Living Spinefully

I know my post-op x-ray above isn’t as clear as the pre-op one – I had a wound-vac and staples in at the time. To summarize – in the surgery they took out my S1 screws from 2.5 years ago due to their proximity to S1 nerve root and repositioned the one on the right side (they actually just left out the left S1 screw because there wasn’t space, my vertebrae are weird). Then they removed the S2 AI screws and repositioned them with this new technology of 3D printed screws that are supposed to more successfully fuse to bone. Then they put in more screws and bone graft to fuse my sacroiliac joint and hopefully better distribute the weight of my spine across my pelvis. They tracked my nerve signals throughout the procedure and on my left side, my signals actually improved, which is best case scenario!

I woke up from the surgery on Monday afternoon and was able to walk a little bit by Tuesday. Pain throughout my hospital stay was mostly well controlled, though it stinks for us spine patients that there’s really no option but to lay on a fresh incision, at least part of the time. I discharged on Thursday and went to Dayton to stay with family, who brought me food from my favorite thai place for my first night home. It’s still too early too tell how successful the surgery was, though the fact that my nerve signals improved (and my left leg is less numb) gives me hope!

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been continuing to listen to lots of audiobooks, cross-stitch, paint by numbers, watch Netflix, and take lots of naps. Pain has shifted from primary incision pain to now feeling achey and sore in my butt and hips. I’m not supposed to lift anything over ten pounds or doing any bending or twisting based exercises for at least 3 months. I took two weeks off work entirely and worked part time last week. I’m (mostly) excited to start full time back at work tomorrow.

I’m a little shocked at how comparatively easy this surgery and recovery process have been so far. My therapist and I have begun to discuss how, after two really challenging surgeries and recoveries, it was hard for me to not to anticipate something catastrophic going into this one. I’m really glad that I was wrong. I get tired quickly and sometimes limp a bit and have pain. But overall, I’m doing pretty well. The fear and dread that has been sitting on my chest for months has mostly lifted, replaced by a quiet, cautious optimism. I am overwhelmingly grateful for the friends, family, doctors, nurses, physical therapists, other hospital staff, and kitties who have been taking great care of me. I’m also grateful for the time to rest.

As always, thanks for reading,

Laura