Get well wishes for Augie(bigragu)
 

Augie had major back surgery yesterday (Wednesday) So wishing him a speedy recovery and all the best. [director]

Man best wishes my friend. My GF just had a L4/L5 fusion done because of a fractured vertebrae from the dog attack. It's been 2 weeks since her surgery and she is slowly getting better. Hope you make a full recovery.

Hang in there Augie, It will get better every day...Mark

I was just starting to wonder where Augie was, since I had not seen a post from him in a while.

Hoping for a speedy recovery for you old boy.

Prayers for a quick healing and speedy recovery!

Hope your back on your feet soon.

Get well soon!

Edwin

Prayers going out for your speedy recovery Big Aug.

Dar

Wow...thanks for letting us know Mark. All the best to you my friend, hope the surgery goes well and you heal up quickly and are better then before....physically at least....no help for the mental aspect....;) :D

Hope you have a full and speedy recovery Mr. Ragu.

Thanks, all. Hopefully this be the last one. Here’s a model if what was done. I asked the Doc for the titanium rod cut off pieces. He didn’t find that request amusing, lol

So, in my best layman terms description- all discs were removed. A plastic filler to take up the void was placed in place of the disc. Then all the anchors and rods go in. Doc says that with all the herniated discs now gone, there is nothing touching the nerves that caused the pain. The trade off, you guessed it- minimal mobility.

I am in a lot of post surgery pain right now, and very loopy. Thanks for the kind words, fellas

Well I hope you're on some good drugs! [laugh] That's some major surgery. I hope it helps. Any forecast as to when you'll be back on your feet?

Let me know if there's anything I can help with.

Edwin

Wow that sounds like it was a huge job. Hope the recovery is speedy.

My Dr predicated 5 hours, but it took him a bit over 8. He had to deal with scar tissue from the past back surgeries. Recovery time he told me a year at least. I got fitted for a clamshell suit today. Gonna look like a ninja turtle for around 3 months I’m guessing.

With all this finally behind me my plans are to get in physical kick butt shape again, maybe take on some yoga or something to that effect.
Am curious to know if my light duty wrenching days are over?

Wow man if you need any help with your truck or anything whilst in recovery you let me know and I'll head over your way. Glad the surgery went well and you came out the other side.

I was wondering why we hadn't heard (or actually read) much from you lately.

Glad it is behind you and hoping for a speedy and full recovery. I know you've been battling this for a long time now.

I'm sure you can keep wrenching, just maybe not as fast or efficient. Have to make some modifications etc. I'm sure it will be good therapy for you though.

I'd seriously look into yoga. Never tried it myself but always wanted to. I tried chigong several years ago to help ease into middle age. It was amazing how it healed my dislocated shoulder pain from a previous run in with a cow. Didn't do anything for the scars on my face though...

Good luck and hang in there (and don't push it!).

Speedy recovery Augie!

I wish I were closer so I could help out.:(

Wow Augie that hardware is intense, best wishes for a speedy recovery!

Holy moly that is some serious surgery. Praying for a quick recovery. Let me know if you need anything, I have lots of free time - LOL.

speedy recovery sir!

Prayers to you Augie. I have a good idea what your going through because a very close friend and former co-worker went through the same a year or so ago. Being 70 and becoming a lightning rod (his words) hasn't slowed him down much.

Be well, SOON!

Gonna start calling you the Bionic Augie! From one broken back to another take care of yourself and let it heal. You know what I mean. I would doubt your days of light wrenching are over you just need to be more thoughtful on how you do things. I felt the same way. Prayers and thoughts for your successful recovery you Hero-On-A-Half-Shell (TMNT Cartoon Theme from the 90's).

Thanks, all. Currently, I feel miserable as they are whining me off any injectible pain meds and strictly using orals at four hour intervals. Betewwn that, physical therapist making me talk walks up and down the hallway, and my stomach looking and feeling like I’m 9 months pregnant(serious constipation going on- last movement was 7 days ago!!!) the pain is miserable.

Can’t really sleep well at nights, as I hear folks screaming “ I JUST WANNA DIE! KILL ME!!!” It makes it tough. I found out from other nurses that those same patients had spinal back fusions all by my Dr, also.

I have faith in him, as he is the top dog around here when it comes to curing folks with S shaped scoliosis backs. There’s thank you cards all over his office, from his patients, thanking him for giving them a new back, basically.

I guess what they didn’t write on their cards is how much it’s all gonna hurt at the beginning, though. A lot of my stabbing pain is coming from that 3-3 1/2” bone lag that he inserted in the hips to secure the whole fusion cage.

Thanks, guys.

Yeah I spotted those deep bolts into the hips....scary looking stuff but once the initial "discomfort"( and I use that term loosely....;) ) is over I bet you'll feel like a new man again. That constant never ending pain was probably worse then the short term pain from the surgery.

Keep up the fight, and get well soon!

HAng in there Augie! It gets better. The noise and the impossibility of sleeping is one of the reasons why the only way I'll ever go in HP is unconscious.

Edwin

Wow man, thanks for the update. I guess it can only get better from here out but geez you sound miserable. Guess it's time to practice some serious meditation huh?

Hang in there brother!

I empathize. I've had back problems for 50 yrs. We've had vacations delayed/canceled due to mine.
I've never needed surgery thank goodness but have been off work for months some times after picking up a small package.
Hang in there.

