12 weeks - made it

Well, I made it to the magical 12 week mark and am still feeling fine.  This is the milestone date at which Mr. Boeree said I should be cleared to return to normal activities, although after spending almost 7 months this year recovering from my 2 surgeries, I'm still a little hesitant to just jump back in, especially after my experience with my first surgery.  I have not tried any jogging or running yet and probably will wait for a bit yet.  I may try to get in a couple of outside bike rides before the snow comes.

I had xrays today:

The one I was most interested in seeing the the left standing 20 degree one that shows the gap between the disc and the vertebrate. My surgeon here in the US said that everything looked fine and when I asked if the gap between the disc and the vertebrate should be filled in with bone, he said that the gap doesn't completely fill in and you normally just see the bone growth in the left and right "wing" areas that are in contact with the disc.  He also said that you wouldn't really be able to see that bone growth in an xray which I was kind of surprised to hear.  He also said it looks like the disc is functioning properly and he could tell that it was moving the way it was designed to.  He said that I should be cleared to return to whatever activities I want as long as it feels fine.  I then asked him about doing the MedEx physical therapy machine that involves twisting, and he said that I should wait until about 6 months to try that.  So kind of a mixed signal there.

I sent the xrays to Mr. Boeree and he responded right away and said "As for physical restrictions at this stage, I don’t think there need to be any specific limits on what you should do, with reason!  I think it is always sensible to respect your back but you can bend, lift, twist etc, and can get back into most sports at this stage.  Before giving you a full pass I would like to check your x-rays so I’ll get back to you then if I may?"  He just needed to get the xrays loaded into his imaging system.

One small side effect that has surfaced in the last 4-6 weeks is some noticeably increased sweating on my upper hamstrings.  Both my surgeon and Mr. Boeree seemed to think this was an unusual side effect, but both thought that it probably was due the surgery as the parasympathetic nerve system does run down the side of the spine.  Usually, people who have effects experience the opposite, where they get patches of extremely dry skin.  In any case, they said that those types of effects almost always revert back to normal over time as the nerves get back to normal.  It is not a big deal to me, just something I noticed.  Some people even continue to experience nerve pain for up to 9-12 months after surgery (luckily I don't have any of that).

I also asked my surgeon about having to use antibiotics for dental work and he was very adamant that I needed to talk preventative antibiotics whenever I get any kind of dental work including cleanings for the rest of my life.  Apparently, there is some risk of bacteria getting into the bloodstream and traveling to the disc and causing problems.  This is common to all joint replacements such as knees and hips as well.  So he said to make sure to tell my dentist I had an artificial joint beforehand so that they can prescribe them.

10 weeks

I'll keep this one short and sweet.  Still doing well and feeling pretty good.  Getting a bit stronger thanks to my physical therapy, but still feel like I have a ways to go before I get back into good shape.  I went for a short bike ride today for 30mins and was reminded that my cardio fitness level is still pretty low, but that will come back with time.  Still 2 weeks before the magic 12 week mark and my next set of xrays.  Even after that, I think I'll still be pretty hesitant to do anything high impact for awhile, even though I feel good enough to even now.

9 weeks

Recovery is still progressing well.  I'm feeling more normal each day, but still trying to be cautious.  I've been progressing through physical therapy and they have moved me up to some more challenging exercises that definitely make me sweat.  It feels good to be able to do some type of exercise that tires me out.  They have also started me using a MedEx lumbar strengthening machine during my visits.  It is basically a giant workout machine which they can precisely control how far I can move and how resistance is there.  It is basically a restricted back extension machine that focuses on the lumbar spine muscles.  I still have to keep stretching at least twice a day to keep the right sided, straight leg raise pain away (although I did have some soreness today for the first time even though I had done my stretches).