Surgery next week

[Joan50]

Hello Scoliosis friends. I am 50 years old and have had scoliosis diagnosed since I was 12 years old. I wore the Milwaulkee Brace for 4 years and declined surgery as a teenager. I have held myself clinically straight all these years and now I am very tired. The pain and decline in my quality of life have caused me to seek surgery. So, in one week I am scheduled to have 8 vertebrae fused. My current top curve is 54.

Questions:

1. My bedroom is upstairs. I am single and live with my 13 year old daughter. Should I try to get up the stairs upon return from hospital stay or get a bed in my living room? There is only a half bath downstairs.

2. Should I ask the doctor to use all donor bone grafts to avoid the self-donated bone insicion? Is the donor incision worse in healing than the spinial incision?

3. How long before driving again?

4. Any tips on setting up my house or things to bring to the hospital to make recovery comfortable?

5. Any suggestions about anything related to the surgery?

Thanks in advance,
joan

[dawney]

Joan
I went to rehab for a week and they taught me to go up and down the stairs with a cane. I only do it once or twice a day. I find it more comfortable downstairs so when I get up I go up and do the necessecities and stay downstairs.
I needed someone home with me for about 10 days. This is my first day solo.
Good Luck and I will say a prayer for you.

[lelc2002@yahoo]

push to get into a rehab(see about your Ins. coverage)

I also went to a rehab(kessler)for about a week and it took a lot of stress off of my family. By the time I got home I could walk up & down the stairs, go to the bathroom etc... still as Dawney says, I would highly recommend someone with you for at least a week..My mom stayed with me & by the end of that week, I felt much stronger and more confident with my abilities. You really need to lie down & rest during the day as much as possible in that first month after the surgery....Ly
http://lynnebackattack.blogspot.com
surg.was Aug 1st/fused T-11 to L-5/Dr. Boachie/Kim@HSS in NYCity
95 thorocolumbar curve reduced into the 50's//

[judyk]

Be sure and get a grabber tool--the hospital may provide you with one. I still use mine everyday after one year postop. As for driving, I believe it was four weeks before I drove after surgery, and then only short distances. Some people wait longer--just depends on your doctor. Most of the stuff I packed for the hospital I never used. I didn't feel like reading or doing crossword puzzles, etc. like I thought I would. I watched a lot of TV and slept mostly. I hope you have help at home for the first week or so because I so needed someone to help me with the shower, meals, etc. Good luck with everything.

[HGD24]

Questions:

1. My bedroom is upstairs. I am single and live with my 13 year old daughter. Should I try to get up the stairs upon return from hospital stay or get a bed in my living room? There is only a half bath downstairs. Our upstairs was not finished at the time of my surgery, so I was on the 1st floor only.

2. Should I ask the doctor to use all donor bone grafts to avoid the self-donated bone insicion? Is the donor incision worse in healing than the spinial incision? My doc used bone from my rib and hip. The hip area is still sore and was more sore than my back incision. I think that using your own bone is always safer than doner bone but I think it also depends on the amount of bone needed.

3. How long before driving again? I did not drive for 7 weeks and even then, it was a bit unnerving for a while until I got used to it.

4. Any tips on setting up my house or things to bring to the hospital to make recovery comfortable? Put things that you will use everyday on the top shelf of your fridge and bottom shelves of your cupboards. Also, try to put things like milk and juice in smaller containers because you may not be able to lift a gallon of milk or juice. I had a shower chair and could not imagine not having used it. Showering really took a lot of energy out of me.

[LindaRacine]

Hi Joan...

You should be able to climb stairs by the time you return home, and the effort required to do so may help speed up your recovery. If your stairs are carpeted, be sure to wear non-slip footwear.

I have a couple of pages on my website that might be of help:

http://www.scoliosislinks.com/PreparingforSurgery.htm
http://www.scoliosislinks.com/PostSurgActivities.htm

Regards,
Linda

[lelc2002@yahoo]

JudyK is so right about the grabber!!! I have 2 & one was given to me by a friend & it is super sturdy to do laundry with....I am a bit over 2 mths now & I use my grabbers like crazy. every so often I missplace one of them & I go nuts looking for it because I am so dependent on them....My son's little friend was over the other day(age 7-second grade) & he asked if I could get him one! He loved picking up the match box cars with it.....Ly

[bsprings]

Thanks Linda- my surgery is in a couple of months. That is great information!
Cathie

[Cakedec]

Hi Joan,

Congratulations on your decision to have the scoliosis surgery. I just had mine done 11 weeks ago at the age of 47. It is a long recovery, but worth it. Thought I'd also give you my take on the questions posted:

1. I borrowed a hospital bed for the first two months and put it out in my living room so that I could lie down without having to be alone back in the bedroom all the time. It worked out really nice; at first you will be able to sleep through any noise or anything, so people moving around, tv's, etc. won't bother you. Personally I did not want to go up and down more than a couple steps the first month.

