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[CStadler]

Fusion T8 to sacrum.
Had my surgery on Sept 20th and was in hospital for 12 days. Ended up in Acute Care 10 of those days. Some complications during surgery. Although I was checked ahead of time by a hemotologist and everything was normal, I lost a lot of blood and the surgeon said that I really gave them a run for their money. He said something is definitely wrong and this will have to be adressed later.

11.5 hours for the surgery. I was overly sensitive to the pain medications and during the next 4 days they had a hard time stabilizing me. Either my breathing was down to 4 breaths a minute or I was talking like a trucker! (my grown children got a kick out of that!)

Slight collapse of one lung that will improve with deep breathing.

It is over now and since coming home I am amazed at how much better I feel each day. Can even walk around the house for short periods without the walker but tire very quickly.

I do seem to have one leg shorter than the other. When I stand in the mirror I can see one shoulder is lower. Wasn't like that before. I have a call into the surgeon as I am concerned about walking like this and how it will affect my recovery. May need a lift in my shoe? Not happy about it but what can you do?

Glad to be back and hopefully can help others get over the fear of the surgery as it really wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.

Carol

[geo]

WOW, wow, wow! What really amazed me about your post, besides all the challenges you've just been through, is your last sentence - what a great attitude! It is so helpful for those who are contemplating this and are scared, to read that despite the complications that can arise from this surgery, a person can come out feeling on top.
So glad to hear that you are doing better each day. Going home is such a morale booster. The exhaustion will take awhile to overcome, but it will happen!

[lelc2002@yahoo]

Carol, I am so glad you are thru it & home. Rest up and recover, Lynne

[flowerpower]

Best wishes on your recovery, I hope each day gets a little better for you

Renee

[abhbarry]

Wow - I'm so glad you are back home. You can get through anything now that you have already been through this major hurdle. Just keep reminding yourself that it WILL get better. You are in my thoughts. Keep that chin up!

Best,
Anya

[Singer]

Aaaaak! That was scary to read about. I'm so glad you're okay. Keep us posted.

[Janet]

Ohmygosh! You went thru a LOT. Glad to hear you are home and seeing improvements. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. And thank you for posting that, despite the complications, it turned out the surgery wasn't as bad as feared.


[re "talking like a trucker" - I wonder if I can have my mouth taped shut (except when eating) so I don't totally embarrass myself in front of elderly relatives!]

[crepehanger]

Welcome home, Carol !

I do hope your leg being shorter than the other one is temporary! I haven't heard of anyone having that problem on here yet. I am glad you made it past the bleeding problem! It must have caught them way off guard. Rest up and keep up the good momentum you have going, and it's so good to have you back!..Lisa

[Shari]

Welcome home Carol,

A positive attitude is half the battle!!! Before I had my surgery I was told that my left leg was shorter than the right, and I had worn a lift since the age of 12. Now I don't need it.

Again I am amazed at how different we all seem to be before and after the surgery. It's great to hear that you are so doing well after your surgery, but I wouldn't hesitate to ask your Doctor anything that you are concerned about!!! You have a right to have peace of mind.

I hope your recovery continues to go as well as it has. In regards to some of your complications, you are just starting the recovery process, and I know that I held my body in an unnatural posistion for many months afterwards. Is it possible that you are doing the same???

Just one example, my shoulders were not where they used to be, but after several months they finally dropped back into their natural posistion. I think because we have had certain muscles cut may have something to do with some of our problems. This is only my personal opinion. But I think you should give yourself some time to get used to your new back. It's wise to be concerned, but don't panic too soon.

Shari

[CStadler]

Hi Shari
I thought it may be that I was having to learn to walk differently after compensating for my curve for so many years. I do have one shoulder lower than the other which I didn't have before.

I have called the surgeons office and although I don't see him until 6 weeks post op (NOv 8th) he said to give it time which is fine. I was just concerned about walking and trying to recouperate when I was off balance. Didn't want to pull muscles in the wrong way and cause something to start to heal in the wrong way, if that makes sense.

I am happy to wait and see, I know there will be a lot of settling throughout my body with what they have done.

I can't believe how tired I am but also how much better I feel with each day. I can do so much more than I thought I would be able to do at this stage and am very excited about that.

[Shari]

Hi Carol,

I think we all have different points in our recovery process that bother us more than others, and for me I often concentrated on the negative instead of focusing on the positive. Very easy to do!!!

Even though things aren't exactly how you may have imagined then to be at this point in your recovery process, you still have to trust your doctor and give it time. Things for me changed sometimes from week to week and others, month to month, sometimes longer.

Stay excited about the accomplishments you have made to date. I know it's hard to believe right now, but things do change!!! Unfortunately, it's not always as fast as we hoped they would, but it comes!!!

You doing great,
Shari