[Artificial Disc Replacement / Lumbar] CD- Freedom L4/L5 at Texas Back Institute

[linda]

Hey CD,
Just checking in to say hello and hope you are doing well in your recovery.
Take Care,
Linda

[scduggan]

Hello Everyone,
I am 3 1/2 weeks post op. I am really doing well. My emotional problems are MUCH better! Looking back I think it must have been the combination of all the chemicals in my body coupled with the intestinal issues.

I am walking every day. To be honest I think I am stuck in limbo right now. I feel clear-headed with relatively few pain spikes. The downside is my lack of energy and strength. I saw a post today from Jack of all Trades mentioning the same thing. I suppose the energy will come back slowly but surely. This combination of being a little antsy but not really being able to do anything about it is kind of weird. I am really proud of myself because I can say with complete honesty that I am taking it easy. I have a real investment now....no more being a moron with my spine. I am trying to remember that this surgery is just the first step. It is up to me now to give myself the best chance for optimum health.

I hope all you fellow spine patient friends are doing well. Thanks for Everything!
CD

[jss]

CD, that is great news! Hope the successful, albeit slow, recovery continues!

Jeff

[Justin]

CD,

Thanks for the update. The "limbo" phase is a little strange. I've never been one for "taking it easy" or relaxing (I'm wired weird like that) either.

Listen to your body and things will start to slowing fall back into place. Each week gets much better.

[ajj1001]

I can say with complete honesty that I am taking it easy. I have a real investment now....no more being a moron with my spine. I am trying to remember that this surgery is just the first step. It is up to me now to give myself the best chance for optimum health.

I hope all you fellow spine patient friends are doing well. Thanks for Everything!
CD

Taking the long view will help you cope through the recovery period and any little setbacks you might encounter. Well done!

[scduggan]

Hello Everyone,
I have not updated in a few weeks. Last week I traveled to Texas to see Dr. Zigler for my six week check-up. My mistake was making the trip there and back all in one day. I was not ready for this and it took a couple of days to recover. It kind of all boiled down to 14 hours of sitting. I love Dr. Zigler. We took x-rays and I had to fill in a questionnaire relating to the trial. All of my films look good. My biggest problem is trying to manage what I can and cannot do in a day. I overdo it EVERY DAY. By this I mean I end up in the bed with an ice pack for 30 to 45 minutes. I am not re-roofing my house or mulching the flowerbeds.....I am just piddling (is this a word?). I have been told I need to scale back and remember to take it easy. I already feel like I take it easy. I am now forcing myself to lay around some more. I am so grateful to be a stay at home Mom. I rest during the weekdays until the onslaught of kids, backpacks, snacks, homework, dinner and karate practice. Boy, what a bucket of cold water that is! LOL!

I have been cleared to start PT. Dr. Zigler thinks this will help with my LBP and general soreness. I also still have quite a bit of hip pain and stiffness. I am anxious to get back to some kind of exercise, especially stretching. I feel very crotchety (once again, not sure if this is a word).

Finally, Dr. Zigler told me his ADR patients are usually tremendously better from the six week visit to the three month visit. This makes sense and I am really counting on it.

Thanks for listening and reading. If anyone has questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Also, if any of you who have been down this road before me have any words of wisdom....I am all ears!
CD

[scduggan]

Hello Everyone,
I have not posted in a really long time. I have not exactly been out living it up....just taking care of my three boys.

I just had my 5 month anniversary for my ADR. I am getting better each day. I still have a long way to go. I hate to keep saying this but I really do see why we are told it will take a year. I am functioning at almost full capacity. I still have to rest more that I would like and my sitting tolerance is about one hour now. We just took our family vacation to Washington D.C. It was a lot of fun and I really hung in there with everyone on the sight-seeing. I just had a couple of times when I would have to go back to the condo before everyone or sit down somewhere. We drove the 12 hour trip in one day. This was pretty tough but I made it.

Looking back I see there were a few phases I think I just had to go through. The worst was a stint of extremely painful hips. My hips are better now. I do still get nerve type pain when I overdo it. My low back still gets that sore, tired feeling also. This is frustrating because I do not know if it will ever go away or get better. There are times when it is just as bad as before surgery. I WOULD STILL DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN. I am racking my brain to remember the name of the person on this site who had ADR and did not see ANY results until the six month mark. I keep them in mind when I am feeling down.

Finally, thank you SO MUCH to Cindylou for checking on me. Your PM meant a lot to me. I like to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have had some gloomy, melancholy days. I think this is because I have not been able to let go of the pain pills. Also, no doubt, because I am a little afraid when my old, pre-surgery LBP hits me in the evenings. I started taking Sam E a few weeks ago and I think it is really helping. It is a holistic mood enhancer. It is also supposed to benefit the joints.

Wow, when I re-read this post it sounds kind of whiney. I am actually doing really well.....just trying to take it one day at a time. I am thankful for all my blessings. I will not stay away so long in the future. This website has been great for my mental and physical health.

CD

[KBear]

It definitely takes time to heal, I thought in 6 months I'd be good as new, boy was I wrong. Canberra depressing not seeing the improvement as quick as you would like, but it's happening. I was on all pre surgery meds for months, was actually on higher meds post op for a few months, so I wouldn't stress over that. Better to be medicated and mobile than not, thus delaying healing. Glad you are getting better! Take it easy, Kathy

[Cindylou]

I don't know how I missed this post CD, way back in the end of July. Sorry about that. I think I know what happened now that I think back. I made an emergency trip to Dallas to be with my best friend since childhood who was going into renal failure. She did indeed die August 2nd. So, I figured it out, at least, but enough on that. I'm wondering again how you are doing? And I just wanted to add, don't ever worry about whining to any of us. You're entitled, after all you've been through, and I never think of you as a whiner anyway. It does sound from your late July post that you have made tremendous gains. Good for you. And I think you are seeing firsthand that it is a roller coaster ride from start to finish. Are you still reaping benefits from the SAM-E (sp?)? I hope this post finds you well. God bless, Cindylou

[runagain]

CD,

I just read your latest post. No time, like now, huh?
I didn't feel 100 percent engergenic (is this a word?) until at the one year mark. Now, I don't know if my slower recovery was due to disc #2 acting up, but that is how I felt.
I had heard other people say the same thing. I was actually hearing people say this is more like a two-year recovery. Now if I can ever get started on my second recovery, I will see what they actually mean.
I took naps for a long time after surgery.

R