Hurrah, Mary Ellen: As I said to Mary posts that are inspiring, such as yours and Mary's are soooo very important, especially for those who are yet to have this surgery and have fears and misgivings, which is only natural. I am just thrilled you wrote and shared your good fortune with all of us and will keep you both in my prayers. One thing I want to say and, please, don't take this as bah-humbug, should you need pain medication at some point don't take it as a sign of weakness or a step backwards in your recovery. I, too, had a miraculous recovery but needed pain meds to see me through. I have other problems and have had a pain contract with my PCP for a number of years after first being evaluated at the pain clinic at the University Pain Clinic in my area. For me, pain meds have been a Godsend and have allowed me to live my life to the fullest whereas without them I would be able to do very little. Pain meds are not a crutch for the weak or an indication of failure, they are just one of the tools our doctors have that allow us to do the PT or in my case, allow me a full life and should not be thought to be anything else. So if you, at some future point in your recovery, find you need a little help with pain control just be thankful that we live in an age where doctors are able to do everything possible to make certain our recovery goes as smoothly as possible. Now, as I step down from my soap box let me close in saying that I will definitely be watching for more posts from you and Mary and will look forward to following your progress. You both are an inspiration to those who have yet to have the surgery as well as to those who are going through a bit tougher time. We all have different time frames for recovery, but what is most important, is we do get there and while we are on the journey we have each other and Jo to help us, inspire us, encourage and empathize and support one another. That is what makes this forum so important and so darn hard to stop coming to once we are healed. I am almost 8 months post op and this remains the first site I go to every morning after I check my email and I am fairly sure I am not alone. So, Jo, you must be doing something right, it takes a powerful force to gather as many people of the quality who come here each day. It is obvious that there is something VERY special about this site so Jo, once again I have to compliment you. As moderator you are the one who sets the tone and keeps it going, thank you. Now, if you could just figure out a way to get rid of me!!! Oh, well, I guess you will just have to suffer through. LOL. Love to all and keep those positive posts coming. They are so important. Rowdy (Do I ramble or what?)