I Went MIA, I’m back and here’s what happened

[Greg]

Hi Greg

Thanks for sharing your story as I can relate, I am on the edge of being in the dark side but will not go their. I have a son and wife that cannot see me in that condition. I will keep moving forward
I know you will do extremely well in your fusions and wish you the best, Keep your core sstrong etc.

Thanks
Gil

Thanks for the reassurance Gil....I think I even remebering talking with you before about it back before I took a 6 month leave of absence from SPS

Gil, I'm so proud of you, having the strength to carry on and not let the dark side grab you. You are stronger than I am. I truly would have given up years ago if not for my family too. I could not hurt them like that, as you say.
I agree 100% on that one Katie/Gil....the family made a huge difference and then when it got real bad the SPS family jumped in to save the day

This is a wonderful place to share our pain and frustration, and save our loved ones some of the misery. Thanks Justin!

Yes Justin, THANK YOU SO MUCH for creating the worlds greatest support group, kinda like a one-stop-shop for all your spine patient needs!

That's OK Greg. I've been a hermit these past few weeks ever since coming home from surgery. For the first week I was sleeping eighteen hours a day, but after that, I was feeling absolutely horrid before finding out that I can't do dairy.
-I can only get about 6 hours of sleep tops because unfortunately for me laying down is the biggest trigger for my pain. Sleeping is probably one of the biggest things I look forward to from this surgery.

I was so sick I just wanted to end it...there was still some back pain, and I had talked myself into believing that the surgery may not have worked as it should, and that plus feeling like I was being poisoned, I just didn't want to deal with anyone.

Now, just five or so days later after stopping the milk, I am feeling so much better...on the verge of wonderful But boy, did I ever catch heck from people who wanted to spend time with me. Apparently they thought I was being almost rude or even severely depressed, when I was just plain sick. The more someone pushed to 'help' me, the further I crawled into my cave.

So all that rambling was just to explain that I DO get it, and no apologies necessary. I'm just glad that you are feeling up to talking to us again, and have a way forward.

Well I wouldnt feel right if I didnt apoligize because no matter what way you look at it I turned my back to the group and left yall in the dark wondering....I'll make it up to you all, I PROMISE. I'm exstatic that you've finally got your surgery done. I cant believe that a little bit of milk did you in like that

Is milk something I should try to stay away from after my fusion or were you just a rare case of milk-consumption-pain-generation? Oooh....just made that word up

[ajj1001]

I craved milk and cheese for the first couple of months after my fusion. I figured that the calcium in these would be a good thing?

[Katie]

Yes, I suspect that the craving came from the increased need for calcium to build all that new bone.

Most people probably don't react like that, but a few friends have told me that their gut sort of shut down after surgery too, and they were unable to deal with milk. It is one of the hardest things to digest and your whole gastro system is shaken up a fair bit with this surgery. So I guess mine just didn't want to work so hard anymore, at least for now.

I developed an intolerance to a lot of other foods too though, within a few short months of starting my large doses of morphine. No one can tell me if they are related, but I can't see any other reason. The body is a wonderful thing!

[Greg]

Yes, I suspect that the craving came from the increased need for calcium to build all that new bone.

Most people probably don't react like that, but a few friends have told me that their gut sort of shut down after surgery too, and they were unable to deal with milk. It is one of the hardest things to digest and your whole gastro system is shaken up a fair bit with this surgery. So I guess mine just didn't want to work so hard anymore, at least for now.

I developed an intolerance to a lot of other foods too though, within a few short months of starting my large doses of morphine. No one can tell me if they are related, but I can't see any other reason. The body is a wonderful thing!

So I wonder if I happen to be one of those people who cant handle milk, what are the signs that I should look for and pay attention to? You made it seem like the milk was a living hell....was it pain or nausea or discomfort?

What other foods did you have an intolerance for? Sorry to pull the Barbara Walters 20/20 on you but I just want to be as prepared as possible for this. I would much rather be overprepared than under....ya know what I mean?

Kind of off topic but I just remembered....I am still currently a smoker....I know, bad for me and will not help with trying to fuse bones together that were naturally made to be independent of each other. My quit date is May 18th as I want to go into the surgery with being nicotene free for at least 1 month. I've failed miserably soooooo many times before; tried the patch, the gum, the pill, cessation programs, even paid $500 for a lifetime guarantee hypnosis session The "guarantee" is that if you want to smoke or start smoking again you can come back for another hypnosis session for free.....FOR LIFE! After the 3rd session I realized it wasnt gonna work and not waste my time coming back as I already wasted the money.

I've got a bigger, better, foolproof plan this time I looked back at all the times I tried to quit, what I did, where I failed and realized that I was quitting for the wrong reasons. I didnt have the will power to be successful because I wasnt quitting for myself. But this time I am. Nicotene is a growth inhibitor (you heard the saying, "Smoking stunts your growth"...well it's true) and I'll be damned if I become unsuccessful in fusing my spine and ridding myself of this pity of a life because I wanted to smoke cigarettes and ruin my life. If I want the surgery to be successful then I need to not smoke. I cant thing of any bigger motivation than one of ridding myself of my back pain and having my quality of life back. But for all the smokers out there who are looking for a foolproof way to quit, I DONT suggest injuring your back to need a fusion and use the motivation of a pain free life again....LOL