Having L4-L5 Spinal Fusion - what to expect?

@lisalucier Hello and thank you! I am complexed about it but I need to get this done because I don’t want this pain for the rest of my Life , it’s hard at times doing almost anything I have to stop a lot or like washing clothes My children had taken over doing my clothes for me most times ! I do still cook even when Im sore sometimes sitting in the chair to do so isn’t any better but I get it done !!! Im a caregiver as well so anyone physically helping me Im not so use to lol … my surgeon is great and se have tried everything else so far as suggested so we are here !! He says 70% chance I shall be relieved however we all know there’s no guarantees so !!!! But Praying for better days

Thank you both

@ladyawarrior
Prayers going up!

@lisalucier Hello and thank you! I am complexed about it but I need to get this done because I don’t want this pain for the rest of my Life , it’s hard at times doing almost anything I have to stop a lot or like washing clothes My children had taken over doing my clothes for me most times ! I do still cook even when Im sore sometimes sitting in the chair to do so isn’t any better but I get it done !!! Im a caregiver as well so anyone physically helping me Im not so use to lol … my surgeon is great and se have tried everything else so far as suggested so we are here !! He says 70% chance I shall be relieved however we all know there’s no guarantees so !!!! But Praying for better days

@ladyawarrior Hello. From your post, it sounds like you have been living with this pain for some time and are afraid of undergoing the fusion. I had a TLIF L4/5 fusion on May 29 of this year and I couldn’t be more pleased with the result. I had significant pain in my lower extremities when standing and walking for any extended period of time only getting relief while sitting. This was particularly problematic for me as I was a healthy and fit 75 year old who regularly engaged in some form of daily exercise. The surgery was a god sent because it took all of the pain away leaving slight numbness in my lower extremities which will likely resolve overtime. My recovery was also very easy. Within two weeks I was off of any pain medication which in my case was Tylenol. What I attribute the ease of my recovery to is, a healthy weight, five months of PT prior to surgery, and adhering to post operative instructions including the importance of daily walking not to mention that I was lucky to get a highly skilled surgeon.

Believe me, I was terrified of having to undergo a fusion but I really feel it gave me my life back as I am back to my daily exercise program pain free.

@ladyawarrior Hello. From your post, it sounds like you have been living with this pain for some time and are afraid of undergoing the fusion. I had a TLIF L4/5 fusion on May 29 of this year and I couldn’t be more pleased with the result. I had significant pain in my lower extremities when standing and walking for any extended period of time only getting relief while sitting. This was particularly problematic for me as I was a healthy and fit 75 year old who regularly engaged in some form of daily exercise. The surgery was a god sent because it took all of the pain away leaving slight numbness in my lower extremities which will likely resolve overtime. My recovery was also very easy. Within two weeks I was off of any pain medication which in my case was Tylenol. What I attribute the ease of my recovery to is, a healthy weight, five months of PT prior to surgery, and adhering to post operative instructions including the importance of daily walking not to mention that I was lucky to get a highly skilled surgeon.

Believe me, I was terrified of having to undergo a fusion but I really feel it gave me my life back as I am back to my daily exercise program pain free.

I’m in total agreement with @hughebo2 ! I had L3, L4, L5 fused, and I couldn’t be happier. My whole life came to a standstill, and I got my life back. Yes it was a ton of work and I lined up help after surgery live in for a couple weeks and then cousins and friends to come help me for two months on and off. I live by myself and have a dog so I was frightened, but it was the most amazing experience and I am now heading back for more fusion. The areas outside of my fusion board the front of added stress, but I knew that going into my surgery and my surgeon and I agreed on the more minimal approach because I needed mobility for my work in the street. If you want to see the kind of work that I did before and after surgery look up my name lori escalera. I couldn’t be happier to have been able to continue on with my work after my fusion surgery in 2018. The best advice I can give anyone is to have gotten multiple opinions and have an orthopedic surgeon that you trust and love! I told my surgeon he can’t retire till I die, cause I wouldn’t know what to do without him! He has done a couple more surgeries for me afterwards like in my cervical spine.

I had an ALIF surgery Sept 10, '25. I am F, 72. An L4-L5 fusion. I do have a bit of osteopenia, but was not serious enough to interfere with the surgery. Other than that, plus lordosis in my lower spine (swaybacked!) I had no other complications like obesity, diabetes, etc. I am NOT athletic---I don't do cardio, weights, pilates, etc. Yet am fairly 'fit' just with doing daily chores around the house and with our animals. That being said, I was in excruciating pain last summer because L4 vertebrae had slipped over L5 (or was it the other way?) and was pressing on the spinal nerves. At times, the pain was like grabbing on to a 220V electric cable. I survived on ice packs and 2 hydrocodone pills per day from late July to the date of surgery. Now for the good news: surgery was a resounding success!! I had 2 great surgeons at the hospital only 25 mi from my home (northern MN) Happy to share names if you like. I was in the hospital Wed and released on Fri. On some oxycodone and plenty of ice packs both on my tummy and back for about a month. Yes, there was pain, but NOTHING like what I suffered through all last summer. The doc said no BLT's (bending lifting twisting) for several months, lifting nothing heavier than a gallon of milk. As for physical therapy, as I mentioned before, I believe I have enough exercise in my daily activities of climbing stairs, walking, laundry, cooking, etc that I don't need to have any special exercises. I do sleep in a very firm, power recliner as it supports my back more than a mattress or squishy recliner. If you don't have a power recliner, I highly recommend renting or better yet, buying one. Well worth the investment especially when trying to get up after sitting down , and may come in handy later on. Every morning I get up and say 'thank you Lord' for getting me great surgeons and family help both before and after surgery. I realize that at my age, I am not going to 'push my luck' by trying to do the things I used to do 10, 20, or 30 years ago. As long as I can function at a reasonable level and take care of basic daily living, I'm good with that. One last piece of advice: Spinal surgery is a delicate, serious procedure. After surgery, be kind to your body! Give it plenty of rest and time to heal. Don't rush to get back to 'normal living' ---you may have to adjust to doing or not doing a few different things for the remainder of your life. I too was concerned about 'going under the knife' with this surgery, but honestly, I could not stand the agonizing pain last summer, so I did my research on the docs, and decided to go for it. And I am so very, very glad I did. I wish you all the best with your spinal journey, please keep us posted, and if you have further questions, please reach out to me.