anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (Cervical Spinal Fusion) UPDATE 3/23

[PIMking]

yes, c4/c5 and c6/c7

[PIMking]

UPDATE:

6 weeks later I'm feeling much much much better. However I'm still getting real stiff in my upper shoulders. I have a pretty good range of motion but if I were to look up, as if I were looking at the stars I cant go back that far yet. (not suppose to)

I've been working again since March 1st. 4 hours a day for two weeks and I've had to work the desk twice and both nights after about 5 hours I started to strain a bit and the next day I was super stiff.

I know I had a slight rupture on the disc below it and the surgeon said it wasn't bad enough to worry about. I go and see him in a couple of weeks and hope that I can start a workout regiment to regain strength.

My biggest issue sill today is where the plate is. It is located right under my voice box. It feels as if I have something stuck in my throat at all times and like I'm almost breathing through a straw. It's not like I cant breath, just that I can tell that it's not normal.

The other big issue for me has been financially. I am on Salary but obviously I cant get paid and not show up to work at all. So I used my available vacation and ran out a week before I came back. We get paid Bi-weekly (3/20 was last pay) which I got paid but the pay check before that I didn't so I was running very low. Thankfully my utility companies understood and let me pay late without fees. But this pay period was toast, $400 in electric killed me, damn you cold weather!

I'm going to sign up for Geico here next pay period. it's not expensive and will cover my bills if I have to have another surgery (which looks like it)

overall, the pain that I'm in now is NOTHING like what I was in before. I still have (1) Percocet, (10) Hydrocodone and a (20) Methocarbamol (muscle relaxer)

which is fantastic because I should have ran out of them a couple weeks ago. I can use em if I need to but I dont like to. I'm scared i'll become hooked on em.

I'll keep you all updated

Ian

[nickerjones]

Have you noticed any depression or sleep deprivation?

I know that after my back surgery I got very depressed. I am not sure if it was coming off the pain meds or what? The doctor said usually after a major surgery at my age some people start to face their own mortality ( earlier than they should). I'm not sure if that's the case since I dealt with mortality when I had my car wreck, or at least I thought I had. It was the weirdest thing though.... I would be upset and cry for no reason. I didn't even know why? I even teared up when I told the doc I thought something was wrong and I was unhappy for no reason. I took a pill for 10 days and haven't had the problem since.

Also I quit taking my pain meds cold turkey 3 days after surgery. I was on heavy doses of Oxy, Opana, and muscle relaxers. I had been for 3 months or so. When I quit them I could not sleep at all. It took me a while and a couple weeks with sleeping pills to get myself back in the habit.

[PIMking]

No depression, and I've had problems sleeping at the beginning because of pain but that was it.