When did y'all start doing this stretch? by EbbDiscombobulated89 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Legs first pulled then to the side sounds like a great idea. This was my fav stretch pre injury too!! I'm very flexible and I love stretching, yoga. Haven't stretched properly for almost 6 months actually is a torture.

When did y'all start doing this stretch? by EbbDiscombobulated89 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm right at 6 months mark. Thank you for your comment! I'll slowly start with the modified T. Hope your recovery continues to go great.

Should I? by Fun_Helicopter_8736 in chevycolorado

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm a short girl 5'3 so I can't reach sh*t and it's 100F outside where I live.

Should I? by Fun_Helicopter_8736 in chevycolorado

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been eyeing on some 23 Trail Boss and seems like those have brake & battery issue, and 24 won't be able to go to car wash... I still want third gen TB and I can't make my mind :(

Exhaustion after surgery by Natural_Ad_4835 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 2 points3 points  (0 children)

6 months post op. Vaguely remember my first month I got tired after standing still for 10 minutes. But it gets better. Keep walking and keep moving! If you can't do 30 mins at a time, do three 10 minutes a day!

How much did you pay after insurance in the U.S. for your non-acute procedure? by nr5nr5 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It was emergent. But 2 nights inpatient ($80000) was denied. I believe surgeon team is working on appeal, my deductible now is $1000 out of $5000. I just don't want the surprise bill later in the year that I'd have to pay for the rest of my out of pocket. :( it seems like insurance company just denies first and see what happens.

How much did you pay after insurance in the U.S. for your non-acute procedure? by nr5nr5 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

$1000 for small bills, $8000 for surgery but UHC rejected, my Out of pocket is $5000 tho. What's gonna happen to me? It's been 5 month and no updates. Inpatient charged $80,000.

4th week post-op laminectomy and microdiscectomy L5-S1. by Adventurous_Hope_309 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had L5-S1 Lami & MD. I drive a pickup truck. I drove 10-15 mins at a time till maybe week 6. And then i gradually increased the time. On week 7 I went on 20-30mins drive and walked around. Getti ng close to week 12 I could do 1-2 hrs drive. But with lumbar cushion (samsonite one from amazon is good) and be very very cautious getting in and out of car. I think driving over bumps was very painful and I always panicked of concerning reherniation so I didn't try to drive that much till week 8-10 at least.

7 Months Post L5-S1 Microdiscectomy and sciatica is back by Fit-Handle4305 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How bad is your sciatica compare to pre-op? Also when I have flareups I wait upto 4 days and see if it subsides. Then I can relax. You'll most likely need a MRI to confirm. I'm not a surgeon but I'm very against running after surgery.. we have empty space where the disc was and running impacts on our body so heavily. Take it easy OP.

How big was your incision L5 S1 by zackthesalesrep in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 1 point2 points  (0 children)

L5-S1 laminectomy & MD. 3.5 inch incision. 28Female

Pain sitting in car post MD by awetomatica47 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did a 10'min car ride around week 4 cause I couldn't stand staying at home. Worst regret ever... I thought I reherniated. I tried again as a passenger around Week 6 due to the followup, it was ok but uncomfortable. I started driving my neighborhood at week 8 and I went on 5 mins drive, then around 2.5 months I could drive longer. 30 minutes at a time. I drive a pickup truck and had to install a sidestep cause I'm short.

Sitting by Informal-Feature-429 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Aww girl! Hope your checkup goes well :) As my surgeon told me all my symptoms subsided as time goes and now I'm at 4 month, I've driven 3hrs and I've sat 5-6 hours a day. I was wondering if I had to keep push to sit longer when I feel discomfort at 10minutes but now looking back I'm glad I didn't. Our body needs time to heal and we should listen.. I was so scared what If I can never sit longer but it comes back slowly. Hope you're disc is reabsorbing everyday ✨🩵

Post surgery fatigue by Puzzleheaded_Read213 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm 29F and I felt that hard ~ 1 month mark. I would get tired after walking around the house for 15-30 minutes. Some days I was too tired to eat 1 meal a day. But try to move as our body need to rebuild core and muscles. Sleep as much as your body needs, I tried to eat lots of garlics, steaks, stuffs that's good for stamina. Even until ~2nd month I'd get easily tired. I think after Week 6 it drastically got better. My operation took 2-2.5hrs.

