If I’d Known There Would be Cookies….

. . . I would have had back surgery sooner. Tonight I received a surprise delivery containing a big basket of big cookies. I love cookies, so I'm in heaven. Yum-yum. Thanks Dave and Judy!

Well, the truth is that if the FDA had approved total disc replacement (TDR) surgery sooner, I would have had it long ago.

I’ve suffered chronic lower lumbar pain since 1988. I’ve seen dozens of doctors over the years, and all had the same diagnosis: degenerative disc disease (DDD). The severe degeneration of my L4-L5 disc might have been a result of getting hit by a truck while delivering a pizza on September 22, 1985, but no one knows for sure.

When you combine the DDD with degenerative joint disease (DJD) in my hips and spine, it doesn’t take much for me to become immobilized with pain. Over the years I’ve had to give up many activities I used to enjoy – running, racquetball, and kayaking, to name a few. The more active I am, the more pain I experience.

You’d think it would be the other way around – that keeping strong would help prevent pain. Not so. The more I work out, the more debilitating the pain. I love weight-lifting, walking, and swimming. About 6 months ago, in anticipation of my surgery this summer, I took up all three of these activities again on a regular basis. Consequently, a couple months ago the usual pain started in again and getting out of bed every morning became, once again, a painful activity.

Anyway, after years of avoiding fusion surgery – which really limits mobility in the back and puts too much strain and wear on the supporting discs – I finally traded in my old disc about 18 days ago. Looking at the replacement device on the post-op X-ray is pretty neat. I feel like the Bionic Woman! To see a picture of my new part and read about the procedure used to insert it, go to http://www.charitedisc.com/.

My recuperation will take at least eight weeks. For the first six weeks, I am unable to bend, stoop, or twist. I’m forbidden from carrying anything that weighs more than five pounds, and I have to take it easy and begin attending physical therapy several times a week to get that disc moving.

The surgery required I make special arrangements (and purchases) to allow me to continue caring for my kitty. My boy Martin now eats up high on a table in my apartment. As of tonight, his litter pan is up on a table too - his new throne. He loves his new carpeted kitty stairs. I’m hoping it’ll help him get more exercise and lose some weight.

Stay tuned and I’ll fill you in on how the surgery went. This is a major life event for me that I hope will change my life for the better, so I’m excited to talk about it. For now, I’m back home in NYC and taking it easy. I can sit for only 30 minutes at a time, so my blogs should be more compact than usual. :)