Surgery this Friday

[mdtaffet]

What meds did you take for nausea?

I fortunately haven't had nausea since my surgery, but something I took for nausea on several occasions in the past is Emetrol (http://emetrol.com/). I found it to work very well for me, though at the times I took it, nausea was my only symptom (i.e. during what is usually called "stomach flu" even though it isn't really flu). When I first bought it, it was on the advice of my doctor.

I don't know that this will help you at all, but it might be worth trying.

-- Good luck,
Mary

[leahdragonfly]

Yes I tried Compazine and even with that, still had
some nausea. What meds did you take for nausea?

Hi Pam,

I am another of those who has terrible trouble with nausea from most pain meds. Vicodin in particular makes me throw up, and I will not take it. After my first surgery (T8-sacrum) I switched off oxycodone to tramadol at about three weeks post-op, because I just could not stand the nausea, vomitting, and loss of appetite any longer. I did suffer a lot of unnecessary pain and misery because the tramadol just wasn't enough at that point.

Is Dr Lenke's office saying they will not prescribe any more oxycodone? If not, I would strongly recommend going to your primary care doc and tell them that the vicodin makes you sick, the tramadol is ineffective, and you need a few more weeks of oxycodone. Another alternative is Tylenol #3.

As far as anti-nausea meds, zofran works well for some people. It didn't work too well for me, but phenergan worked well for me after my revision surgery. Your primary doctor or Dr Lenke's office should have no objection to prescribing either of these.

Good luck getting this sorted out.

[TwinmomTN]

Thanks Gayle and others for feedback. The tramadol
along with the Valium seems to be handling the pain.
Maybe since I am now 5 weeks hopefully I won't need
the stronger narcotics anymore. I am still feeling the lower
left side muscle pain though.

[loves to skate]

It was probably compazine, but don't remember for sure. I still had nausea on it , but it did keep it to a dull roar. Hang in there.
Sally

[TwinmomTN]

More questions

Hi everyone,

I am 6 weeks and 3 days post op today and have several questions. First, boy this sitting is really difficult! Do most of you sit periodically throughout the day or try to sit for as long as you can at one time? I can only sit for tops maybe 40 -45 minutes at a time. Seems like this is going to take forever to be able to sit long enough to return to a desk job full time. Part time is not an option for me. I still have several months of leave but if only increasing time by a few minutes every few days still seems like this will take forever to reach an 8 hour day!

Next question for ladies: At what point did you start wearing a bra again? My husband says it's not obvious that I'm not wearing one....yes I am that small,lol. But still feel self conscious out in public.

Thirdly, I've read some take their walker for follow up appointments, but at 8 weeks is this necessary? I haven't used the walker since week 3. But do most carry a pillow with you when out in public at about 6-8 weeks, and to Dr. appointments ? I'm afraid of getting stuck in a waiting room for longer than I can handle sitting.

Still not feeling very well on most days and spend probably 90% of my day lying in bed. Hope this is normal at this point.

Thanks for listening.

[mdtaffet]

Hi everyone,

I am 6 weeks and 3 days post op today and have several questions. First, boy this sitting is really difficult! Do most of you sit periodically throughout the day or try to sit for as long as you can at one time? I can only sit for tops maybe 40 -45 minutes at a time. Seems like this is going to take forever to be able to sit long enough to return to a desk job full time. Part time is not an option for me. I still have several months of leave but if only increasing time by a few minutes every few days still seems like this will take forever to reach an 8 hour day!

Next question for ladies: At what point did you start wearing a bra again? My husband says it's not obvious that I'm not wearing one....yes I am that small,lol. But still feel self conscious out in public.

Thirdly, I've read some take their walker for follow up appointments, but at 8 weeks is this necessary? I haven't used the walker since week 3. But do most carry a pillow with you when out in public at about 6-8 weeks, and to Dr. appointments ? I'm afraid of getting stuck in a waiting room for longer than I can handle sitting.

Still not feeling very well on most days and spend probably 90% of my day lying in bed. Hope this is normal at this point.

Thanks for listening.

Pam,

I started wearing a Genie bra (not my regular bras) daily once I started getting dressed daily. My surgery was on January 23rd, and I spent most days through probably late March/early April in my pajamas. While I probably could start wearing my regular bras now, I haven't done that yet because it seems that the metal hooks in the back become uncomfortable when I'm wearing my bone growth stimulator. Since I have to wear the bone growth stimulator for 4 hours a day, it's much more comfortable for me to stick with the Genie bra for now. But sometimes I can feel discomfort beginning in the band area in the back the later it gets in the evening -- and that's with no metal at all -- just the fabric itself.

