January 2026 spine surgeries - Let's hear the positive outcomes!

@karenoharmon -
Karen, I am very limited on what I can do physically. I can walk more than about 50 yards before the pain and out of breath makes it too difficult to accomplish. I ride my recumbent bicycle each night but never push it REALLY HARD. I do what stretches I can do. I have lost weight and dialed in my diet. I do some isometrics. I still don’t feel like I’m doing enough.
Could you please give me more ideas of how to prepare for surgery?
Also, can you please give me a more specific description/details of your pain and limitations since surgery please.
Lastly, how long did it take until you could use the restroom alone, fix your meals, etc? Or can you yet?
My surgery, full spine fusion plus SI fusion is in 2.5 weeks. Like you, I want to go into it feeling like I prepared the best I could. Thank you.
Could

@ccchang You can self refer to Mayo. Sometimes a doctor's referral helps demonstrate need for appointments. I self referred to a spine surgeon in Mayo Rochester and was accepted.

Hello to all who are having upcoming spine surgery at Mayo and looking for positive stories. I suffered with severe spinal stenosis at multiple levels and I also so had extremely painful neurogenic claudication. I requested a specific surgeon at Mayo Clinic in Rochester and was fortunate to be accepted by Dr. Paul Huddlesto With so many levels effected he did not recommend rods but rather just a lumbar laminectomy. My surgery was successful! As soon as I got to my room my leg pain was totally gone and my back pain so much better! We are all different in how our bodies recover, but I was able to go home the next morning. I did have a friend I hired to stay with me for 3 weeks to care for me. Couldn't have done it alone. Because you do need help. For me the pain wasn't ever that bad during recovery, but the restrictions on movements are many. I was able to shower by myself sitting on a seat and my friend outside the shower just in case I needed her. My surgeon had me up and walking every hours through my home using a 2 wheeled walker and standing straight. My family and friend were there to make sure I did it like clock work. The friend left after 3 weeks but I still needed to use 2 wheeled walker and different size grabbers for some time. You get used to it, and start to think of all you are accomplishing that you couldn't before. As for pain, my knee replacement was much more painful. Spine surgery was scarier and movement limiting for some time after but well worth it! I did use youtube to practice getting in and out of bed before surgery, and did light weights to build my strength up before surgery also. Good luck. And don't compare yourself to anyone else. It's your journey.

@jksawyers Welcome to this elite group!

These are the exercises that were recommended to me by a PT. You can strengthen the transverse abdominus in a way that does not rely on bending and twisting. The cue for the exercises change slightly. You want to engage transverse abdominus (TA) and there are progressions that incorporate more "resilience" to segmental lumbar movement as opposed to traditional strength building. The TA has less propensity for building true hypertrophy as opposed to improved neuromuscular control to resist abdominal pressure dispersion. So the goal isn't to get a well defined TA but more of the ability to move your body w/o excess spinal motion. You can google these type of exercises. I would imagine this will be some of what we start with once we are released to PT. I did these in addition to walking lunges and rising and sitting in a knee high stool. This exercise really helped me post surgery to rise and lower to the toilet. Make sure that these next 2 weeks you eat lots of healthy proteins and drink electrolyte beverages - not just plain water. More than you think necessary. I did not consume enough of this! Also take those electrolyte powders - like LiquidIV with you to the hospital along with protein bars. This will help you recover from the surgery's impact on your blood/fluid levels.

Pain/Limitation post surgery: Wk 9, I'm not even in pain. I wake up a little stiff but moving around gets things going. At the end of the day I am more tired, but not in the pain I was in prior to surgery! Looking back in my journal, Day 21 I reported the pain as being more of an ache, or an uncomfortable feeling. I came out of the hospital on day 9 without needing major pain medication. I did not get the codeine filled and the doctor's assistant chased me down and made me. I have taken 1 tramadol in the 7 weeks since being home. The reluctance of my bowels to get rolling again was painful. OOO that bloating! That took some great effort to get that stabilized. I would recommend taking miralax or colace a few days prior to surgery so your body is used to it. I had determined prior to surgery that I wanted to be as independent in the bathroom as I could. We purchased a bidet to put on the toilet seat hooks up so easily (under $50 from amazon) - worth it's weight in gold! This has given me the independence I had wanted. I also watched YouTube videos on the how tos and tools and decided that would not work for me. The hospital staff really helped me figure out how to do this. Wipes are also a necessity! I think my husband may have helped me the first day home, but I have held onto that little bit of dignity. Those squats and lunges really helped as well!

