this is so sad to read all the posts , never seems there to be anyone with any positive results, I too had 2 surgery first was fusion & plate, then the pain was worse and went to a different surgeon he did addtional surgery above the plate. I too have the same pain and work full time. I feel like Im a prisioner in my own body and my life is wasting away as all I do is work and come home. I did invest in a chair that is made for your exact body and forces you to st correctly, it has helped so much for me sitting at a desk all day the $1,000 investment was worth the money and I was able to get my employer to pay half , my pain level is now a 5 instead of a 10 I wish you all good recovery I would never have another surgery and will just live this way.. have hope and keep the faith. I too went thru the depression and finally had to stop allowing it to do this to me, and Im sick of pain meds not to mention the drug store gives you a look refilling it every month. no one gets it unless they live with it. I wish I could help one of you as I live it myself, the chair really did help and i would recommend it
Hi everyone,I don't want to frighten anyone but in 1998 my life changed I was a very healthy fit man who had a serious accident at work that changed my life ,I won't bore you with the details but it nearly put me in a wheel chair .
I had a c5 c6 disc prolapse in Whitch I required a discectomy.I went back to work until 2009 when I could not stand the pain in the whole of my right arm ,left forearm and hand + pins and needles in my hands and soles of my feet it's now 2013 and I carn,t use my right arm I also have terrible muscle spasms all over and also bladder problems .
the list of medication is endless including morphine patches .please think carefully before you undertake spinal surgery.
Kind regards Gary
I had an A.C.D.F. with donor bone ,plate & 6 screws on C4-C5-C6,on 09/30/2010, my shoulder & arm pain never went away kept getting worse. They did another MRI to find out it was a non-union & my body rejected the donor bone. After lots of test, pain management evaluation, & 2nd. opinions I had to have a 2nd. surgery , they went in the back way,posterior fusion, put in 2 rods & 6 screws & my own bone from illiac crest to support the failed fusion, this was done 04/24/2012. Pain still is very bad , base of my skull, left & right shoulder blade area & half way down my arms. I have no strength in my arms anymore & am in constant pain, just had another MRI yesterday & was told I might have to have a third surgery done because C7 is bulging & pressing on a nerve & also C3 also is bulging & indenting on the dural sac. My Dr. said he would go in the front way & put a cage with material instead of bone. I also am at a loss & need some input too! Wish you all the luck in the world.
Wow, lots of pain I'm seeing in these posts. I guess I can consider myself lucky....so far. I retired from the military with degenerative disc syndrome and stenosis in the neck not to mention a damaged back from parachuting and other stuff that tears you down. Dec 2012, I was hit from the back by another snowboarder and it paralized me from the neck down. To make a long story short, Jan 8, 2013 I had an ACDF C-3-4-5-6-7. C4 and 6 completely removed, ground up and put in vertebrae cages in the spots they were removed. Screws and plates as well of course. Well, you cannot imagine how happy I was when I woke up and everything worked. Legs/95%, arms and hands 75%, all facilities! Today I am nearly 100% in the legs and 90% in the arms and hands. 8 weeks post op and all I have left is pain in upper arms and shoulders and just a little tingling in the hands. I have shown gradual improvement, but anything is better than what it could have been. Good luck everyone!
hi, don't worry. I had same surgury nearly two years ago and had the same or similar and have continue to have varrious same and new types of neck, shoulder etc pains. In my experience I feel the operation is better than no operation. Before my op I could not sit up at times which probably you would of soon experienced. Last week I had my first steroid injection to also assist with post op problems aswell as the ever increasing deterioation. Perhaps the N.H.S let you home too soon and how you went back to work? Im 57 you must be younger. Hope all goes well. V
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hi i can relate i just had the same surgery 2 weeks ago and i still have upper arm pain. i have not gone back yet to my surgeon but in the hospital he said it could take time for that to go away. i also had the same surgery 10 years ago at a different level and had instant relief great success. so needless to say i'am very upset with this. i have the pain the exact same way you described, except i do not have pain at night. i did have pain at night before the surgery. the other day i let go of the door and it hit me in the arm i actually dropped to my knees the pain was so bad. i will let you know what my surgeon says. i have appt on april 16th
dido .Had c5 c6 fusion 1998 I have been in pain ever since.My Doc won.t say anything to incrimenate himself I have had injections half a dozen times and has never changed a thing I ,m absolutely miserable and have been for years Good luck finding someone who cares enought to help or try to fix the problem Doctors are all money hungry and can not think out of the box they just keep passing the buck and costing me money for nothing Good luck
Hello, my name is Chris & yes its been 6 months since C5&6 fusion which didn't work, so now they want to go thru the back of my neck & wire, screw & plate the 5&6 together. I'm kinda scared to go thru with it but don't know what else to do. I'm sick of the meds, pain & muscle pills + Gabupentin. I just want the pain & numbness gone. If you want to talk further email me
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Hi Chris,
I had c-456 surg in 1990 with plate and screws through the front........Pain off and on and finally they found bone framents so had to go through the back of neck a yr later.....................the back was one of the worst surgeries possible for pain!!!! Never really got over it.........Finally, i went to a new surgeon who is top in field....he did my surg in Oct of last yr...He went through the front and removed the plate and screws....flipped me over and opened the back and inserted two rods and 10 screws along with a fusion of the c-7-t-1........it was a 7 hrs surgery........the pain was more than i can describe however i can say after 6 mos. now that my neck has never felt this good................and pain is much much less..........i still cant do anything for a yr but atleast iam not on pain pills all the time......He is a very careful surgeon........but owns his work............!! i have been compliant with everything he has told me to do.......I do not regret the surgery ....i regret that it took so long and so many drs. to find one who would own it, be honest about it . Not many drs. want to take on and "fix"other surgeons work!!! Fixing others stuff is what my dr does best........so iam halfway to maybe getting a life i want now after all these yrs..............yes, the surgery going from the back is much much harder on your neck muscles!!!!! i will never get the muscle tone back i know that.........but iam 61........so i can live with that......also did the injections to no avail....................and they cost alot of money...which iam still paying on......sigh....i am no longer the weather person now that my plate is gone!!! I wish people understood how it feels to have a neck! Most dont even know their neck exists and clearly take it for granted!!!!!!! Take care and do what the dr. says afterward! slowly.....carefully!.........and yes it will require some pt.!!!!
