Chad’s Recovery and Rehabilitation

In May I underwent massive spinal surgery to relieve pressure on my spine that was being caused by tumors (benign) that ranged in location. From c1-t6. So basically my upper neck to shoulder blade area. The surgeon told me it would be 6-8 week recuperation, I would get pt in the hospital and after as an outpatient. I scheduled it for a time frame that would lesst impact school and work. The surgeon told me, “”our job is to make you better and stop any progression of problems. Our job is not to make you worse”

Here is what happened:

I woke up (kind of) at one point in recovery and couldn’t open my eyes or talk. I could hear the doc telling me to move my feet and someone was poking me in the foot with a needle . Then they put me back under. The next thing I know I am in the neuro ICU and the breathing tube was still in, which was horrific. Once that came out, I began to realize that I couldn’t move anything. My arms and legs were flacid. I went and got transferred to the rehab unit and some things gradually got better. Apparently I now have some problems regulating things like my blood pressure , heart rate, and body temperature. It’s getting better.,,,slowly .

In July I was transferred to a skilled care facility to get more pt. Here is my current status: I can move the right leg a little bit, my left I can just barely move. Arms move pretty well, but my hands change from cold to numb to tingly. I have a lot of pain . I can’t walk at all and can only sit up in s wheelchair for a few hours at a time. It looks like a wheelchair is where I’ll be confined to for a while .

If anyone is interested, since i won’t be able to work for a while, I have started a go fund me to help defray my costs. Thanks!