Hi Lesley,
I'm currently waiting for 11/24/25 to arrive when I will finally have posterior cervical surgery. Over a year ago I had anterior cervical surgery. The Dr. performed a discectomy fusion C3-4 and C4-5 with bone graft taken from my Iliac Crest. I had a lot of pain in recovery the first couple of weeks and then it started to get better. I would say that I felt pretty good after the initial first few weeks. I have Osteoarthritis pretty bad and I'm growing osteophytes everywhere. My hands are swollen and sore. The real pain comes from the flattened spinal nerve at my C-6 and C6-7 leaving me with muscle loss to the point that I've lost my balance, my left side is severely weak. I cannot raise my left arm up over my head. Dexterity is about all gone. I cannot stand on one leg, I quickly fall to the side. I have had a few falls but didn't hurt myself too bad. I'm 68 and I never thought I'd be dealing with this kind of thing. I'm a Grandma and I can't pick up my babies anymore. And I'm not suppose to pick up anything that is over 30lbs With my current weakness, I can't even pick up 5lbs. I was hoping that the first surgery I had in 2024 would have helped me out more. Here is the problem, my nerve is FLAT between C6-C7. I'm hoping to regain the use of my arm again. If the surgery doesn't correct the problem then at least they can stop the progress is what I'm hoping and praying for. It's to the point that I need to have this surgery. I spoke with my surgeon recently and he said that posterior cervical surgery can be quite painful and I might be in pain for awhile. He also said that it will probably require more surgery in the future. I obviously didn't want to hear all this but it's the doctors obligation to be honest and tell the patients what to expect. For me, I think I'm pretty strong but I'm still very scared to go into the operating room again. My surgery will concentrate on C6-C7 with a laminectomy decompression. The remove part of the lamina to relieve pressure on the spinal cord that has caused me to have cervical myopathy. Along this journey, I have had MRI's, CAT scans, testing of all kinds. I had a electromyogram that measures the electrical impulses transmitted along nerves, nerve root and muscle tissue. I have lost the use of my left arm and the 3 main muscles in that arm are measuring 90% loss of strength. In other words, I could end up in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. Cervical Myopathy takes it time and slowly takes away the use of your arms, legs and all kinds of bad things. During all these tests they have found that I have a 4.6 Aortic aneurysm, nodules on my thyroid, osteoporosis throughout my spine, a large hiatal hernia, white spots on my brain and carpal tunnel so bad my nerves burn at times. I already have diabetes and severe sleep apnea. On a more positive note, I have lost 70lbs over the past 8 years. I'm so very grateful that I got control of my weight issues or I feel like things would be much worse. I hope it has helped you to read my story. If I can help someone, that certainly makes me feel better. Mayo has a lot of good information online and hearing your story made me want to respond. I totally understand the feelings you're concerned about. After a posterior laminectomy I have to remember I am susceptible to the risks of infection, nerve damage, bleeding, spinal fluid leak etc. It's just scary to think about that so in the next month before surgery I'm going to eat healthy, maybe lose a few more pounds and try and find some peace in my head that won't turn off at times. Thanks and hugs to you all and thank you Lesley for starting this interesting post.