"Metal plate" sensation post-lumbar fusion. Felt like this?

@ladyaceintx1 Thanks for your reply. I'm trying to picture a metal bookend that would feel good ....! Could you post a photo ? But I do find a lumbar roll is helpful in the car. I am pretty thin and petite also and I do wonder if our body types might be more sensitive to our spines feeling differently. I was just finally approved to start PT ( 5 1/2 months out ) , and my surgeon is hopeful that will help things along.

What does your surgeon say about this?

@jenatsky I agree with your message regarding how you view your doctor(s). My spine surgeon is literally one of the top surgeons not only in the US, but he teaches and lectures world-wide. He develops minimally invasive procedures that other doctors will use on their patients.

However, he does not have much of a bedside manner. I scheduled a visit after my lumbar fusion surgery due to pain I still have in my right side (oblique and flank muscles). He asked me to describe my situation, then he kept interrupting me, asking me specific questions to lead my responses to what he had decided already. He didn't let me speak much, and I guess it looked worse than I realized, because my wife was sitting next to me this entire time, and she later told me she thought we were going to come to blows.

Needless to say, I have another spine surgeon I just saw about a month ago who is very professional, and listens when I speak. I would rather have a doctor tell me they do not know and then either contact someone, or refer me to someone that they feel can help. I have been at this for three years this past July, and the last two months are the first times doctors have done this for me. Even though I am still searching for medical answers, at least I am finally being helped to navigate what the US calls a healthcare system.

@gravity3

She is concentrating on my nerve pain in my left leg and right hip to my knee right now. We are in the early stages of cage removal but we want to see if the spinal cord stimulator implant works. I am having the Evoke stimulator implanted with paddles. I am scheduled for the implant surgery on 10/7/26. She has also diagnosed me with allodinia at the fusion site-I’m not sure if that’s relevant.

I will update after my surgery recovery. Prayers to all!

@marcd2k Hi. Who are the 2 spine surgeons you've seen?

@ccchang Hello, the surgeon that performed my fusion is Dr. Neel Anand (Cedars-Sinai), and the second spine surgeon I saw for another opinion on what is still happening with my muscles is Dr. Luke Macyszyn, who has his own practice, no hospital affiliation.

@jenatsky I agree with your message regarding how you view your doctor(s). My spine surgeon is literally one of the top surgeons not only in the US, but he teaches and lectures world-wide. He develops minimally invasive procedures that other doctors will use on their patients.

However, he does not have much of a bedside manner. I scheduled a visit after my lumbar fusion surgery due to pain I still have in my right side (oblique and flank muscles). He asked me to describe my situation, then he kept interrupting me, asking me specific questions to lead my responses to what he had decided already. He didn't let me speak much, and I guess it looked worse than I realized, because my wife was sitting next to me this entire time, and she later told me she thought we were going to come to blows.

Needless to say, I have another spine surgeon I just saw about a month ago who is very professional, and listens when I speak. I would rather have a doctor tell me they do not know and then either contact someone, or refer me to someone that they feel can help. I have been at this for three years this past July, and the last two months are the first times doctors have done this for me. Even though I am still searching for medical answers, at least I am finally being helped to navigate what the US calls a healthcare system.