Hello Everyone - As some of you know I had spine surgery 13wks ago to lift my head up....I had numbness in my thighs, lower middle chest & forearms + half my left hand including my little finger. I also had a droopy right side of my face & my eye looked different. I lost a great deal of dexterity & grip strength in my hands + overall strength was lost.
The 1st 4wks were very painful & the numbness in my left forearm & hand turned to extreme pain (I had to wear a compression bandage to help with the pain)......progress over those 1st few weeks was very slow, however once the 5th week started I began to heal at an accelerated rate. At the beginning of week 7 I began to exercise again (just using my exercise bike) & by week 9 I was back to lifting weights again.
For the last 4 weeks I've been back to full training again & my strength has returned to 95% where I was at before surgery...my dexterity has returned & also my grip strength. My left little finger is still numb but improving, however the other areas have really improved & the numbness is much less & continues to dissipate, my face has gotten better & my eye continues to improve but it's all about nerves so I need to give it time & continue my face exercises....Obviously the healing process will take over a year to really settle down & nobody expected me to be training again so soon but I was determined to get on with it....amazingly I can even get on the floor again,sit on my knees or even on my bum with crossed legs. I can even do pushup again or situps on the floor....I'm feeling fantastic and that's just from my head going back up.
The reason for my determination is that although having my head up is fantastic & has really changed my life....it wasn't the revelation I was hoping for. When I'm sat down I look pretty much normal & I can move my head in all directions again (obviously not like a normal person) but actually not bad at all. However when I stand up everything changes because my upper spine is so curved. I simply can't stand up straight.....when I'm sat down my head is on top of my shoulders but when I stand up the upper spine engages & it pushes my head forward (not down) & it makes me look not right again. When I stand with my back against a wall with my feet against the wall the full extent of the curve becomes apparent.......
From the moment I stood up after the 1st surgery I knew I wanted to have the 2nd surgery & I've been pushing & begging to have it done as soon as possible......I saw the spinal team a couple of weeks ago & they were amazed at my progress....I continued to push & finally it paid off.
My 2nd surgery had been scheduled for Thursday 2nd November, exactly 16wks after the 1st.......Hopefully my spine will be straightened & I'll be able to stand up nice & straight, lay down nice & flat & sit in a seat at a proper right angle. The combination of the 2 surgeries will hopefully be enough to make me look normal again & having that posture will give me a much better quality of life. I was amazed how just having my head corrected really affected other areas of my body....My legs felt stretched out, so did my chest & stomach......I really can't imagine what it's going to be like when my actual spine is corrected......
I'm feeling strong & fit......I'm training twice a day & prepping my body to go through it all over again. I might be crazy to put myself through major spinal surgery again so soon but I feel so close to normality I just want to get it done & then spend the next few months rehabbing from both surgeries.
I'm extremely excited about reclaiming my life & I'm ready to rock & roll.
On the day of my surgery the BBC will be following my surgeon (as part of a tv show/documentary) & I've been asked if it's OK if they interview me both before & after my surgery.....crazy times.
So I'm going to take the next 3wks to continue training & then it's showtime.....
Anthony:)
