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← Return to Spondylolisthesis and DDD
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@jenniferhunter, Jennifer, I started walks outside right away because that is what my surgeon told me to do. And also, I would have went crazy just staying inside. You can do that in the southwest because of the lack of moisture and ice. I'm not really up for stretching yet, I'm in too much pain. I was being overly optimistic when I wrote that. Another negative is that I have a lot of nerve pain in my legs at night. I hope that diminishes with the passage of time. Otherwise, I feel I am doing fairly well. It's fun to be able to read novels as much as I want and not feel guilty. 🙂
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When I had my L4, L5, S1 fusion in Oklahoma City it was winter, I had to use a cane for 4 weeks after surgery, but we went to a mall where we could go to a movie ... certainly helps get ones mind off of self... I went to the beach in Santa Monica New Year's.. When you can drive ... Santa Fe would be my great diversion.. Basque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge south on the Rio Grande from you is a favorite of mine as well...
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Ruth Ann, I'm glad you are able to walk. A lot of patients talk about sleeping in a recliner after spine surgery. I didn't need that with my cervical surgery, but it might be something to try if it helps your leg pain. You might want to ask your surgeon about that too, and why it happens at night. Is it the position when you lay down that causes the pain, or is it the fatigue at the end of the day? Is there anything you can do with pillows to support your body or legs that helps? Maybe a pillow between your legs to keep your pelvis straight inline with your legs? Maybe cooling with ice packs? It's very tiring to recover from major surgery and your body is directing its energy into healing the trauma from the procedure. You will have swelling and inflammation, and that kind of ramps up any other inflammation you may have. Inflammation is needed for healing and fusing bones, so that is why patients need to avoid anti-inflammatories post op. You probably knew that, but I mention it for anyone else. For me, the post op inflammation made my thoracic outlet syndrome worse for awhile, and I had to just be patient and it kind of made me crazy waiting until my physical therapist could help. The 6 week mark made a big improvement for me, and I suspect you will recover faster because you were in good shape and conditioning before your surgery.