VERY bad day today...one leg shorter???

[Nancy Joy]

Lynn, your post and frustration brings back so many memories. At 3 weeks, I was still up half the night because I would wake up in pain and then couldn't get back to sleep- I got to the point I really didn't care HOW anything was made or what was for sale on TV! I found something that really helped me was to have a journal that I would write about how I was doing about once a week or every few days so that when I felt nothing was happening I could look back and see some progress no matter how slight. Please, do not compare yourself to anyone else and let yourself get discouraged by that. I still just walk a mile a day while others might walk 10 but I am thrilled to walk that mile. We are all cheering for each other and that is makes this sight so useful!

[LynnMarie74]

Lynn, your post and frustration brings back so many memories. At 3 weeks, I was still up half the night because I would wake up in pain and then couldn't get back to sleep- I got to the point I really didn't care HOW anything was made or what was for sale on TV! I found something that really helped me was to have a journal that I would write about how I was doing about once a week or every few days so that when I felt nothing was happening I could look back and see some progress no matter how slight. Please, do not compare yourself to anyone else and let yourself get discouraged by that. I still just walk a mile a day while others might walk 10 but I am thrilled to walk that mile. We are all cheering for each other and that is makes this sight so useful!

Nancy-thanks for the note...just wanted to say thanks for the note. I dont have a journal but I do look back at the days gone by, and realize that I am doing much better now than I was a week ago. I walked outside yesterday which was nice BUT it was still too cold for me. I HATE being cold as I tense up, which is not good for my muscles that are trying to loosen up and move around....so I will be waiting for warmer weather to come my way. Hopefully today!

[debbei]

Nancy-thanks for the note...just wanted to say thanks for the note. I dont have a journal but I do look back at the days gone by, and realize that I am doing much better now than I was a week ago. I walked outside yesterday which was nice BUT it was still too cold for me. I HATE being cold as I tense up, which is not good for my muscles that are trying to loosen up and move around....so I will be waiting for warmer weather to come my way. Hopefully today!

I've always hated the cold, but now even more than before. When I shiver now, it hurts and is uncomfortable and I avoid it like the plague. I too, can't wait for nice spring weather so I can walk outside! I'm getting sick of the treadmill.

[LynnMarie74]

maybe I need to move south....lol

Debbei--I cant stand winter weather....honestly....my family and friends keep me here...besides, if I ever took away my 2 sons from my family, they'd kill me! lol Really tho, Im glad you said that cuz it really made me want to get back inside, quick! Even at the end of a shower...I get cold....ughhh....once again, I curse at Scoliosis!!!!!!!! lol

With that said--its 45 outside right now HEAT WAVE!!!! Its a little windy BUT Im determinded to get out for a little while anyway!

[lelc2002@yahoo]

Hi Lynnmarie,
I have the longer/shorter leg too. My left leg is longer. My big lumbar curve is onthe left. It was reduced from 95 to 60. I notice the difference mostly on the treadmill. I may try what your husband picked up for you, the shoe lift. My therapist tells me to push out my right hip, which is not natural, or easy for me, to compensate & straighten me out more. When I do that, the left leg bends at the knee.
I was the most depressed at about 5-6 months of recovery. It hit me that I progressed a good amount in the first couple of months which excited me & then it seemed recovery went on forever where I still felt unable to do many things I used to. I did not take an anti depressant nor was I on any painkillers or tylenol etc after 4 months. I was starting to think I was seriously depressed & needed help but by the late spring/summer I felt better & pulled out of it. It seemed I went into the start of menapause right after the surgery so God knows what went on with my hormones!!! I often wonder if the surgery kicked it all off.
Post traumatic stress was a big part of it all. It took me a looong time to stop having flashbacks of the whole surgery deal! But is does fade away little by little. Hang in there!
---Lynne

[LynnMarie74]

Hi Lynnmarie,
I have the longer/shorter leg too. My left leg is longer. My big lumbar curve is onthe left. It was reduced from 95 to 60. I notice the difference mostly on the treadmill. I may try what your husband picked up for you, the shoe lift. My therapist tells me to push out my right hip, which is not natural, or easy for me, to compensate & straighten me out more. When I do that, the left leg bends at the knee.
I was the most depressed at about 5-6 months of recovery. It hit me that I progressed a good amount in the first couple of months which excited me & then it seemed recovery went on forever where I still felt unable to do many things I used to. I did not take an anti depressant nor was I on any painkillers or tylenol etc after 4 months. I was starting to think I was seriously depressed & needed help but by the late spring/summer I felt better & pulled out of it. It seemed I went into the start of menapause right after the surgery so God knows what went on with my hormones!!! I often wonder if the surgery kicked it all off.
Post traumatic stress was a big part of it all. It took me a looong time to stop having flashbacks of the whole surgery deal! But is does fade away little by little. Hang in there!
---Lynne

lynne-so your nickname is Ilene too, huh? LOL WOW! a 95% curve...amazing! When was your surgery? Do you work? If so when did you go back to work? Did your doc mention that your leg variance makes/made any difference in how your fusion healed? Sorry for all the questions.....and I agree w/the post tramatic stress stuff....I knew it would take a long time to heal & for me to get back to a semi-normal life,but it just seems as its taking forrrrever! Typically time seems to fly & you look back and say"God, where did the time goes" yada yada....but when you want it to fly by, it doesnt. This wednesday will be 4 weeks post op and before the surgery, I thought 4 weeks was a long time and expected to feel better by this point. I thought wrong I guess. I still cant get in/and out of a car yet! Oh well..thanks for the note....have a good Sunday!

[Susie*Bee]

LynnMarie-- yes, for many of us, this surgery is a patience builder. The funny thing is that, when you are very far post-op (like some of us are!) and someone like you posts about being 4 weeks post-op, it conjures up thoughts of babes just out of the womb, so to speak. Be patient with yourself and know that healing and progress will happen-- at your own body's pace. Some mend and do things quicker than others. You are still really fresh from surgery, even though it may not seem so to you. As far as the amount of time it takes to recover-- I think it varies so greatly that there's no way to predict. Some depends on your condition before hand, the extent of your fusion and other surgical happenings, definitely your age, and just how your body responds to the trauma and the repair it has to undertake. I certainly thought 3 months would be ample time for me to recover and return to work, but it was a year and 3 months before I was able to-- and even then it was hard. My recovery is a long-term event and is still a work in progress. A lot of that is probably due to my age and spine condition, etc. Regardless, I am excited about how far I've come. And I'm looking forward to continuing to heal and grow stronger as the years go by. Take care! Susie