Medical Update
I saw the orthopedist yesterday. Not good. I am having surgery. Mid November. We are working on setting a date. Here's the deal
They will fuse the L4/L5 and S1 Vertebrae, this will leave me with limited mobility in the lower portion of my spine but it is better than dealing with the pain. Surgery should take about 6 - 8 hours. He started to explain it all and between the pins and screws and cages, I thought I was going to be sick. Feel free to look it up if you want. It is surgery to correct Flat Back Syndrome. Basically back in the dark ages when I had my surgery (1984ish) they used a single long rod to straighten the spine. Today they know that by doing this while correcting the spinal deformity you also take out the natural curves of the spine. Now they use several curved rods to straighten the deformity while maintaining the natural curves of the spine. So they are going to try to give me back a lumbar curve and jack up the vertebrae that are sitting on top of each other due to the degenerated discs. That's where the cages come in. They will hold up the vertebrae and act as support in place of the discs.
After the surgery I'll be in the hospital anywhere from 3 - 5 days. Home from work for at least a month. Thankfully I have a sick day bank at work and have 6 days left from this year and 25 days in my bank so I should be okay. Plus in January we start over and I will have my 15 days for 2013.
Once I am home here's the fun part:
No driving for a month
No lifting anything over 10 pounds for SIX months
No sitting in a car (driving or passenger) for over an hour for SIX months
No intimacy for at least a month
No Karate for at least six months
I will have a brace to wear for a while that isn't too bad. Physical therapy at some point, probably three months down the road. Possibly in the water.
Last night I talked to my Dad about it and he was so great. Said that he and my Mom would be home in November and December and that they would come up whenever I needed them too. I told him that I might have to miss their 50th Anniversary party (Nov. 17) and he said so what? What is important is that you get better. I cried. He told me to stop crying or that he would start crying. I told my sister in law R that I wouldn't be able to travel down to her house or to my parents. They both live in the same town that is exactly an hour and a half. She said, then I guess we will be coming to you for a while. I haven't told my Mom the part about the no traveling because when I spoke to her the other night about it being a possibility for mid November the first thing she said was don't forget that Daddy and I are having our Anniversary party in November. But if I wait until after that the next week is Thanksgiving week and it is hard to get a surgeon (I need not just the orthopedist but also a vascular surgeon) so then we are talking about it being the end of November which then pushes my recovery back another whole two weeks. Right into the heart of winter. Forecasters are calling for a cold snowy winter. So I am hoping to call her at lunchtime and talk to her or call her tonight. Not really looking forward to it. Need to call my sister and tell her too. My head hurts.
I have to have preop blood work, surgical clearance from my regular doctor and two cat scans plus a myelogram. The fun begins. Thank G-d Jeff is as amazing as he is and is able and willing to step up. It is going to be hard not being able to lift anything over 10 pounds. I wouldn't have been able to lift Peter as a baby. He was 9 pounds at birth!
Oh and my knee has been acting up. I tore my ACL in my right knee in 2004 or so. Never had it repaired because the doctors said it wasn't necessary as I am not doing extreme sports or anything but combined with a tight achilles tendon in my right leg because of the CMT, it is causing my trouble squatting and lifting. When we asked the back surgeon if it would need to be repaired or if the achilles would need to be worked on he said one step at a time. Not a great answer, but I like him and trust him so we'll see.
At least I won't have to worry about getting time off during the kids' winter break. I'll be home already. Saves me vacation days. I can carry over 5 for next year which is good because we will need them between the Bat Mitzvah and the trip to Israel. That is my big motivation aside from the pain. I want to be able to dance at the Bat Mitzvah and to walk my way through Israel without having to stop because it hurts or because I simply can't walk anymore.
They will fuse the L4/L5 and S1 Vertebrae, this will leave me with limited mobility in the lower portion of my spine but it is better than dealing with the pain. Surgery should take about 6 - 8 hours. He started to explain it all and between the pins and screws and cages, I thought I was going to be sick. Feel free to look it up if you want. It is surgery to correct Flat Back Syndrome. Basically back in the dark ages when I had my surgery (1984ish) they used a single long rod to straighten the spine. Today they know that by doing this while correcting the spinal deformity you also take out the natural curves of the spine. Now they use several curved rods to straighten the deformity while maintaining the natural curves of the spine. So they are going to try to give me back a lumbar curve and jack up the vertebrae that are sitting on top of each other due to the degenerated discs. That's where the cages come in. They will hold up the vertebrae and act as support in place of the discs.
After the surgery I'll be in the hospital anywhere from 3 - 5 days. Home from work for at least a month. Thankfully I have a sick day bank at work and have 6 days left from this year and 25 days in my bank so I should be okay. Plus in January we start over and I will have my 15 days for 2013.
Once I am home here's the fun part:
No driving for a month
No lifting anything over 10 pounds for SIX months
No sitting in a car (driving or passenger) for over an hour for SIX months
No intimacy for at least a month
No Karate for at least six months
I will have a brace to wear for a while that isn't too bad. Physical therapy at some point, probably three months down the road. Possibly in the water.
Last night I talked to my Dad about it and he was so great. Said that he and my Mom would be home in November and December and that they would come up whenever I needed them too. I told him that I might have to miss their 50th Anniversary party (Nov. 17) and he said so what? What is important is that you get better. I cried. He told me to stop crying or that he would start crying. I told my sister in law R that I wouldn't be able to travel down to her house or to my parents. They both live in the same town that is exactly an hour and a half. She said, then I guess we will be coming to you for a while. I haven't told my Mom the part about the no traveling because when I spoke to her the other night about it being a possibility for mid November the first thing she said was don't forget that Daddy and I are having our Anniversary party in November. But if I wait until after that the next week is Thanksgiving week and it is hard to get a surgeon (I need not just the orthopedist but also a vascular surgeon) so then we are talking about it being the end of November which then pushes my recovery back another whole two weeks. Right into the heart of winter. Forecasters are calling for a cold snowy winter. So I am hoping to call her at lunchtime and talk to her or call her tonight. Not really looking forward to it. Need to call my sister and tell her too. My head hurts.
I have to have preop blood work, surgical clearance from my regular doctor and two cat scans plus a myelogram. The fun begins. Thank G-d Jeff is as amazing as he is and is able and willing to step up. It is going to be hard not being able to lift anything over 10 pounds. I wouldn't have been able to lift Peter as a baby. He was 9 pounds at birth!
Oh and my knee has been acting up. I tore my ACL in my right knee in 2004 or so. Never had it repaired because the doctors said it wasn't necessary as I am not doing extreme sports or anything but combined with a tight achilles tendon in my right leg because of the CMT, it is causing my trouble squatting and lifting. When we asked the back surgeon if it would need to be repaired or if the achilles would need to be worked on he said one step at a time. Not a great answer, but I like him and trust him so we'll see.
At least I won't have to worry about getting time off during the kids' winter break. I'll be home already. Saves me vacation days. I can carry over 5 for next year which is good because we will need them between the Bat Mitzvah and the trip to Israel. That is my big motivation aside from the pain. I want to be able to dance at the Bat Mitzvah and to walk my way through Israel without having to stop because it hurts or because I simply can't walk anymore.