My journey with a T11 to L4 spinal fusion - 40 degree scoliosis curve

sherrym25, pretty exciting. Just want to wish you well.

Thank you so much! It’s scary but I’m so hopeful for a life ahead without so much pain.
I plan to journal as much as possible.
Hoping to hear from anybody who had a similar experience to give me an idea what I’m in for😊

@sherrym25 Welcome to Connect. Have you discussed horseback riding with your surgeon? I am a spine surgery patient, but with a cervical single level fusion, and I own a horse. I have had no problems riding and have my surgeon's blessing, but I also do not do any fast riding. I trail ride and have a gaited Tennessee Walker, so he does not trot. He can break into a pace which is uncomfortable and bounces like a trot. I would predict that your surgeon would ask you not to ride horses or anything that can pound or bounce your spine after a big surgery like this. You also have to consider that the other non-fused spinal discs are going to have a lot more stress on them because of the fused levels that don't move. You can have further problems and need more surgery because of this extra wear a tear, so being kind to your spine might mean giving up horseback riding. I'm sure you love horses like I do. Your lower spine does a lot of compensation movement when you are riding a horse just at a walk.

That will be a long recovery. There are a couple of discussions on the topic that you might find helpful:

--- What are people's experiences with spinal fusion surgery? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/spinal-fusion-2/

--- Spinal Fusion: Upcoming surgery, what was your experience, any tips?
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/new-2/
I would be interested to hear what your surgeon advises for your recovery.

Thank you Jennifer!! I really appreciate your insight and experience.

I did tell my surgeon that I ride horses, but didn’t talk about a future of riding horses after surgery. The pain that I am in, every single day, has brought me to the point that I need the surgery, no matter what. He performed a similar surgery on a gal who rode horses and said she was able to return to normal activities after she healed. 🙏

I have a gelding that I am breaking now and will have a few rides on him before my surgery. I plan to pick back up with him when I am healed, and I’m prepared that it will take a long time before I can do that.

I’m just so grateful and blessed that my surgery will not fuse my spine to my pelvis, which would of course, prevent the flexibility and range of motion that I need to ride.

What I think I’m NOT prepared for is how long the recovery will take. I have been a firefighter my whole career and ridden horses from the age of three. Limiting my mobility is something I will have to keep at the front of my mind every single day.

Thank you so much for sending me the discussion links. I’ve already read one and found it to be very helpful.

I know that everyone’s experience with healing is different, but I hope that someone who has a similar situation as mine, can share what they went through during the healing process to help me mentally prepare.

I plan to journal my journey with my upcoming surgery on December 11, 2024 with the hope that it will help someone else.🙏❤️

I had the complete lumbar spine done 2005. It helped, but with DDD it continues to be a problem. For a few years it helped, I tried to get up from my desk and couldn't had to call co-workers to help. It was directly related to PT I was doing for a frozen shoulder. In 2012, I received a morphine pump that works great. For me, there is so much arthritis throughout my body. I see it as a journey that working with a good neurosurgeon dealt with problems as they arose. I think you are better off with surgery, to do nothing could result in worse problems.
Good luck.

I’m new here…what is DDD?
What vertebrate were included in your fusion? I’m expecting to lose quite a bit of mobility but if I can reduce the pain, I’m all in.
When did you start PT after surgery? My surgery is on Dec 11 and I’m looking around to find a PT who has experience with spine surgery patients.
Thank you so much for your message!

