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Old 01-03-11, 04:16 PM  
tinamatas
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Florida
Question OT (somewhat) Lumbar fusion surgery

I'm scheduled to have MI TLIF (minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion) surgery on January 14 due to my year-long battle with trying to heal my lower back (severe degenerative disk disease with disk herniation at L5-S1) through conservative means with no success. Has anyone had this? I'd love to know what to expect after the surgery - things like what you were (and were not) able to do during your recovery time. I'm hoping to be able to walk on my treadmill within a few weeks post-surgery, though I'm not sure when I'll be able to do any DVDs - even my Leslie walking DVDs. Was having the surgery good or bad in the long run?

If you've had this or similar low back surgery, what changed - for better and for worse? I want to be as prepared as possible.

Thanks!
Tina
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Old 01-03-11, 04:39 PM  
sherry7899
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Tina,

Best wishes for your surgery. Here is a thread with the same topic:

http://forum.videofitness.com/showth...fusion+surgery

Sherry
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Old 01-03-11, 06:12 PM  
Jane P.
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Join Date: Oct 2001
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Before your surgery I would ask your doctor to approve you consulting a physical therapist afterwards (so your insurance will help pay for it) so that you can get some good advice on what it is safe to do.
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Old 01-03-11, 06:23 PM  
Debbie S.
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Best wishes on your upcoming surgery.

My third lower back surgery was a fusion at L4-L5. Even though I was not ready to walk the following morning, my doctor insisted that I get out of bed and walk. It didn't work out. The morphine made me sicker than a dog. My nurse had to help me sit down and then I proceeded to throw up over everything.

I used my own bone for the graft, and til this day, the area where the bone was taken still hurts. My fusion was back in 1997.

Walking will be the best thing you can do for yourself. If you can, I would walk outdoors. I had quite a bit of nerve damage in my feet, so I bought a pair of walking poles to help me with my balance. I know people who recovered rather quickly, but because I had two other lower back surgeries in 95 and 96, my recovery was definitely on the long side.

I didn't do any PT after my surgeries. I knew enough about working out that I was able to do my own PT.

I was given only a 30% chance of this surgery workout, because of the previous two, but I was pretty desperate. I had been pretty much bedridden for a year, and I really had nothing to lose.

It ended up being the best decision. Even though I wake up with a certain amount of pain every morning, it's never been bad enough that I had to stay in bed. Fast forward to today, and I'm back at a solid advanced level, something that I thought I would never achieve.
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Old 01-03-11, 09:15 PM  
bigpeeky
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
i had a t2-L2 fusion almost 3 years ago. it was hard, but glad i did it. i had the hip graft as well and sometimes it still aches but no big deal. I followed dr orders about exercise nothing but walking for the first 3 months then cardio then added weights. i did have physical therapy for about 6 months which was TOTALLY worth it. I credit the pt i had as well as my own exercise habits for the good results i had. I can do any work out i want now - just be patient and do what your surgeon tells you.
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Old 01-03-11, 09:28 PM  
bfit
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
I have not had this, but my sister-in-law had it this past June, and I've heard a lot about her experience. She was up and walking just a day after the surgery and after she went home from the hospital she was supposed to walk 30 minutes a day. Within a couple of weeks she was supposed to be walking "as much as possible". But walking was the only kind of exercise she could do. She was never interested in doing weights or aerobics or anything like that before the surgery so there was no question of her "getting back" into those things. She is basically happy with the results of the surgery. She is pain free for the first time in years, but she does have flare-ups of sciatica that may or may not be related to the surgery. I hope this helps, but I'm sure every case is different, and every doctor may have at least slightly different advice. Hope you have an uneventful surgery and a speedy recovery!
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Old 01-04-11, 07:16 AM  
MomOf2Gremlins
 
Join Date: May 2010
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Wishing you all the best! (((Hugs)))

My husband had a fusion (L4-L5-S1 if I'm not mistaken, I know it's 3 vertebraes) ~4 years ago and he also was walking (with the help of a cane -he definitely needed the support of some sort, though the hospital didn't provide any and we bought a cane ourselves!) the very next day. Staying active with walking every hour for a little bit helped my husband's quick recovery I think.

He used to lift heavy weights, those days are gone! He does lift again, but not over a certain amount of #. Also certain moves (like in yoga, seated twist for ex.) are no longer possible or better say he avoids doing them just to be safe.
He skips rope for cardio but doesn't like running anymore due to his back. He says the impact hurts after a while while skipping is more 'gentle' on the back.

My husband says he'd do the OP any day again as it's 100x better than the pain he had before! (I remember quite a few nights where he had trouble getting out of bed and ending up literally crawling as he couldn't stand up, all the while biting his teeth - I'm sure a woman would have cried at this point!) The reason for his OP was the same as yours, degenerative disk disease with disk herniation.

Good luck!!!
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