This is the day before the BIG surgery; the surgery that will forever change the lives of Chuck and me. (a bit dramatic??) Seriously, thought I'd outline what should occur tomorrow. For my friends who have actually gone to medical school, just grin and bear my feeble attempt: Chuck's surgery will take about twelve hours. It is divided into three segments.

1. The first segment lasts 30-40 minutes. The surgeon makes an incision on the left side of his abdomen, removes some of his disks, and replaces them with cages. (does this sound as bizarre to you as it does to me??).
2. The second segment lasts about the same amount of time. The surgeon will make an incision on the right side of his abdomen and repeat for more of his disks. Yeah, those who know me well know that's about all the details you can squeeze out of me ... not so much a detail person.
3. The third segment will last several hours. They will flip Chuck over on his stomach ... and do the vetebrectomy. First, the incision ... then the cutting of the bone to straighten his spine, then the insertion of the rods.

The nurse, Debbie, will give me an update every hour. Dr. Shelokov will come out at the end of each segment and give me an update.

After the surgery, Chuck will be on a respirator for a few days. Not sure how long ... Dr. Shelokov says 2-3 days is average. He'll be sedated while he's on the respirator and is GREATLY looking forward to the rest.