Medical anniversary reflection...

Thursday Sept 1st was the 2nd anniversary of surgery #2 which successfully corrected a dysfunction following surgery #1 on July 1st.

How did I even get to surgery #1 you might be asking. For quite awhile following the ankle surgery to subside the lesion pain in the left ankle, I began experiencing burning lower pain in the back and pelvis that ran down the left leg when walking or standing after long periods of sitting. this was incapacitating. I went to an orthopedic, had an MRI which showed collapsed disk, and just above two vertebrae collapsed onto one another. He gave me options of physical therapy, Pain Medicine Dr, or surgery.. I did the PT route for about a month, and the PT was excruciating, bringing no relief just adding to the pain level where I didn't have pain before. Got the name of the Pain Medicine Dr., met with him, started injections of the upper (2 bulging discs) and lower back which continued for little less than a year, but worked. At about the 4-6 month mark pain would return upon having an injection for lower back in the office and the parting comment of "this should bring you relief for 4-6 months" away I went. Life had been pretty routine for ability to function actively.

At the mark of about 3 months, I attended a Valley Christian midweek basketball game to watch Blake De Jong play, and my back was hurting pretty badly, sitting on the wooden benches even on a blanket was difficult. I called in and got in for a pain shot on Thursday, and the parting comment of "this should bring you relief 4-6 months".. And when I saw on Saturday the friends I had seen midweek at basketball, they couldn't believe how much better I looked and was walking pain free.. I was dancing the happy dance of joy for sure. Three weeks later, following the above mentioned injection, without much more than a walk of about 100 yards, the intense pain returned with a fiery fury that takes your breath and legs away from you.. I
certainly wasn't expecting that, not so soon anyway. A call to the pain medicine Dr and he said it was time to consult with the orthopaedic Dr again. The dr ordered a repeat of the MRI of which little option was left but to surgically implant a new disk and a spacer between the two collapsed vertebrae. I had to first consult with the vascular surgeon who starts the surgery process prepping the bodies insides to be moved out of the way to get to the spinal area. Surgery was scheduled for July 1st.

Wed July 1st surgery went as planned, no complications, I was walking the halls with PT on day two, climbing one flight of stairs on day four... Released and went home on Sunday.. Restrictions were; only to walk from bed to bathroom, sitting upright no longer than 20 minutes at any one time. I followed this thoroughly , took minimal pain meds, was feeling
good. The staples were removed at the beginning of the 2nd week at the vascular dr office, my first outing. I am still taking it very easy, I began to experience pain in the tail bone, and
left leg.. I had a two week appt at the ortho surgeons office and mentioned it to him, x-rays are taken, nothing impressed him, says to continue to take it easy, and see you in two weeks..
I just progressed to get weaker with time, lost my appetite, trying to move around was slow in getting to the bathroom, getting in and out of the chair was difficult, painful. Now from July
15th appt till August 27th appt, I was told to see him every two weeks, and I complied, but I
was just going downhill. The pain was just growing worse, the nerves being pinched from the
soon to be discovered break in tail bone were sending shock waves into the foot causing
neuropathy that can be explained this way, razor blades scraping the skin in between your toes
relentlessly. All I could think about was this pain, it consumed me and I went heavy on the morphine, less food and refused to get out of bed.. And I cried.. I began to use a walker if
and when I would get up, I sat on a chair if I showered, I would lay down and rest between
shower, drying off, drying my hair.. It was all to much exertion, and I was faint..

