I’ve been suffering from 4 prolapsed discs in my neck for around 3 years.
During this time I’ve been passed around to lots of people in different departments.
I’ve finally been put through to have an operation.
The surgeon has said that my neck is so badly deteriorated that he will only do one disc at a time and a lovely steel cage to hold it all together.
Great if he gets rid of some pain but I am also in for 2 further operations later.
He has sent a copy of his findings to my GP who has showed me what he has put.
At the bottom is a long list of what can go wrong and what the after effects are if it does.
Is this normal?
Is it a get out of jail identity clause in case he slips and I end cabbaged or something?
Either way it’s scared the bloody life out of me.
Getting in and out of the cab and trailers is bad enough.
I reckon trunking will be all I’ll be capable of afterwards.
Yes it’s normal for them to give you all possible effects of surgery, if one isn’t death then it’s all good.
Good luck with the trunking though, I take it you will have a mate with you to pull curtains. You’d be better off doing containers, you only need to open 2 doors & there’s very little reversing onto bays, no twisting in the cab so saves your neck even more.
Would you rather not know the possible drawbacks, have the op and if it did go wrong get a ■■■■■■■ nasty surprise? At least you can now weigh up if it is worth taking the risks, and make a decision.
I have also got driver related complaints like knackered knees, dodgy lower back, and unable to jump on and off trailers as I once used to.
Anway good luck with it all mate, Surgeons are competent clever people, so don’t worry too much, hope it all goes OK for you.
He lives in Lechlade and considering the railway shut 53 years ago, there’s not much container work locally. Unless they reintroduce sailing barges on the Thames.
My Dad’s had neck trouble recently, discs worn etc apparently caused by driving lorries for years. Most of that in potholed quarries.
Good luck with the operations.
Hospitals are scary places, did me circumsission many moons ago and I remember waking up with what can only be described as a match box covering me little chap, I was scared to look not knowing how much they had took off, to be fair there wasnt a huge amount to start with.
Sure you will be fine and its just ■■■ covering making you aware of what could go wrong.
Wait till you come out of the anaeshetic and listen out for the old classics like: “No nurse I said remove his specticles” or “No nurse I said prick his boil”.
Standard practice I believe, I was at the quacks last tuesday to have my left ear syringed and I had to read and sign a disclaimer incase the Nurse caused damage to my eardrum which I have never had to do before.
BillyHunt:
Yes it’s normal for them to give you all possible effects of surgery, if one isn’t death then it’s all good.
Good luck with the trunking though, I take it you will have a mate with you to pull curtains. You’d be better off doing containers, you only need to open 2 doors & there’s very little reversing onto bays, no twisting in the cab so saves your neck even more.
Never thought about containers.
Maybe something to look into.
I’m doing multi drop general at the moment and will stay on it til I go in.
On the long list of risks in his letter there was one what isn’t death so not all doom and gloom
Dipper_Dave:
Wait till you come out of the anaeshetic and listen out for the old classics like: “No nurse I said remove his specticles” or “No nurse I said prick his boil”.
A bit like when I was in hospital with badly scalded feet and ankles, and a bleeding ear lobe.
I fancied a tinned steam pud, and asked my mate to read out the instructions, he said 'Pierce ear, and stand in boiling water for 5 mins. taxi!
I feel you on the hating hospitals. I play ice hockey in the NIHL and have dislocated my legs and arms, broken my tail bone, ankles, ribs, jaw, wrists etc. I have bones that are malunion becuase…foook hospitals.
just recovering from an op at present and yes it is standard for them to give a list of all that can go wrong.I was told that it was possible that I would never be able to walk on my left leg if things went wrong but so far things are good and only a few more weeks till the casts come off.
In the same way have a read at the notes inside a box of prescription tablets and see what the possible side effects are, they will scare you off taking them.
good luck with the op, sure it will be safe… but whats the alternative anyway? carry on in pain getting worse?
del949:
just recovering from an op at present and yes it is standard for them to give a list of all that can go wrong.I was told that it was possible that I would never be able to walk on my left leg if things went wrong but so far things are good and only a few more weeks till the casts come off.
In the same way have a read at the notes inside a box of prescription tablets and see what the possible side effects are, they will scare you off taking them.
good luck with the op, sure it will be safe… but whats the alternative anyway? carry on in pain getting worse?
Exactly this.
If we all read in detail that slip of paper which comes with tablets we’d never take them.
There is no alternative to the op to be honest.
Had this for 3 years and the increase in pain in that time is unbelievable.
Couldn’t take another 3 years of it that’s for sure.
Get well soon bud.
There are adverts on US telly for say a flu remedy and apparently they could cause anything from Erectile disfunction to Death with every organ capable of prolapsing, colapsing or diseasing.
They spend more time telling you what can go wrong than what the remedy does, and it’s just the same as this DR covering his ■■■.
It’s called “Informed Consent.” Not an ‘■■■ covering’ exercise but designed to give people the information they need to weigh up whether they want to ‘risk’ it or not.
It comes back to the whole idea of assessing risks - something most of us are pretty bad at. For example, the people who won’t go on a rollercoaster now, but happily drive around in a car.
It’s something surgeons do to cover their ■■■. They tell you the worst possible scenario so if it does go ■■■■ up you can’t turn round and say…you didn’t warn me about this.
My surgeon done exactly the same thing with my prolapsed discs, told me I’d 50/50 chance of being paralysed and incontinent and impotent Thankfully it worked out ok.
Good luck with your op, you’ll be fine.
the fub:
It’s something surgeons do to cover their ■■■. They tell you the worst possible scenario so if it does go ■■■■ up you can’t turn round and say…you didn’t warn me about this.
My surgeon done exactly the same thing with my prolapsed discs, told me I’d 50/50 chance of being paralysed and incontinent and impotent Thankfully it worked out ok.
Good luck with your op, you’ll be fine.
That’s basically what he’s said to me.
Paralysis.
Bleeding to death.
Cage migration.
Puts the willies up you
May I ask how long you were off work for?
He says 3 months and others have said a matter of weeks.
I have a fractured ( done back in 1980 L1-L5 ) prolapsed disc same time since time found out all this in 2010 have since found out I have collapsed disc ( T1- T4 ) excessive wear ( C2-C6 ) I take a few tablets a day have also had several injections in the neck & back they have helped although still suffer a lot of pain it can vary in decrees but I was offered this op which I declined as I don’t want to take the risk as yet but each to there own good luck with it
I asked my Dr to send me to pain management which has helped as they sorted out MRI scans etc advised on pain relief as well as the injections
When you do have it let me know how it goes as I may need it in a few years
taxi!
Thankfully it worked out ok.