Anne H .
I am a 7l-year-old homemaker, retired from the University of Illinois. I am a mother of 4 and a great-grandmother of 4. I have always been an active person and want to stay that way, especially since my children live far away and I want to feel great when I see them.
My family first noticed I was leaning to the right in 1999. They were always telling me to stand up straight, but we all thought it was just a habit of bad posture caused by many years of working on a computer. Then one Christmas, a relative told me she was so shocked by how "bent over" I was, so I made an appointment to see my doctor to find out what was going on. My doctor sent me to a local orthopaedic doctor who diagnosed me with adult scoliosis. However, he didn't think I needed surgery. He treated me for arthritis but there was no improvement. I decided to get a second opinion.
After looking at a list of doctors in different cities, my oldest daughter searched the Internet and found Dr. Lenke. We were very impressed with him and made an appointment to see him in September 2003. We were immediately at ease when we met him and his staff and although St. Louis is 3 1/2 hours from our home, we felt he was the one we could trust.
By the time I saw Dr. Lenke, I was so bent to the right that my rib cage was below my hip bone. He explained what my problem was and what would have to be done to correct it. There was no pressure. He told me to go home and think about it and talk it over with my family, but he warned me that I should not take more than a year to decide. We didn't need that much time - we were convinced right then that surgery was a good idea. We made the appointment for surgery on that first visit (with his assurance that if we changed our minds we could always cancel).
My surgery was scheduled for January 2004. To prepare myself, I went through 7 weeks of therapy and I walked a lot, which was something I have done all my life. At my pre-op appointment in December, everything was set for January. We arrived in St. Louis the night before my surgery and the next morning I was turned over to a very caring group of people who took excellent care of me from then on.
I have very little memory of my first few days after the operation other than people getting me up, helping me stand, taking steps, etc. I also remember my family being there and the nursing staff and doctors coming and going. I had very little pain and even though I was encouraged to use my pain medicine pump, I really didn't feel the need for it.
After I was up and moving, I was transferred to the St. Louis Rehab Center where I spent the next l0 days learning to walk as well as how to bathe, dress, cook, and exercise. I walked every chance I got. Again, a group of wonderful caring people saw me through.
I came back to the hospital in June for my follow-up surgery and this time was home within 5 days and recovered much faster. I can honestly say I was amazed at how little pain I had. I admit there were times when I felt uncomfortable and had to ask for medicine to help with the pain, but it was never more than 1 or 2 Tylenol, nothing stronger. The best medicine was all the remarks by my friends and family about how good I looked and how straight and tall I was!
My advice to anyone facing spine surgery is to make up your mind you are going to be OK and that you are going to get well and with Dr. Lenke's help you can do it. It's also helpful to exercise and walk every day or at least 3 times a week.
I am very thankful for Dr. Lenke, his assistants, his office help, and all the great people at Barnes Hospital. Special thanks also to all the wonderful people here at home who helped me through this experience. I do feel very good and not at all like I'm 7l years old!