I attended our vacation to the river mid July, but mostly just so my family would go, but I
dont remember much about it. In mid August to a graduation send off college blessing for Blake
mostly because I didn't want to miss it, it's where I would have been if I was healthy. But I
literally looked like a pale ghost, had to sit/lay in my special reclining folding chair. I
felt like I was 90 and I looked like it too. This was mid August, and my next appt was Tuesday
August 25th and I with what energy I could muster after lying down in the waiting room for
them to call my name, walked with my walker into the exam room, had a painful set of x-rays
taken which on the flat table on my back I just screamed out in pain. Greg was with me through
all of this, and it was treacherous for him. When the dr came in to see me, I demanded a
cat scan done and I wanted it done NOW or I just wanted to die, I couldn't go on this way anymore, there is something drastically wrong. It was ordered for the next morning, and the
results STAT. On Wednesday afternoon there was a call from the ortho and on speaker phone with Ash, Greg and I he tells us that what he thought was going on was not it, that I actually had a 30% displaced fracture of the sacrum bone, caused most likely by the screws in spacer cage that just pulled the bone apart. I was asked to return to the office Wednesday to review the CT scans. We agreed it had to be fixed and surgery was what its going to take.. I had to make an appt to see vascular again, but in calling his office the receptionist put us off for a week, I called back spoke to the office mgr, married to the vascular surgeon who I wanted in now, she knew the case and said they had been discussing it for a month, he wasn't in the office but on trauma call. She would have him call us. By the time we returned home, 10 minutes later he phoned. Again on speaker phone, with Ash, Greg, I he did the office speak of a verbal okay for surgery he would have done in office. And he then told me surgery was
scheduled for tues at 6:00 am arrive at 5am. The next few days were just a relief that SOMETHING was going to be tried.

Sept 1st we were prepared for a long day, but it really was a long long day. I had gotten in for surgery on time, surgery took a little over 3 hours, and then I laid in recovery. Somewhat out for a lot longer than they had anticipated and by the time I came around, there was a long wait to get an open room up on the ortho floor, and so I laid there for about 12 hours. There policy is that a visitor can not sit in the recovery area longer than 20 min a time, but they finally let Greg in for longer periods of time.

Skip ahead to days 3,4,5, recovery is slower as I now have 2 additional incisions 14" on the lower back and a new one diagonally across lower abdomen and like "V" formation for geese with it crossing the earlier scar of 9 weeks prior. I am up a little bit walking, and while I'm ready to go home, I'm really not and Greg agreed with the dr that I needed to go to rehab for a week to get ready to go home. This was all a sudden thing, felt ambushed really, and I envisioned some back alley facility, but it was actually first floor of the hospital. I was moved down there hastily on Sunday afternoon, spur of the moment in a wheelchair. Called Greg as they are preparing paperwork prior that I'm going and please come, make sure all of my stuff goes along and I'll see you down there.

I was scheduled for a full week in rehab, I was released in 5 days, I worked hard in the three one hour sessions each day, they were asking me what I wanted to do as I passed all exams, I said I want to go home. I was released on Friday Sept.11 in time to get home, have a wheelchair delivered, showered and we went to the 50th anniversary party for uncle Ron/aunt
Alice.. Surprised quite a few people but the night went well, stayed in my wheelchair or used cane to walk a little bit, and it felt god to sleep upstairs in my own bed!

I worked slowly at first to do the PT exercises from the sitting position in a chair, resting, and then picked up the pace at 4 months, walked to end of the block and back as a big accomplishment. At 6 months started physical therapy, then at 7 months started working with a trainer on my own, slow at first, and then picked up the pace slowly as I felt stronger. I returned to work at the 8 month mark after July 1st, and did my workouts in the morning, showered and went to the office. I was feeling very good, slow and steady as I went. The dr just warned me to take it slow as there was NO MORE ROOM for anymore hardware inthatarea and he doesnt know how another repair could be done.

As in recent post, I set out to train for the hike of Bryce and Zion National park over a 5 day period and accomplished that 13 months after surgery #2, hiking 15 miles in one day down across the Bryce canyon and back up to the top.. I was one excited, exhausted, restored individual at that moment. It was quite a trek at times, and Greg had to be wondering "what if" should I stumble, or suffer an unknown setback and be unable to continue, but no fear for what is unknown when all looks well. The dr had cleared me, CT scan showed all was healing and progressed to a safe level to be beyond fear.

I've been staying active in spurts on the treadmill, bike riding, hiking Oregon, in the last year since that hike in Bryce and Zion, time to kick it up a notch. My body continues to have some setbacks of joint pain in hands/elbow, and the time spent resting a torn muscle in left calf.. But perseverance is necessary for me or giving up is only other alternative. Always wanting the next adventure to be fulfilled while I have breath left in life.

It just disappeared..

I just spent some time writing a new post using the new blogger interface..it doesn't save as you go like the old style, so I hit the back key by mistake and suddenly the whole post was missing and I had nothing saved to go back to.. So the new interface I was "trying out" I hate it...
Do I start over, what a thought................