2. My surgeon used the BMP for the graph site. He said what we'd heard before, that the incision site to harvest bone hurts worse than the back incision. He has had very good results with using it.

3. My dr. said not to drive until you are off the strong narcotic painkillers. That was at 7 weeks for me, also. Getting in and out of the car is still a slow, stiff process.

4. The main stuff I needed at the hospital were my own underwear, kotex pads, (it often starts that up if you aren't menopausal), a robe, slippers (that are easy to get on or off), hair brush & comb, toothbrush & paste. You won't need much entertainment, maybe a cd player or radio with headset, telephone numbers of people you might want to telephone.

5. Most people on here seem to like a padded office chair with arms/adjustable height to sit on when they get home. You won't want to have to squat low for anything. Be sure to get a plastic raised toilet seat for home. I had a pegboard put up in my kitchen to hang a few pots and pans from the low cupboards for once I was able to cook a little (not for a few weeks).

6. Teach your 13 year old how to do things around the house that she doesn't already know and that you will want done--like laundry, cooking basic things, vacuuming, mopping, dusting, etc. I had a 15 year old daughter to help me at home and it is amazing what they can do when they need to. They really don't complain as much as you might imagine, either. People will come out of the woodwork to help you out with meals, driving, etc.

We'll be waiting to hear from you once you get home and are able to post!
Best wishes for a good surgery and quick recovery.

Deb
age 47
posterior surgery 7/24/06
for T70,L76 S curve
30 degrees correction
DON'T WAIT TO GET STRAIGHT!!!

[Joan50]

Thanks to all who replied!

I am so excited about all of the information and support. I will get right on all of the suggestions and wait to see more! I am very nervous but you guys give me confidence.

Thanks,
Joan

[Shari]

Hi Joan,

Every one of us was very nervous before surgery. I was scared as hell.

When you feel up to it and have the time, read through this forum. You'll find that there is alot of valuable information and support that can be gained here!!!

For me, just being able to share with everyone here, has been a tremendous amount of comfort. It's a great place to vent too.

All my best wishes for your up coming surgery.

Shari

[bbest]

Joan -

I was going to post something, but you have received such excellent advice already, theres nothing left for me to add. Except, make sure you take good care of you. Eat right, exercise if you can. Make all of your preparatons beforehand so that once you are released from the hospital (or rehab) you can focus on your recovery.

Best of luck to you.

[bsprings]

Hi Joan-
My surgery is in December so I know how you feel. I am 45 and I wish I had had the surgery long ago! I have been told that nutrition and exercise are SO important prior to surgery, and the more in shape you are the quicker you will recover. I am trying to walk every night (or almost) about 4 miles. And a friend who is a physical therapist told me to do squats- your thighs and knees will need to be strong after surgery because you have to "squat" to pick things up instead of bending over. Just thought I would pass this on!
Cathie

[JoAnn5]

Hi Joan... the only things i can think of that haven't already been mentioned are that silky or satiny sleepwear will make it much easier for you to turn over in bed. The warm cozy cotton flannels sound wonderful, but are impossible to turn over in...lol. Also, my nerves were very bad after my surgery... if there was anything tense or suspenseful on tv, it drove me crazy... i just couldn't handle it! So let everyone know to keep things as peaceful as possible for you. It's YOUR turn with the remote when you get back home....lol.

Good luck. We will all be pulling for you and will look forward to hearing your progress!!!

[Joan50]

Eight days postop

It has been a rough week. I am home and finallly trying to put some questions down. The forum respones to my pre-surgery questions were so helpful. thank you everyone. I had a 70% correction and look really straight now. I am still counting minutes between medication.

1. Do you know anything to relive the tightness of spasms between doses? Warm or cool cloths on back or other creative ideas?

2. How much walking per day?

3. How long does constipation last?

4. Tips on sleeping? Can't lie in bed yet. Sleeping/napping in recliner. Need nap right now. More questions later.


Thanks.
Joan