Post Op Collage

Here is my work in progress of preop pix through 9 months postop.  Oops!  Just realized I didn't take the 2 month postop January pic (heavily medicated at that point), the 8 month postop July pic (too busy living life while on a 3 week holiday) or the 11 month postop pic.

                                       Before Nov 2011   10 Days Postop       Nov 2011         Dec 2011
                                                                                Dec 2011  

3 Months Postop Feb 2012

4 Months Postop Mar 2012

           

5 Months Postop Apr 2012

6 Months Postop May 2012

9 Months Postop August 2012

7 Months Postop June 2012

Yikes!  Didn't realize the muscle atrophy 
looked like this!

10 Months Postop September 2012

The grand finale - 12 Months Postop Nov 2012

My First Race!

It's been an incredible 2 weeks since I made the decision to enter the Run for Wounded Warriors 5k (3 miles) race.  Even though Dr. Lenke advised I should never jog, I participated as a walker.  My daily walking routine is 5 miles (8k) but I break it up into 1.5 mile chunks throughout the day.  Last week I started walking 3 miles nonstop for a few days to prepare for today's big race.

My day started at 4:20a with the sound of pouring rain.  Hmm, what a way to start my racing journey.  I tried to go back to sleep until 5:30a, but I was too excited and couldn't sleep.  Jeremy snapped this pic of me at 5a.

Fortunately, the rain completely stopped by the time we arrived at the venue.  We lined up toward the back of the pack for the start of the race.  Jeremy and Lizzie let me set the pace for our little team (Team Bionica!) and I kept telling myself, "Slow and steady... be the tortoise." 

It was a great course with cool, cloudy weather.  Lizzie was eager to run so she broke ahead of us and ran ahead.  Coming into the 2 mile mark I started picking up a little speed and passed some people.  Lizzie made my day when I crossed the finish line and I heard her cheering for me!  This by the way, was my first race in my entire life!  That's all about to change.

Next steps?  I plan to walk in several more 5k races leading up to my new big goal: walk the Hope & Possibility 8k Race in NYC Central Park June 2013.  I discovered an incredible group Achilles Track Club which encourages disabled athletes to participate in mainstream running events.  I never thought of myself disabled (or an athlete for that matter), but apparently I fall under that umbrella and am now a member of the Achilles Club.  Achilles says that the term disability runs the gamut of wounded veterans, multiple sclerosis, blindness, recovering from surgery, diabetes, cancer patients and survivors, etc.

I'm also 9 months postop and here is the latest pic.

Once I'm 12 months postop, I'll create a collage of each month's postop pix to see a side-by-side comparison.

*Update: I had to share this silly pic Jeremy took of me after a glass of post-race wine.  Tried to cross my eyes, but...

 

It's been an incredible journey!  Praise God!

How I Maintained Exercises While on 3 Week Holiday

Phase I – Sebring & Cape Coral, FL

Day I started out with a road trip starting at 6:30a, stopping at 10a for breakfast and a brisk walk through the restaurant parking lot.  Next stop was 4.5 hours later for a quick shopping stop and lunch, walked about 2 miles.  Final stretch was 2 more hours in the car until our final destination of Sebring, FL.  Total time in car: 10 hours, I drove 5.5 hours, no pain, no need for pillows in the car.  I walked 1.5 miles this evening.

Day II was a busy day: church, out for breakfast, grocery shopping, pool, power nap, cooked dinner, walked my usual 3 miles that I normally do on Sundays.  I discovered I can do the backstroke in the pool; definitely woke up some sleeping muscles!

Day III included my usual 5 mile walking per day, upper body workout (I brought my dumb bells), more backstroke swimming at the pool, laundry, cooked dinner.

Day IV did my lunges and 5 miles of walking, cooked.

Day V walked 5 miles, upper body workout, walked for a couple of hours following my daughter and sister-in-law who did some fun 4^th of July activities at the neighborhood clubhouse.  

Day VI relaxed in the pool, 5 miles of walking and lunges.  Thoroughly enjoying the evening storms that blew through.

Day VII drove to Cape Coral, FL so hubby and daughter could fish and then we house-hunted the area for a vacation home then returned to Sebring.  Total time in car: 10.5 hours, I drove 5 hours, no pain but very stiff at the end of the day.  This was a light day of walking, maybe 3 miles total.

