lumbar laminectomy

  • Thread starter Thread starter brendaks1
  • Start date Start date
B

brendaks1

Guest
I also had major problems sitting for a long while after my laminectomy, but I could walk.

Everyone heals at a different rate, but I would say chances are you will be miserable if you try a long car ride just 5 weeks after surgery. 10-12 weeks after would be much more realistic.

If you do decide to go, make sure you take breaks to get up and walk around every couple of hours - yes, every couple of hours. Also, I would make sure you did the trip in 2-3 days instead of trying to drive straight through.

Best wishes!
 
:wave:

HI there
Hope you are still looking at the site looking for answers as I am. It is a very anxiuous time waiting to have this sort of surgery, but i can only share with you my experience so far. I had my emergency lap disectomy last thursday thats right just 5 days ago. I had been living with sciatic pain for many years and only just diagnosed that was what it was. It was not until a recent trip overseas that the pain was shooting as the textbooks say right dowm my leg and toes. I thought DVT from travel and put up with this intense pain since last Noveraber until i reached the crucial point and pratically screaming for immediate pain relief, already not working due to shoulder reconstruction i was due to go back to work this week. Well to cut the tale I had the surgery last Thursday and walked my way out of the hospital on the same day ( Not that it is good to do that) but after experiencing the pain I had i felt the surgeon had given me the magic touch and being a Nurse i know the rehab regime. Since the op i had Narcotics for the first 24hrs now just paracetamol. Mobilising freely, i have a:angel: stiff sore back which is to be expected when you have any surgery. I am able to sit for short perioRAB and continue mobilising as instructed by the surgeon, returning back to work in the next couple of days on very light duties. In my case the sciatic nerve was severly impaired, reddened and swollen. Good luck with it hope it is as successful for you as for me, still on tenderhooks hoping the pain stays away.
 
Thanks everyone for your input. We have canceled the vacation for now. Going to get throught the surgery and will wait till the end os summer early fall before attempting any long drives.
 
Hi all, I have a ruptured disc in my L5 and am scheduled for surgery in two weeks. I am at a loss as what to expect in recovery. Also, my family has a vacation scheduled five weeks after my surgery and I am wondering if we need to schedule our vacation as we will be driving from Louisiana to Tennessee. Any information would be extremely helpful.

Thank You
 
Hi. I have been in pain for much of the past year. I sought alternative care (chiropractic) and tried to manage with over the county meRAB (ibuprofin and Aleve) for several months before requesting an appt with a surgeon. The first surgeon recommended a L4-5 fusion. I then sought a 2nd opinion and that surgeon wanted me to do 4 things before he would consider surgery (a vascular flow study of my legs, a nerve conduction study of my legs, sterioid injections in my back, and prescription pain medication). I did all of those things with little or no relief. Finally had surgery this week (L4-5 Laminectomy). Came home the same day from the hospital. Although it has been painful it is a different pain than I was having earlier. My legs feel like my own again, I am able to walk without pain and go up and down stairs and put on my pants and shoes. I wasn't given very clear guidance about post-op recovery.....just walk often and don't bend, twist or lift. Based on how I am feeling now I think a return to work next week is a possibility. I am now 4 days post op. Still having trouble getting from lying to sitting or sitting to standing, but am able to do it by myself it I just take my time. Hope this is helpful
 
Call your surgeon's office and ask what your recovery time will be? When you can travel and so on - your extended driving plans (vacation) and the surgeon's recommendations. Back surgeries have defined perimeters of recovery do's and don'ts. Be a good patient and hopefully you will have many more family vacations to plan and enjoy.
Rose
 
Good call on the vacation reschedule - Let us know how you progress after surgery.
Thinking good thoughts for you and saying a prayer for your best recovery.
Rose
 
@rhantz
I hope you are having minimally-invasive laminectomy trough METRx or similar surgical system. Check with your surgeon!!

I strongly recommend you to consider minimally-invasive spine surgery
 
Hi There,

Honestly, my doctor didn't recommend any long car rides until 6 weeks after my surgery.
I can tell you that its been hard driving/riding for even 20 minutes.
Best advice, ask your doctor what he thinks for your situation.

I'm at 6 weeks right now and not sure if I would be ready for a trip like that yet. : )
 
It has been 8 weeks since my surgery. The surgery was a success and I felt like a new person afterwarRAB. There was more damage than the MRI showed so my surgery was a little more extensive than predicted but overall I was doing fantastic. That is until...I slipped getting out of shower and fell landing on my behind. I was sore but felt ok A few days later the shooting pain down my legs began to return. I had an MRI Friday and see my doc in a couple of days for the results he thinks I may have blown out the rest of my disc or done some kind of reinjury to my back. I may have to go back into surgery. My 4 to 6 week recovery from work has turned into 8 so far with a possibility of many more. I am so disappointed in this slip up as I was doing so good and felt like a new person. Keep good thoughts coming my way and I"ll update as soon as I know what has occured and had to be done
 
It was a good 6 weeks after my partial discectomy and lamenectomy of L5-S1 before I was able to sit for any length of time. My guess is a long car ride would be uncomfortable but everyone is different. You could always lie down in the car (assuming there's room).
 
Personally, after surgery I wouldn't have been able to go on vacation that soon. I swelled up in my back if I sat up too long. Walking was ok.
 
rhantz - wow - life throws us more than a curveball or two sometimes. I am really bummed for you. Hang in there - you're not the first to have a mishap like that. Keep us posted - Still thinking positive thoughts for you and prayers too.
Rose
 
Back
Top