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So, I had an L5/S1 Microdiscectomy yesterday morning. The surgery itself went smoothly. The only unexpected thing they ran into, according to the surgeon, was a hole in the disc they were repairing. Apparently it was so badly herniated that it was actually ruptured. This increases the possibility that i could herniate the same disc again if I'm not careful in the future. I was in surgery just under 2 hours. Woke up lying on my side in the fetal position in the recovery room. When I went under I was on my back. They must have forced me into the sideways position and operated on me that way. Probably makes it easier to perform the surgery with the spine elongated in that way. In any case, I woke up slightly when I was in the recovery room. They made me roll over into another bed once I was in my actual assigned room in the hospital tower. This was a little painful, but I immediately fell back asleep.

I woke up some time later with my family in the room with me. My back felt tight and a little sore, but it was nothing that was unbearable. I noticed that the pain in my left leg was gone! That was really the whole reason I had the surgery, so I was extremely excited that it seemed to be successful! I was told by the nurses that Discectomy patients are generally required to spend the night at the hospital before being allowed to go home. I informed them that I was not really interested in playing sleep over at DCH and asked what I had to do in order to be discharged that day. They said I had to do three things: (1) take a second round of intravenous antibiotics, (2) be able to stand up and walk a little ways, and (3) urinate. I told them to hook up the IV, bring me a bunch of cups of water, and lower the bed rails. Over the next few hours I completed all three tasks given to me. The surgeon came by to see me and gave me the blessing to go home if I wanted to. I didn't give him the opportunity to change his mind. I left the hospital shortly thereafter and came home.

I spent much of yesterday sleeping due to the medication I was given. My wife and my parents were nice enough to rearrange the living room furniture so I could relax, see the tv, and still feel like I am part of the group. The last thing I want is to feel isolated for the next several weeks. The doctor told me that I should get up and walk a few times daily to make sure I stayed stretched out and try to strengthen my core. I have been doing this. It blows my mind that my spine was operated on yesterday and today I'm walking down the street. I have a large back brace (that resembles a corset, really) that I am supposed to wear for the next two weeks, until I have my post-op meeting with the surgeon. I am on pain medication, anti-inflammatories, and muscle relaxers. The concoction makes for an interesting feeling. I dare say that I am a little stoned at times. All in all I'm feeling pretty good for having endured spinal surgery yesterday. My incision is burning a little and my back is fairly tight. I can't sit down for more than a few minutes (per the doctor), so lying down or standing up are my only options. Right now the hardest thing for me to deal with is the fact that I can't drive for the next 2 weeks. Apparently if I were to react quickly while driving I could mess up whatever they did in my back. So, for the first time since I was 15 years old, I have to rely on other people to drag me around town. That sucks. Hopefully when I visit the doc in a couple weeks he will clear me to drive. So far I'm definitely happy that I had the surgery. I feel better already. An unexpected gift from the surgery is a large swollen upper lip. Apparently they busted my lip while inserting the breathing tube after I was under. It's very swollen and is making speaking, drinking, and eating difficult. It looks and feels like someone punched me in the mouth while I was unconscious. Since Sarabeth is working at the hospital this summer I have tasked her with finding out who busted my lip and whether it was on purpose. Once I heal up I'll exact my revenge. I'm joking of course (or am I serious?) I'll update again in a couple of days to let everyone know how I'm progressing.