car ride after surgery

[jc3]

Susanna,
I'm so glad this site is back up. I wanted to say good luck before surgery. I can't believe it is only days away. It will be over before you know it.
Nikki
Good luck to you to also. I can image what you guys are feeling like right now. I remember before my nicole's surgery i just wanted the day to get there already and get it over with. It felt like the day would never come. The morning getting into the car at 5:00 a.m. was surreal. It almost felt like a dream.
We'll be thinking about all you guys all day on the day of their surgery.
Susanna, while you are in the waiting area there is a computer so if you get a chance try and post to us and after the surgery and she is settled in her room ask the nurses for a computer they'll wheel one in, it kept me busy at night while nicole was sleeping. I played some game on there.
Nikki,
You mentioned the worries after (sports, etc) You will worry and i'm sure it will be hard to watch her play basketball. My nicole isn't allowed to do any of that yet she is 4 months post op, but i even worry when she runs to the car or jumps down two steps leaving the house. So i could imagine her playing a sport how i'd be. I don't think we'll ever stop worrying about them after this just knowing they have rods in there.
Susan,
thanks for sharing your daughters surgery story. How is she doing now 2 years post op? I like to hear other stories and see how my daughter will be doing down the road.
Jennifer

[scoliosis-mom]

Just a quick response to Jennifer to let you know that 2 years down the road things are pretty good.

My daughter is struggling with daily back pain that we are trying to resolve.

But emotionally, the surgery has turned her life around. She was clinically depressed (hospitalized) 1 year before the surgery and I'm certain the physical deformity had a significant role in her emotions and self esteem.

Today, she is confident, out dancing every Saturday night (just turned 18) and much more mature.

While scoliosis is something you would never wish for anyone, and I'm sure most mothers wished it had happened to them instead of their child, my daughter has grown from the experience. She is so empathetic to others with more severe disabilities. She has little tolerance for healthy kids who complain about their day, but she goes out of her way to seek out kids with more serious issues (emotional and physical).

I do worry about how she will cope physically when she's in her 40's, 50's, etc if she has any unforeseen problems, but she is a courageous kid (as all our kids are) and I know she can get through it.

Good luck to everyone!

Susan

Daughter fused 2-24-2003, age 16
NYU Medical Center
T1-L2

[nikyergen]

Susan,
Your daughter and mine sound almost like they know each other. Crystal has suffered with depression, all because she has been teased so terribly about her back. I think that is why she is setting aside any fear she may have. She goes out of her way to defend those less fortunate than her. Sometimes it shocks the kids at school when she gets on to them for teasing someone. She actually stuck up for herself this year for the first time. Of course, it was the school bully. He had said some terrible things about her back. She turned around, got in his face, and let him have it. She was very lady-like about it, but very firm that she wasn't going to put up with his garbage. I saw the whole thing happen. She actually felt better after she did it. I was proud that she actually stuck up for herself for a change, instead of going into the bathroom and crying.

If your daughter has any forseen problems, she will have to remember to get them dealt with right away. You should of seen Crystal when she got her sinus infection and the thought of having to cancel her surgery just devastated her. Her medical doctor said not to worry. She would be healthy for surgery.

'til later,
Nikki

[jc3]

hi susan
thanks for writing about how your daughter is doing 2 years down the road. I also worry about what the future holds long term down the road. It's scary reading some posts on the revision board. I don't know why i even look at those posts. I see that your daugher has surgery in NY, what dr. did her surgery. We also had surgery in NY at Hospital for Special Surgery with dr. boachie.
thanks again for sharing
jennifer

[Mary Lou]

Jennifer,

Am I correct--your daughter goes to the doctor this month? If so, when?

Susan,

Wow! I thought my daughter had a long fusion, but compared to your daughter, her's seems small.

My daughter sounds very much like your daughter--see finds girls her age to be very immature. I've always told her she was going to grow up so much faster than her peers and she's come home and told me stories of her friends who sound like the world will end because they have a hang nail (or something just as trivial) etc. I'm looking forward to next school year when she will be in high school and can meet older kids who might be more mature. I am so proud of the young lady Jamie has become. When she was first diagnosed, she didn't want to talk about her back, but I made her at times and she didn't want me to use her name on this forum. Since her surgery, she has come full circle-she talks to people about her back, she's has to do a report on "communications" and she has worked it so that she can do her report on Scoliosis, she has really started to walk around with a pride about herself that she never had before.



Mary Lou

[jc3]

hi marylou
yes nicole has an appointment march 10th, which is a day after susanna's daughter is having surgery with the same dr. we used, the hospital is across the street from the drs office so i am goinng to try and stop in and give them a visit.
jennifer

[scoliosis-mom]

Hi Jennifer,

My daughter's surgeon is Dr. Joseph Dryer at NYU Medical Center on First Ave in New York.

After taking my daughter to 4 different surgeons, she chose Dr. Dryer because he had recently done a 100 degree curve on a girl from Russia, he had a very caring manner, and we were really impressed with the hospital.

