After surgery

Symptoms and Treatments Surgery and Recovery
1

Hi all,

Im just curious to know how my neck will feel after surgery, will i be able to move it or not at all? I know it will be sore but on a scale of 1 to 10 can ye give me an idea of how sore.surgerys in jan nd i feel like this is the only part i feel i dont know about. My doc told me it would be stiff but not to wat extent? Will i be able to do normal things after my hospital stay or will i need to stay in bed for awhile. They explained the whole procedure what they would do before during and after surgery. I feel because they havent had the surgery themselves personally that they cant explain how i should expect to feel after it so i hopen to hear from the people who know first hand what it is like. Any advice on what to expect after the operation would be gratefully appricated. Thanks to all, ye have been a great help and support since i joined and i thank ye from the bottom of my heart i wish ye all a very merry christmas and a happy new year.

Love Caroline

2

I don't think anyone can tell you exactly how you will feel after surgery. It is different for everyone, for me it wasn't too bad. I was started on muscle relaxers while still in the hospital as well as pain killers. My only advice to you on this is to find the right combo of pillows. My favorite has been 1 full size bed pillow and 1 neck roll (I am only 3 weeks post-op and still use this). Good luck with the surgery, sorry I couldn't tell ya more : )

3

Sweet Carline, da, da, da,..Bet you get his all the time.."Sweet Caroline: Neil diamond???

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Well, as far as my neck post op...o little over 3 yrs ago..I do remember it feeling 'tight' and painful..not to worry, though, b/c it doesn't last long and my NS told me to GENTLY, move my head from side to side and chin to chest often during the day..but not to the point where it hurts too much.

Also, Ice was my best (one of them, anyway!!) my new best friend)..If I remember right, I used those soft gel ice packs from the pharmarcy or Wal-mart...I put one on the back of my neck and one on my fore head.

Now, I know that I read on this site about rice packs...for the life of me I cannot remember who posted it...maybe it was Mary Martha..AKA MMPEATNUT.

I did not use a soft collar.....only to drive long distances....some folks here found the collar very helpful..not me...but I never seem to be the norm, anyway!!!LOL

Don't you just hate that scale...."out of 1, being no pain being the worse pain you ever had, ect.."/??? AT on point while in the hospital I had a foreign nurse, she did not speak English well...and when she asked me that , i got the 1-10 part of what she asked so I figured out her question!!LOL

So, I told her(I remember this, funny how that goes, remember some stuff and cannot remember the important things!!!)LOL...

Anyway, this sweet, little nurse comes in and gives me the 1-10 deal.....this was only 1 day post op...I replied.."I AM IN AGONY!!!" Poor nurse replies back, perplexed .."What, agony???" LOL

She went and got another nurse who spoke English and she medicated me ....It is funny now....not then!!!

You must be sure to make sure to don't let the pain.'get away from you'...meaning..don't let it get so bad that it is harder to handle....

In my experiences while in the hospital..it is so important to ask for what you need...if you need ice, buzz the nurse, ect....

You asked about doing 'normal' things once you get home...My dear....PLEASE, PLEASE....DO NOT BE SUPER WOMAN.....there will be times when you must lay down..so ...JUST DO IT!!!! And DO NOT FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT.....for some reason, it seems, woman have the hardest time taking care of themselves, do you agree???

I was up and walking , just short distances, day 2 in the hospital..to the bath room and back ..then around day 3-4, i think it was...I was walking the halls with someone by my side...was weak and dizzy so always had someone there..

By the time i got home...I was walking on my own, had a cane....that was short lived!!!!

Please let me know if i can help in any way....

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

Lori

4

Hi mommy of two,

Thanks for your reply any advice is good advice and its great to hear all diff experiences about after surgery i will def try to get the right combo of pillows tranks again

love caroline

Hi Lori,

Your rite i do get it all the time im the youngest in a family of 8 and on my 21st birthday my dad, my four brothers and my husband (boyfriend at the time) sang it for me and ever since anytime anyone says it or sings or even if i hear it, it puts such a smile on my face so thank you for that im smilen this morning lol.

I will be trying to move it def i just have this werid idea in my head i wont be able to move my neck for weeks atal scary thought lol. I also remeber the rice packs advice ive wrote it all down so i dont forget a thing when i go to hos and because off all of ye i feel better prepare than i would have do this alone. The scale of 1 to 10 always got me becoz how can u rate pain two people with exactaly the same pain could have diff numbers i dont get it and hate when im asked why cant they just ask are u in minor bad or severe pain lol. Im a quite person and dont tend to want to bother people but if im in pain in the hospital i will be saying it ha ha ha even thou its not a nice condition to have it has taugh me to stand up for myself werid i know lol.

