[Artificial Disc Replacement / Lumbar] Lumbar L4-5 M6-L - banhorn

[banhorn]

Hey guys,

Thank you so much for being here. You were invaluable for my decision process. Justin, thanks again for the email. I chose to bite the bullet, rather than wait it out - I really hope it was the right call. I can feel my big toe again and my shin pain is gone, so I'll take that as a good sign so far.

Anyway, I'm sitting here in London, 8 days post surgery in lovely little Eastleigh with Mr. Boeree. I've been making some slow and steady progress so far and I'm trying very hard not to over do it or tweak anything back there.

I found it easier to update my own blog via my iphone app rather than logging into the forum, so I've been blogging the experience here:

"Backup"

Thanks again for being here and Good Luck to the rest of you spineys. I really hope I don't have to come around here much anymore.

Cheers,

-Brett

[ajj1001]

Thanks again for being here and Good Luck to the rest of you spineys. I really hope I don't have to come around here much anymore.

Cheers,

-Brett

Hope you don't have to come on here too much too! an update or post saying you have put new stuff on your blog would be very welcome though! The disc looks really good in the pictures, have fun with it.

[banhorn]

Thanks, and will do! Updates from past patients were very important for me in my decision process.

[KanRunMo]

Your whole post-surgery sounds great. Being able to actually get out in London is awesome. Thanks for the posts. Best of luck in the rest of your recovery. Don't forget when you're all done with this and painless to come back occasionally and post to SPS.

[banhorn]

I’m finally here… 6 weeks post op. I’m doing quite well, but still have a LONG way to go! I remember reading the story of a professional athlete riding BMX that I posted a while back and thinking “how can this guy still be recovering at 3 months… he should be good to go!”. After having gone through it, there’s no way I’d be ready either. Don’t get me wrong, I feel better than I have in quite some time, but I’m still sore. There is a lot of hype out there on getting back to normal quickly, post lumbar adr. Make no mistake, this is a long, arduos process (for me anyway). I don’t want to discourge anyone, but I used to play very competitive sports and cannot see a return to that level of fitness any time soon.

Stomach – The incision is completely healed and has been since about week 3. I still have a slight bump/swelling under it, predominantly to the left side. It is a little tender to the touch and I get pain deep inside my core when I work my abs with any gusto. Does anyone know when the bump will go away? I’ve read about massage to help break down abdominal scar tissue… any of you guys have experience?

Back – You can really tell when you’ve pushed your luck. I spent an afternoon playing lego and video games (on the floor) with my nephew on Monday. I was quite sore for the rest of the evening, but woke up in excellent shape on Tuesday morning. I’m still getting the occasional tightness around the bones that flank the spine at the top of the pelvis and around the SI joint, but it comes and goes. My only real pain at L4/5 comes when I sit for too long (over an hour).

Legs – I’m still getting odd bouts of pain in my shins, but it is a far cry from what it was like before. I start “real” physio next week and expect that some hamstring and hip stretches will help to sort out my tight legs. The numbness that I felt for a couple of days is gone once again.

Walking – I’m at 8km at day and don’t feel any discomfort. I did some math and it looks like I’ve walked ~200km since I got back from the UK!

Lying down – I end up in bed once in the morning and afternoon for about 40 mins each and generally up and around for the rest of the day.

Kid #1 – Looking after a kid post ADR is tough. I’ve had to work on my coercion tactics because of my inability to pick up her scrawny 25lb frame.

Kid #2 – Due on September 12th. Should be interesting!

Drugs – Tylenol every once in a while… maybe once a week. NSAIDs lasted for about 2 weeks and I turfed them due to stomach issues.

Xrays – I got the req for xrays at 6 weeks, but Mr Boeree cautioned against it. He said that they wouldn’t show much and he’d like to limit my exposure to radiation so soon after the surgery. Did all of you guys wait until 3 months? I know Mike had a pretty cool CAT scan at 2 months.

Work – I go back to work on Monday and I’m looking forward to it! I miss the peeps and the brain workout.

DVT Socks – I think I can stop wearing them today! ”Wear them for six weeks.” Does that include the sixth week, or stop at Day 42?!

Supplements – Whey protein, glutemine, fish oil, multivitmain and gluco/chond/msm.

Driving – Has gotten a lot better as of late. I can spend up to about 30 mins in the car without any discomfort.

Family – They’ve been an exceptional help and my pregnant wife has been a real trooper. I’ll be able to return the favour in September.

Sleep – Woke up on my side with very little discomfort... haven't been able to up until this point.

Regrets - I wish I would have had the surgery sooner at this point as I'd like to be doing a little better when our next baby arrives in September.

Beds - Any recco's on a good mattress? It's time for a bad back certified bed upgrade.

All in all, things are going pretty well and I thought I'd post an update for all of you potential ADR seekers.

-Brett

[Dr_sciatica]

amazing, recover well.

[banhorn]

Well, I’m finally here and I’m doing quite well considering my spine was opened up and “fixed” back in July! I still can’t believe they go through the front.

The tingles/numbness in my left hamstring/buttock and toe are still sometimes here, but not as strong as before or nearly as often. My back pain is almost non-existent. There is a little tightness/pain back there when go into deeper flexion, but I hope it will subside with time. I can only imagine how long it will take for my back to get used to the new ligament tightness, disc space and lordosis. I can honestly say I feel 90% better than I did last year at this time. I can sit, run, sleep when the kids let me, bend and pick things up, get in the car and put on my socks with out the cringing pain. I realize these aren’t huge milestones, but I’ll take them.

I’ve been able to start yoga up again gently… I’m avoiding extreme flexion/extension/twisting. Instead, I’m doing a lot more of the “flow” type movements, focusing on core and stretching the hammies/back/hips. My hammies are still VERY tight. Pre-injury, I could bend forward at the hips and touch the palms of my hands to the floor. Let’s just say, I’m a good few months or perhaps a year from that point. I’m in no rush and will get back there in time.

Mr. Boeree was very pleased with my 6 month xrays as they show great movement of the device and retained placement. By 6 months, oseo integration has probably occurred and the implant should stay in place for the foreseeable future. I raised a few questions with him about the longevity of the device given how people speak in the forums about never playing sports again… he answered that the M6-L has been tested rigorously in lab beyond a normal human lifetime and that it shouldn’t be an issue. Again, there is no long-term human evidence to support this, but I’m certainly going to take it out for a spin or two! I’ve missed the ice and pow for two winters already.

I let him know that I was planning on ramping up my yoga for the next 2 months to regain some strength and flexibility and he had no problems at all with me trying out hockey at around the 8 or 9 month mark... but we'll see how I feel.

Cheers,

-Brett