The inevitable has finally arrived...

[Faceplate]

Not sure if this is where this post should go, but if it's not in the right spot mods, could you place it appropriately? Thanks.

I was told yesterday by my neurosurgeon that I've exhausted all other avenues of pain relief in regards to the herniated disc/arthritis in my neck. So, on March 8th I'm going under the knife to have my c6 and c7 vertebra fused using a small, threaded, hollowed out, titanium plug that will connect both the bones together. I almost hurled in his office while he was explaining the surgery to me. Not pretty.
Gotta spend the night in the hospital for observation to make sure everything is copacetic then I can go home the following day.
I know this type of surgery is pretty commonplace, but now that it's my turn to have it....I don't mind sayin'--- I'm really buggin' about it. So, has anybody here ever had this type of surgery done? Any words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated...lie to me if you have to, I don't mind!! My wonderful "family" seems to not give a shit either way that I'm having this done, as is par for the course with them.
Sooo...yeah, there it is. I just wanted to share this with the like minded people of BL, as I know that I'm not the only pain patient member on this great site.

Thanks for reading

Peace

 

[TINK]

Has this been the only doctor that you have seen? And how long has this been going on? And what pain relief methods have you tried?

 

[Faceplate]

If this is a serious inquiry, here are my responses...

No, this is by far, not the only doctor I've seen. As a matter of fact, the neurosurgeon that I saw yesterday is the 3rd specialist I've seen in the last 7 months, as well as being the 6th doctor I've seen in the last 7 months. Since 1996 (when the original accident occurred), this makes the 16th doctor I've worked with in the last 14 years. The team of doctors that I currently have is the 4th such team I've had since 1998. I've been through many, many rounds of physical therapy and countless types of medication...everything from otc anti-inflammatory's, to my current meds consisting of an
anti-inflammatory(Naprosyn), a muscle relaxant(Tizanidine), Gabapentin for the nerve pain, and the MS Contin for chronic pain.

As far as methods of pain management...I've used heat (heating pads, hot baths/showers), ice, I've been to chiropractors and massage therapists, electrical stimulation, compression, and bio-feedback...I've been working with a pain psychologist and another doctor at my pain management center for the last 7 months (receiving epidural steroid injections as well as Trigger Point Injections), which is when I ended up in the emergency room with acute pain stemming from the pinched nerve root at the spinal cord, culminating into the crushing pain, numbness, tingling, and loss of strength in both of my arms. The herniated disc is bulging so much that it is pressing the nerve root against part of the vertebra, not to mention that there is a big bone spur that is pressing right against the spinal cord itself.

Let me point something out...no amount of physical therapy or pain management methods are going to correct a herniated disc, osteoarthritis, or a bone spur.
I've lived an extremely physical life. I've played hard and worked harder. I've also been on the receiving end of a drunk driver while I was walking home with my fiance from work in 2001. So, yeah, I've been around the block more than a few times.

 

[junglejuice]

Bummer, man

Hope you heal up quick!

 

[TINK]

Yes it is a serious inquiry, here are my reasons why:

I have fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis in c2, c3, and c4 as well as bone spurs on L4 and 5 with a rotated right pelvic tilt. And thats just the tip of the iceberg.

I recently met a guy who had to have I think T12 or L1 all the way down fused with a metal rod.

I was just asking because I have met people that have just gone with what the doctor says, thinking they are the experts. I work in the health care industry and I see things people don't. Makes me very uneasy when someone says to me "my doctor says there is no other option" in addition to the fact that I have had chronic pain for over 15 years. I preach all the time to people to be their own advocates.

Good Luck, I hope it works out for you.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

There are multiple vantage points you can view this from - it is a serious procedure but they wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't your best shot at reducing your pain and improving your life.

Its not a guarantee but this could GREATLY reduce your pain and have a substantial impact on your quality of life. I can certainly appreciate your nerves but you objectively have a lot of reason to be hopeful (as long as you manage your expectations).

