I'm a 47 (almost) woman who was diagnosed with degenerative discs in july. I had my surgery ACDF on c5-c7 on August 20th and feeling very good. I had a fantastic surgeon (I call him the surfer dude as that is kind of what he looks like, and does in his spare moments). He was very knowledgeable and really took the time to explain everything. He was responsive to email as well (within 24 hrs with any questions I had).
I know this is not true for everyone, but for me I couldn't wait to have the surgery as the pain was well, a 9 on the pain scale. I travel a lot for a living and this actually put a damper on my job (travel wise) for at least 2 months. However I was back working within 2 weeks after the surgery.
Thank you for the information on this site. I will say that one thing I notice, which seems obvious to me, is that the healing process and recovery process for any individual can be quite different depending on many factors. Anyways, thanks for the opportunity to share, wish everyone the best.