis
                  T3 - S1 surgery with Dr. Buchowski in St. Louis, on 10/27/14
                  Working on healing in Columbus, Ohio!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    What a nice array of suggestions; I appreciate them all. I will try each one. Thank you!

                    At the moment I'm a bit discouraged because of an increase in pain severity and somewhat diminished endurance evident over the course of the last couple of weeks; I'd been doing so well in terms of pain reduction and endurance increase that I was taken by surprise. I'm forced to wonder if the pain is "simply" soft tissue strain from "overdoing it" or if it is indicative of something worse.

                    My "one year" followup with my surgeon is scheduled to occur next month. My hope is that my recent "steps backward" are temporary and that my surgeon will find reason to be encouraging about the status and maturation of my fusion. Yes, this last year has been a bit more "interesting" than I had anticipated.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Mark- let us know how your appointment goes. I was always anxious about mine, but they were always fine. (So far!) Ha ha! I have discovered in my 8 years post-op that this recovery thing is a bit of a roller coaster ride, with its ups and downs. Hence, that is why I have worried at times when I went in for my check-ups. You are probably correct in assuming you overdid and are paying the consequences. Just read the signals your body is sending you and back off, which I'm sure you have. Best wishes.

                      Peggy- I just this year got my first pair of tie shoes. How exciting! I have to set my foot up on a chair. Unfortunately, I discovered the hard way to make sure it was a sturdy chair, as one time it wasn't and the chair and I both toppled over. Not good. I am still suffering from that one. (That's one of those times when I wonder if my next appointment will show something went wrong... plus I really banged my head.) But I am excited to have lace up tennies. (big smile) I fell two times on our big 7700 mile trip also. Got a terrible bruise on my chin getting out of a footed tub, thinking I could use this chair (never trust a chair) as a support since there wasn't anything else to hold on to and a big change in height distance. Before that I fell trying to get into a 12 passenger van while we were working at a mission in Arizona. My legs just weren't strong enough to pull me up. My CMT kicking in. Battered and bruised. Plus it was with a big group of people so I felt foolish. I got to ride shotgun the rest of the time there... My shin is still bruised six weeks later. Oh well. I just have balance and weakness issues. That's life.
                      Last edited by Susie*Bee; 07-11-2015, 07:40 AM.
                      71 and plugging along... but having some problems
                      2007 52° w/ severe lumbar stenosis & L2L3 lateral listhesis (side shift)
                      5/4/07 posterior fusion T2-L4 w/ laminectomies and osteotomies @L2L3, L3L4
                      Dr. Kim Hammerberg, Rush Univ. Medical Center in Chicago

                      Corrected to 15°
                      CMT (type 2) DX in 2014, progressing
                      10/2018 x-rays - spondylolisthesis at L4/L5 - Dr. DeWald is monitoring

                      Click to view my pics: pics of scoli x-rays digital x-rays, and pics of me

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        I remember going through an express lane at the grocery store and unknowingly had the zipper of the coin section unzipped and coins rolled everywhere. At that early time in my recovery, I had not even attempted to go down on one knee. I explained my predicament to the cashier who kindly walked around and picked up the coins. Meanwhile, a line was forming behind me. I should have just said, "Help yourself" and walked out as quickly as possible. I am sure the people in line couldn't believe that I wasn't at least helping the cashier.
                        Karen

                        Surgery-Jan. 5, 2011-Dr. Lenke
                        Fusion T-4-sacrum-2 cages/5 osteotomies
                        70 degree thoracolumbar corrected to 25
                        Rib Hump-GONE!
                        Age-60 at the time of surgery
                        Now 66
                        Avid Golfer & Tap Dancer
                        Retired Kdgn. Teacher

                        See photobucket link for:
                        Video of my 1st Day of Golf Post-Op-3/02/12-Bradenton, FL
                        Before and After Picture of back 1/7/11
                        tap dancing picture at 10 mos. post op 11/11/11-I'm the one on the right.
                        http://s1119.photobucket.com/albums/k630/pottoff2/

