I feel as if all I do is gripe, fuss and moan about my Cervical Neck Surgery. Yet, since it was not the "usual" cervical surgeon most Orthopedic Doctors see and do, it has became something that really needs to be discussed...
I know my son asked me about a week ago, Had I known just how involved and how much time, toil and complications were going to happen, "Would I still go through with the surgery?} Well, the first answer you feel would be HELL NO! But, of course pain, and all of the "symptoms" that happen when a neck is so severely disintegrated, of course my answer was yes. If I had not had so many "issues" last year that kept me from having the surgery, it maybe that it would have been in a bit "better state" or NOT, but possibly it might have been less problems than we thought.
My surgeon was very honest with me, and he told me that the possibility of once he got into the spine and vertebra during surgery, things may be a great deal worse than what we had seen on the films. Sure enough, both myself and he were correct. Once he opened me up, there was a previous fusion that never got completely "set and hardened" plus the other new C5C-6 I think, had NO disc for the most part, plus is was so jagged, and there was NO disc space, thus he had to literally stretch my neck 2 inches in order to make things right. Plus there were bone spurs, one huge new one and several others had developed. Well, NOT ANYTHING in there was going to magically heal itself, and as time went on, I would just be in worse condition, thus I would be an idiot to put off surgery...
I am in the process of trying to get my medical records, but their patient portal I don't believe is all finished yet.
Thus the osteoporosis, RA, osteoarthritis, RA, Predisone, as well as some other medications, my past few years of smoking although never very much and not all that long it is proven that it can cause the fusion not to harden and do what it is meant to.
So, after 9 LONG weeks in the hard collar, I have another 4 WEEKS to do the same, other than i can wear the soft one at night sleeping.
What I truly don't understand, is WHY DOCTORS DO NOT GIVE OUT ENOUGH INFORMATION TO PATIENTS BEFORE AND AFTER A SURGERY OF THIS MAGNITUDE????
IF I was NOT educated and versed in searching the internet like some people especially elderly.... I would not have one clue what I CAN do and what I CANNOT DO!!!! I've done search after search making sure I am not causing more harm, yet wanting to be able to do some things. But, he nor most surgeons, DO THE SURGERY... they don't have the bedside manner of a PCP, or listen like other doctors do, and they can be rude, down right pissy, walk out of the room when you are trying to speak, and so on....
Even I am not sure, other than he basically said I could not turn my head, nor nod up and down thus that covers about everything any person does, other than walk straight and sit up straight..
I shall continue later, probably tomorrow.....
