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  • #1

    Log Rolling

    I keep hearing so much about log rolling in and out of bed after surgery. For those of you who are post-op and especially with long fusions, is this something that you have to do for the rest of your life or just while recovering from surgery? I came across an article that shows an illustration and it appears that once you're in bed, you just lay there like a door mat. Please tell me this is not so. I am a very restless sleeper and find myself waking up throughout the night with my body twisted in various positions. As a matter of fact, my favorite sleeping position is to curl up in a ball like a cat. I'm extremely flexible now, i.e. when bending forward to touch my toes, I can place the palms of my hands on the floor. I just can't imagine having to lay in bed like a corpse while sleeping for the rest of my life.

    I welcome any comments.

    Chris
    Tags: None
  • #2
    hi chris

    i had a long fusion and at first you do have to do the log roll but now ( 4month post op ) i have not needed to log roll for ages so dont worry about that. and i was extreemly flexible b4 too. i could pull my leg straight up past my ear and alsorts but i can still curl up like a cat, but not aswell as i used to.

    hope this helps xxx fay
    Fay... curves of 50* and 55* now 16 * after op.

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    • #3
      Hi Chris...

      I've never heard a recommendation from a doctor one way or the other. However, log rolling refers to moving yourself in bed, not in how you lie, so I don't think you need to worry about that. At almost 14 years post op, I still log roll, and I still get in and out of the bed the way I was taught in the hospital. It puts a lot less stress on my spine.

      Regards,
      Linda
      Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
      ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
      Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

      Comment

      • #4
        Hi Chris,
        I'm the same as Linda.. I still Log roll out of bed in the morning...just habit now, I guess! I will say I still sleep on my back & really don't move to any other position thru the night since surgery. I'm still a bit numb on my left side so I sleep on my back. I never ever was a back sleeper, always stomach & side.....guess I changed for now....
        you'll be fine with the log rolling...they teach you well! you do what ya gotta do!-- Ly

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        • #5
          Same here

          I stopped log rolling after the first three months of my first surgery, and notice that it did stress my spine, and so ever since my rod broke, and even now 1 year post revision, I log roll b/c it's so EASY on the spine.

          I can sleep on the side, just not as curled up as before, but I did for years after my first surgery, it was not a problem. Now I just do what feels better for my back, just like bending with my knees instead of hips, no big deal.

          Btw, just heard that sleeping on the back does wonders for skin and circulation.
          35 y/old female from Montreal, Canada
          Diagnosed with scoliosis(double major) at age 12, wore Boston brace 4 years at least 23 hours a day-curve progressed
          Surgery age 26 for 60 degree curve in Oct. 1997 by Dr.Max Aebi-fused T5 to L2
          Surgery age 28 for a hook removal in Feb. 1999 by Dr.Max Aebi-pain free for 5 years
          Surgery age 34 in Dec.2005 for broken rod replacement, bigger screws and crosslinks added and pseudarthrosis(non union) by Dr. Jean Ouellet

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          • #6
            I don't really think about how I get in and out of bed but I am also a very restless sleeper. I cannot sleep on my bak, I never did. I wake up on my stomach sometimes in the morning, that used to be my favoriye position. If I do wake up on my stomach I am a lot siffer in the morning but it goes away once I am up and around. Sorry it sounds like I am rambling. As far as flexibility goes I started doing pilates this week and it feels great. I still can't do the mat work but I do all the standing stuff. I am great at squatting!
            surgery 9/06
            Rothman institute

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            • #7
              ditto to what Linda said...that is my prefered method of changing from a lying down position to a sitting position, especially from the floor, although I can sit up just using my abs, but it feels strained and akward.
              However, I do not have any trouble changing positions in bed, or maybe I'm just used to my adjustments, but I am a restless sleeper and change from side to side and from stomach and back through out the night.
              Harrington Rods in 1991 at age 15
              Surgery at Scottish Rite in Dallas, TX
              Fused from T-4 to L-3

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              • #8
                It's been 1 month post-op for me, and I can't do anything else but "roll" out of bed and sleep on my back... I've grown used to sleeping on my back since I have no other option but to sleep on my back. (If I try to sleep on my side, I feel a tremendous amount of pain...) I also find sleeping with pillows underneath my feet help.

                Before surgery, I suppose I was a restless sleeper and would assume any and every weird position. I'm also the type of person that likes to cuddle and hold a person in my arms while sleeping (meaning my body's kind of twisted when I did this)...

