Great to hear everything worked out and your home again.

From now on everything gets better :-)

Speedy recovery mate!

Just got home from my first trip out in two weeks... back to Dr. Harron's office here in town for my follow-up appointment.

First thing, I got the stitches out, and the incision doesn't look too bad. Doesn't look too good either. Looks... well, like somebody cut my throat. (because they did - DUH...) But it was done strategically in a crease so that with a little luck and a little help, in a couple years it'll be barely noticeable. It's not like I was bucking for any beauty contests before. And I'm a bass player. Who cares if the bass player wears turtlenecks?

The best news of all - my left hand is back, at so close to 100% that it's not worth measuring. Here's what's scary... during my surgery they had monitors all over me watching neurological function during the operation. They could literally see the neural activity increasing as they worked to cut and drill (yes, DRILL!) bone away from my spinal cord and foraminal nerves. Then they noticed that my right side activity was increasing too, which means I was losing it all along as well, and wasn't even aware of it. The operation took about twice and change longer than they had planned because of the sheer amount of osteophytic spurring (bone spurs) and the difficulty getting to it from the anterior incision. (anterior = front, means they went in through my neck) At one point they sent a messenger to the waiting room to tell my folks and friends why it was taking so long.

So it's a done deal... C5 through C7 are all one piece now, or rather they are slowly starting the process of growing together. I have the detailed report of the whole operation, but the high points are basically this; after they opened me up, they removed the discs from between the bones, then cleared the deformed bones that were impinging on the nerves, then installed some artificial spacer discs between the repaired bones, and reinforced with a 36 mm titanium plate and secured the plate to my spine with three 16 mm self-drilling, self-tapping titanium screws. (let that sink in for a second...) Then some kind of a cement over that. Clean up, stitch up, and wake him up. All through a two-inch cut in my throat. Freakin' amazing.

The experience was somewhat different from my perspective, but I'm quite amazed by what they were able to do. I have to say too... I  wasn't very happy initially about having to go clear over to the next county for this thing, but in retrospect, I am so incredibly blown away with how awesome the staff was at this hospital that I am relieved it was there. They were great. Every single person I interacted with for two of the worst days of my life, tried their best to make it better. I made it a point to try and remember their names to thank them later. I was out of my mind and mercifully unconscious for a lot of it, but when I had a lucid moment, I made it a point to thank them by name. Katrina (pre-op), Margaret, Tara, Sarah, Kym, Elise. What a great crew.

My instructions are simple - continue as directed at discharge, do absolutely nothing strenuous, 5 lbs. max, cut back on the pain-killers asap, limit exercise to walking on level ground. No driving, no unnecessary car trips, wear cervical brace anytime outside the home, especially in a car.

I'll have another X-ray taken one day the last week of November, to confirm the bones are completely fused, and Dr. Harron will see me again on December 4th to review the findings and talk about a long-term plan for rehab and tell me what's next.

*Perhaps the greatest thing to come from today's visit... I was finally given permission to cease and desist wearing these ridiculous pantyhose the pre-op nurse Katrina tricked me into that fateful morning. Pulmonary embolism my foot...

Congratulations on the successful surgery and well wishes for a speedy recovery Greg.

Sounds good.  Thanks for the update; and keep up the good work of recovery.

Oh, and I just checked; the bassplayers' union has a rule specifically banning turtlenecks, unless you're playing in a 50's west coast cool jazz cover band.  And then you have to have a goatee.

Wow Greg, so happy you are on the mend.
Hearing your tactile sense is back is such great news,
...that's gonna make for some stellar music in 6 months (?) or so.


thanks for the update

I'm super happy for you.  Glad you're "on the road to recovery"!!

Greg -

Welcome to the Community of the C5 - 7 Titanium Plate (I'll have to show you the handshake if the mid-Atlantic coast has a get-together someday soon). It's great to hear of the sensory recovery, which ultimately makes the whole ordeal worth it!

I am surprised you do not report about an electro-magnet bone growth stimulator collar. Worse than your pantyhose, as it was really visible (looked like a walkman rigged to mule's yoke) and it was obligatory for 8 hours a day for 6 months (and you already get to take off the pantyhose).

Everything gets better and better from here on!

Tim

I am so happy to hear this wonderful news!

Great news! So glad to hear that you will be recovering dexterity you didn't even know you lost!

Better to wear pantyhose for a while than pulmonary embolism for an instant... 

Quote from: jon_jackson on October 24, 2018, 05:40:55 AM
Better to wear pantyhose for a while than pulmonary embolism for an instant... 

Surely, I was jesting, and indeed I wore them - faithfully cinched up high and tight every day and night for two weeks. That said, I have not missed them. I just think Nurse Katrina enjoyed watching my last shred of dignity evaporate a bit too much. She was really sweet... had a great sense of humor about her. I warned her sometimes sedatives don't sedate me as much as they kinda' make me feel free to be a smart-mouth. She heard some evidence of that very shortly when one of the anethesiology people asked me, "How's that IV working out for you?" and I replied, "It's great... don't know how I got this far in life without it." Katrina laughed out loud, but she was the only one. True to her word, came upstairs to see me the next day.

I feel better today than I have yet. I walked about 4 miles in 3 hours this afternoon, just plodding along an old mountainside road taking my time, thinking about things. Prioritizing. Probably do the same thing tomorrow. Different direction maybe.

Thank You All for the kind words and thoughts. This has been a wild, crazy time. Weirdly therapeutic keeping a little journal of it here. I'll try to just keep it down to milestones.

   

Share whatever you wish.

I had a benign tumor removed in my abdomen.  Everything went fine, but they kept me a couple days just to make sure everything was still sewn up, etc. 

I had a Demerol on-demand drip with a button to push if I did start hurting, but fortunately I never did, no problem.  But . . . . .

The second day, I'm thirsty as all get out.  So I pick up what I thought was the button to call the nurse.  Actually it was, yep, the DEMEROL Button ! ! !   I pressed it hard 3 or 4 times, no nurse, imagine that . . . .

Finally, she just happened to stick her head in the door, and I said  ' . . . . . . . wherzubinibinkallinandkallinyou . . . . . ' and it sounded like some surreal mush-mouthed drunk sound effect.  She walks over, hands me the NURSE button, and announces I don't need any more Demerol today, and sticks the DEMEROL button in the night stand drawer.  The room was spinning, and I was floating about three feet off the mattress.  They kicked me out first thing the next morning.