Im always trying to be superwomen house always clean, garden always done, windows always clean, my son,myself and even my dog well presented. My husband rekcons i have OCD maybe hes right but i have notice since gettin my diagnoises ive got worst and since been told i need surgery ive got worser wont leave unless everythings perfect. I think becoz i dont talk to family or friends about my cm and sm its my way of dealing wit it always on the move and dont like to bother people so that would be one of my fears that i cant resume my role as soon as i leave the hos it will be hard but ill have to try. But i agree with you us women put everyone eles first i think its or nature.

I dont feel as worried about after the surgery now as i knw that the idea i have in my head of it is just rubbish lol

Thanks so much lori merry christmas to you and all your family xxxx

Love Caroline xxxxxxxxxxxx

5

i agree with above ....

ONE TIP I WILL GIVE

if you do have to drive a long distance or really anything more then 2 hrs- at ANY point (during healing) take a neck brace with you it will help support your head and neck muscles and will avoid a lot of unnecessary pain! (a soft collar).

i have cervical stenosis (which i didnt know until AFTER my decompression) and I NOW have one with me at all times on drives and it does help, but after surgery i did not and i really wished i knew the value in one at that time! i had to drive 8 hours to my home however i did have a pillow with i had formed to my neck and head which did help some but not nearly the relief the soft collar brings.

6

Caroline

You will definitely have pain in your neck post surgery- How much is hard to describe but remember- They have to cut and re-attach a lot of muscles to complete the surgery. The Doc gave me Valuim as a muscle relaxer and it worked great- just

take it slow- stretch it as you can but don't over do it!

While I was in the Hosp they tried several times to put it on me but it was too painful- I took it home and found it was extremely useful a few days to weeks later when driving. it will lessen the bouncing and shifting from All the bumps/turns when your riding.

7

Hi lisa

Thanks so much from your reply, i'll have to travel 2 hrs to get hme from the hos will the docs give me one of the collars? thanks again

love caroline xxxx

Hi kenny,

Thanks for ur reply the cuttin part is what worries me ha ha i will have to look into the collar thing see if they give me one thanks again

love caroline

8

They will most assuredly give you one of those collars! I couldnt use it in the Hospital because what little neck I have is fat :)

What for really need is just a something for support to keep for neck steady- makes it more comfortable- I guarantee if you tell them about your 2 hr ride home they will do everything to accommodate you and make you comfortable! Just recline your seat and leave the driving and worrying to someone else!

Just get rest and healthy!

9

Caroline all you can do is ask..OR maybe even call ahead and ask if one can be ordered for you for traveling home with. I dont think they should have a problem with that. And if they will not you will know before and can purchase one they are not that expensive and can be purchased at any drugstore or even at walmart and target, pretty sure it was under $20. I bought mine again AFTER my surgery...had i known the benefits of one I would have asked myself..

10

Caroline...

How are you doing today????? You got some great input from the gang here....

Please, Please, be sure to put your recovery 1st...there is plenty of time later on for you to wear your SUPER-WOMAN GET-UP!!!LOL

Let us know how you are.

Peace,

Lori

11

Caroline,

I am 14 days post op. You have learned that you will have pain and discomfort. It is tough to hear before surgery, but I felt that the more I knew the better prepared I would be. Many times after surgery, I could tell that I was tensed up and kept telling myself to relax to just let my body heal. My neck was incredibly stiff and I couldn't move it for days. Slowly but surely, I'm getting little bits of movement back each day. I only use the collar in the car, I too live 2 hours away from the hospital I had surgery in, so it came in handy on the way home. Somewhere on this site, someone recommended a pillow with a seam down the center. My hubby bought me a brand new pillow and a friend who is a seamstress put the seam right down the center (the short side from top to bottom). I took it to the hospital, and it came in handy. I never thought about how swollen the incision site would be, but the seam allows a place for the swollen incision to lay while the rest of your head has some support. This allowed me to lay on my back - for small periods of time starting on day 2 or 3 then increasing more and more. I still use it to sleep at night. Hopefully you have a strong support system at home. Thankfully, I do and that is making my recovery go smoother. Between church, family and friends we have had meal brought in nearly every night - even while I was in the hospital, friends cooked for my teen aged sons. Maybe you could prepare meals and fill your freezer if you don't have the meal system that I do. Even tonight, someone is bringing me supper. :) Good luck to you, just remember to relax, relax, relax and take one day or sometimes one hour at a time. Let you body heal and don't over do it!

12

Hi everyone thanks so much for ur replys i have a great support system at home which is wonderful and the same goes for here wat i have recently started haven is difficulty swallowing i feel like my throat is blocked has tht happened to anyone as it fightens me quick a bit. Im doin my best to relax more nd not stress but i seem to have a constant headache no matter wat and it ruins my day. Husband is great and he does hes best as is my son who tld my neighbours to be quite one day as i was sick lol hes only 5. Neighbours are very good to me and help wen they can same goes for my family. I prob wont be on for awhile as i seem to be getten worst by the day so thank ye again for all yer replys ye have been a great support to me thanks so much

love Caroline xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx