Hospitalized

Day 4

September 5, 2024

This morning I woke up in a significant amount of pain. I went an extra hour without painkillers overnight and I could feel it. I managed to get up anyway and get to the bathroom despite the fact that I can barely feel my right leg. I felt weak, shaky, and not well this morning. My blood pressure was low and my doctor ordered bloodwork for me after my AM rounds. Dr. Lambert assessed the strength in my feet and thought the mobility in my right had slightly improved.

They came and took my blood and I ordered breakfast. I talked to my family on the phone and my sister told me about her conversation with the surgeon post-op. He said he was happy to report they were able to avoid the two major risks associated with this surgery. One being slicing or damaging a nerve and the second being slicing open the nerve sac and leaking spinal fluid. Although the nerves had to be displaced to remove the tissue, nothing was permanently damaged and the hope was that I would make a full recovery.

Later I had consult with the physical therapist. After breakfast I used the walker to go down the hall. It felt significantly worse this time and awkward on the bottom of my right foot which I could barely feel.

Even though I felt like I did much worse, my physical therapist told me that I looked much better walking today. She told me that the day before I was crossing my feet and walking almost like I was on a balance beam. Today my stance was much improved and I looked stable. She told me that it would have been too dangerous to send me home the way I was walking before.

As I was walking in the hallway I saw Mae. ❤️One of my absolute best friends for many years. I adore her and she walked my last lap with me. She brought me flowers and a gift bag and it made me want to cry. Love you so much Mae!

Dr. Pieters and Dr. Lambert came to do rounds. They told that they frequently get called in with people fearing that they have Cauda Equina Syndrome, but it is typically a false alarm. That Dr. Pieters was on call as the spine surgeon and he was surprised that it was an actual true case. They said that my herniated disc was extremely large and that typically they remove only about 3 cm of tissue and bone. In my case it was about 8 cm, almost triple. I asked about whether it was likely my chiropractic visit that led to this and although he professionally couldn’t confirm, he did say the timing matched. That it was a feasible conclusion to make, though he would never be able to prove it.

We started talking about chiropractors. Dr. Lambert said that they advise people to do what is best for them, but they do recommend avoiding neck adjustments. Because of the arteries in your neck, an incorrect neck adjustment can damage an artery, cause a stroke, and can lead to death. He had seen a few of these cases.

The drain in my back was ready to come out because the amount of output was low enough for the wound to be closed. Dr. Lambert removed the drain and closed the hole in my back with bandaging. He told me that if it was draining through the bandaging that I would need stitches but that he would assess this on his afternoon rounds.

Mae and I visited and then a made a few more calls to my family. The occupational therapist and case manager came by and I went on another walk. We tried the stairs again and I was able to do it. Good leg first on the way up, bad leg first on the way down. She told me I was doing much better and that yesterday I looked like a “wet noodle” walking. Discharge was discussed and the tentative plan was to head home on Friday.

I was concerned about leaving the hospital because of the bathroom and the monitoring. Right now I had bladder tests to determine whether my bladder was fully emptying. My white blood cell count was high and I had low phosphate. I received intravenous steroids several times throughout the day and my vitals were monitored.

It was decided that if I came home I would go to Granny’s house. She had the stairlift, a handicapped shower, and an extra bedroom and bathroom. It would be too risky to be around Kennedy full time in the fragile state I was in. One fall or jump on top of me and it could do irreparable damage. It broke my heart and I FaceTimed Beckett and Kennedy. I talked to Beckett about first grade, he liked it better than kindergarten, and Kennedy and I sang “Miss Lucy had a Baby.”

My bandage was oozing fluid so I needed four stitches in my back. I would also be receiving an injection to protect against blood clots. This was another reason I didn’t want to go home. I wasn’t mobile enough to prevent clots and I would no longer have the leg wraps or the injections.

Tonight I reduced my oxycodone from 10 mg to 5 mg. I received the injection in my abdomen to protect against blood clots, a dose of potassium, and an IV steroid. I was sad, especially about the numbness in my leg and pelvis.

I was told by Dr. Pieters that he couldn’t promise anything, but that he expected me to make a full recovery in 3 months. That it would take 3 to 12 months and that if things weren’t resolved by 6 months that they still had time to recover. That after 12 months, changes were likely permanent. He told me that he expected the feeling in my foot to come back first. He reiterated that none of my nerves were damaged, but they had to pull them significantly to the side to reach the tissue and that it would take some time for them to heal.

I called Jay and cried. I had told him to stay home to get the babies (ok, kids 😭) situated. It was a tough week for everyone. I was very scared. It was all just so much. One of the things I was having trouble getting over was how close I had come to paralysis. One flawed decision whether it be the timing, the hospital, the ER wait time, or the availability of the operating room and it could have been a very different outcome. It was so much to process and happened faster than I had time to comprehend. I thanked God for saving me and for healing. Jay cheered me up the best he could and I went to bed. Day 4 was a wrap.