MsPerky

Very sad if you have to sell... There is no question the S is not an easy car to get in and out of. Because it's so low to the ground, there is a definite strain on the lower back, even if you swivel and put both feet out first. So your doc is probably giving you good advice. It's not something you want to mess around with. My mom has had several spinal surgeries/fusions, so I speak from experience with her situation. Good luck with your recovery!

swirvn

s2000red07, I would be happy to answer your questions!

ask far as my age and background:
I am 29 years old and very active athlete, I was a golf professional for 6 plus years and have avidly surfed and wakeboarded for about 10 years.

My injury:
herniated disc and bulging discs are pretty common in active people or older people due to degeneration. typically in the lumbar. ( the thing is though most don't know about disc issues because of a lack of pain and also the lumbar discs don't have direct contact to the spinal cord (stops in the middle part of your back and spreads out like a horse tail of nerves). But in the cervical spine it's a different story. Discs don't heal, and a disc is kind of like "jelly donut", once you herniate/rupture the disc and the "Jelly" comes out the disc will not seal itself and heal, it will just flatten out until your bone to bone. My specific issue is that I herniated my C6/7 disc years ago and tried all of the conservative treatments because I did not have any paralysis, numbness, tingling, which seemed to work until about 3 weeks ago when I woke up and I could not move due to a stiff neck and arm pain. I waited two days before I went to the doctor and in that time frame the arm pain increased to a 10 (1-10 scale) along with my ability to move my left arm above my elbow(paralysis). and my fingers (middle, index and thumb went completely numb). I due to the nature of it's progression my doctor admitted me into the hospital and I had a MRI with and without contrast, CT, ton's of X-rays, plus other tests which showed that I had two herniations (severe herniation at C 6/7 and severe paracentral herniation at C5/6) and both were now pressing and deforming my spinal cord and the nerve roots leaving the facet joints. This also caused a winged scapula which indicates nerve entrapment affecting the shoulder (in a nutshell, If i didn't have surgery asap, I would have completed paralysis in my left arm, shoulder and it would have eventually moved into my lower body).

So to answer your question: I would have to say paralysis with the left arm and shoulder because I couldn't move them before surgery. (pain and complete dead weight) and it would have only been a matter of time for the rest of my left side (I saw all of my CT, MRI's, X rays which didn't look all that healthy)

My Neurosurgeon comment:
I said "normal" person with the respect to sports car drivers and the true nature of the car (fun in the twisties). He is a sports car fan and owner and really drives thems so he understood my concerns about driving the vehicle for what it was intended for.(I didn't get the vehicle to drive it like a caddy or a buick, I bought it to drive it like a sports car) I traded it a Jeep Wrangler (which I offroaded and a jetski which I rode in the ocean.) ( the bigger the waves the better!) So our conversation about my S2000 was not to force me to sell it, but more for me to gage my limitations driving and dealing with g's in turns.

Also, you might be asking about second and third opinions with regards to surgery, and why this Neurosurgeon... I have seen him in the past and others because of my first herniation and he is excellent and very progressive in terms of treatment ( he has helped invent and perfect the tools and equipment to preform this surgery, so I have a lot of respect and trust his judgement), Also my wife is an RN and used to be a physical therapist and has done 10 times the research that I have on my issues as well as works within the same hospital network as the neuro team.

The surgery itself is called a Anterior Cervical Disectomy with Fusion
I had two levels fused. and the cut you from the front of the neck and cut through muscle and tissue until they get to the verdabrae and discs. They cut out the bad discs and put in spacers mixed with autograft or allograth ( your own bone or donor bone) so that the above and below verdabrae fuse together. Then they put rods/plates and screws to hold everything in place. Sew you back up and stick you in ICU for 3-5 days.

I have spoken to many different people with this surgery online and in person and depending upon your surgery and condition you can plan on losing 10-15% range of motion per level of fusion so for my I am looking at 20-30% loss of range of motion. Your neck is tied into so many different nerve bundles, muscles, tendons in your back, arms, shoulders that many exercises are out of the questions which brings the issue with limitations with lifting. I am going to do my best to make sure that I really focus on pt and rehab to get as much as I can but I have to be somewhat a realist as well.

As far as driving:
On my 12 week appointment my doctor will make the determination if he will let me drive or not. Most likely I will be cut loose because of the start of PT and Rehab. My company vehicle is a Saturn Vue which is very comfortable to get in and out of and by no means a sports car. but it will let me get around to PT. Since my surgery have had to take a leave of absence (short term disability) until the doc clears me to work.

