So Far So Good

[PatRobinson]

Hi Guys,
Yesterday I had neck surgery to correct ever worsening episodes of extreme pain and numbness in my arms & legs.
I had a discectomy to remove discs c5-6 and C6-7 and a fusion the insertion of spacers that the bone grow over and they fuse together- I have a plate & screws holding things in place till fusion occurs.

I went in at 5:15 yesterday morning and had surgery at 7:15. It was an outpatient procedure and I was heading home a little before 12:30 which seems remarkable to me.

The down side of this surgery is BIG pain. My upper chest, upper back, neck ,shoulders and upper arms all ache like the dickens.
My throat is also sore from the breathing tube used during surgery so I'm on soft foods only for awhile.

All of this was to be expected and is normal so I guess you could say So Far So Good.

The pinched nerves take weeks to heal so I won't know how successful the procedure was till they heal.

Nothing went wrong in surgery and post surgery is unpleasant but normal so I guess I will say So Far So Good for now.

Best wishes everyone,
                                         Pat Robinson

[Dennis Leonhardi]

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Pat.  And hoping in the near future you'll be convinced what you're dealing with now was well worth it!

Dennis

[Brett Buck]

Hi Guys,
Yesterday I had neck surgery to correct ever worsening episodes of extreme pain and numbness in my arms & legs.
I had a discectomy to remove discs c5-6 and C6-7 and a fusion the insertion of spacers that the bone grow over and they fuse together- I have a plate & screws holding things in place till fusion occurs.

I went in at 5:15 yesterday morning and had surgery at 7:15. It was an outpatient procedure and I was heading home a little before 12:30 which seems remarkable to me.

   Point of interest. Some Air Force guy had similar symptoms, and had a similar surgery in the fall of 1968. In July of 1969, he was launched on a Saturn V and flew the Apollo Command Module to the moon.

    Assuming no complications, this should completely solve the problem and you will have no real limitations because of it.

     Brett

[PatRobinson]

Hi guys,
Dennis thank you for your well wishes and Brett thanks for the perspective and good news.
Thank you gentlemen and God Bless.               Pat Robinson

[PatRobinson]

Thank you gentlemen and  God Bless,
                                                        Pat Robinson

[55chevr]

Heal quickly and get back to flying.

[Randy Cuberly]

Sorry for your pain Pat.  Hope things get better for you quickly. 

Sometimes life just isn't much fun, but it gets better!

Randy Cuberly

[Bill Ambrose]

I had the same surgery 3 years ago.  I was in the worst pain I have ever experienced.  About a month after the surgery I was sitting at my desk at work when something popped in my neck.  The pain was instantly gone.  I still have some numbness in my hands at night when sleeping but otherwise life is back to normal. 

Hang in there.  You'll feel better soon. 

Bill Ambrose

[PatRobinson]

Hi Guys,

Well it's been 3 weeks from my surgery. The immediate good news was that there was no more pain and numbness in my legs & feet and the numbness in my hands is also gone. I have had huge pain radiating from my neck across my shoulders and down my arms for week, then over the next week it gradually lessened a little, then the pain on my right side stopped and pain continued on my left side & over the last few days the pain has come only in episodes instead of continuous pain. I had a follow up appointment with the surgeon and a new x-ray showed everything was looking good. He is happy with my progress. I can stop wearing the soft collar except in a car and I am free to start driving again. I am wearing a bone healer collar rig to help with spinal fusion for 4 hours a day.  I am going to start physical therapy to regain my strength in my hands and legs.
In summary, All is good & I'm on my way back to functionality.

I would like to personally thank all the folks at the Huntersville contest who signed the get well card for me, it was much appreciated. THANK YOU.
I would also like to thank all my well wishers for their thoughts and prayers. Thank YOU.

best wishes, Pat Robinson

[ray copeland]

Pat, glad your starting to feel better!! Here's hoping your path to a full recovery continues, see ya in October,  Ray

[john e. holliday]

Great news Pat.   Maybe we will meet one of these years.