You can make it worse by reading all the horror stories of such procedures (which there will be for nearly any procedure) or you can take solace in knowing that your and your doctor's commitments will likely pay dividends and you'll find some way to ameliorate your situation.

All I really want to communicate is that you have reason to be hopeful here despite the reasons to be nervous or dread this.



I can't know exactly what you're feeling, but I've had chronic pain for just over 5 years (anniversary last month! woohoo) and I've been studying counseling and psychology for a couple years so I'd love to talk if you wanted to needed anyone to talk to. Feel free to PM me and we could talk through that or IM, email... whatever you'd prefer.

take care and try to stay positive!

 

[Faceplate]

TINK-Fibromyalgia sucks. A close friend of mine had it. It totally wrecked her body. Nothing helped with the pain. It really sucked to see her go through that. So, my condolences with the condition that your in, not a fun time at all.
As far as going with what a doc says…not this Chiquita! I question everything that I’m told, then I go and do all the research I can to try to verify what it is that I’m being told. Whenever a doctor tells me something, I always go and get a second opinion and, if my insurance covers it, I’ll get a third opinion. Just like you said, I’ve told people for years that you need to be your own advocate. Nobody else is can make educated choices for you but yourself. You need to arm yourself with as much information as possible before having anything done. To me, that’s just common sense.

Cane-I'm definitely keeping a positive outlook on this. No negativity here, just nervous. I know I'll never go back to being able to give 110% all the time...I can accept that, more or less. I told the doc that I'd be happy with being 75-80%...especially considering I've been operating at about 30% capacity for the last 10 years. Just the thought of being able to get back on my bike and ride again, work on my models, get back into photography, and just being able to do normal everyday things is keeping my spirits up, (a pain-free shower alone, would be worth the price of admission!).
The way I started to look at it the other day is this; soak it all up. Experience this experience for all that it's worth. This will be another great chapter in the book that is my life. It'll be another one of my great life experiences that I will always remember...with a souvenir even! I mean come on, how many people my age can say that they have a piece of titanium in their body? I also look at this way; I listen to heavy metal, have since I was 13 years old. Now I get to have some real metal in my body...that's pretty awesome! Going through metal detectors ought to be hoot.
So, there ya have it. When life gives you lemons, you make lemon-aide, right? Or even...when life gives you Vaseline and gasoline.....you make napalm! Mwuahahaha!!

As far as your offer, I may just take you up on that.. And seeing as I’ve also taken psychology classes as well as having been a peer counselor/mentor, I bet we could match wits til the cows come home.

Thanks again guys for the kind, informative words that you’ve offered up. It really means a lot me.

Peace

 

[Faceplate]

Well guys, two weeks til the big day. I've been doing lots of research on this fusion I'm having done. The piece of titanium that is being used is called a "threaded cervical cage". I've spent hours and hours online reading about the procedure on many different medical websites and I've actually watched some videos of the basic procedure being done...probably shouldn't have done that but I like to know exactly what is being done to my body. Woof...pretty gnarly shit there. After watching several different videos and 3D animations, my stomach did a couple back flips with a twist thrown in for good measure.

I just found out today one negative aspect of this surgery...I can't take ANY anti-inflammatories or NASIDS for 2 weeks before and up to 18 months after the surgery. Apparently it will completely interfere with the healing process. Jesus, if I go more than 4-5 days without my Naprosyn it feels like I've been run over by a freight train. I find out this Thursday if/what I'll be able to take in place of the anti-inflammatories. I was also told that I'll be wearing a contraption called a "bone growth stimulator" that will sit on my shoulders and go around my neck to stimulate the growth of the bone inside the cage and the bone around the cage. Fun fun.

I'm still keeping a positive outlook on this but still nervous about it. I just wanted to share...thanks for reading.

 

[NeighborhoodThreat]

Interesting that you can't take NSAIDs, but at least other pain medication is available to you.

While I'm not a pain patient, I'm glad to hear you're looking forward to the operation, as it will improve the quality of your life in the long run...even if it means more work in the short term.