Dispatches from the bedside

My name is Chris; I'll be your substitute blogger for approximately the next two weeks, as the Curvy One is currently recovering in the hospital from her spinal fusion surgery yesterday. Everything went well; the surgeon encountered no unexpected problems and accomplished everything he hoped. The curve correction should be from around 55 degrees to around 20, and he anticipates 80-85% pain reduction once the fusion holds. It was a great relief to hear him say that everything had gone well!

The experience has been very good compared to some stories we've heard . . . My mother-in-law and I waited in the lobby during the 5 1/2 hour surgery and the staff was very meticulous about keeping us updated, and the surgeon was prompt in talking to us afterward. The nursing staff has been excellent as well - friendly and sympathetic, and as gentle as possible.

Pain management is a problem, as anticipated . . . and unfortunately IV drip pain medication has the disadvantage of, upon waking up, discovering that the last dose has worn off and then waiting for the new one to take effect. It will be a great thing when her stomach awakens and decides to start processing stuff - food, drink, pain medication in pill form . . . Can't happen soon enough! (And we expect it to.) "Log-rolling" has been every bit the discomfort and pain we heard about - one of my lovely wife's pet peeves is the question, "On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your pain?" (The answer for scoliosis patients is: "Does not apply. Skewed scale.") She rated last night's log-rolling pain to be a 15. :(

Nonetheless having prepared for the surgery and having family here is making the transition much easier. I was happy to have my mother-in-law to lean on yesterday, and vice versa; we also knew what was going on thanks to a prior surgery and meticulous research for the last year, as well as the surgical team's thorough briefings and information packets.

It's strange, the emotions associated with this surgery . . . utterly different from things like bypasses or appendectomies. This is a life-changing event, an opening up of possibility but one that kind of teases you from afar since we know there's much more rehab left to do. There was obvious anxiety beforehand that the surgery would go well - although to our Lovely Patient's credit, she was calm, collected, and very brave even when wheeled out to surgery! My mother-in-law and I worried as we waited, but the constant updates helped; when it was complete, we felt not relief but pride. Our lady did it, and conquered her own fears in the doing. We've been proud and excited and beaming ever since, even while we sympathize and try to make her comfortable in these most painful of days.

Nonetheless the world of the spinal fusion isn't humorless. She's in that in-between state of sort-of sleep, drifting in and out while making coherent statements and not remembering them. :) First words on seeing me: "Hi honey. I love you. My back hurts." Needless to say, being down on painkillers and anesthesia doesn't preclude being cute. She's very excited that she's going to be taller, and has asked three times how tall she is now - which, well, we won't know until she stands up for the first time. And one more gem based on her love for the only food/drink allowed her: "I'm an ice chip addict." We hope she becomes a recovery addict. More to come.