I also had surgery C6-T1 fusion and plate it will be 2 weeks Tuesday for me. I'm also having nerve pain and numbness and Tingling into my arms and hands I was advised it is normal. it's from the swelling in there while they where moving stuff around because the nerves where also damaged from DDD and spinal stenosis. and from what the surgeon cleaned up plus the arthritis. I was placed on prednisone to help and it does help. this is my 3rd surgery in this area never had nerve pain before this time. 1st was C5-C6 fusion and plate with numbness and tingling down into right finger ring and pinky, then 2nd surgery was to fix a nerve that was trapped at C8 now 3rd ACDF C6-T1. plus plate was removed at C5-C6 for movement. Hopefully 3rd time is the charm it has effected me at work so it had to be done. I so understand the depression but you may be starting Physical therapy soon and it will help but you have to be persist with it to also get stronger but you also have to know your limitations they don't so if it hurts STOP!!!! PT is when I noticed something was wrong again. I know you feel like c**p and questioning why me why did this happen but it will get better!! this is my 3rd surgery in 2.5 yrs. my case is different and really not suppose to happen. Plus they don't know why this happened I wasn't in a accident or hit my head just had hernated disc into my spinal cord.So keep your head up and keep thinking positive it does help!!
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I am 3 weeks post op as well C6-C7 ACDF the pain numbness and tingling that I had prior to surgery was gone when I woke from surgery. The surgical site pain is gone and healed. I have pain/discomfort in the back of my neck across my shoulders and down my left arm into my hands and at times tingling numbness when I over do it or bend.But I am a single mom. I try to follow all the rules but it is very difficult and the insurance doesnt cover an aide to help me. So I believe it is all part of the recovery but also possibly part of maybe doing too much as well.Remember no bending, No twisting, no lifting more than 10 lbs . Plus I have to drive cuz I have no one else....And yah the only relief is a mixture of the motrin and vicodin and flexeril for muscle spasm..I am 39yr
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I am now 10 weeks out and I am able to perform quite highly with manual skills and finger dexterity. Dorsal forearm musculature still weak although improving. I don't lift anything heavier than 10 lbs and will not go back to doing planks (10 min), side planks (3 min each side), Vipr lunges or anything else such as this for one year. This kills me not to tax myself physically because I am used to competing at a world class level. I am stuck doing 100 flights of stairs daily. Cannot make love too vigorously so she is always on top. Still fun though.
My rec to all is to:
-Find a great surgeon
-Respect the healing process
-Do not smoke
-Do not take NSAIDS for 6 months afterwards
-Avoid all lifting > 10 lbs for 10 weeks
-Pray a lot
-Be thankful for family and loved ones
-Eat healthy and watch what you eat staying away from carbohydrates as you will be inactive
-Watch your weight
-You can help yourself get better by being careful, Many have hurt themselves permanently by failing to respect healing needed.
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I had 4,5,6 and 7 fused about 4 years ago. I am starting have the same pain but worse down my left arm and neck. The muscles in the back of my head have a lot of pain also. Any body else gone throught this
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Im a 33 yr old male and Im about three weeks post op as well also and I have to tell ya that my went great I haven't had a head ache since and the strength in my arms is slowly but noticeably coming back thank god!!i had to wait three years to get my acdf surgery done but I was worth the wait for me!!! I'm in heavy construction so the pain something fierce everyday I'd wake up with a head ache or my hands would be numb and feel swollen my neck constantly had a large knot on it day in and day out I had all those simptoms and beleave you me it sucked!! So any relief was a miricale for me. So post op wasn't to bad for me I was up and walking that day in and out of the hospital same day, no neck brace for 6 weeks or how ever long most people have to have one on I was lucky I guess. It wa a single level acdf with the hip bone Grady and I was fearing the worst from it and I was scared to do it but the best thing I did was not let it put me down I got up that day and was moving aroun my dr said I was weeks ahead of my recovery time and he thought it was because I didn't just lay around I hardly needed the pain meds they gave me either I honestly think people make it out to be worse then it accually is but I'm really not one to say because every ones differant in there recovery but in mine I feel great 3 wks post op and I wish every one the best and done be scared just make sure u have the best dr thats available to you and go for it cuz at this point the pain wont get any worse that's for sure
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I have had a similar ACDF as yours and am now scouring the internet finding that many people have shoulder, neck and arm pain and burning. I also have a terrible time sleeping because of the pain and burning. Fortunately one of the medications my doctor prescribed was Gabapentin. (WIKI it) Strange as it seems, it is normally for people who get epileptic seizures. However a secondary use is for nerve damage. It is NON narcotic, but for me works like a miracle at night. I take one 300mg tablet and sometimes 2 Tylenol and when I hit the bed, I'm out like a light, sometimes waking up in the same position I fell asleep in. One side effect is that when I awake, I feel UN-coordinated for awhile till the grog disappears. I seem to be fine most of the day until around 5-6 o'clock when the pain and burning starts. You can almost set your watch by it. Weather seems to play a roll in the pain as well. Cold temperatures seem to make my "hardware" click and pop more. See if you can try the Gabapentin and at least get a good night's sleep. Good luck.