Phase II – Orlando & Tampa, FL

Day VIII drove to Orlando and checked in at the condo which was only 1 hour away from Sebring.  Walked 5 miles and did upper body workout.  I was able to squat down to sit on the edge of the pool and dangle my legs into the pool this evening.

Day IX relaxed at the pool in the morning, walked 3 miles.  I discovered I could comfortably sit in a comfy chair and cross my legs while reading; NEVER thought I’d be able to do this postop.

Day X relaxed at the pool in the morning, walked 5 miles and did upper body workout.

Day XI spent 7 hours at Magic Kingdom, 1 hour at Downtown Disney, rode 6 rides, walked more than 5 miles, did lunges and am completely exhausted but not in pain, just a bit stiff.  My first ride was the People Mover which was a piece of cake.  Ride #2 was Winnie the Pooh.  There is a Tigger section which is rather bumpy but I simply sat upright so that my back wasn’t touching the back of the seat.  It was a really cute and fun ride.  Ride #3 was It’s a Small World and it was another easy ride to get into.  Ride #4 was the Haunted Mansion which would have been fine except for the chairs moving so fast and the employee rushing everyone to hop into the moving chairs.  I mis-judged the distance of the height of the seat because it was dark and ended up plopping down a tad bit hard onto the seat which tweaked my back for a bit.  Ride #5 wasn’t really a ride, Presidents Hall, but was a nice respite from the hot day.  Ride #6 was the Jungle Cruise and it was a bit odd stepping onto a moving boat but I was pretty comfortable.  I decided today that I will pass on the upcoming trip to Harry Potter World since 99% of the rides have a back warning.  It was wonderful to have such a busy day that didn’t end with me in bed with pain.  I haven’t had a day like this in over 10 years.  Life is great!

Day XII relaxed at the pool, did upper body workout and walked 5 miles.

Day XIII while hubby and daughter enjoyed their day at Harry Potter World, I spent my day reading, walked 5 miles and did lunges.  Surprisingly, hubby and daughter came back by 1p because they were able to hit all the rides on their To-Do list and we hopped in the car for Tampa an 1.5 hour away.  We went to some of our fave spots and had tasty food.  It feels wonderful being spontaneous now as compared to pre-op where the pain prevented me from most activities.

Day XIV Everyone slept in, relaxed at the condo, did laundry, packed up and danced with hubby for the first time postop!  Walked 5 miles and did upper body workout.

Phase III – Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Day XV drove 3 hours to the east coast and checked into the condo for the “Girls Trip” of our last week in Florida.  Hubby had to fly back home to ATL for a few days before flying out to San Francisco so I drove him to the airport this afternoon.  Walked 5 miles and did lunges.

Day XVI went to the beach and discovered how wonderfully odd it felt to walk on soft, uneven sand!  My entire back was tingling because of the way I walked on the sand.  I didn’t walk far, about 1.5 miles and was completely exhausted in a great way this evening.  Enjoyed some time at the pool enjoying the ocean breeze. I walked a bit more at the condo for a total of about 3 miles.  I usually only walk about 3 miles on Sundays.

Day XVII Explored the neighborhood I grew up in and then walked 6 miles non-stop at a massive outlet mall which covers 7 miles.  I was quite tired by the time we got back to the condo and laid down for a bit before dinner.  Before we went to the mall I walked 1.5 miles at the condo so my total walking for the day was 7.5 miles along with lunges.

Day XVIII Drove along the coast, walked 5 miles and did upper body workout.

Day XIX Explored more of my old stomping grounds, walked 5 miles and did lunges.

Day XX Decided to head home early and drove 10.5 hours from Ft. Lauderdale to Atlanta (I drove the entire way since hubby had already went home for business).  Walked 1.5 miles before we hit the road and walked another 1.5 miles this evening.  Since today’s total walking was 3 miles, I will swap today’s workout for my normal Sunday routine of 3 miles.  This means, on this coming Sunday, I’ll walk 5 miles and do lunges.

I covered A LOT of ground with walking and driving on this holiday which will be great preparation for our Paris trip.  I never over did my exercises because there was never any pain, just occasional stiffness and there was no need for even a Tylenol.  This has been such a remarkable journey.  This weekend I was able to vacuum the entire house for the first time since hiring a cleaning lady a year ago.  God has abundantly blessed me and I am humbled by His generosity!

Awesome Weekend!

