Briarrose update

[Susie*Bee]

Yay! Just got word that her surgery is over and all went well, via email from her sister-in-law. Here is the main info: She was in surgery for 7 hours. The surgeon said he was able to completely straighten her spine. She does not need to go to ICU-- because there was very little blood loss and she's doing so well. They might possibly have her sitting up by tonight-- and on her feet by tomorrow night. So, all in all, great news about Shell.

[Geish]

Susie*Bee...Thanks so much for posting! I'm so glad to hear that all went well and she is "straight" now. Please keep the updates coming as you get them.
Alicia

[debbei]

YEAH!!!! Great news; I can't wait to hear the update

from her! Sounds like it went the best possible way that it could.

[Chihuahua Mama]

That's very cool...all those prayers and good thoughts landed exactly where they should have!

[loves to skate]

loves to skate

That is wonderful news about Shell. Let the healing begin, praise God.
Sally

[connier815]

Wow! That is great news! I'm so happy for Shell. Thanks for posting Susie*Bee.

Connie

[trishthedish]

God is so good!

If you need surgery at all, then Shell's sounds like the one you want! Thanks for the update, Susie*Bee. What great news!!

[briarrose]

This is Shell's husband. I'm sitting in the room with Shell reading all your kind replies and encouragement out loud to her. She is very appreciative of them all! Here is the latest news: Dr. Fras insisted that Shell stand and attempt several steps last night about four hours post-op. She was able, (with a little help) to take about 10 steps! Today was a busy day for her: She walked three times-the last time was to the end of the hallway outside the room! She spent two thirty minute sessions sitting upright in a chair. The doctor says that her recovery is proceeding far and away better than expected. The best news is that he estimates the current curve at about 5-7 degrees and the rib hump is greatly reduced! She is still on morphine and despite being completely exhausted has been unable to sleep for more than ten minutes at a time since she woke up from surgery. The pain is manageable with just the morphine which she isn't taking nearly as often as I think she should be, she's quite a trooper! More updates as they come.

[Susie*Bee]

Thanks!

I am SOOOOOO impressed! Thanks for the great update! Tell her I'm so very proud of her and know how hard she's working!!! She's a super inspiration! Big hugs, Susie

[debbei]

What a woman! Sounds like she's doing fantastic

keep up the good work! 5 to 7 degrees is fabulous. I hope you continue your fastrack recovery.

[JoAnn5]

Wow!!! I'm proud of her too!! She is great!

Another example of why this surgery should be done while you are younger, in my opinion. Please tell her to keep up the good work and her spirits... she will be home buzzing around again in no time.

(((hugs)))) to you both! JoAnn

[Singer]

Wow -- that's just excellent. Thanks for the update and hope she can get some sleep soon! Can they give her Dilaudid instead of morphine? It's an easier drug to tolerate....

[Wishing]

Congratulations Shell on a very successful surgery and correction. That is just terrific. Good luck on the recovery process and in getting enough sleep. You are an inspiration.

[briarrose]

Update #3

So it's 5:15 Thursday (is it thursday already??) and Shell is sleeping soundly beside me. She has been taken off of PCA morphine and put on oral percocet. Thus the sleeping. Dr Fras decided to have her fitted for a brace but he's not wound up about her having to wear it all the time. All of the RN's here at Lankenau have been amazing but there have been a few bad eggs among the techs which is to be expected I suppose. She and I have the process of getting her in and out of bed and into the restroom down to an art. She can stand and even walk without needing much support! Getting up and down out of a sitting or laying position is still very painful but it is getting noticably easier every time. All in all I'd call this an amazing recovery thus far and Dr. Fras agrees. He says she may be able to go home as soon as two days from now if she wants to and if things keep going this well. Thanks for all the encouraging comments!

[briarrose]

Update #4

So it's Sunday and Shell is still in the hospital. Yesterday she collapsed to the floor while waiting for X-rays in the radiology waiting room. (I was waiting in her room when the code blue was called for the radiology department and I went to investigate. It was all very scary.) It was discovered that her hemoglobin level was very low, around 7.7. Also, she had been taken off of her IV before her appetite was fully back meaning that she wasn't getting many nutrients. Anyway, she was moved to a cardio level room to be more closely monitored. That dizziness has not gone away so the surgeon is recommending that she stay at least through tonight into Monday. She just got a 1 unit blood transfusion and we're waiting for the test to see if that helped things.
As far as pain, she wasn't getting any help from percocet or morphine or any comination of the two. She gave up and quit taking any pain meds and there ended up being no significant difference in pain on or off the meds, they were both so intense they made her come close to passing out whenever she tried to move. The surgeon got the point and decided to try tylenol & codine, we're waiting to see what happens with that.
Anyway, we were wondering if anyone here had any resources or insight into how to begin making physical activity a helpful part of the healing process. We don't want to hinder the recovery by too mch or too little activity and it's all very confusing, (more so because of the pain). If anyone has any experience or insight it would be helpful, I'm sure.