(No Subject)

Joy,

Welcome to HW Chronic Pain family. Sorry you need to be here, but glad you found us. We are all here for any number of reasons, but chronic pain is our common thread. I am dealing with advanced prostate cancer, chronic pain related to cancer pain, and severe fatigue.

It's a great group of people here. The one thing we understand, is each other's hurts and pains.

Can't really help directly with any of your questions, but sure others will chime in and help out with them. I wish you the best with your recovery, just going to take some time and patience on your end. Hope you have a good support network of family, friends, etc.

If you ever get frustrated and want to vent, by all means join in. It helps to get things off your chest, so to speak, and we all do from time to time.

Wishing you well in the weeks ahead, and please keep us well posted of your progress. And never give up hope.

David in SC

P.S. Always had a thing for Beautiful British Columbia, back in my youth, my wife and I almost immigrated to Prince George.

fatigue after a major surgery is quiet expected, and most will recovery fully over time. in the past 12 years, i have fought 4 major cancers, had 15 operations, and have been through major radiation twice, i think my poor body has paid a perm price for all of that trauma. along with some serious cp issues, i have perm chronic fatigue, mostly from the radiation bouts. if i had to quantify the fatigue, i would guess at most, i have about 40-50% of the energy i use to possess prior to all of this.

for years, i subscribed to and read the magazine, "beautiful british columbia", not even sure if it is still in print

david

you will like it here at hw cp, the feelings and support are genuine and sincere, a hard commodity to find in an online group. someone's good news makes us all feel glad, and someone's bad news makes us all sad. to say we can relate to one another, is an understatement. and you will never feel judged here either.

Hi Joy I would also like to welcome you to Healing Well Chronic Pain Forum. You made a comment that kind of hit a nerve with me, so first off may I ask what area was your ACDF? I first had mine at C6/7 in 1985, then C5/6 in 2009, I had some problems after my first one, I had lost my voice, for three or four months, and I found out in 2009 when I had my second ACDF done that my vocal cords on my right side was still paralyzed! Anyway the thing you mentioned, and I am curous about is your gagging problem, because a short time after my first ACDF I started having problems with gagging. As the years have went by I don't gag as frequently but it is allot more intense and violent! And I still have problems with it, to this day, my stomach is not envolved at all, but I do wretch and gag, and I mean violently! My eyes tear up and my nose gets all stuffed up, just about everything that happens when your throwing up, but with no stomach envolvement at all. The wretching is severe, severe enough that it causes me to have little electric shocks and needle sticks across my upper chest from shoulder to shoulder and also across the upper back of my shoulders. And they hurt like the devil! Certain movements seem to be the main trigger for them, and also if I am severely chilled, that seems to make it easier for them to be triggered. So far I haven't had any answers as to the exact cause, other than I have nerve damage in my neck??. So I would be curious to know what your experiencing when you said you have gagging problems, and did you have it before you had your surgery, or has this just came about since your surgery? Anything you would be willing to share would be appreciated.

Oh I love your part of the country, I have driven acrooss from Great Falls Montana, up through, Calagary, and Jasper, and west through Prince George, and then got on the Alaskan Marine Highway at Prince Rupert, and went up to Haines Alaska, and then drove the first time to Anchorage, where I spent two years at Elmendorf AFB, and then ten years later I made the same trip again, but that tiem drove from Haines to Fairbanks Alaska, where I spent four years at Eielson AFB. I must say I really loved the Jasper area, and well all that area, but the winters were cold!

Again I welcome you to our forum!

White Beard