Doing fine

[Guest guest]

Hi, all.

I thought we needed a note of hope in here - it seems to have been all doom and

gloom for a while now.

I am now six months post-surgery for a four-level posterior lumbar interbody

fusion with instrumentation (10 screws, 2 rods, 2 crossbraces, 3 spacers, lots

of bone grafts) and I am doing fine. My pain level is way down in general (there

are moments, of course, but there will ALWAYS be moments) and I can move so much

better.

I am left with a weak left leg due to damage to the L4 nerve on the left, so now

I use a cane and it straightens my gait right up. My spine is weaker, of course.

There have been a couple of necessary lifestyle changes. But I learned long ago

to roll with the punches and the punches have become fewer and weaker and will

probably stay that way for a while (I'm hoping for a couple of years), so I'm

happy.

I have been very fortunate to have done so well with this fairly drastic

procedure. My wish for all of you is that some small or large thing can happen

to help you, and that you can focus on that improvement as life goes on. With a

congenital problem (Ehlers-Danlos) I know that there will always be more

deterioration, but it is SO nice to have this respite; I can face the new year

on the farm with real hope that I can do more.

Best wishes to you all for a change for the better in the new year,