6 Weeks

I’m finally here… 6 weeks post op.  I’m doing quite well, but still have a LONG way to go!  I remember reading the story of a professional athlete riding BMX that I posted a while back and thinking “how can this guy still be recovering at 3 months… he should be good to go!”.  After having gone through it, there’s no way I’d be ready either.  Don’t get me wrong, I feel better than I have in quite some time, but I’m still sore.  There is a lot of hype out there on getting back to normal quickly, post lumbar adr.  Make no mistake, this is a long, arduos process (for me anyway). I don’t want to discourge anyone, but I used to play very competitive sports and cannot see a return to that level of fitness any time soon.

Stomach – The incision is completely healed and has been since about week 3.  I still have a slight bump/swelling under it, predominantly to the left side.  It is a little tender to the touch and I get pain deep inside my core when I work my abs with any gusto.  Does anyone know when the bump will go away?  I’ve read about massage to help break down abdominal scar tissue… any of you guys have experience?

Back – You can really tell when you’ve pushed your luck.  I spent an afternoon playing lego and video games (on the floor) with my nephew on Monday.  I was quite sore for the rest of the evening, but woke up in excellent shape on Tuesday morning.  I’m still getting the occasional tightness around the bones that flank the spine at the top of the pelvis and around the SI joint, but it comes and goes.  My only real pain at L4/5 comes when I sit for too long (over an hour).

Legs – I’m still getting odd bouts of pain in my shins, but it is a far cry from what it was like before.  I start “real” physio next week and expect that some hamstring and hip stretches will help to sort out my tight legs.  The numbness that I felt for a couple of days is gone once again.

Walking – I’m at 8km at day and don’t feel any discomfort.  I did some math and it looks like I’ve walked ~200km since I got back from the UK!

Lying down – I end up in bed once in the morning and afternoon for about 40 mins each and generally up and around for the rest of the day.

Kid #1 – Looking after a kid post ADR is tough.  I’ve had to work on my coercion tactics because of my inability to pick up her scrawny 25lb frame.  😉

Kid #2 – Due on September 12th.  Should be interesting!

Drugs – Tylenol every once in a while… maybe once a week.  NSAIDs lasted for about 2 weeks and I turfed them.

Xrays – I got the req for xrays at 6 weeks, but Mr Boeree cautioned against it.  He said that they wouldn’t show much and he’d like to limit my exposure to radiation so soon after the surgery.  Did all of you guys wait until 3 months?  I know Mike had a pretty cool CAT scan at 2 months.

Work – I go back to work on Monday and I’m looking forward to it!  I miss the peeps and the brain workout.

Web – I’ve moved servers/domains to speed up the site a bit.  Please take note of the new url.

DVT Socks – I think I can stop wearing them today!  “Wear them for six weeks.”  Does that include the sixth week, or stop at Day 42?!  I’ve still got them on today, just in case.

Supplements – Whey protein, glutemine, fish oil, multivitmain and gluco/chond/msm.

Driving – Has gotten a lot better as of late.  I can spend up to about 30 mins in the car without any discomfort.

Family – They’ve been an exceptional help and my pregnant wife has been a real trooper. I’ll be able to return the favour in September.

Sleep – Woke up on my side with very little discomfort!

Beds – Any recco’s on a good mattress? It’s time for a bad back certified bed upgrade.

All in all, things are going well and I’m happy with where I’m at!

-Brett

4 thoughts on “6 Weeks

  1. Glad to hear things are going well. I think you’d be safe to ditch the socks. From what I’ve been able to gather, six weeks is a pretty generous amount of time to wear them anyway, not to mention for a young person in good health. I can’t wait to ditch mine, ugh.

    I think if there was some charity where people could raise money by the number of miles they walk everyday, ADR patients could raise A LOT.

    From what I’ve read of other who have gotten ADR surgery, you seem to be doing as well or better than a number of people who had been called “poster children” for ADR (and I feel in a similar boat). So keep it up!

  2. Thanks Tim… sounds like you’re doing pretty well too! Let’s just hope our luck continues.

    I do have one regret so far – I wish I hadn’t waited this long to get it done. I should have gone to see Mr. Boeree in March, instead of July. I’m pretty nervous about not being recovered enough to help out when our second child arrives VERY soon.

    -Brett

    • You’ll be amazed at how exponentially fast you recover from here. You’ll be able to help your kid in no time. 8 weeks is another milestone. 10 weeks is magical too. 12 weeks.. uuf, don’t even get me started. I went jogging at 3 months.

      Good luck!

  3. Great to know… I’ve actually began to feel better over the past 2-3 days. My back has really loosened up and feels quite a bit better than it did on Wednesday. Go figure. My right big toe started to feel a little weird again, but I’m chalking it up to nerves healing. I might go in for some xrays next week just to make sure everything is still in place. I’m really looking forward to the 12 week mark.

    -Brett

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