Activity

• Arrange your household to keep the items you need within reach.

• Remove electrical cords, throw rugs, and anything else that may cause you to fall.

• Follow your healthcare provider's instructions for wearing a cervical collar or brace. The neck collar or brace supports and correctly positions your neck after surgery. Follow instructions for its care and use, including how long you must wear it.

• Don’t drive until your healthcare provider says it’s OK. This will most likely be when you can move your neck from side to side freely and without pain. Never drive while you are on opioids or other pain medicines that can make you drowsy.

• Walk as much as possible. You may also go up and down stairs. Walking outside or walking on a treadmill at a slow speed with no incline is OK.

• Don’t lift anything heavier than  5 pounds .

• Ask your healthcare provider when you can go back to work.

Other home care

• Take pain medicine exactly as directed. Don't take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen, for 6 months. These can block bone fusion.

• Follow your surgeon's instructions on when you can start showering. This is usually 24 to 48 hours after surgery. Then shower as needed. When you finish showering, gently pat the incision area dry. Don’t rub the incision. Don't put creams or lotions on it.

• Use your neck collar as instructed by your surgeon.

• Don’t soak in bathtubs, hot tubs, or swimming pools until your healthcare provider says it's OK.

• Use grab bars in the bathroom and a shower chair if you find yourself fatigued or lightheaded when you shower.

• Your incision may have been closed using sutures (stitches), staples, or strips of tape. If you have sutures or staples, they may need to be removed  2 to 3 weeks after surgery. You can allow strips of tape to fall off on their own.

• If you smoke, get help to quit. Nicotine from cigarettes, chewing tobacco, or patches that slow the healing of bone and you may need more surgery. Join a stop-smoking program to improve your chances of success.

Follow-up

Make a follow-up visit as advised.

Call 911

Call 911 right away if you have any of these:

• Chest pain

• Shortness of breath

• Trouble controlling your bowels or bladder

• Painful calf that is warm to the touch and tender with pressure

When to call your healthcare provider

Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these:

• Drainage, redness, or warmth at the incision

• Trouble swallowing, especially liquids

• Fever of  100.4° F ( 38°C) or higher, or as directed by your healthcare provider

• Shaking chills

• Weakness, numbness, or tingling in your arms or legs

• Swelling of the foot, ankle, or calf that is not relieved by elevating your feet

• Increased pain

• Symptoms get worse or you have new symptoms