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Linda, thanks for that. I read that info before I posted, but I just couldn't picture it. When my surgeon and I talked about the VCR procedure, he didn't mention using a cage or anything. He said...

Can someone explain the main differences in these two procedures? They appear to be very similar.

I saw my surgeon yesterday for my six month checkup. It's been a long, hard road, but a couple...

I must have a pretty good insurance policy, I haven't paid more than $4 for it. I've read that people have had to pay up to around $3000 a month for it. I know it's supposedly the best, but I just...

Just wondering if anyone who's taken Forteo has had any strange side effects? I started fire for a brief period before my surgery last November, and then have been injecting it steadily since mid...

If this doesn't show how amazing the people on this forum are... It's just great.

Kathy,

Are you still currently doing PT? And if so, have you been doing it constant since surgery?

Hey guys.. Just want to get a few things off my chest, and see what happens. For the past few weeks I've been really struggling mentally here. Super emotional, which isn't normal for me. I thought I...

Ahh yeah, the nice soldering iron feeling... I still can't believe you ski after this. That's definitely motivation, for I'm guessing a lot of others as well.

One of the best things about this...

I was just thinking, about 4 days ago I did completely squat down to get something out of a bottom cupboard in the kitchen. I made sure to keep my spine and neck as straight as possible as I did it,...

Hmm, I don't know. This is almost a burning pain, which usually falls into the nerve category, no? It's not completely constant, I can get in a few different positions to calm it down. When I'm...

How can you tell the difference? If I had to guess, I'd say soft tissue pain.

No temperature, and definitely did not stop taking any pain meds. I sent a message in to my surgeons office, but it was five minutes to five, on Friday. I'm expecting a call from them Monday morning....

Hey Sharon, thanks for the response..

Don't think it came on suddenly. It's actually hard to remember because I had so much pain before surgery, but it almost seems this pain is in a similar area...

For the past few days, I've been having terrible pain back there, and it seems to be getting worse. It's hard to tell if it's the iliac screw, or what. It's coinciding with this drainage tube being...

So I didn't get the Jackson Pratt drain. I can't remember the name of what they called it, but it was very generic sounding. Something like a common use drain or something, but we are using the...

Well we just can't seem to get rid of this seroma. My surgeon drained over 1000cc last Monday, and then tightly wrapped me with gauze and 3 ace bandages for a week to see how it would go. Went in a...

So... Couple good news items I think... I saw my surgeon Monday. He himself, not an intern, our fellow or anyone else did the job of draining that seroma again. He had me sitting upright this time,...

Almost off the meds??!!! Haha, no way. I was on heavy duty narcotics for way too long prior to surgery to be able to kick them this fast. Right now I'm taking 30mg of oxycodone every 4 hours. Valium...

I was very torn on whether or not to post these pictures. My girlfriend made a great point about why I should, so I will. The first couple will be of what my back looked like when it was full of...

Hi Ed and Linda..

Yeah, have been wearing this brace/corset/girdle(ha!) since I went in the second time to have the seroma drained. I didn't wear it much after the first time it got drained,...

Well the damn seroma came back with a vengeance... As luck would have it (again), I was able to make a last minute appointment with another surgeon. Same guy as the other day. He removed about 500cc...

Yeah I actually got one of those moisture wicking, under layer things, long sleeve..... It's super thin material, and you'd never think it would keep you warm, but it works really well... Very...

Hey Ed, as far as they could tell, that was not an infection at all, just fluid that wouldn't be absorbed by the tissues in my body. There was still quite a large bulge even after they took all that...

The nurse practitioner here at rehab thought the "bulge" deserved immediate attention. She contacted my surgeons office, who wanted me to come in today. Which was great, because I was in a lot of...

Yeah, I've also decided I need to just focus on me as much as possible. My full recovery is most important at this point.

So it appears I might have developed a seroma on my lower back. It's been...