On to the S2000:
By the way the surgery was a success and the paralysis and pain are gone, so I have to force myself not to overdo it everyday with every little thing. The doc's comments that I left out to keep the first post short that are now relative were that I could do what ever the hell I wanted once the verdabrae are fused in a year but what happens is that since I don't have 3 discs and have one large bone instead, it puts extreme pressure and stress on the adjacent discs (c4/5 and C7/T1) in which I would be back in this same position requiring surgery and another fusion when I blow these discs. He said that he has seen patients never come back and adjust there lifestyle but he has also seen patients every couple of years for another surgery because they refuse to change their lifestyle. He wasn't using this as a scare tactic but being up front with me. It is mostly my decision to put the brakes on my activites which are now becoming hazardous to my body. I wouldn't wish the pain and this situation that I am in on my worst enemy and I sure as hell never want to go through it again. So if it means I have to give up watersports, (boating, wakeboarding, surfing, jetskiing) then so be it, and if it means giving up driving a sports car like a sports car then so be it. I just can't be one of those people that I see with Corvettes, Mustangs, S2000's and other cool sports cars driving it like a grandma driving a buick, that's not why I bought it. I would get much more satisfaction out of someone buying my S2000 and using it as a track car as that is what I eventually wanted to use it for then me keeping it and letting it sit in my garage collecting dust!

Let me know if you have any other questions and I appreciate the feedback!

MsPerky

^ You are very, very well informed!! And right about driving the S as it is meant to be driven. Would be frustrating to be in the car and not be able to do that. I'm sure your young age and fitness level will work to your advantage. Best wishes!!

Vik2000

So you will not be able to fully recover and it'll have permanent damage?

hirev

craigs list can give you an indication as to thte markeplace very fast, just keep checking in for the honda s2000 2007 search.

sorry about your injury and yes it would be good to see what comes about, but i can see you are well informed,perhaps selling the car with most of it's value and moving on, you can always get another one later, yes it will be different, but times change for us all.

Swiftoy

I seriously think you should wait until you heal up to the point in which you can drive the car and see for yourself. You have nothing to lose by waiting. Plus you won't take such a hit on the car by waiting a year. People are told all the time that have had serious injuries that they will never be able to do this or that and many have proved that they can do more than they thought, give yourself the opportunity.

Good luck on your recovery.

Swiftoy

nearwater4me

Sorry to hear about your injury.
Hope you get well soon.

Dan

ace123

btw sorry to hear about your accident, swirvn.

i can sort of identify--my father had a slipped disc during a field exercise (career military) when he was in his thirties (he's now 50). he was doing triathalons and ironman events right up until the accident. now he has a 12" metal rod in his back. he still can run short distances, and swimming remains a great exercise, but he has nowhere near the capability he used to in competitive athletics. but really, all our bodies will lose their capability over time--this type of thing only really accelerates the inevitable.

but his skills changed, and his priorities had to change to suit. for him, athletics became a second priority to other pursuits. after he quit competing, he coached high school swimmers for about 10 years and found that very fulfilling. since he had more time, he chose to devote some of it to reading and learning, and now he's pursuing a doctorate.

back to cars, like you, he hasnt been able to have a DD with stiff suspension for a lot of years, though now he's starting to look into options for (no track duty) sports cars for weekend driving.

also, this might be a type of thing you should look out for due to changed lifestyle. before his accident, my father used to maintain his weight with a 10000 cal/day 'diet.' after it, his physical activity has been reduced dramatically--no more exercise for 3+hrs/day--so that was an unseen challenge for him--he immediately put on weight, and it wouldn't leave until he changed his diet and etc. guess that would even parallel your thinking to give up the car.

swirvn

thanks for all of your posts and feedback. I am really on the fence with this because I am the type of person that will push myself past the limit to prove I can do something and not for anothers expense but for my own. So when I start to feel better 3 months from now and hopefully will be able to drive. I will have a shiny new S2000 in the garage screaming to be driven, and as I said before, I refuse to drive it like a grandma, and I will take it out in which will ultimately hurt me in the long run (adjacent discs). I figure if I remove the temptation by selling now versus waiting and save money on the insurance for a year or so and re evaluate my condition and limitations then I can always buy another S2000.

This injury has been life changing for me not only from a vehicle stand point but from a recreational standpoint as I plan to get rid of 4 of the 6 surfboards that I have as well due to temptation. I keep telling myself that this has changed my life forever but I too need to to change how I live my life or I will spend the rest of my days dealing with surgery after surgery. I have pushed the envelope hard for too long and am paying the price and I sure as hell don't regret any part of it but I have to think about my future too, so I will make some sacrificies to be pain free for as long as possible. So I think I will talk things over with the wife and see if wants to sell for now and buy another one if feasible....

Thanks again for all of your support and feel free to ask any questions as I have nothing but time (no work or much of anything for quite a while)!

s2000red07

I appreciate the opportunity to learn and your excellent descriptions were very educational; thanks for taking the time to share all of that.

I hadn