June 5th

Ok! So I had surgery yesterday morning. They had to cut through muscle, shave bone one 3 different sides, put in a membrane patch. Packed it. Glued it. Sutured it. & put in a lumbar drain for safe measures.
When they got in, the realized my tear in the dura was much larger than expected. About the size of a half dollar coin. The surgeons could easily see dura was very thin, which is why it tore so easily. It was tearing as they were stitching it up. I will mention I asked my previous surgeon who did my tethered cord surgery if the dura seemed thick or thin, & his response was that all dura is the same in eds.

I was taken to the ICU. I've been in there over night. I was in severe pain & had to receive multiple forms of pain management including iv. I was able to get some help from Ashley Reber initially to get the nurse to understand the depth of my pain.
I am on flat bed rest for at least another 24-48 hrs. After they will slowly start to incline the bed. Eventually they will clamp the drain to make sure it has sealed, then plan on a blood patch to cover up the microscopic hole left by the drain. The surgeon believes I will be here until at least Monday.
I'm so grateful for the help & support from friends , family,  & even practical strangers. & I love my nurses. Once I figure out if they want to keep me in the ICU, I will post the room I'm in.
Thank you for the continued prayers & support ❤❤