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andrew_scott77

Thanks everyone for all your care and support.

Andrew Scott
11 years ago

I have had many emails showing concern, and support in regards to my upcoming back surgery. Originally the surgery was scheduled for December 17th, however at this time it has been cancelled.

To make a very long story short, I had been told by 1 of the 2 surgeons operating on me that there was a 50/50 of me surviving this due to the very real possibility that they could run into some arteries or veins that could bleed. The surgery is very risky, and to remove the artificial disc that is in place, the surgeon told me that they may actually have to remove a 1-2in section of my back bone to expose that replacement disc so they could pull it out. That section of bone has arteries and veins that have attached themselves to it due to the previous surgery.

Needless to say, when the surgeon had told me this news, I had decided to back out of the surgery. Did I mention that 2 patients in the Buffalo, NY area had died from this procedure? Neither had my surgeon operating on him, and I found out that my surgeon has one of the best reputations in the country!

After having this discussion with the one surgeon, I talked with my neuro surgeon. He told me that he did not feel that they would have to remove this section of bone, and also the surgeon that had given me these stats, didn't have a chance to discuss all the details of my surgery with my neurosurgeon.

As of now, I am signed up to have this done. Both surgeons have discussed the details of my surgery and they have come up with a few ways to give me a much more positive outcome. For instance if they run into a bleeder, than will have this wire and balloon system set up where these tiny wires will be inserted into the veins and arteries in the surgical site. If I start bleeding, the balloons are inflated, and the bleeding stops.

This is a very complex surgery and yes, there are still risks, just as there are with any type of surgery. As of now, there is no date set but I will be calling today to try and get it scheduled.

I want to thank everyone for there love and support during this painful and frustrating time of my life.

Laura, you have been a rock for me, making me feel like I will get through this, especially on the days when I just feel like whining and being miserable!

Thanks again everybody and I will keep you all informed!

Happy Holidays!!

Andrew

Comments (12)

  • mksmth zone 7a Tulsa Oklahoma
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Andrew

    I wish you the best of luck with the surgery. My thoughts and prayers will be with you!

    mike

  • honeybunny2 Fox
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Andrew you just need to stay positive and not let this get you down. Last week was bad for me, I still cannot even dress myself. Then I thought hey, there are alot of folks out there worse off then me, and started to perk up. You just need to stay positive and know that everyone here is praying for you. You can get thru this, we are all behind you. Barbra

  • Andrew Scott
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello Mike and Barbra,
    I love this group! Your guys are the best!! I will admit that I was freaked out at first. Let's face it, nobody wants to here that you have 50/50 odds! Now that my surgeons and I have had the time to discuss and plan for a better outcome, I am more positive about the surgery. I just wish I could hurry up and get it done! I hate being sleep deprived but Barbra, your right, there are so many people out there who have it far worse than any of us!

    Barbra,
    Sounds like your having a rough time. I hope things will get better for you in the near future. Post op is not fun. I have been there many times, and sort of know what to expect this time around.

    Bill said something to me that suck...just tell the surgeon "I have a Raspberry Sundae plumeria to root". I have so many plumeria cuttings that I am waiting for roots to form on. These are things that will give me something to look forward to while I am recovering.

    Well, I am going to get back on the couch and get warm and cozy. I only slept about an hour or 2 last night and I need a nap.

    Andrew

  • jandey1
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Andrew, that stinks that the surgery is so risky. I'm sure you're in excellent hands, and we'll be thinking of you and hoping for the best results!

  • Loveplants2 8b Virginia Beach, Virginia
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi ANdrew!!

    You know i am praying that all will be fine for you!!

    It will be all be better once this is behind you and you start to heal. If we could only figure out when the surgery will be?

    That is what is so frustrating...i know this is hard..

    Take care,

    Laura

  • starofleviathan
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Andrew, We haven't spoken before this & I apologize for that; but as soon as I read a fellow garden gnome (lol) is in pain &/or suffering, the least I can do is offer my utmost of prayers, support, & encouragement. I too know what it's like to suffer with back problems - I suffer from scoliosis in 3 places in my spine that like to give me immense grief from time to time but I can't complain either because as you & Barbra mentioned before there are others who have it SO much worse. I know this surgery you speak of & it is indeed a very labor intensive, risky one - but I'm glad you were able to discuss things with your surgeon & get a better prognosis. Every ounce of good news always helps :). & it's especially helpful to try to go into surgery with as relaxed of a mindset as possible. If you ever need to talk, feel free to send me an email. I'm always available to anyone here who needs an ear/shoulder :). Sleep well (try to anyway) & know that there are people here to love & care for you & will lift you high in prayer. ((((hugs)))) ~ Angharand (yes that's my name, it's Celtic). You can call me Angh or MMP for short :).

  • Andrew Scott
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi guys and gals,
    Well today I finally received a much anticipated phone call. Dr Lewis's office called and told me surgery will be on 1-24-2013. I have to be at Mercy hospital at 11:30 am for my 1:30pm surgery. This could take 1-3 hours depending on how things go after they open me up. I will have my partner bring his IPAD so I can post onto the forum while so everyone can have some idea as to how I am doing. IF I am not able to get WIFI there, I will call Laura, and she can post here and let you guys know.

    Hello Angh,
    Please no apologizes needed. I know how life is. Trust me! After everything I have been thru these past few months, sometimes I don't have the energy to get online, and even when I do, I get so sore after only being on for 20 minutes or less, and I have to get off the computer.

