new here! please reply

[sweetalkerx3]

Hey everyone, im new here. I have scoliosis and its really bad. Im getting surgery in december and i was just wondering if anyone could give me hints on anything (example; how to prepare, what to do when in hospital, how long you recover, if anyone needed wheelchairs or special things,what to bring to hospitals, how bad the pain is) and anything else you could think of. Im not really nervous since its in december and i shouldnt be worrying about it now. Or at least i try.

I play very competitive softball so im really worried about not playing. Im hopeing to recover quickly so i can get back to my team as soon as possible.

well, everyone is in my prayers and good luck with everything. it would be nice to hear from you and your experiences.

Thanks, Kristina

[lrmb]

Hi Kristina, Welcome to the forum! I'm not sure how old you are, but a while ago there was a group of young women going through surgery about the same time, and there were a lot of posts regarding these issues you would like to know about. Some of the main "writers" were jc3, susannajon and nikyergen - if you looked for posts by them you could find their threads (either look them up on the members list or search their names). If I remember rightly, nikyergen's daughter is an athlete - plays basketball I think - and had a great recovery.

Good luck! I'm sure other people will write back to you too.
Take care - Laura

[Mary Lou]

My daughter had her surgery six months ago, so if you have any specific questions, feel free to ask. We've had many, many discusions on this forum about surgery, so I'd suggest you do a search, maybe using the word "surgery" and see what you find. If you can't find exactly what you are looking for, let us know and we'll be glad to help!

Mary Lou

[daffyduk911]

Surgery

Hey,

I'm 13 and I just had surgery 2.5 weeks ago.

For preparation make to bring comfy clothes to the hospital. Also you can't eat after 12 at night the date before the day of ur operation.

Once ur in the hospital, u dont really need to do anything except to keep calm and follow the nurses that guide u to the operation room.

Well, by recovery if you mean fusing, then its 6 months to a year. But if you mean recovery by general recovery then like a week or two. After two weeks i was able to go out of the house and to the mall .

I only needed a wheelchair for getting to the car when i got out of the hospital. Also, I need a brace for like 3 months for like protection in case anyone bumps in2 u.

The pain the first time is like surprising... It starts off pretty bad. I know uve heard this like 1000 times but it gets better as the days go by. like im serious!

Unfortunately you wont be able to play softball for like 6 months to a year. I know it sucks. I'm worried myself about sports too b/c i played competitive bball. I suggest you do something like track/running, tennis, and swimming.

Good luck and it's all much less complicated than it seems.

Defne

[ANIMAL LOVER12]

Hi,

I had surgery almost two months ago.

When I was preparing, the main thing I tried to do was not worry. I know that seems hard, but it's the best thing to do. If you stay calm, it's a whole lot easier to focus on the good parts about having this surgery.

When I was in the hospital, I wasn't up to doing ANYTHING. I slept and watched movies. One of the nurses brought me a little craft form the playroom that I could do in my room if I wanted to, but I never got around to doing it. The main thing that you will do is sleep.

For the fusion to become solid, it takes 6 months to 1 year but you'll be feeling much better before those points. I am now allowed to ride my bike and go swimming and I'm not even 2 months post op. But every doctor is different so you have to make sure to ask. I'd probably say around 4 weeks post op I didn't have pain anymore I just got tired easily. I'm now 8 weeks post op and I still get tired easily sometimes but I don't have any pain.

I didn't need a wheelchair except for when I was going to the car on the day I went home form the hospital. I could walk, I was just a lot slower then before. But now I walk just like I did before surgery. One thing I did find helpful was a shower chair. You're pretty weak in the beginning so it's hard to stand when showering. I had that for about 3-4 weeks. I also had one of those shower heads that are attached to a hose. That was helpful.

Don't bring much to the hospital. I brought lots of clothes and out of 7 days, I didn't even change from the hospital gown until the day I left. I was allowed to, but I was comfortable in the gown. You don't need much to keep yourself busy because most of the time you're sleeping. I brought a magazine with me and that was easy because I could just flip through it. I read maybe one of two of the stories and it was kind of hard to focus on it.

I won't lie, the pain in the hospital was pretty bad, but it gets better everyday. Sometimes I would think, will I ever feel normal again? And I did, it got better everyday until the point where it only gets a bit achy sometimes when I over do it.

Good luck!!

[sweetalkerx3]

hey thank you all for replying...it really helped me. i now know what to expect and i learned more about how to handle things. since you kind of asked and i didnt really tell you about me, heres some stuff, well....about me!

-i am 14 years old, and going to shriners hospital in chicago.
-play travel softball and hope to keep doing it at UCLA college (my goal)
-i have 3 curves, the top one is 60, the middle is 47 and the bottom is 38.
-i have a sister named lindsay..she has had some back problems but not scoliosis. (herneated discs..SP?)

well you can keep replying with your experiences and stories, i love hearing them. thanks again

Kristina