Hi, I am a 54 year old female who had this surgery done a month ago today. They fused a plate at the c5/c6 with a cadaber bone inserted in place of the herniated disk. The surgeon said there were many bone spurs, so the two hour surgery, ended up taking three hours. The post surgery pain was absolutely horrible. The anterior incision did not hurt at all and to this day, never has, but the pain in my right arm and back of neck was excruciating, to say the least. The hospital was an overnight stay and I went home the next day. I had a post-op appointment at three weeks. The pain in my right arm was still horrible. I told him that I could not use my right thumb without severe pain shooting up my right arm but he felt it was just muscles because he said they had to pull all of my muscles from shoulder to shoulder and down the middle of my back to get the cadaber bone set. But I do not feel as though this pain is a pulled muscle. I have pulled muscles before. If I even push the remote for the tv with my right thumb, I get a super sharp pain from the thumb and up the inside of my right arm. If I even push the remote control button on the TV the pain is excruciating and makes me feel ill all over. Yesterday, I taped my thumb to my finger so that I couldn't move it. If I didn't, I couldn't stand the pain from the movement and I am about to do it again today. Does anyone have any idea what is causing this and if this pain will subside. I am really getting worried. Heck, people talk about having this surgery done and back to work in two weeks! I am a Pre-K teacher at a public school and work with 20-4 year olds. I know that in this condition there is no way I can resume work and be able to do my job sufficiently. I am worried that I will never be able to go back if this pain doesn't go away. The doctor is talking like I should be off of the medication by now and says no pain no gain. I feel so let down and wimpy, but I have never been that kind of person. I served 6 years in the US Army Reserve, have tolerated much pain and have even put up with this herniated disk pain for two years before having the surgery until I felt that I had to do something to get better. Never did I think that I would regret doing this but I do at this point. I am upset that I am feeling expected to suck it up and go on like nothing is wrong when I know there is. Has anybody else out there ever felt constant pain running up your arm from your thumb and no matter what you do, you can't stop it!
I had acdf feb 2010, i had basic pain after surgery, was taking the prescribed medication, as the 4 week period came along post surgery, I was noticing pain still in my arm and burning sensation, unable to sleep... By April 12, I started having head and hand tremors, which I didn't have before the surgery. I still had all the symptoms from before the surgery. They took more mri's and X-rays to make sure the surgery was a success. They told me the pain was all in my head. They wanted me to see a therapist. I instead saw 3 more neurologists, 2 more nerosurgeons and 2 orthopedic doctors. I had 8 more mri's to check for anything. They all said everything was fine. It's now three years later and I'm still having pain and weakness and tremors. If I look directly up or down, I get very dizzy. Even left or right too fast. Headaches daily and if I pick something up and carry anything near 8 to 10 lbs, I get worst headaches...they put me on cymbulta for depression and pain, which really didnt help, they took all pain meds away, they had me go to a intense PT class which was supposed to help me and they got mad because I didn't improve, I found out that the class was to "teach me how to live with my pain", the occu therapist told me I shouldn't have been in the class, but nothing she could do. I found out after taking the classthy eye take you off all medication and will not give you more. They told me over the counter meds should be fine. .so I'm on nothing, take excedrine and ibreprolphrine daily, use heating pad everyday and night, sleep about 4 hours a night, off and on. So....have surgery or not, I had to try, nothing worried for me before the surgery and I Was told I better do something or I would have to be let go from my job. I talked to 3 other doctors, and they all said..what was my quality of life like, if it meant getting better because of surgery, then that was my last option. And it was they last option, nothing else worked. I wish I could help you all more, in the pst three years I have found MANY people that had the surgery and they still have pain and numbness, burning and weakness like me. I found that there is a syndrom called post laminiectomy syndrom, after back and cervical. Sorry about the typing, that is also a problem now.
My husband had cervical spine surgery in July of 2012. He had 3 cages, metal plate and screws put in. The surgeon went through the front of his neck. Before he had the surgery he could use his hands and his arms. Now after the surgery he can't use his arms or his hands. He can't even raise his arms above his head. He loses his balance gets dizzy, he has fell down. We have been to his surgeon but he never wants to talk about what he went through. All they ever say it takes time. Well myself i want some answers why this has happened to him. He has went through physical therapy and everything and nothing has helped.
I have to agree. Mine was April 2010 and cant do much without help. My neurosurgeon would leave if I asked questions. Now my doctor tells me I wasnt expected to walk again. Now, I am told the problem is progressing. I feel this was an unnecessary surgery since I have a friend who has no insurance and is no worse.
I have had cervical fusion on c3 thru c6 one year ago, only to have more pain now than before . Doc says the titainun plate is in tact. nothing wrong all went well with sugery, I dis -agree I hurt more now do not know what to do. can not sleep either in any position, all day severe pain, can anyone offer any input ?