Up through week 4 there are a lot of frustrations you will have to overcome. You are recovering from major surgery. It took me a while to wrap my head around that. So few people have this same type of surgery so seek out the voices with experience. Be kind to yourself and anticipate that you can and should do less than you think. Get the naps. Take advantage of being cared for. This is a marathon not a sprint. Or this is eating an elephant - one bite at a time.

As for meals, I would not have been able to prepare meals probably until about week 7. I had friends that signed me up for a meal train and they had meals coming every other day for 6 weeks. This was such a huge blessing! Not only did it prepare a meal, but they would stop in and visit and see if there were any errands needing to be ran. Most days these meals could be divided into multiple meals and, even at the 9 week mark we still have some in the freezer!
I was extremely weak from being anemic when I got home. This was the biggest complication for me. I could not lift my legs up into the bed, and would have a bp drop every morning getting out of bed for the first 7 weeks. I needed my husband to help me into and out of the bed up until just 2 weeks ago! I also drove for the first time 2 weeks ago. I had no idea what the limitations actually meant until I had to live them out. Some of us are going to make those steps sooner and some later. There is not right or wrong for that as long as you are making the progress you need and healing is happening at the most optimum level for you.

At this point, 9 weeks out, I am mostly self-sufficient. It takes a lot of effort to get myself up and at 'em in the morning. Being unable to bend means having a new way to brush your teeth and wash your face. It also means having a napkin or towel placed over your lap as you cannot bend over your plate to eat. My husband and I worked in our room, bathroom, and kitchen to identify all the things I might need or use. We have moved those things so that I do not have to bend. Dresser drawers had to be reconfigured - or reconsidered if they were too hard to slide out. You might want to get this set up prior to going in. Also having a chair either in your bedroom or outside your bathroom. You are going to need something to sit on when you use the grabber to help you pull up your pants! Also a shower chair is going to be a ticket to some privacy as well.

Currently I am trying to walk 10-15 minutes twice a day and increasing that almost daily at this point. I have not used the walker since about the 6 week mark. I have not ventured out too much, and have considered having the walker if I go where more people are. I do get a little nervous about being bumped. My stamina is actually pretty good. Not taking naps unless I need it. I returned to work part time this week and super pleased with my progress and rejoicing that I am not in pain!!!

This surgery for me was a long time coming. When it began to come together it was a miracle the way it rolled out. I trusted that the Lord had orchestrated this and that fact brought me incredible peace. The day of surgery, Dr. Abode told me I had such a peaceful presence in pre-op he was amazed! The way you enter that OR mentally is just as important physically. Limit your exposure to outside people from this point forward. You don't want a cold to sideline your plans! Invite people to be your support team and prayer warriors. @jksawyers praying that you experience the same type of peace I did/do and if you have more questions, please reach out!
Blessings!

@ccchang You can self refer to Mayo. Sometimes a doctor's referral helps demonstrate need for appointments. I self referred to a spine surgeon in Mayo Rochester and was accepted.

@ccchang
Hey Cori, for my treatment, I called the Phoenix, Mayo Clinic to make sure they took my insurance and then told them to be looking for all my files. Then I had my doctor send my x-rays and MRIs and CAT scans to them. Then I called the Mayo Clinic a few days later to ensure that they had received everything. It’s really important to stay in contact with them because they had not received the CAT scans, so I was able to follow up on that. As soon as they received everything, they let me know that Dr. McClendon had accepted me as his patient. This was the advice that I gave to Bob and he is in a good place right now to have have two amazing surgeons work together on his back. I believe Bob specifically asked about Dr. McClendon while he was at his evaluation. These doctors all work very closely with each other and I think Bob said that his assigned surgeon said that he would reach out to Dr. McClendon. You can also ask for an evaluation with Dr. McClendon.
Wish you knew best! Sherry

@karenoharmon

Wow Karen! Thank you so very much for taking the time to share so much information.
Do you know if you’ll ever be able to lean over to eat?

I understand my goal at first will be to simply strengthen my core, however, I miss not having a “six pack” ever since I damaged my spine and eventually hope to build some sort of visually fit abdominals (lol). I don’t like viewing anything as impossible.

Thank you for sharing the challenges in the least intimidating way possible, lol.

How long before you could walk on your own?

I have to run, but I will have more questions if you are able to help.

Thank you! Jack

PS- “run” as in an expression! lol

I have spinal stenosis involving L4 and L5. Pain is in the upper legs, ham strings, and is moderate at this point. Am trying to delay surgery through almost daily stretching, heat, workouts, core conditioning, and aquatic therapy. I am interested in related subjects and the decision process that precedes undergoing surgery.
Thank you.