Surgery and recovery

I am going to try this blogging thing again since I have some time on my hands.

I am interested in hearing from other people that has had a surgery to untether their spinal cord. I would like to hear about others experiences and how the surgery has affected them or any side effects as a result of the surgery. On Sept 8, I had surgery for a tethered spinal cord and it was discovered that a knot I have had on my back for my entire life was actually spina bifida occulta.

My recovery has been long and difficult. I continue to have numbness in my leg and it often feels like my muscles are very tight. There are times that it feels like there are pins and needles in my foot. I have numbness in other parts of my body as well and have bladder difficulties. There are times I have to use a cane as my leg becomes weak when tired. I often have pain in my lower back that sometimes goes into my leg.

The doctors all assure me that with time this will get better and I should be pain free. They have all said that it is very unusual for a person my age (50 y/o) to have gone their entire life without the spina bifida being discovered. I use to have a tightness in my neck and shoulders but since the surgery this has went away as well as the headaches I often had. I am back to work but only part time as I tire very easily and since I work with children I have to have plenty of energy.