Recap part one: Jan. 13

Excuses, excuses
I know this is a long time coming. I can't even say that I've been busy. No more reasons, let's just get right to it.

Jan. 13--the day before surgery
This day was very busy. I had to go to the hospital with my father to fill out paperwork, have more blood drawn and get chest x-rays taken. After all of that, we walked across the street for my pre-op appointment with my surgeon, Dr. Hostin. I was very nervous. I asked him all the questions I wanted to at that time. For those who were interested, these were his answers at that time:

1. How long will the surgery last? Around three or four hours (actual surgery time was longer...will get to that later)

2. How long will I be in the hospital afterward? He said I would probably be in the hospital four or five days, then go home (this also changed). He didn't think I would need to go to the rehab facility, as he hadn't sent anyone to rehab this year who is under the age of 30. Later in the car on the way home, I realized that this year at that point had only been the last two weeks, but I figured he meant last year.

3. When people go back to work after their month or two off, are they typically able to do full days or not? He said basically that I would probably be off work for six weeks to two months, although I am cleared for two to three months, just in case. He said when I do go back, I may not be able to handle full days. This is a wait and see type thing. He would be the one to ok me for work after we discuss it.

4. Will I be in a brace? If so, for how long? Nope. He thought that with my age, health and because my full back will not be operated on (just most of it), I would not require a brace, although this was also a wait-and-see-type thing.

5. Will I need a cane or a walker? How long? See previous answer.

6. If I am in a brace, how long each day do I need to wear it? See previous answer.

7. How will I sleep? Will I be able to lay on my back at all? He said I'd sleep however felt comfortable. I'll give my answer to this later.

8. My mother's surgeon used bone from her ribs (Mom, is this right?) in her back. Will I need anything like that? No.

9. Will I be able to play soccer or snowboard or other sports and games where I may fall or get hit? Yes, but not for at least three months for most items, and a little longer for contact sports.

10. How long will it take for the hump in my back that I currently have to go away? It will go away, right? Yes, he said he would push this out and move around my ribs and all kinds of cool things, in addition to straightening my spine.

11. How long will it take for the bottom curve to straighten out on its own? I can't remember exactly what he said for this. I know he said that he believes this bottom curve to be compensatory (as we discussed before), so it should straighten out on it's own. We'd have to wait and see.

12. How tall will I be when this is all over? So I had seen a commercial for my doctor's office with a woman who had the same surgery and ended up four inches taller. He said this will not happen for me. That woman had much, much more severe curves than mine and that I would only grow one to two inches.

13. Do I need to give blood prior to surgery? Or can I not, since I'm anemic? I honestly don't know if that's a silly question or not. I didn't ask this because I already knew the answer. I didn't give blood (for them to use in-case I lose too much) prior to surgery, as this is very expensive. They did type my blood, so the bank could be ready in case I needed it. As for the anemia, I've been taking iron and vitamin C at the request of the internal medicine doctor.

14. Will I get a chance to talk with the anesthesiologist before the surgery? Yes, the anesthesiologist would come talk to me just prior to surgery.

15. How long typically before people can exercise again? He said I'd start walking around in the hospital and should continue to go on walks when released. As for heavier activities, see answer to No. 9.

16. How long will I be in constant pain? It's different for everyone, he said. Since I'm young, he didn't think it would be as bad as my mom's. (we'll discuss this later!)

17. What exactly happens in the surgery? He went over this in detail. I think the best answer I can give here is to tell you to watch this video about the spine straightening:



I also have issues with my ribs and kyphosis (hump back) which would be fixed.

18. Will I be in the ICU afterward, like my mother was? Yes, probably for a day or two, he said, depending on what happens.

19. If the second curve doesn't fix itself on its own like you said it will, will I have to have surgery again to fix that one, too? We'd see, but probably no.

20. How much will it approximately cost? (not assuming insurance) He gave me the contact information for the lady in his office who handles insurance and financial things to talk to me, but I ended up never talking to her.

Later that day, I had my massage from Kelsey's friend, who works on people's energies. I wanted to be completely balanced and as relaxed as possible for my surgery. It made me feel like spaghetti, but also kind of worried me. The therapist was very tell-it-like-she-sees-it. She was not a supporter of scoliosis correction surgery. She told me that it would be hard for my body to accept the heavy metal they would be putting in my back, so I could always have problems, possibly even more afterward than before.

I hate it when people tell me this. My chiropractor that I had been seeing since my car accident felt the same way. I felt strong about having surgery, though. I don't think these alternative medicine people understand the surgery or my history. I didn't just decide to do this. It was 15 years in the making. I understand where they are coming from, but this is not something I want to hear when the ball is already way, way in motion.

After the massage, I had dinner at home with my family and Matt. My sister Wendy drove in from Houston to stay the night and be at the hospital, too. She brought me a sweet gift bag with some fuzzy socks that I've been wearing constantly and some other goodies for the hospital and recovery. Monica and Carra stopped by to see me one more time. I stayed up until midnight, really late when you have to leave for the hospital around 4 a.m., doing laundry and deciding what to pack. Matt stayed the night, so he could go with me to the hospital. I knew I'd be nervous and it would help to have him there.

The next day, I would have my surgery.