I had a fantastic weekend: great time with my in-laws and showing them fun spots around Atlanta, went swimming for the first time postop, sat on lounge chair, went to the movies, etc.

When I saw Dr. Lenke a couple of weeks ago, he said that if I have access to a pool, swimming will be great exercise.  Our neighborhood pool opened this weekend and I was excited to get into it.  It felt really weird though.  I held onto the edge of the pool, slowly pushed my torso away from the edge and slowly kicked my legs.  What surprised me the most was how sore my shoulders were the next morning!

I ran into Dr. Lenke and his nurse, Kelly, in the hallway on my way to his office.  Kelly gave me a big hug and said to Dr. Lenke, "Doesn't she look great?!"  Dr. Lenke smiled big and said, "She does and she's taller than me now!"  I was out of Lenke's office in less than one hour.  Note to self: schedule first appointment of the day on future appointments.  Dr. Lenke didn't see fusion yet on my xray which appears as cloudy areas around the hardware.  He said that fusion starts to appear on xrays around 6 - 9 months post op and that it's just a little too early to see it in me.  He isn't concerned about non-fusion since my hardware is still in the right position and I feel so good.  I can increase my workout weights slightly and start bending a bit. 

Going through airport security was a bit interesting.  I printed a TSA Hidden Disability Card
http://www.tsa.gov/assets/pdf/disability_notification_cards.pdf  in hopes that there wouldn't be any drama going through security.  I've read how some scoli patients don't set off alarms at airports while others do.  Jeremy suggested I try going through without mentioning my hardware and not showing the TSA card just to see if I set off alarms.  Unfortunately, the alarms went off which meant I had to have a pat down despite  showing the TSA card.  The Atlanta agent was nice and was concerned about not hurting me.  She said that on my flight home, show my TSA card first and ask to be screened in the special machine to elliminiate a pat down.  I did what she said in St. Louis, but after I stepped out of the special screening machine, I heard a voice on a walkie talkie, "Anomaly in the torso."  The St. Louis agent gave me a partial pat down of my back only, despite me showing the TSA card multiple times.  One of these times, I look forward to a pat-down-free experience in the future.

Warmly,
Doreen

Post Op Exercises

I've heard a lot of folks who are planning to have scoli surgery say they wish they could see how someone fused to sacrum looks like when they move.  My daughter filmed me doing my post op exercises so hopefully this will show people what is possible after surgery.  As of today, I am 6 months 2 weeks post op and I wasn't allowed to do any exercises, except walking which started on the day after my surgery, until I was 3 months post op.

I am in no way recommending any exercise for anyone as I am not a professional physical therapist; just sharing what works for me.  If you have questions about post op exercises, talk with your surgeon.

Enjoy!

One Leg Step Up - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist:

Log Rolling - prescribed by Dr. Lenke PRE-OP.  Most every scoli surgery patient will need to learn log rolling in order to get in/out of bed correctly to keep the spine straight.  Patients should learn how to log roll before surgery:

Bicep Curls - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist.  I used to do bicep curls preop with 20 pound dumbbells, but have been using 5 pound dumbbells since the surgery.  Dr. Lenke said I can increase my weight to 10 pound dumbbells:

Skull Crusher - NOT prescribed by Dr. Lenke but an exercise I used to do preop.  This exercise gives my upper back and shoulders a really nice stretch:

Triceps - NOT prescribed by Dr. Lenke but an exercise I used to do preop:

Ceiling Press - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist:

Flyes - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist but an exercise I used to do preop:

Tricep Curls - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist:

Overhead Press - NOT prescribed by Dr. Lenke but an exercise I used to do preop:

Modified Lunges - prescribed by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist.  After seeing this video I'm shocked at how low I'm going with my knee.  I definitely wasn't going this low when I started doing this exercise a few months ago:

5 Months 1 Week Post Op Pix

I've been receiving kind words from people thanking me for being so candid with my blog.  I have some new pix to share and still feel a bit uncomfortable "exposing" myself, but I've been told the photos have been very helpful to those stepping into the surgery journey.

Here goes...

Pre op Nov 2011 Back

Post op Apr 2012 Back

 Pre op Nov 2011 This is what my tummy looked like when my spine collapsed 4 inches

Post op Apr 2012  This is what my tummy looks like when my spine was stretched out, re-gaining 4 inches

Lizzie says my tummy isn't squishy anymore.  LOL!