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I had ACDF surgery 9 months ago...c4/c5, c5/c6, c6/c7 3 level. Worst decision I ever made in my life! I went in with neck pain and was told my spine was compressed. Both arms could lift a Volkswagen. Came out of surgery with both arms paralyzed. Still only have 50% left arm and 30% right. Surgeon keeps adding 6 months to length of time to recover. Don't trust these hacks! Don't do this surgery unless you are dying. I can't even wipe with the hand I'm supposed to. Food doesn't taste right, forget your sex life....after touching my spinal cord this guy wrecked my life! Worst of all I can't find a lawyer to take my case. They say the surgeon wasn't negligent. Michiganis the worst state for malpractice. All I can say is when they tell you you need ACDF surgery, deck 'em.
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I have to disagree. I am currently 1 week post surgery and I was surprised how easy this procedure was. I'm 33 and had C5-C6 microdisketomy with fusion using an allograft bone (cadaver bone) to replace the bad disk. I have almost no pain at all. Nerve pain completely vanished. Still some slight numbness in my left had but even that seems to be getting better. Only needed pain meds for first five days too. If you take them longer than 1-2 weeks you risk addiction that is compared to heroin since oxycodone and hydrocodone are basically synthetic heroin. Days two and three are the worst but after that I've been fine. I want to go to work but hesitant to drive until I start to fuse so will waiting ill doctor releases me. Also I wore no cervical collar after the surgery. Just 2 weeks before to prevent and further damage. It amazes me how many people do not put their age, weight, health status, habits, etc in their posts and then talk like they know everything. My experience so far has been completely positive and sometimes you just have to suck it up and quit whining, that said, I know some people and I repeat some people really do have pain that disrupts their lives and I feel for them. Now that said, the mass majority of people who get this done tend to be fine. Even Payton Manning the quarterback for the Denver Broncos had this procedure done and less than two years later he's going to the 2014 Super Bowl so hang in there if you've had this or are going to get this done and realize the success stories by far outweigh the negative people who come on these boards. Good luck and god bless!
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DonnaI had c2, c3, and c4 fused almost a yr ago and have been fairly pleased except recently I've been experiencing pain down the left side of my neck down into my shoulder and arm, along with numbness and tingling in hands & fingers. It scares me in that left arm pain is also associated w/ stroke symptoms. How do i distinguish the two?
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I had ACDF surgery in January 2014. I have sever in my left arm down to my numb burning hand. Also pain in my hand hand; burning and numb. I haven't got to see my surgeon yet. Hopefully this is not permanent.
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ive also had the same thing done I had my in june 6 2013, its been nine months and I can say that my neck pain is back also in my shoulders left arm hurts when I use it I have a doctors appointment on april tenth, I can't wait don't know why it hurting again they gave me a orthfix to wear they said it would speed up the infusion ,but all it did for me was give me musle spasm
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I am almost five months out from a PCDF following three failed ACDF's and I have not had pain relief at all following this surgery. In fact the pain is at a higher level on a daily basis than it was before but it is at a lower level, so I'm pretty sure that it is a problem with a lower disk. I had the work done on the c-5 -6 and c-6-7. It's beginning to take a toll on every aspect of my life!!
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hi, I had acdf c3 too c7. pain after wasn t real bad, I def needed pain killers but it wasn t horrible. but i would recommend you have sleep aid available prescription and something too help with a swollen sore throat. had a hard time swallowing so you may want to get some wey protein drink. keep collar on. take it easy for 6 to 12 weeks and good luck. I have pain sometimes, but it is much better than it was.
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That is exactly I say I should of thought about it and did third opioin but I was already at nerve damage and I;wanted pain to be gone but it been a month and I still have pain and now my other side of neck and arm is starting to have pain and stiff I am not doing Pt cause I started having dizziness afther this surgery .... I never had any dizziness in my life ... Keep updated ..
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I am 14 weeks post op for ACDF C5-C7. My shoulder and arm pain were gone within 2 weeks after surgery but I am struggling with referred nerve pain and numbness in my thumb, pointer, and middle finger of my left hand. My doctor and physical therapist continue to remind me that nerves regenerate at the rate of 1 millimeter per month....that means if my median nerve was damaged only 1.5 cm, it will take 15 months to repair. While the nerve pain is definitely better than it was before and immediately after surgery, it has been a very slow process. I find that ice packs to the fingers help immensely. My physical therapist says there is not a clinical or pathophysiological reason that ice would help, but if it does, "Go for it." I take my Vicodin when it gets so bad I cannot handle the pain. I find that positioning also helps. Sleep is very important too.
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