                Will I be able to sleep in positions as I did pre-op and continue to cuddle and sleep with my significant other in my arms after recovery?
                Sandy
                23 year old female, Analyst, Maryland
                Diagnosed with scoliosis at age 11; wore the same brace for 3 years and never saw a doctor again until age 23
                65 degree curve reduced to 28 degree after surgery
                Posterior spinal fusion (T-2 to L-2) with segmental instrumentation and iliac crest graft surgery, December 4, 2006
                Dr. John Stinson, The Orthopaedic Center, Rockville, Maryland

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                • #9
                  The article perfectly describes me in bed right now! I am at 3 months and once in bed basically can't move. I hate it. I was always a side sleeper. A couple times I tried sleeping on my side and I hurt for several days.

                  Right now I sleep in my remote controlled lazyboy chair. When I need to move, I use the remote.

                  My fusion is very long....T2 to S1. I am glad to hear that most of you aren't as stiff as me.....it gives me hope that I will get better one day.

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    Hi Chris, Don't worry about this.

                    Like Linda said, the log rolling is just the way you get into and out of bed and turn from side to side after surgery. You use the strength of your arms and legs instead of the back muscles--which are too weak to use.

                    I slept on my sides after surgery in the hospital. I had a plastic hard shell brace which helped me log roll just fine by supporting everything. If I got stiff on one side, I rolled over to the other side. The only time I lay on my back was when I was awake--as I can't sleep that way.

                    Now that I am at home and 5 1/2 months post-op, I do still get in and out of beds and couches by lying on the side like they teach you, then using your arms and legs to roll. It is not a hard adaptation. I can lie on my stomach if I want, but still hard to roll back over. I can feel the back and side muscles gradually getting stronger, but you still don't want to over stress them. I have a long fusion--T5 to L5. It is all worth it, though.

                    Deb

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                    • #11
                      Log rolling is all I've known really since my first surgery in 1989. I've never been able to sit straight up in bed from lying down comfortably. Now, with the additional fusion to L5 from T4, I will keep transfering with the log roll probably well after I've healed. I don't move around yet while I'm sleeping. I used to be a side-sleeper, but since the nerve pain post-op I haven't been able to sleep on my side until recently, and only for short periods of time. I'm having a tough time sleeping on my back though lately - I wake up from intense pressure on my back (upper back too - not the lower back where my latest surgery was). Any ideas what causes that? I have rarely slept through the night these last few weeks.
                      Cena
                      Nov. 2006 - revision surgery
                      Aug. 1992 - revision surgery for hook removal and pseudoarthrosis
                      July 1989 - Cortrell Doubosett procedure - two rods and fusion T4-L4 (age 13)

                      Comment

                      • #12
                        For the longest time I was only able to sleep on my back. And log roll out of bed, but things can change.

                        I remember the first time I tried to sleep on my side, which I was a side sleeper, and it took time to build up to it. I think it takes time to build up to everything.

                        I just tried to remember that my body had just been rearranged, and everything that I attempted to do was new to it. It takes time but you eventually come to where and what you are comfortable with.

                        My biggest problem was when I was having a good day I would do way too much, and then suffer from that. In more than one way it's a balancing act!!!

                        Shari

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                        • #13
                          shari & all,
                          I worked cleaning up my living room after the Christmas holiday yesterday......I woke up sooo stiff on my incision side this morning! I guess I figured by 5 mos., I was back to normal.....You learn the hard way sometimes, that the doctors mean it when they say 6 mos to a year recovery...at least at my age (soon to be 47..)
                          I still am sleeping on my back & really don't move much at all.. I think I'm still subconsciously afraid of going on my side or back at this stage....Ly

                          fused T-11 to L-5 Aug 1st
                          http://lynnebackattack.blogspot.com
                          Last edited by lelc2002@yahoo; 01-10-2007, 07:40 AM.

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                          • #14
                            pillows!!!!
                            I sleep with a ton of them! When in the hospital, they had me sleep on my side with a pillow behind my back for extra support. For a year or so after during recover, I did the same at home, and moved my bed by the wall and would place the pillow between me and the wall for some support. I use different sizes and firmnesses for different comforts. Also, one between my legs helps with my hip alignment.
                            Harrington Rods in 1991 at age 15
                            Surgery at Scottish Rite in Dallas, TX
                            Fused from T-4 to L-3

                            Comment

                            • #15
                              Thanks for all your replies.

                              Marcia: I hope you're getting stronger with each passing day. We're the same age, and it looks like I'll require a long fusion too, so I guess I'll be laying there like a stiff as well...hopefully I'll still be breathing.

                              Chris

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