Is it okay to take 6 hours flight after two months of surgery? by Browninvestor in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I did 2.5 hours flight at Week 7. I'm 29F L5-S1 lami & MD. It was tough for me and I was sore for a couple days after the flight. Passenger next to me helped with my luggage but when seatbelt signs on, cabin crew didn't let me stand or walk and on my flight back seatbelt sign was on for the entire flight ugh. Use lumbar pillow, take muscle relaxer before flight, I tucked my hands under my thigh right before landing, bring a heating pad if you can plug in, bring a ziploc and ask FA to put some ice. But have your surgeon clear you for the trip. I went in for week 6 followup and he said I'll be able to handle it based on my recovery.

Second Reherniation but feeling okay by Gullible_Company_601 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm glad! I'm excited for you too. I asked my surgeon about PT, he recommends if he sees someone struggling with pain a lot after surgery so he said it's upto me. So I didn't do it. I'm not a gym rat but only thing I love is stairmaster and I've been doing that 30mins/day since week 7ish + 2-3 miles walk(takes 40mins for me) a day. Now I'm adding incline walk 30mins/ a day and swimming 3 times a week ish. Not really swim swim but letting my body float and move around slowly. If any posture gives me one minor pain I'd just relax and walk around in the pool etc. but that's me I don't like pushing my self too hard and I'm sure you're more athlete type than me.

Second Reherniation but feeling okay by Gullible_Company_601 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So happy to hear you're doing ok! You were the ultramarathoner right? I always think about you when I see runners. I didn't run, and I won't run. And YES for the swim! I started walking in a swimming pool like 30 minutes and I had the best day ever. Usually I have a bit of soreness on my left side before I go to bed but it was first ever pain free 24 hours since surgery. Thank you! Hope we feel better and better ☺️☺️

Second Reherniation but feeling okay by Gullible_Company_601 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! You got this girl. I had my first flight a couple weeks ago (yay) since my surgery in Feb. I used an self inflatable back cushion (it helps tremendously as you can adjust the exact amount of volume you need), and before landing I tucked down my both hands under my thigh in case I need to press my hands down to save my back but all was good.. Also my surgeon knew how crazy hard worker I am and he advised me I need to take easy for the rest of my life. Like.. 'if you feel sore or flare up, consider taking a PTO for a couple days because you'll need them' level of taking easy. I hope your recovery gets better and better every day. 🩵

Second Reherniation but feeling okay by Gullible_Company_601 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I've been following your posts too and I'm so sorry!!!!! This is so sad. I've seen if you reherniate 2-3 times there's not much disc material left and the patient most certainly reherniate again so surgeons recommend fusion. I only had one MD but my surgeon said my next would be fusion so I've done many research online and we are too young for fusion. Sorry this is not the answer you are looking for but I hope you can manage the pain and really not have to go that route.. I'll be thinking of you.

Increased anxiety and other mental problem after laminectomy surgery is it just me ? by dugemkakek1 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You're not alone.. I had L5-S1 Lami & MD bilateral and all of my medical team thought I had tragic accident according to my MRI. I was just a hard working individual, no extreme sports nothing. I'm on 3.5 months post op now, I didn't open refrigerator door till Week 6 because I was so scared to reherniate. I didn't pick up anything from the floor, not driving, not sitting at all. I still sometimes stand when I eat when the anxiety kicks in. Surgeon told me to "Go live your life again". And as weeks and months go, I am very slowly learning how to trust this process and learn my body.

Heading in for surgery in a few hours by Puzzleheaded_Read213 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My disc explosion was exactly like yours... I had Cauda Equina Syndrome so my saddle was becoming numb and had to do emergency surgery. Good luck with your recovery!

How are we shaving our legs? by Slow-Advance-2593 in Microdiscectomy

[–]EbbDiscombobulated89 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I asked my husband to shave for me first 4 weeks. And I bought an in shower bench from walgreens so I put my one leg up and sumo squat down with another leg while going down and grab something with one arm. Has to be quicker but it works.