Update

Well, things are going very well so far. I am 17 days post-op and feel really good. I'm spending a lot of time walking, averaging 8-10 K a day in total spaced out over 2 or 3 walks. The first few walks were really weird, like my nervous system had to adjust to the fact that I could actually use both legs. Since I have been favouring my right leg for 6 months or so, the muscles in my left leg are a little atrophied, while the right leg muscles have been overworked. It will all balance out eventually. I still have very little pain at the incision area, just some stiff back muscles that are recovering from being cut in to. Everything is healing up as it should, thanks in part to the 2 or 3 naps I take during the day as well as sleeping 9 hours at night. I've been trying to read a lot but keep falling asleep. I miss riding my bike, and it KILLS me to see people riding down the street on a perfect 24 degree day with the sun shining. I should be able to try some stationary cycling in a couple of weeks. It's better than nothing I guess.

Home!!!

I'm home!!!! Everything went well with the surgery and I now can stand and walk without brutal sciatica in my left leg. It's still early, and it's common to have relapses and brief periods of nerve pain, but things just feel right. My lower lumbar area is extremely stiff, but there's not much pain at the incision site, which I am told is about 3-4 cm. Before the surgery, I was walking around hunched like an old man, and now I walk upright like the rest of the world. The surgery went by pretty quickly--I was at the clinic for less than 24 hrs in total. I'll be spending a lot of time today either walking, laying down, or standing, since sitting for more than a few minutes puts too much pressure on the lumbar area. I can't wait to get outside and walk around--I walked the decks of the ferry yesterday like I was a little kid on one for the first time!! I think it will be hard for me to balance rest, activity, and mental stimulation over the next while, but for now I'm a happy guy. Oh yeah, the painkillers are fun---the resulting constipation, not so much. maybe I'll start a separate blog detailing.....oh, never mind...

background info

Well, how did I get into this pickle? It all started when I developed a herniated disc between the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae (L4-L5). I was stretching after a run one day and felt a pop in my back, and then a searing pain down my left leg, known as sciatica. This happened in October 2007 about a month after I finished my second Ironman triathlon. After a winter and spring of crappiness, I will be having surgery on June 25 to remove the part of the disc that is compressing the nerve to my leg. The surgery is called a microdiscectomy and will be performed at the False Creek Surgical Center in Vancouver. Lots to do before the big day.