25 years ago I was waking up in a recovery room from spinal fusion surgery to correct triple scoliosis. Five days prior I had surgery to remove the 7th rib from my right side. Soon after back surgery it was discovered I lost the use and feeling of my right arm due to a nerve injury. 12 hours on the operating table, and a pressure point in my armpit being on a corner of the table during that time did it in. After a few days it was like when you sleep on your arm, and wake up feeling pins and needles, but times a million, followed by a lot of pain on top of it.
The first three months of recovery were the hardest. My back muscles were all stretched out, being in a full back brace to help with fusion and healing. Going back to school was also a challenge. I was still doing physical therapy for my arm, and didn’t have full use of it. I couldn’t write by hand, so a lot of note taking, and written assignments were done on a laptop.
It took until about the 6th month where I was able to function like my old self. I was finally out of the back brace, my arm was working a lot better, and the pins and needle feeling was gone for the most part. On the 12th month I was able to be fully active including most sport activities.
I’m very lucky to be where I am with my back. I’ve heard stories coming from massage therapists on others who had the same surgery as me as being in constant pain and always whiny regarding that. Don’t get me wrong, nine times out of ten my back is sore to some extent (some days are worse than others), but nothing like before the surgery where I couldn’t stand or walk for much more than 10 minutes. I can stand and walk for long periods of time, and I am able to referee pro wrestling without trouble. My arm works great, though still not the same as before the injury during surgery. I mean…I’m able to hit the mat for the pinfall counts just fine, right?