Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
- 4,883
- 113
Get it fixed right the first time. You have no idea now with your youth, where you life is headed. Health is of primary importance.
Good luck Gabby. You will be surprised as to how fast time actually flies by. My dd had spinal fusion surgery in July of 2014. Will be two years already at the end of July. She could not do any sports/exercise for an entire year, and is now back to playing softball, and doing cheerleading for two sports in high school. She has remarked several times that she can't believe how fast the year went by while she was restricted.
My opinion for you (of course talk to parents/doctors as they get the most input) get it done as soon as possible. Get it fixed. The faster you get it fixed the faster you can start recovery and back to normal. And don't worry about the plate/screws. Once it heals up you don't even realize it is in there. (so says DD with 3 titanium rods, and 18 screws in her spine)
I have a plate in my arm. I never notice it at all.
It seems like you know the correct answer. I think you just wanted to come here and have people tell you you're not crazy, and that your thinking is correct.
As far as we can tell, you're not crazy, and your thinking is correct. Of course, any teenager is, by definition, a bit loopy. (I have FOUR teenagers.)
My only advice is, when it comes to recovery, get a good sports PT, and do ALL the exercises. Every day. All of them. You would be amazed that most people don't, and those are the ones sitting around in a few decades wishing they had. A few months of annoying PT exercises will save you decades of aggravation.
Best of luck to you.
I would vote for option 2. I would also start taking Vitamin D and drinking more milk!
I do take a multi vitamin along with an immunity booster from our local Walgreen's. As far as milk...I drink mostly Almond milk in vanilla and chocolate. I really like the taste of it and haven't gone back to regular moo.
Does almond milk have as much vitamin D and calcium as regular milk? I would suggest adding a vitamin D and calcium supplement to your daily multi-vitamin. They are cheap and it can't hurt!
Thank you for the good luck wishes. My parents and I talked the situation over...and were opting to go with option 2. I'm hoping and praying they don't find anything else wrong with the elbow/arm. Your right about time...it's amazing how it flies by. I would be so scared to get the surgery your daughter had. I can't imagine what it would be like to have your spine fused. I couldn't imagine not being able to do the sports you love for a year while your back heals. Everyone would be driven nuts if it had been me because I'm so independent and like to do for myself.
Like I stated earlier in this post...we talked about it and the opinion of everyone in my family is go with option 2. So I see the specialist, Monday in Philadelphia. I'd like to get back to sports and other stuff as quickly as possible. I guess I'm supposed to be in a cast for 8 weeks or so. Then I move to a hinged brace with some limited movement and then a brace with full movement. At least that's what I've read. I could be totally wrong. As far as your daughter, what was her operation like to get done? What was her pre op prep like? What was her post op like after she got out of surgery? Was she able to feel her rods and screws at first and how long until she didn't notice it anymore?
My last question...if you don't mind answering it...if not, i understand. What happened that your daughter needed her spine fused?