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  • straighter

    This is a dumb question but i was wondering to everyone that has already had the surgery do you feel straight and does it feel okay to be straight and have a "cage" inside?

    Also after the surgery when you are cleared to drive, is it okay to drive a manuel? because i love cars and i have to drive a manuel. so fun!
    -Bethany
    pre-op L 74*
    pre-op Th 56*
    surgery scheduled for jan. 6th 2010
    getting nervous

  • #2
    I drove a stick-shift car after my surgery. It was do-able but not comfortable for my lower back. After about a year, I traded it in for an automatic and I have to say it's HEAVEN by comparison. I'll never go back to manual transmission again.
    Chris
    A/P fusion on June 19, 2007 at age 52; T10-L5
    Pre-op thoracolumbar curve: 70 degrees
    Post-op curve: 12 degrees
    Dr. Boachie-adjei, HSS, New York

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    • #3
      Hi Coffeegirl, I can't speak for everyone, but yes I do feel much, much straigheter, yes it feels very good to be straight again. As far as the cage is concerned, I don't even realize it's there. Are you having A/P surgery?

      As far as driving a stick, I tried many, many years ago to drive a VW, wound up hitting a parked VW, that was the end of it, stuck to standard!
      Dolores A
      June 4, 2009 Anterior L3 - S1
      June 8, 2009 Posterior T4 - Pelvis
      Mark Agulnick, MD FAAOS
      NY Spine & Scoliosis Center

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      • #4
        straighter

        It's great to feel straighter! I had my surgery almost three years ago and I continue to marvel at how much better I feel. When I look at the x-rays of my back before surgery, I almost want to cry because I remember how awful I felt.
        I don't feel any cages, but there is a sort of heaviness to my back that I am aware of occasionally (especially when leaning over). Has anyone else had that sensation?
        I don't know what to tell you about driving a manual. I used to drive a manual in college and that was enough to last me a lifetime! I lived in a very hilly city!

        Susan
        fused L-1 to S-1 and rods from T-10 to S-1, Dec. 7, 2006
        Dr. Alexis Shelokov (deceased)
        Plano, Texas

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        • #5
          It's so great to feel straighter, but it's not great to feel stiff. I have a cage, 36 screws & 5 seperate rods. LOL..

          I got screwed bigtime.

          Tee Hee

          I feel better than I did before though, just majorly limited mobility... but mine was real bad--- T2-pelvis.
          Surgery 6/29 and 7/3 of 2009~ 17 hours worth
          7 blood transfusions (3 were my own)
          26 years old at time of surgery, diagnosed at 12 -
          TLSO brace did NOTHING for me after 3 yrs wearing it...
          other than cause embarassment & torture

          Before Surgery:
          Thoracic Curve: 68 degrees
          Lumbar Curve: 89 degrees

          After Surgery:
          Thoracic Curve: 32 degrees
          Lumbar Curve: 25 degrees

          <3 Nikki

          My surgery experience album:
          http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...5&l=0bcf9da737

          Comment


          • #6
            I think that's a great question. I asked my surgeon if I could belly dance after the surgery. Not that I belly dance, but I figured that would demonstrate a good range of motion. He said that I absolutely could belly dance if I wanted to after the surgery. I'm assuming, this means that we would not be walking around like stiff, stick figures. I didn't ask my surgeon, but I asked a different surgeon, if I'm going to be walking around completely stiff and straight, and he said absolutely not. I believe we're going to come out of this looking the best we've ever looked in our lives. Think that you're going to be taller and straighter without any rib humps!! Also, we'll look skinner because we'll have longer backs/torsos
            http://mixasu.blogspot.com/

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            • #7
              thanks

              Thanks everyone for replying. It gives me some comfort and helps me make my decision. I kno I want to do it now its just hard to find the rite time. Mixasu yea after I recover I def would like it if I wasn't super stiff. I want to feel somewhat normal. My plan is to have a good diet and exercise real good before. I have an appt on nov 4rth to see an ortho. Surgeon. I hope he will be knowledgeable and professional. Thanks again to everyone on here.
              -Bethany
              pre-op L 74*
              pre-op Th 56*
              surgery scheduled for jan. 6th 2010
              getting nervous

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