My bed was and still is uncomfortable when I'm lying on my back, so I probably spent 90% of my time during those early weeks sitting, which in my house was the most comfortable position I could find. Fortunately my kitchen chair is one that is very comfortable for the most part. Between that and my rocking glider with an extra pillow, I would spend hours sitting every day. I still do. But now I have to be careful about having my knees flexed too far when I'm sitting. When my knees are flexed too far, I develop a lot of knee pain which in particular makes it difficult to go up and down the stairs (the kitchen is downstairs but the bedroom and bathroom are upstairs, so I have to go up and down stairs numerous times every day). The other problem I have with my knees is if I sit still too long (such as for 3 straight hours of television), sometimes it is difficult to stand up again.

I took the walker with me for the first post-op appointment because I was still using it at that point (my first post-op visit -- and removal of the dressing -- was 17 days after the surgery), but I didn't bring it to the second post-op visit, which was almost two months later.

I'm at the point now where I don't use the cane in the house for the most part, even though I still hobble quite a bit without it. I had been using the cane mostly when going up and down the stairs, or when leaving the house, but today I actually went up and down the stairs without it 3 times (twice due to phone calls that required me to move from one floor to the other -- can't easily hold the phone and talk while also holding the cane, and I didn't have my phone headset on).

I did start back to work part-time from home about a month and a half ago, but am not yet doing the number of hours I had hoped to be doing by now. I had hoped to be doing 20 hours a week now, but I'm lucky if I can do 20 hours over two weeks time. Unfortunately now that I've started working part-time, I'm bringing in even less money than I had been getting during the period considered to be total disability -- and that was a mere pittance compared to what I usually get when able to actually work 40 hours a week.

My employer has been very good about working with me. When I first took the job back in July 2009, I would work at home 4 days a week and then drive 156 miles each way one day a week to attend my supervisor's staff meeting in person. That one day was always a very long day for me (and usually led to a lot of extra back pain -- I started wearing an ice pack on my back the whole way which helped a bit but didn't make the pain go away), but it was a very nice mix of telecommuting and face time. [I had been laid off by a local employer in March 2009; this job allowed me to stay in my field with a company that has a great product doing the kind of work I want to do.]

Then I was furloughed for 6 weeks in the summer of 2011; when I went back to work, I started driving 47.5 miles each way to work on a contract at a customer's work site every single day. That lasted until the Friday before my surgery. I'm guessing that once I start back full-time, that daily travel (an hour each way) will start up again -- assuming that there's a new contract in place by that time. That will make it difficult for me to continue to do my daily at-home exercises that the PT prescribed, and will also make it difficult to continue wearing the bone growth stimulator for 4 hours every day, unless they allow me to wear it during the work day. It's not very comfortable to wear it while driving -- I already tried that once and decided not to do it again.

Just so you know, when the surgeon filled out the New York State Disability Claim Form, they indicated that I would be able to return to work in October, which means a bit over 9 months for recovery. My surgery was T9 to S1 with pelvic fixation; I believe your surgery was more extensive than mine, since my biggest trouble spot was lumbar only.

About a month ago, I bought a standard McKenzie lumbar roll and a newer McKenzie lumbar super roll. Whenever I go someplace whose seating arrangements I'm not familiar with, I take that super roll with me. I used it at a dinner party on Saturday night in a fairly standard wooden chair with I believe it was horizontal slats.

But in the PT's waiting room, I actually prefer to stand. I fill out the every-visit paperwork standing. I only sit in their chairs if the therapist doesn't come out to get me shortly after I arrive.

Good luck and I hope you start feeling better soon.

-- Mary

[twistedRN]

Hi,
I will be 10 wks postOp tomorrow and have to say that at about 6/7 weeks I really felt a big change for the better. Each week I would think back to the week previous and realize how much further along I was...think of it : just 5 weeks ago you could barely stand, let alone sit, and here you are sitting for 30-45 minutes! I do agree that sitting is the most difficult part, though. I STILL tote around my pillow, not so much for the pain, but just for comfort - I still can't feel my back hitting the back of a chair and the chair back feels soooo far back there. I am just more comfie leaning on a pillow. Hopefully that will end soon. I get a lot of strange looks carrying my pillow into restaurants etc! Hang in there, one day you will realize you sat through a one hour show on TV without even thinking about it!

[twistedRN]

Hey Pam,
Sorry, also forgot to mention about the bra - I am small also and just bought a couple of those pull-on bralette type things. I started wearing them about week 3/4 and then went pretty quickly to a regular one. At first I used a gauze 2x2 under the strap and over my incision, but then eventually went without that too. Yes, it can feel tight at the end of the day, but I just take it off at that time! As far as the walker goes, I stopped using mine (except for neighborhood walks or long walks in warehouse stores etc) at about week 2/3. But I did take it to my 7 wk follow up appt....

[Confusedmom]

Hi Pam,
I am by no means out of the woods, but I have started sitting for up to 2-2 1/2 hours. I have done that probably 3 times now. I'll stand up to stretch every 20-30 minutes and then sit back down. Made it through an entire neighborhood association meeting tonight! This change happened just in the past week or two. I just started feeling somewhat more flexible (Flexeril helped, I think), and I've had more energy. For me this started around week 9. I still do have to lay down flat several times throughout the day, but I would say I am up for the majority of the day now. I have no doubt you'll be ready to go back to work when the time comes.