Degenerative Disk Disease

Ok, thank you

Hello! This is the beginning of My Journal, through my journey, to have a spinal fusion surgery that will take place on December 11, 2024 at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona.
This is my quick intro and I will add to it as the days go by.
In December 2023 after a 31 year career of firefighting and a lifetime of riding horses, I finally went to my doctor and told her that I could not handle my back pain anymore and that I need to figure out what was going on with it!!!
After x-rays, an MRI, and a CT scan, I was diagnosed with a 40 degree scoliosis curvature of my spine.
Looking at the images, made it very clear to me where my pain originated. I consulted with a surgeon at UC Davis in California and was scheduled for a T10 to L4 fusion surgery on October 1, 2024.
I research and pray about everything. This brought me to the Mayo Clinic. I reached out to the Phoenix clinic and sent them my imagery and medical files and they called me the following week and said that a surgeon had accepted me as his patient.
Their soonest evaluation appointment was a month after my scheduled surgery at UC Davis so I canceled that surgery and then met with the surgeon at the Mayo Clinic.
The surgeon was kind and attentive and very articulate as to my situation and what he thought would be best as far as correcting my curve and relieving my pain.
I left his office excited and hopeful at a future with less pain, with a surgery date scheduled for December 11, 2024 for a minimally invasive spinal fusion that would be, at the most, a T11 to L4 fusion. The minimally invasive surgery would take much longer than the open surgery, but would not do as much damage to my body and would most likely not require a blood transfusion and would quite possibly create less pain and a quicker healing time.
I am a single mom with a young daughter. We live on 5 acres with three horses, three dogs, four cats, ten chickens and two fish.
I have a list that I am working on every single day to get things in order for my surgery. My parents live on my property with us. My mom will take care of my daughter throughout my healing. One of my sisters is flying with me to Arizona, and I am prepared for us to stay in the hospital for a few days and then in a hotel for a few days to heal enough to fly home.
I am now almost 3 weeks away from surgery. I am planning to take a carry-on and a personal item. I have front button up and snap up shirts, lightweight clothing and everything else that I can think to pack to get me through the first week of surgery.
I have a room reserved at the Sleep Inn that is 4 miles away from the Phoenix Mayo Clinic. I also have a reservation at the Help in Healing Home that is on the 8 acre Phoenix, Mayo Clinic property. There are pros and cons to each facility. The sleep in provides a free shuttle on every half hour, but does not have a recliner in the room. The help and healing home, which is only $50 a night, is walking distance from the hospital but requires you to have a rental car and you share the kitchen, living room, pantry, and library with five other rooms.
The Sleep Inn has nice amenities and was the most affordable hotel that I found. After weighing out the pros and cons of having Uber, drop us off the airport versus being in pain and having to deal with returning around car, I am choosing to stay at the Sleep Inn.
This is my first entry on my journey and I am going to call it a night. I would love to hear anyone’s feedback, ideas, tips to help me and others navigate through this process. It’s scary and yet I am so hopeful. Thank you so much!

Great planning and praying! 🙂

I had cervical and lumbar surgeries in 2022 and 2024 and the hardest was lumbar (L3-L5 decompression and fusion). Mine was invasive. Pain was 11/12 out of 10 for the first week but started to get better gradually afterwards.

I bought grabbers and a bed assist bar to help me pick things up and maneuver in bed/help me get out. I also bought a walker at the hospital and had a cane at home to help me stabilize when standing up and moving about my home after surgery. Bathroom/toilet wiping tool helped to wipe when I wasn’t able to twist/turn. Lots of pillow to prop up head and legs when in bed and a bedside organizer for everything you need close to you next to couch and bed. I used my chair in the shower when I was able to (I needed to wait a couple of weeks but did sponge baths using my hand sprayer).

I am also a single parent of a 15 year old son but do not have any family so you are blessed to have the help you have. Don’t forget to stock up not just for yourself and daughter but also all of your pets. I have 2 rescue dogs and 8 cats so having food, litter, etc. stocked, helped with heavy lifted before surgery. Bending down and twisting is restricted so putting food down and picking up bowls was difficult. Get all vet appointments and grooming done in advance. Pay as many bills ahead as possible to reduce burden for several weeks post op.

A plane trip after surgery puts you at risk for blood clots so make sure you are able to move around often. Will you be in first class? You will be in pain and need more room to move around. If you are in CA and need to go to AZ (I used to live in CA), I would probably opt for driving rather than flying. Yes it is longer but you can control stops and movement breaks and fully recline in your car seat. I moaned in pain for the first week so would be embarrassed to be around people on a plane. 😉 I would have never been able to fly with the pain and discomfort I was in.

Good luck and keep praying! Ask God to guide you in preparing for what is a major surgery, even if minimally invasive. 🙏