    Sorry that you have back problems yourself. Are you able to manage your pain ok? This is what has been so hard for me lately. I just cannot keep it control most of the time. This is what led me to having my 4rd surgery.

    So your also a plumeria grower heh? Sorry but I would much rather talk shop than talk about my back issues! It just gets so depressing..especially lately. I do appreciate the fact that we don't know each other and you still took the time introduce yourself, and offer to chat with me. That was very sweet!

    So how many plumeria do you have? What is your favorite or favorites? I know I couldn't just pick one, and I have TONS of smaller, young trees that have yet to even bloom. Right now I am really excited because I have a bud that will be opening any day on my JJ Christina. This bloomed for me the 1st time indoors back in October. What I am really excited about is my 'Leela'! IT has a HUGE inflo with at least 60 buds on it. 2 of the buds are over 2 in long, and are really coloring up nicely. I attribute this to me using my 600 watt HPS light. Without it, I wouldn't be able to grow 90% of my tropicals. Thankfully plumeria can remain dormant without too much light over the winter.

    Well good night, and take care. Thanks again Angh for your very thoughtful message. I have to go my back is starting to ache pretty bad and I wanted to check out a few more posts here.

    Andrew

  • starofleviathan
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Fondest greetings Andrew :). Humblest gratitude for your kind words. It's a joy to meet you :D. How are you feeling today?

    This is my second go at growing Plumies. I have 3 Celadines from a friend who's been growing hers for over 30 yrs; but I've had a passion for them since I was a child. Never thought I could grow them up here so I never bothered to pursue the matter until the past 2 yrs when I befriended this woman who had been growing hers from her main plant since her son was little. She gave me my first Plumie last year which bloomed beautifully - but alas, it got stem & tip rot & couldn't be saved. This Oct she gave me 3 more cuttings which surprisingly enough have been producing tons of leaves as well as 2 new tips even though they're supposed to be going dormant now. I'm currently in the process of babysitting her Plumies while her house undergoes repairs after being flooded by Sandy.

    This post was edited by MissMudPuppy on Mon, Jan 14, 13 at 14:03

  • jandey1
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Ang, please let us know if your friend's plumies don't make it. I'd be happy to send her a new one to replace what she lost from the storm!

  • Andrew Scott
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Angh,
    I am on board with this too!You have been so kind in offering your love and support, it's the least I could do. I know I don't have any celadines that I would be willing to part with, one is only about 4 or 5 inc tall and the other is a small 2 tip rooted cutting, but I have other varieties that I have multiples of. Once spring arrives, and I know my trees have made it thru the winter safely, I can email you a list of plumeria that I have doubles of that I would be willing to part with.

    Thanks for opening up to me about all the treatments you have tried and still use. I have gone to the chiropractor myself, I did own a tens unit but that only helped for so long( I had the one knob cranked up all the way and it still didn't help.). I found that acupuncture worked very well but it is expensive. Especially for someone who lives off of comp and SSD.

    I was very unsucesfull with rooting plumeria cuttings, and I didn't own a rooted tree until I bought a small potted Dwarf Singapore Pink from Stokes Tropicals. I got it from there black friday sale. I was very lucky to spot that on there website. I got it for 50% off there original price. I think I paid $25 for it and it came in this nice festive metal bucket with a handle. It was supposed to be a planter but it didn't come with a drainage hole so I never used it as a pot. Anyhow, as fast as this "dwarf" variety grew, it would never have lasted long in that pot! That plumeria I think grows the fastest of any of my varieties but it is worth it. It had 5 or 6 inflos on it last year, more than any other variety I have, and same with the number of tips! It has tons of tips on it. I highly recommend this variety to you. I know a lot of people wont grow it because it isn't the showiest of plumeria, but what it lacks in flower color, it makes up for in fragrance and the amount of inflos it produces. It also produces a ton of buds on the inflos. Now again I have to say that I am not that great at describing the fragrance but to me it smells like a rose.

    I am sad to hear about your friends Celadines, but these trees are pretty tough. Hopefully they will rebound. If possible, you should post a picture of them. I have not checked out you link yet, but people then could comment on what they see and maybe they could help you save them. Are they squishy anywhere on the branches? IF so, then that's when you want to start cutting them back. When you cut, you will notice that the flesh is brown and mushy. You want to cut until you find light green flesh that oozes white sap when you cut into it. As long as you find that, then they can be saved. i hope your friends didn't suffer to badly, I feel so bad for these people. This is what I remind myself of when I have a bad day. I just think to myself that even with my bad back and now this infected tooth, at least I still have food in my fridge, a roof over my head, and heat to keep me warm, and a partner that loves me!!

    I also have a passion for brugs and I also have Frosty Pink...another thing we have in common!

    All I have to take pictures with for now is my IPAD2. I cannot figure out how to use Photobucket with it. I will have to look into other programs I can use.

    Take care Angh.

    Andrew

  • starofleviathan
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Jandey: Hi!♡ Good to hear from you again! ♡Aww, thank you kindly for the offer hun :). ☺Appreciate it. Will let you know how things go with hers.

    This post was edited by MissMudPuppy on Mon, Jan 14, 13 at 14:01

  • beachplant
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You'll do great darlin'!
    If we have to we will all come and take care of you and your plumeria. I've been a nurse 31 years and used to scrub back surgeries in the OR.

    I do wish insurance would pay for accupuncture and other "alternate" treatments. I too stopped accupuncture because of the cost. It is the only thing that made my shoulder better.

    A good attitude is the very best thing you can take to the OR with you.
    Good luck and here's to a speedy recovery and a long life of hauling out plumeria.
    Tally HO!