back surgery

[LthrRam]

Hi everybody, I had back surgery last Monday, a discectomy. It was to shave off the excess bulge comming out of my disc between my L5/S1 vertebra. I was wondering if anyone else has ever had this type of surgery and how it affected your ability to walk in heels. I have not put my heels on since but think I may tonight, Awefull had to resist the urge! Kevin

[Mike Hinch]

This one I am not sure about. There is someone that I know that had that proceedure and his last concern was what kind of heels. Actually this bloke was stuck in bed for the first ten days after. My best guess would be to get recovered first and get back to the high heels slowly.

[jmc]

You have a *much* bigger priority right now -- recovery. Take it slow, heal, then get back in action. Then evaluate your tolerance for heels. Start conservative and see how it goes -- and pay attention to what your body is telling you. The spine is nothing to trifle with, let it heal at its own pace and don't push it. Misery awaits you otherwise.

[Guest]

Mine was a break at C5 C6 with severe shoulder stresses. The shoulder aches in cold damp weather. Heels for me since recovery helps keep the "lazy" posture away and tightens everything reducing a large amount of aches that start in the shoulder and then hit the neck muscles like a hammer. The neck work - bone graft and plate are fine but does restrict my throat. As advised recover first - listen to your surgeon and take advise as it goes. It may not be the wearing but a slip or trip could cause far more than you need. Take Care Al

[Guest]

sorry didn't hit upload what a wally.

[Walkonit]

You have a *much* bigger priority right now -- recovery. Take it slow, heal, then get back in action. Then evaluate your tolerance for heels. Start conservative and see how it goes -- and pay attention to what your body is telling you. The spine is nothing to trifle with, let it heal at its own pace and don't push it. Misery awaits you otherwise.

Very good advice !

Some years ago I was due for L5/S1 surgery, but it was cancelled at the last minute and I recovered naturally over 6 painful miserable months. I still suffer from sporadic back pain , but nothing like as bad as the first round. Heels tilt the pelvis forward and you compensate for that tilt by arching your back backwards and increasing the curvature on the lower part of the spine. This can increase the load on L5/S1. My experience has been that wearing 4" -6" heels longer than say 1 hour causes my back to ache, so I limit my use. On the positive side I believe that some heel use stretches tendons that wouldn't otherwise be stretched which is a positive benefit. Overall I would say be very careful and be guided by your aches and pains, they are the warning signs that things are not right.

[Sly Fox]

I agree with Walkonit. wearing high heels alters your centre of gravity and distorts your posture, which may look good, but isn't actually any good for your spine. Deal with your recovery - strengthen your spinal muscles with swimming, yoga etc - and concentrate on that. When you do get back into your heels will depend upon your own recovery, but whenever that is, don't wear them for very long at a stretch. Also, as Alsheels said, you'll have to be very careful not to trip. The recent trend for platform heels, which may look gorgeous, is causing a huge rise in ankle fractures. Rather than falling from 4-6inches, people are falling from 8+inches and completely knackering their ankles in a far more long-term way than they realise. That may not be your primary concern as such, and I don't know if that's what you wear, but a fall like that has certainly also got the potential to bu**er your back too. Take it easy - there's no rush.... : )

[dww]

Due to the fact that I suffer with ankylosing spondylitis all the joints in my back and rib cage are now totally fused together, my back does not bend or move at all and it is now working its way into my neck and shoulders. There is no cure or fix you just have to get on with it. I have been told my back will slowly start to arch forward I know I can feel it happening already. But the good point for me is I find wearing heels makes .my back feel straighter and my posture feels a lot better and when walking I do not feel as if I am leaning forward. The only good point is once everything has locked up you don't get any pain anymore, it was very painful getting to this stage though, so now I can wear heels all day with no trouble at all and I feel a lot better in myself, totally pain free.