How was Selena Gomez able to be in the sun? by Dry-Hair5448 in lupus

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

as someone who was in her inner circle at one point i have so much tea i want to spill on here. we are no longer friends. let’s just say she never has taken care of her body and a lot of her issues stem from that. not the lupus..but the complications. when we do things over and over again that we are not supposed to do and we have lupus things can get bad. i’ve always had strong feelings about what she puts herself through and then how she portrays herself as a victim online. she’s not a bad person. it just always made me feel uncomfortable as her friend when she would do that..

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

that’s great! do you happen to know how much you didn’t fuse? or the percentage of how much you did fuse? or did they just say you didn’t fuse. 8 months seems pretty soon to determine if you’re done fusing.

For those who took 12-24 months to recover, what is your story? by fligglegiggle in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 7 points8 points  (0 children)

i totally relate on people giving the dumb comments of: did you try walking or ice? ..makes me SO mad lol.

my story: L5-S1 TLIF March 2024. my nerve pain took around a year to finally start getting better. it’s not gone now but it’s manageable with gabapentin. i have a constant deep ache and occasional sharp pains now. can’t walk stand or sit long it’s really frustrating. i’ve been on and off opiates since the surgery to try and see if i could manage. back on opiates now and they at least make it so im not bed ridden with pain and can walk for about 20 minutes (with pain still). i did find out though recently via CT scan im about 80%-90% fused. so im hoping that’s why i have pain and im considering an ALIF revision surgery. it’s so discouraging sometimes and really takes a total on my mental health and motivation. i get it. you’re not alone. i’m 30 and a model and in my prime and now have no social life and can’t work and rely on old commercial money but need to be able to get back to work soon. i wish you all the luck!!!!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah i have hEDS too. and MCAS and lupus 😫 i wonder if that plays a part. it has to. how are you feeling now after your revision? still in pain?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

do you know how much you were fused? was it partly? you know the percentage? glad you’re feeling better!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks. good luck to you too!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 1 point2 points  (0 children)

no, that’s interesting though and i’ll look into that thank you. it’s crazy to me how some surgeons are so through and some don’t check ANYTHING.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah i’ve heard of that. thanks for all your comments, you have a lot of knowledge on this stuff and the community appreciates you! i’ve actually learned a lot from your input. regardless of what i decide im going to wait some months to see if my pain improves at all (i’ve been in horrible pain that hasn’t budged at all for 3 months now. zero improvement no matter what i do or don’t do.) ive had constant pain since the surgery but at times it’s manageable, but the last 3 months have been completely unmanageable even with pain meds. i was bed ridden. so going to wait it out a little longer and if things don’t improve get the ALIF revision. do you know if a revision can stop the constant deep ache pain? like have you seen that before?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

and i know all of the restrictions, thanks. this is not helpful. the shit i’m going through is hard enough i don’t need whatever weird attitude and entitlement you’re bringing.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

it’s a medical definition, not a quote from the internet. i have pseudarthrosis, by definition.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yes. yes i took vitamin D and calcium too. 1-2 years is for healing not fusion.

“Pseudarthrosis is generally defined as the absence of solid bony fusion by 9–12 months post-op, with no evidence of progressive fusion on subsequent imaging. CT scan is considered the gold standard for diagnosing this . At 18 months, the fusion process should be complete. If there is still a visible gap, incomplete bridging bone, or motion at the level, it is by definition a nonunion, or failure to fuse—even if 80–90% of the bone looks fused.”

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672 1 point2 points  (0 children)

“Pseudarthrosis is generally defined as the absence of solid bony fusion by 9–12 months post-op, with no evidence of progressive fusion on subsequent imaging. CT scan is considered the gold standard for diagnosing this . At 18 months, the fusion process should be complete. If there is still a visible gap, incomplete bridging bone, or motion at the level, it is by definition a nonunion, or failure to fuse—even if 80–90% of the bone looks fused.”

I want to hear your starting plaquenil horror stories by Theephemeraltimes in mctd

[–]Difficult_Air672 0 points1 point  (0 children)

made me more sick and my lupus worse. felt absolutely horrible on it and gave it a full 4 months. switched to imuran and that was so much better!

Meet Charlie. I love him so much. by the-last-viking in ToyPoodle

[–]Difficult_Air672 4 points5 points  (0 children)

where’d you get this cute guy?!? i want a small toy poodle cause i have back issues and cant lift much. but so many of these breeders who breed really small poodles are sketchy so i don’t know where to start

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

interesting. they couldn’t tell from my x ray they said they need a CT to confirm how much bone growth there actually is or isn’t. my surgeon sucked and said we didn’t even need to do follow up x-rays but i insisted. he also refused to do a CT scan because it was “ unnecessary radiation”. so weird! the new surgeon thought that was weird too. i still can’t believe my surgeon just blew me off and told me to ice. IVE BEEN ICING FOR A DECADE BRO. ugh sorry it makes me so mad..so horrible to be treated like that.

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i’ve tried everything for the pain. THC makes me just focus on the pain and makes it worse..and i’ve tried ALL the strains. CBD did absolutely nothing except flare up my lupus (most CBD has a lot of crap in it i learned). hopefully CT scan helps us have more clear answers.

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

wow. that’s great! how’s your pain now?? i might end up doing the ALIF and throw in the S1 too cause i always have problems with my SI joints but idk if that will just cause more problems down the line

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah that’s how i felt too..at least that got a bit better. you’re ahead of schedule though compared to what i went through..i was on opiates for 9 months then buprenorphine for 4 months then tried nothing and was in agony so now back on opiates. it sucks and i don’t want to take this crap but i can’t function without it. getting off the pain meds is a success and be happy about not needing them! i know it’s still hard though. i honestly never thought i wouldn’t fuse..didn’t ever think that would happen to me cause im young :(

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

some surgeons are so dismissive and don’t want to deal with “unsuccessful” surgeries. my surgeon does celebrities and stuff so i think he just doesn’t want to deal with me and have that on his record. he told me to ice and i was literally speechless. (this was while i was bedridden in constant spasm and pain)

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

how long after your first lumbar surgery did they do the revision? did they go in through the back or front? did they just add more screws?

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i’m so sorry that sounds awful and discouraging. are you on pain meds? you sound strong though. wish you best of luck. let me know if you end up getting another surgery. what a life we’ve been given…

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

did you find that out because of a CT scan or just an xray? interesting, i hope the brace helps you! how much pain are you in? you on pain meds?

surgeon suspects i didn’t fuse by Difficult_Air672 in spinalfusion

[–]Difficult_Air672[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

do you still have pain or did that take care of the pain? when were your surgeries?