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Doesn't anybody make grabbers with a telescopic stick? I'm still early (three months) but the grabbers I have stationed all over the house can pick up everything including a dime. Including a half of a teeny little Oxy. I thought for sure I'd be carrying grabbers in my purse. Also, I'm wondering how to get socks on come winter...I don't care about tie shoes I wear clogs and slip ons but it gets cold up in these parts (blech) and my classroom heat is negligible. I've planned ahead for months before surgery and I'm already planning for fall. Any thoughts? Also, my pelvis still gives me grief...it's the only thing bothering me. Sitting is still annoying, how much longer???
                          Cathy
                          2 sons, one Syracuse University graduate (working for the Mets now), one college sophomore, one great husband and two fabulous cats
                          54 years old March 5
                          AIS 45 degrees Thoracic at 14, Milwaukee brace for one year in 1977 then in 2012 I found Dr. Baron Lonner ❤️
                          Surgery April 8 2015
                          Presurgical curves T77 L66
                          Post surgical T27 L22
                          Fused T3-S1 pelvic fixation, osteotomies and all the other stuff but you know what? It's done...

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by mkatz View Post
                            What a nice array of suggestions; I appreciate them all. I will try each one. Thank you!
                            Wait on diving for $20 bills, that comes later....(smiley face)

                            I have always thought of my second year of my recovery as my “fine tuning” year, and that was all about soft tissues. (stretching and re-building) Getting back on skis was not an easy thing. I just couldn’t keep up with all my skiing buddies and couldn’t handle the G forces.....It was bothering the heck out of me. My skiing friends ALSO wouldn’t take no for an answer and would show up on my doorstep early in the morning. They are much younger and energetic. Eager young minds, eager young bodies......(smiley face) Hang out with the teenagers and you will think younger......It works.....This mentality is beneficial. Our mental states play a HUGE part.

                            Pains and bear traps in the thoracic continued.....and I kept on. Even had a painful L4 soft tissue pain “event” at 22 months that sent me to my surgeon.....Adult recovery is a slow process.....

                            We are just like sharks that cant stop. We have to keep moving. My surgeon warned me about a sedentary lifestyle.....it was a stern warning.

                            Try not to think about non-unions.....Your beyond this.....

                            See-saw recoveries are the norm.

                            Keep smiling, its important!

                            Ed
                            49 yr old male, now 63, the new 64...
                            Pre surgery curves T70,L70
                            ALIF/PSA T2-Pelvis 01/29/08, 01/31/08 7" pelvic anchors BMP
                            Dr Brett Menmuir St Marys Hospital Reno,Nevada

                            Bending and twisting pics after full fusion
                            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/showt...on.&highlight=

                            My x-rays
                            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...2&d=1228779214

                            http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...3&d=1228779258

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Cathy,
                              My surgery was in January and it was bitter cold so I needed socks. I had a sock aide that was included in a spine kit that I bought at my Dr.'s office. I probably used it for 6 months. It was a "piece of cake." You fit the sock over the curved plastic and hold on to two ropes on the sides and pull it on. It was fast and simple to use.
                              Karen

                              Surgery-Jan. 5, 2011-Dr. Lenke
                              Fusion T-4-sacrum-2 cages/5 osteotomies
                              70 degree thoracolumbar corrected to 25
                              Rib Hump-GONE!
                              Age-60 at the time of surgery
                              Now 66
                              Avid Golfer & Tap Dancer
                              Retired Kdgn. Teacher

                              See photobucket link for:
                              Video of my 1st Day of Golf Post-Op-3/02/12-Bradenton, FL
                              Before and After Picture of back 1/7/11
                              tap dancing picture at 10 mos. post op 11/11/11-I'm the one on the right.
                              http://s1119.photobucket.com/albums/k630/pottoff2/

                              Comment

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