I posted a bit in the forum for parents of adolescents, but now I'm getting around to introducing myself. I'm 52, live in Southern California, and have surgery scheduled for June 7th and 9th with Dr. Yu-po Lee at UC San Diego. The first day will be to go in through the side and do some preparatory work on my discs, then the fusion will be on the second day. I am not quite as expert as all of you at the vertebral numbers and types of curves (partly out of denial), but I do know that I have a 58 degree curve that has progressed markedly in the last few years. Seven years ago, it was about 45 degrees. They'll be fusing 8 vertebrae. I have a hump too-- although people still tell me they don't notice, I'm quite aware of it. I've also got a lot of pain which started about 7 or 8 years ago.
I've been to three surgeons. One of the first two recommended that I go to Dr. Lee, and I've been very pleased with his practice so far. He's in the same practice as Dr. Garfin, who operated on Bill Walton. I'm kind of dealing with the nervousness about the surgery by being hyper prepared. (As part of the hyper-preparedness I also went to a psychologist for some cognitive behavioral therapy about anxiety, and it was very helpful.) I am just finishing up a Masters degree in Speech Language Pathology and will graduate on May 20th. (Yippee!) I decided that this was probably a good time to do the surgery so that I can settle into my new career after I've recovered, rather than interrupting things.
I do have a couple of questions:
1. My mother wants to come to help out after the surgery. She's 77 and lives in another state, so will be flying here. That means that I've got to figure out how to time the plane tickets after the surgery. Dr. Lee says that maybe I'll need to go to a rehab hospital for awhile (which seems like a good idea), but then last time I was in, he said that I was "young and healthy" so that maybe I'd just go straight home from the surgery, possibly as early as 6 days after the second surgery. So, if you folks were taking a guess-- what would be a good time to have her come. I'm thinking two weeks out. I will have my husband and my college age son here, but of course, they'll be at work part of the time. And my mom won't be able to help with anything like helping keep me steady on my feet or driving.
2. I want to be at my high school reunion on August 6th. I'll have to fly up to Utah for it. Any hints for making that easier? Dr. Lee's thinks I might feel too tired to go, but I've been on the planning committee and really really want to go.
3. Bras-- I bought a couple with front closure, but I'm wondering how long it is before it's not painful to wear one. I'm really not at an age where bra-lessness is attractive.
Thanks all for the conversation here. It's been helpful to me to read through it.
I've been to three surgeons. One of the first two recommended that I go to Dr. Lee, and I've been very pleased with his practice so far. He's in the same practice as Dr. Garfin, who operated on Bill Walton. I'm kind of dealing with the nervousness about the surgery by being hyper prepared. (As part of the hyper-preparedness I also went to a psychologist for some cognitive behavioral therapy about anxiety, and it was very helpful.) I am just finishing up a Masters degree in Speech Language Pathology and will graduate on May 20th. (Yippee!) I decided that this was probably a good time to do the surgery so that I can settle into my new career after I've recovered, rather than interrupting things.
I do have a couple of questions:
1. My mother wants to come to help out after the surgery. She's 77 and lives in another state, so will be flying here. That means that I've got to figure out how to time the plane tickets after the surgery. Dr. Lee says that maybe I'll need to go to a rehab hospital for awhile (which seems like a good idea), but then last time I was in, he said that I was "young and healthy" so that maybe I'd just go straight home from the surgery, possibly as early as 6 days after the second surgery. So, if you folks were taking a guess-- what would be a good time to have her come. I'm thinking two weeks out. I will have my husband and my college age son here, but of course, they'll be at work part of the time. And my mom won't be able to help with anything like helping keep me steady on my feet or driving.
2. I want to be at my high school reunion on August 6th. I'll have to fly up to Utah for it. Any hints for making that easier? Dr. Lee's thinks I might feel too tired to go, but I've been on the planning committee and really really want to go.
3. Bras-- I bought a couple with front closure, but I'm wondering how long it is before it's not painful to wear one. I'm really not at an age where bra-lessness is attractive.
Thanks all for the conversation here. It's been helpful to me to read through it.
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