It was important to my daughter (who was 16 at the time) that she liked the surgeon and felt she could trust him/her. We had an unfortunate experience at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore (which is only 45 minutes from home) where we had an appointment with a world renowned scoliosis surgeon who made us wait 4 hours in the waiting room, after which we were shuffled from one assistant to another, and finally met him for the last 10 minutes of a 7 hour day.

We struggled with having the surgery 5 hours from home, but in the end, it was really important that she was comfortable with the doctors and the environment.

We're heading to N.Y. in 3 weeks for her 2 year checkup!

Susan

[jc3]

hi susan
i've heard good things about dr. dryer as well. Wow, two years! That is great. I did read somewhere that you are trying to find a physical therapist whom have worked on scoli patients (i think that is what you wrote somewhere) Our dr. did give us a list of p/t's who have worked on scoli patients but when we went for the first time it didn't really seem like they did. I was very nervous when we first went she was only 3 1/2 weeks post op at the time and i was petrified that they would do something with her that she wasn't supposed to do yet. After surgery the dr. tells you all these things not to do, no bending, twisting, etc.. so we are fearful for anything to go wrong and wreck the fusion. I hope to relax more at the 1 year mark.
jennifer

[susannajon]

Hi Nikki,

I haven't slept in days myself. I am the walking dead, between worrying about my baby girl, and worrying about being out of work for weeks!

Go ahead, nail those pics!

XOXO

Suanna

[Mary Lou]

I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but reading Susan's posts about her daughter reminded me of something. When Jamie was diagnosed in 2003, a friend of mine put me in touch with their friend who's daughter had spinal fusion w/instrumentation at the age of 12 or 13. I left her a message yesterday to try and find out how she was doing and I'll let you know if I hear back from her. Anyway, when I first talked to her, she mentioned her daughter's surgery was done by Dr. Betz and that she hasn't had any problems with her back since the surgery. She was away from home in college when I called. The reason I want to talk to her and hear all the details now that I understand everything better---her surgery was done in 1995!!!!

Mary Lou

[jc3]

marylou
let me know if you speak to that woman i'd love to hear how her daughter is doing now years later.
jennifer

[Alleycat]

Car Ride!
Ahhhh!
That was the most painful part of the whole surgery for me, so I'm not going to let this happen ok!. My advice- SUV with great suspension because your kid is going to feel every little dip in the road and every rock or bump you hit. so next major padding-pilllows!!!!!! when I went for car rides three or four weeks after my surgery the pillows were more then a foot thick so I'm talking the best you can get and be able to sit and lean back against. Also legs stretched as far out as possible and probably rested up. Also plentyof medication because even with all this they will still be in plenty of pain but it is undeniable.
And to think my car ride home only lasted 45 minuites.

[mamakay]

Hello all,
Yes thank goodness they fixed this site! I had typed so many mails and then to see they just vanished! UGH
Well Ste was okay from her collision where she clipped someone.
It scared her but apparently not enough..bc get this ..Wed after her Friday wreck she called me crying at lunch time and said she was in ANOTHER wreck!!!! (It is really hard to not take those left over drugs!!)
Okay now she is crying so much I have to talk to the police and they are taking her and one other girl in ambulance. She said she was okay but when I heard the car rolled on it 's side and skidded 30 ft landing next to a rock wall I almost S#$@. (With 4 off campus kids)
I get to the hospital and they are going to do xrays to check her back of course.
I called the surgeon in Houston and he said to also send them to him.
Now the xrays "seem" to show she is okay but her neck was sore for a few days. I cannot believe how invinsible she thinks she is!!!!! This other driver didn't even have her license!! What the hell was she thinking?!
Of course she is grounded big time but how can I make her see she and ONLY she can take care of herself and make this surgery succesful!!!!!!!!!!!!!

jc3,I also read about the girl who fell down the stairs and was okay.
I am still unsure how anything could not have been moved or damaged but I guess I will just have to not worry.

Susannaj, thanks for making me see she's doing normal again, that's probabaly a good thing..
Just read your dtr surgery is 9th!! I will be thinking of you!!!

Jc3, How did Nicholes post op go???
Did he change any restrictions?
kay

[jc3]

kay
i can't believe that Ste got in another accident! I hope she is okay. You must be freaking out!!! After reading your posts i am so happy that my nicole doesn't drive yet. That would just be another thing to worry about and like i said in NY they can't drive until 17, 16 with a permit. That is very scary, thankfully she is okay, but i'm sure you are a wreck. Maybe she'll think twice who she gets in the car with now??
I didn't go to dr. yet, thursday is our appointment. I told nicole to make a list of questions on things she wants to do, but doesn't know if she can or when she can.
i'll let you know how it goes
jennifer

[had2maby3]

the car ride home for me

i had the surgey last year and i rode in a car if you have a truck try that cause it helps cause you dont feel as many bumps and also pillows put one on her back and behind her head and under her arms it will take the pressure off her spine a little and i would suggest wat ever kind of music she likes let her listen to it that will take her mind off the pain of her back and for the beach have a cover up cause then people wont ask so much and if you dont have a cover up wear LOTS of sunscreen
kayley