I am now in the 5th week of recovery from my 3rd back surgery in 4 years. The mental fog, a result of anesthesia and morphine, is mostly gone. I can walk out to the road and back (about 200 yards) without assistance. That’s a big win!

However, my back muscles get tired quickly at this stage. No doubt this a result of Dr. Baron having made a hole in my back 8 inches long and 5 inches deep. Such was necessary to perform the laminectomy, widen the spinal canal to create more space for my spinal cord and the nerves running down to my hips and legs, insert plastic spacers where once there had been cartilage, and fuse L2 – L5.

After the surgery, Dr. Baron presented Ms. Karen with the four 2-inch-long titanium screws he had used to fuse L4 – L5
four years ago. They’re quite the conversation piece.

My weeks of recovery have given me time to read some very interesting local histories, which I will share with you in the coming months. It has also given me time to think about all the places I want to explore on foot and photograph. Unable to stand or walk for more than a few minutes, I was unable to do any hiking. Now I have in mind a dozen hiking trails I want to explore with Ms. Karen, including Ramsey Canyon Preserve, Ashe, Carr, and Miller Canyons just south of Sierra Vista, Garden Canyon at Ft. Huachuca, Araviapa Canyon Wilderness, San Pedro Riparian Conservation Area, and the system of trails atop Chiricahua National Monument.

Any suggestions?

In a few days I will share some photos I took on our Behind-The-Scenes Guided Tour at the Desert Museum just prior to the surgery. Highly recommended. Plus, you can get a $5 discount by going to SouthernArizonaGuide.com and clicking on the Desert Museum’s display ad.

For now, it just feels good to be back among the living.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 30th, 2012 at 1:05 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.