While the thought of any surgery can be unnerving, there are few procedures that can make individuals as nervous as back surgery. Often times, one may worry about both the short- and long-term limitations that occur when going under the knife on such a sensitive area of the body. There is no denying that recovering from any surgical intervention, especially the back, may prove challenging but there are steps that you can take to help your recovery be as smooth as possible.
1. Establish a Support System
Any time you undergo a medical procedure, it is important to have a support system around you that can help with your recovery process. While this may come in the form of having people who can physically help you achieve tasks that you need to complete such as driving you to follow up appointments or grocery shopping, it is also important to have individuals who can emotionally support you throughout your recovery.
A strong support system, family or otherwise, can be a major factor in helping with the physical and emotional recovery process. If you do not have a family member at home to help with the process, reaching out to friends or a support group are other viable options that can help you preserve the best possible mental health outcomes following intervention.
2. Follow Your Physician’s Post-op Recommendations
Your physician will go through a list of do’s and don’ts as you are recovering from back surgery. These can range from wound care to activity modifications and cover just about everything in between. It can be easy to look at these recommendations as trivial but it is important to understand that the recommendations are made for reasons backed by years of research and professional experience.
While post-op recommendations can be hard to understand at first, they are a part of the greater long-term care plan that your surgeon has outlined for you. By following the smaller steps in the early days after surgery, you are helping yourself transition to a better quality of life down the road.
3. Don’t Neglect Rehabilitation
The purpose of undergoing any procedure is to correct an issue, allowing one to get back to the things that they enjoy the most in a pain-free manner. Whenever an injury occurs, whether or not it is caused by an event or condition, it is essentially a breakdown of the normal function and structure along the kinetic chain, causing weakness and an additional strain on other parts of the body.
Spine surgery can correct the damage, but in order to regain complete strength and function back, a proper and well-structured rehabilitation plan should be followed under the guidance of a trained professional. Skipping steps or not taking aspects of the rehab protocol seriously, including nutrition and minimizing alcohol intake, can result in delayed or incomplete healing down the road.
4. Be Patient
Recovering from back surgery, even minimally invasive surgery, is a process. As your body heals, some days will be better than others. This is a completely normal part of recovery.
Be patient and allow your body the time that it needs to properly heal in order to help prevent added stress from during post-op. Additionally, understanding the recovery process will help prevent you from trying to push back sooner than you should, potentially risking setbacks in your road to recovery. When it comes to recovering from back surgery, the old saying is true, it is a marathon and not a sprint.
For More Information
Dr. Nael Shanti provides state-of-the-art spine care to patients in the Triangle area using the most advanced minimally invasive surgery techniques and outpatient procedures. For more information about treatment options for back pain, call (919) 297-0000 to schedule an appointment.