I can say from experience pain control starts in your head. You can choose how much or how little of it you want to feel. I've helped a few people get through their pain, I also couldn't stop a close friend from committing suicide. It's a mater of finding those things that make life worth continuing. Like my one friend that also has hardware in the back. 70 years old and still manages shooting competitions in Arizona.

^^^^^ you're really an Inuit Shaman ain't you Cougar [coffee]

They probably have to keep Augie sedated to keep him from chasing nurse Ratched around the halls. [laugh]

Get well soon Augie!

Edwin

Prayers
 

My prayers go out to you and your family for a speedy recovery . I have C3-C7 fussed , 1st Doc botched up surgery , installed 4 screws into disc space . 2nd surgery is great . L3-L4 torn , L4-L5 buldging , taking steroid shots at this time for pain issues . Mine all happened from a rear end crash riding my Harley years ago . I was Mr Tuff guy , got up dusted off , all is good . Years later not so good , I pay for it daily . Moral of my story , if you are ever in any type of accident , go to hospital for X-rays . Define if you have any issues then, don’t wait for years like me and suffer through it because you think your OK . Again good luck , prayers for speedy recovery . I’m here to help you and your family anyway I possibly can .

No, but ya I am partly native American.

Things will get better man. One day at a time. Sometimes one hour at a time. Lemme know if you need anything.

Anybody talked to Augie lately?

Not heard anything from him in a while...

I got an e-mail from him last weekend. He is home now after a month in the hospital. He said most of his previous pain is gone but is still sore and has some nerve shock. He is getting around with a walker during therapy.

I am going to give him a phone call later.

Say :Hi" for me. Also let him know that he is missed on the forum.

Edwin

Hey, all. Just read these last few comments on this tread started by Mark, and I truly want to say thank you all, for the “brotherhood” like comments and offers to help from all you guys. I am currently 35 day’s post surgery, and man it seems like time has flown.

Looking back at it all, after reflecting on 7 spine surgeries and 3 knee surgeries since I got into my trade back in 1984, I’ve always wondered how I trashed myself so. I have many close friends that I worked side by side with, whom are now all retired, and yes, they have their share of injuries to the knees and some back aches and rotator cuff from the hard trade as a sheet metal worker, but not like in my case.

When my Dr visited me the day after surgery, he said that the MRI pics did me no justice as to what he saw when he had me cut open. He said almost 100% of my discs were either ruptured, disintegrated, dried out, and a couple just gone and bone on bone.
With all the emotions, pain from surgery, all coupled with the ivy narcotics being administered into me, I couldn’t help but wonder what the heck I could have done to trash my back so. There was a spell in my early 20’s when I use to body build and tried the “get big fast” stuff that the majority of guys try that get into that sport do, but I was an amateur, and only tried that stuff for not even a year.

But, the one thing I did for 32 years, was mask pain from my job with Advil and Motrin. I told myself getting into this trade I vowed that I would not be ever laid off and replaced by another due to lack of performance, and swore I’d never stand in the unemployment line. I took on all the overtime offered, and climbed up the ranks to being a general foreman quickly after I finished my apprenticeship. Looking back, I successfully achieved my commitments, but at a price.

Construction work, as some of you on here that make a living at it know, is a very cut throat business. Yeah, I get it when all say ‘Work Smart, not Hard” but I also see that the bottom line is the almighty dollar, and how your performance can affect that for the companies profits. So, I did not ever want to be labeled as the “guy who lost the most” on a project, so I did whatever it took to just keep on plugging away, even though my body was saying “Enough already, geez!”

Back hurt by noon? No biggie, 3 Advil’s will hold me till quitting time. But that three was on top of the three I already took before start time, and I’ll for sure be taking more so I can sleep with some comfort that evening. Stupidly, I didn’t realize I was doing more and more damage to the nerves and discs in the back by pushing them past their limits.

Anyway, I’m paying for it all now. The good thing is, all that nagging pain I had prior to surgery that would lock me onto a lazy boy for most of the day is all gone now. I still have reoccurring pain just from the surgery, mainly in my pelvis area where my Dr locked in that titanium cage by tapping and drilling in a 4” long lag bolt, at both sides of the pelvic bone.

I’m setting new goals for myself for when I’m all healed. I plan first getting myself into shape, enjoying myself with the shooting sports, get back into hunting, and currently I’m all into PCP air rifles and target shooting. Now that, is a kick in the butt fun hobby. Hopefully my dodge is all good, and the wrenching to keep it on the road remains light duty, as I won’t be able to get into certain positions due to the locked up back, but if I can smile more, get my social life back, and help others along the way(was shying away from that due to pain), all this would have been worth it. I must do some5hing crazy special for my wife of 30 years, as she has been the backbone(pun, lol) to keeping our ship afloat, and being a dang great care taker with me. She’s had to put on not only her big girl pants on with this one, but also my pants, too. All that while working a full time job. Great gal.

Anyway, this has to be my longest post on DTR ever, and I wanted to say thanks. I am on DTR everyday reading up all the new posts, but I haven’t been able to drive my truck for almost two years now, so I haven’t posted up much. In time, I’ll be back on here more and more. I truly enjoy each and everyone of you all’ posts and comments, and I’ll forever be a member on this site!

Be good, and be safe!