I also can get by without bras. Generally at home I wear tank tops instead. When I go out I wear bras. It doesn't bother me too much. I've probably been wearing them off & on since week 4.

I would ask Karen whether Dr. Lenke wants to see you with the walker. I brought mine, but he didn't ask to see me walk with it. I doubt you will need it.

At five weeks, I was getting up for about an hour in the morning to get my kids to school. Then I would pretty much rest all day, getting up for meals. I would take 6 minute walks in the house a few times. And I would help put the kids to bed at night. But really, I was laying down a lot of the time. I would ask Karen about this, too. You aren't on many meds, and it's possible they would want to get your pain down another notch to get you a little more active over the next few weeks.

Best,
Evelyn

[TwinmomTN]

Thanks everyone. This is very helpful. Wow, Evelyn you are sitting for 2-2.5 hrs!!! I am very impressed. You are progressing swiftly! I will definitely find a bra to get into soon or use the 2 x 2 bandage strip idea, thanks Suzanne that is brilliant. It sounds like I may be a little behind schedule in my daytmakes activeness. I will make an effort to get more active each time I am up. Thanks all.

[Confusedmom]

Update! I was very sore the past two days after sitting through the 2.5 hour meeting on Monday. So, I think I jumped the gun when I said I'm sitting 2-2.5. It's probably more like 1-1.5, which can be pushed if necessary. The latest is pain in my left gluteal muscle and left lower leg if I sit too long. I'm worried about a pinched nerve. Hope not!

Evelyn

[TwinmomTN]

Muscle spasms

Question for everyone regarding muscle spasms and activity. Are muscle spasms just inevitable and unavoidable when increasing activity level? It seems everytime I attempt to sit longer or walk further my muscles do this "balling up" and tightening which I guess is a muscle spasm. Is there anyway to avoid these or do they go with the territory and I just have to ride this out?

[Confusedmom]

Mine are still spasming constantly. I take Flexeril on an 8-hour schedule, and it helps a lot.

Best,
Evelyn

[nanlo]

Hi everyone,

I am 6 weeks and 3 days post op today and have several questions. First, boy this sitting is really difficult! Do most of you sit periodically throughout the day or try to sit for as long as you can at one time? I can only sit for tops maybe 40 -45 minutes at a time. Seems like this is going to take forever to be able to sit long enough to return to a desk job full time. Part time is not an option for me. I still have several months of leave but if only increasing time by a few minutes every few days still seems like this will take forever to reach an 8 hour day!

Next question for ladies: At what point did you start wearing a bra again? My husband says it's not obvious that I'm not wearing one....yes I am that small,lol. But still feel self conscious out in public.

Thirdly, I've read some take their walker for follow up appointments, but at 8 weeks is this necessary? I haven't used the walker since week 3. But do most carry a pillow with you when out in public at about 6-8 weeks, and to Dr. appointments ? I'm afraid of getting stuck in a waiting room for longer than I can handle sitting.

Still not feeling very well on most days and spend probably 90% of my day lying in bed. Hope this is normal at this point.

Thanks for listening.

Hi Pam,
I know what you mean when you say that it seems like it takes forever! But what Suzanne said really resonated w/ me - every week was SO much better than the last! As far as sitting / resting, at 6 weeks, I still had a hospital bed in our living room, so I could adjust my sitting position. It seems that everyone's most comfortable position is different for the first weeks at home. I definitely did carry a pillow around w/ me in public for awhile though. I needed it.
I can recommend a good bra... I got a super comfy bra from the Spanx website called brallelujiah (!). It has the clasp in front, all the straps are just stretchy bands, really soft! I'm small too, but it comes in every size.
For muscle problems, I started seeing my massage therapist at week 4. And I keep going every week since it helps so much. At first, she didn't even go near my spine, but all my muscles were upset w/ me, and it felt wonderful to have her work on my legs, arms, shoulders, neck, etc. Over all, it's made a huge difference in my recovery.
Every week WILL get better!! Hang in there!
Nancy

[SisterFriend]

Tips on what to pack for surgery

Yes, my date is finally here! Monday, August 13th is surgery, but I have a mylegram on 8/9, central line on 8/10, and then wait over the week-end for Monday's 5:30 surgery. I have no idea what to pack. I need clothes for the hotel and then how much do you bring to the hospital? And Pam did you bring your laptop? and did your husband stay at a hotel the whole while you were inthe hospital or did he go home and come back. How long were you in the hospital and then were you in rehabilitation unit also.? Questions, questions. Help
How are you coping at home. We have a multi level home-Yikes. I'm tring to realize and let the Lord handle it. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Godbless Laurie