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Replies to "@jnj59 Welcome to Connect. I think the heavy head feeling is muscle weakness because of your..."
Spine Health | Last Active: Feb 10 12:29pm | Replies (19)
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@jnj59 Welcome to Connect. I think the heavy head feeling is muscle weakness because of your time in the collar. It is exhausting. I went through that because I had a fusion with no hardware and was in a hard collar for 3 months. After that I was in physical therapy, and it took about 3 months until I was stronger. It will get better. Just take it easy and rest as needed. I was supposed to wean out of the collar over about 4 weeks time gradually increasing daily time out of the collar. Walking will probably help as it will be gently working the neck muscles while your head is balanced.
Replies to "@jnj59 Welcome to Connect. I think the heavy head feeling is muscle weakness because of your..."
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@jenniferhunter thank you! It has been quite the experience thus far. I had a hard time swallowing for a long time, which has progressively improved. Thankfully, no other neurological deficits other than some radiculopathy from bulging discs that has since improved with gabapentin. Pain still varies from 1-4/10 at the base of my skull and some muscle strain now from the stress of holding my head up for periods of time. I haven’t started physical therapy yet. It sounds like I need to wait for after my next set of dynamic radiographs to ensure I’m still stable. I am cleared to walk as much as I feel comfortable. Thank you for sharing your experience!