I had a couple of milestones the past few weeks:
Wore heels!
Painted my toenails, I've discovered how long my arms are!
Pulled on my boots and zipped them up without help!

Woo hoo!  :)

Warmly,
Doreen

5 Months Post Op

A fellow scoli sister summed it up best for me recently:  I've had a bittersweet year.  Tomorrow celebrates 5 months post op and I still am amazed that I'm "on the other side."  I've been prescribed some exercises by Dr. Lenke's physical therapist:

Upper Body Workout while lying on bed, x3 set of 10 reps:
Flys
Presses
Tricep curls
Bicep curls (sitting on edge of bed)

Lower Body Workout, x3 sets of 10 reps:
Single Leg Step-Up (at bottom step of our stairs)
Modified Lunges (can you believe it??? Lunges???)

My weekly workout schedule is:
single leg step-ups, everyday
walk 5 miles every day, Mon - Sat
lower body workout, Mon, Wed, Fri
upperbody workout, Tues, Thu, Sat
rest, Sunday

Dr. Lenke explained to me that walking is the most critical exercise postop as it is a weight bearing exercise that promotes bone growth.  According to Dr. Lenke, full fusion occurs between 6 - 9 months postop.  I'm doing every possible to walk as much as possible (as long as it doesn't cause me pain) because I am in the crucial fusion period.

The day after my last post in February, I weaned completely off all pain meds.  Occasionally, I take one Tylenol if my back tightens up after an upper body workout, but I haven't had to take one in a few weeks.  I can honestly say that at this stage of my life, I am the healthiest I've ever been.

I'm still limited with certain movements until one year post op: no bending, lifting, twisting.  I tried squatting downward to get items into the lower dishwasher rack, but when I talked with Lenke's nurse, she told me I shouldn't be doing that.  I'm not able to get items into/out of the dryer either as that involves both bending and twisting.  We'll probably invest in front load machines soon. 

I'm struggling to cope with Ma's passing, it's been difficult for all of us.  The greatest gift Ma gave me was spending her final weeks taking care of me postop.  I'm thankful she was able to witness my successful surgery.  Thank you, God, for an amazing mom and incredible best friend.  For those of you reading this who smoke... QUIT, you are literally killing yourself.  It has been a blessing to spend more time with Pa.  I pray God keep him strong and healthy.

After getting very sick from one Forteo injection postop (I was doing daily Forteo injections preop), I talked with Dr. Lenke's nurse and asked her if it is true, does severe scoliosis skew bone density results to read worse than they really are?  She confirmed this as accurate.  She reviewed my density report with me and confirmed that my density, outside of my lumbar area, has nearly 100% normal bone density.  She went on to explain that with all the BMP Dr. Lenke packed into my lumbar, that there should not be a density issue in my lumbar area ever again.  I decided to no longer continue with Forteo.

Last month I was able to meet a group of fellow scoli sisters in Atlanta.  Two of the ladies who were preop brought their hubbies so they could chat with Jeremy about what to expect from a caregivers perspective.  There was another woman who was postop.  It was wonderful meeting the ladies and hubbies and we hope to get together in a few months.

It seemed surreal to me that I was offering advice on what to expect from spinal surgery because of how fast everything fell into place for me:
June 2011 realized something was seriously wrong with my spine because of debilitating pain
July 2011 met Dr. A in Atlanta and scheduled surgery for Aug
Aug 2011 Dr. A cancelled surgery because my spine was too severe for her skills
Sept 2011 traveled to St. Louis to meet Dr. Lenke who scheduled me for Aug 2012 surgery
Nov 2011 accepted a cancellation slot and had surgery!

It is like a dream how events unfolded.  I am finally living the life I've dreamed of, pain free!  It is incredible that all my pain is completely gone.  My reason for having the surgery was to first stop the progressing curves and next, prayed for some sort of relief of pain.  Dr. Lenke explained that patients fall into one of three categories:
70% patients have a decrease in pain
22% patients have no change in current pain levels
8% patients have worse pain postop

Praise God for granting me to be pain free for the first time in over 10 years! 

I've been asked a lot lately when will I be back to "normal."  Never.  I am creating my new normal.  This surgery has taught me how to be adaptable and creative, but above all, it has taught me humility. 

I look forward to seeing Dr. Lenke in a few weeks.

Warmly,
Doreen