Driving Myself Crazy

[spincon58]

Lily,

Your very kind ! Thank You Susan, Why are you being fused to S1? My lower dics are not in great shape but the doctor said there are new advance techneich that can help save the dics like the artifical ones...good luck with your surgery....

[taraward]

hi connie!!!

Hey remember me from need someone to help, well sweetie your gonna be just fine have faith. Yes complicataions may indeed come, i have had one, if you read my new thread " STAFF Infection" but you just have to take care of yourself and understand that with surgery there may be complication, it is a risk that we all have taken, but you cant stop spme of them as you can see in my story. but you have to stay positive because mind over matter is what heals you, if you stay negative your body will respond to that and not heal as well. Just think of cancer patients that have been told that they only have like 6 months to live and they are like "no! i will not accept that!" and they stay positive and their cancer goes away. MIND OVER MATTER, is the key to healing, and if you need me i am here to answer any of your questions, i will tell you i've been through it all with this surgery. email me if you like. ok. Tara Ward Houston Texas

[dapsbounce8]

I had my surgery four months ago, but the story I want to tell is about my mom. She had her surgery at about my age (fifteen or sixteen I think). This was a long time ago, when they took bone from the shin to fuse to spine.

Whenever I had doubts about my surgery, she would tell me her story. She says she still has some problems, but none related to the surgery. She can't turn her neck very much, has large scars, and a prominent shoulder (all related to the relatively primitive method used for the fusion), but she has never had a back ache in her life.

Most people in this forum are here because they are a) going into surgery, b) recovering from surgery, or c) having complications from surgery. That means that all you will hear are bad stories - not many people post to brag about how great they feel. So don't worry so much Connie. There are tons of success stories out there, you just don't hear them very often.

[OneofFive1]

spincon58
Have u heard of scoliosistreatment.com?

[momoflacrosse]

Connie: Don't even bother to check out that site it isn't applicable to people of our age and if you look at the photos they certainly don't look like the same persopn to me in the time frame given - so do yourself a favour and pretend you didn't see the post.

Nancy

[spincon58]

Hi Nancy,

Haven't heard from you in a while..Is everyything OK..??
At this point the only treatment is surgery, and I can honest say that with the help of this forum and the friends I have made here that I am truely ready physcial(maybe) but emotional yes...Just hanging with appointments of the kids, graduation, finals,parties,cleaning house and passing time.....now I'm ready to pass the calmness to anyone who needs it....

[Jill K's Mom]

Don't fear surgery

Jill had her fusion T4-T12 one week ago today. She never had pre-op pain, she only had the surgery because it was medically recommended. She is straighter, taller, more symmetrical, and hopefully will be pain free and the scoliosis will no longer pose a risk to her lungs and other organs . Connie - any major surgery is scary for sure, but I believe this surgery for you is the right thing and you are headed in the right direction. Trust your doctor. Have you researched him on the internet? If he and others say this is the thing to do, get it done, and looking back you will be glad you did. I don't want to sound like the eternal optimist, but I do believe in letting the doctor decide. After all that is his specialty, he must know what he's doing. Good luck and God speed!

[OneofFive1]

momoflacrosse,
Where u commenting about my post?

[spincon58]

Hi Everyone,

I just broke out in a cry to think that my life living with a back deformity will soon be over..and maybe I can be taller ....Does anybody feel emotional different once they don't have that rib hump any longer...

[dapsbounce8]

I felt the exact same before and after surgery. I was more confident about how my clothes fit, but I don't think that physical appearance should be the only reason for surgery. Changing your appearance can only do so much.

[mish]

That hump makes it so much harder to find tops that fit. I always had to buy larger sizes, and they sometime even don't fit.

Connie, I haven't gone through that emotion yet, but i am sure once i have all the specific, i probably will.

I believe your surgery is 6/28 - i wish you the very best. I have an appt end of june to discuss more specifics and making arrangement with my doctor. Wish me luck

Mish

[Theresa]

Connie,

This is Theresa. It's hard to describe how you feel about the hump being gone or at least diminished alot. Alot of people always told me they never noticed it, but of course it was hugh to me. When we had pictures taken, I didn't want them taken from my right side. It made me look so big! The other problem that was worse, your clothes were always crooked, no matter how many times you fixed them. My doctor told me yesterday at my 2 month check up that my 80 degree curve is down to about 22 and my 44 degree curve (lumbar) is down to about 18. That sounds great but now my right hip sticks out. It could be from muscle still or my spine or pelvis is shaped weird. It's easier to hide than the shoulder and rib hump. Do you also have your ribs protruding in the front? I had my ribs protruding in front on the left side and the shoulder hump on the right side. Hope this helps. Theresa

[spincon58]

Theresa,

Hi,
I always took pictures from the other side of the hump too...it's funny how we adapt...I can't tell about my ribs so much it looks normal ....how bad is your hip sticking out? I never thought that once my spine gets straight something else can go out of wack...

[Theresa]

Connie,

It hard to say how much it sticks out. The morning time it's not as bad, becasue I'm well rested and can stand straighter. As the day goes on and my muscles get tired it's more noticeable. It kinda looks like I have my right hip pushed out. The doctor said to wait 3 months for the fusion to finish and if the muscles and still giving my problems, then he'll send me to physical theraphy. If that doesn't help and the hip causes pain, he said he could do surgery where he takes a wedge of bone out. I didn't quite understand if he meant from the spine or the pelvis. Theresa

[momoflacrosse]

hi all:

I think the worst for me is that I have a terrible time with my bras staying put on my right side I have to be careful to always get elastic straps or they slither down every time lol. Theresa my ribs on the left are forward and quite deformed from trying to compensate if I forget and lean forward to reach something the lower one will get stuck in the one above it and it hurts like crazy when it pops back into place. My biggest problem now is my weight - I have let myself go and now becasue I can't do a lot itis going to be really hard to get it off and I have also developed some coronary heart disease. Boy what we go through. Anyhow just thought I would tell you about my hump - I forgot about it when I got married and all the photos were taken from the right and guess what I see when I look at them ???? good thing I am divorced so I don't look at them anymore rofl. still have you in my thoughts and prayes Connie.

Nancy