Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Question for parents whose child had the surgery

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Question for parents whose child had the surgery

    Hi everyone,

    I'm new to this forum and glad I found it! I'm hoping some of the parents whose child has already had surgery can offer some advice.

    My 13 year old daughter will be having spinal reconstruction and fusion surgery with Dr. Pashman at Cedars-Sinai on June 25. Her curves are 15* cervical, 53* thoracic, and 45* lumbar.

    I am getting more anxious as the day draws nearer. I'd appreciate any insight regarding how much time you took off work to take care of your child after the hospital stay? My employer will be very flexible with me, but I am not sure what to expect.... 2 weeks? 2 months?

    One more question I have is if you used and recommend any home medical devices such as an elevated toilet seat, shower chair, etc.? Did you have to help your child get in and out of bed? Any tips for how to set up our house to make things easier after the surgery are greatly appreciated.

    Thank you and best wishes to you all.

  • #2
    Hello! For my son's surgery, I was glad we had a shower chair and the raised toilet seat waiting at home for us. The toilet seat went away after about a week, but he continued to use the shower chair for several weeks, even after he was able to stand in the shower he liked knowing it was there in case he needed to sit. (the first few days his dad had to help him in the shower) A hand held shower sprayer is a good idea, too. You'll want to have a place next to the bed to keep things on, too, and for the most part they teach them how to log roll out of the bed on their own. One of those grabber things was handy, too.

    The first week or so at home he needed alot of help as he wasn't able to move on his own in the bed to get comfortable, to adjust the pillows, etc. A body pillow was a godsend! He slept alot during that time, on and off, and didn't eat a whole lot either. I think I did alot of hovering at least the first 2 weeks, although we got our routine down in about a week. My husband had gone back to work after he was home a few days, and I kind of slept when my son did. There were some hard nights but I would do it all again in a heartbeat, and so would my son.

    We are just over 10 months post op now and while he still has restrictions, I just marvel every day that my child is up and walking and basically back to being a normal teenager.

    I hope I've helped! If you have any questions just message me and I'd be happy to answer!
    Laurie
    mom to Josh age 15, double curves 77T/55L Posterior spinal fusion done at age 13 on July 10, 2006 from T2 - L5 Now 35T/25L

    Comment


    • #3
      Hi, welcome! My daughter is almost 2 1/2 years post-op. For Jamie, we didn't make too many adjustments to our house...no raised toilet seat, no grabby thing, no hospital bed. She did use the built-in seat when taking a shower for the first week or so. Since we live in a two story house, we did bring her bed down to the first floor. That way, she had access to tv, video games, family, and friends without going upstairs.

      For probably the first week at home, there were times I did help Jamie get in/out of bed and to change positions, but for the most part she did a lot for herself. She needed some help with showering in the first week home as well.

      As for how much time to take off work, that's a tough question. Each child is different. Is there an older child or grandparent who can check in on her once you return to work? Could you leave work for lunch? I don't know if I'd want to leave her alone while taking pain meds. Trust your instincts on this, you know your daughter better than anyone else.

      If there's anything else I can help you with, let me know. Feel free to e-mail me at any time.

      Mary Lou
      Mom to Jamie age 21-diagnosed at age 12-spinal fusion 12/7/2004-fused from T3-L2; and Tracy age 19, mild Scoliosis-diagnosed at age 18.

      Comment


      • #4
        Our 14 year old daughter had surgery this past January. She came home a week after surgery and we stayed home with her until she was 3 1/2 weeks post-op - the last week we were home with her, she really didn't need much from us and was off pain meds. She didn't go back to school for another 2 weeks and really did fine on her own. A tutor came from school for during that time for 3 hours each week and doing her homework helped give her something to focus on.

        Maybe if you can plan on about 3-4 weeks off with her totally, with the option of another week if needed. Most of the kids on here really seem to bounce back pretty quickly! Good luck!

        Comment


        • #5
          I had a different surgery, but I think this goes for all surgeries: The shower chair is indespensible!!!! No matter what surgery you might have, you'll be weaker when you get home. It was very nice for me to have; I used it for at least a month. It was very painful for me to have water touch my neck (and I'm sure back, in your daughter's case), so being able to sit was much easier than having to manuever while being careful not to slip. I hope that makes sense lol.
          Scoliosis for 8 years, Milwaukee, Providence & Boston braces. 35T 42L Dx'd with Chiari Malformation 8/06, decompression surgery + duraplasty 11/24/06.

          Comment


          • #6
            My, now 18 year old, daughter is 2 yrs. 2 mnths. post op. Like Mary Lou, we didn't make adjustments at home for her. No grabby thing, no special chair, etc. However, we did have an old plastic school chair (FREE) that we kept by they shower in case she felt she needed it. One of us also, would occupy the chair outside the shower just in case she had a problem and needed help. Other than that, nothing special. The hospital was good about teaching her how to log roll and get out of bed before she came home. The doctors want them to be mobile before they leave the hospital.

            Crystal was only out of school for three weeks, at her prom at 4 weeks, and back to showing her sheep at 12 weeks. This doesn't include the incidents of jumping over the dishwasher door after dad. Everyone recovers at their own rate. Some will do better than others. I think Mary Lou and I got lucky with our daughters recovery. But, I also think the fact that they were both in incredible physical shape helped a lot. If I remember Jamie was a gymnast and my daughter had just come off of basket ball season the week before.

            Any how, good luck. You will soon be on the other side. You'll understand that comment when you get there.
            Keeping you in my prayers.
            Nikki

            Comment


            • #7
              Nikki,

              The dishwasher story still makes me smile!

              Hope all is well with your family.

              Mary Lou
              Mom to Jamie age 21-diagnosed at age 12-spinal fusion 12/7/2004-fused from T3-L2; and Tracy age 19, mild Scoliosis-diagnosed at age 18.

              Comment

              Working...
              X