Melissa Gilbert Posts Health Update For Her Fans After Recent Spinal Surgery

Nov 24, 2020 by apost team

Melissa Gilbert has had a long history of spinal injuries and problems. Her most recent surgery this month — her fourth spinal surgery overall— was successful according to her Instagram post from last week. The 56-year-old star is recovering at a hospital in California, and thanked her fans for their support and love in her post. 

Melissa Gilbert is best known for her role as Laura Ingalls Wilder on the hit show Little House on the Prarie, which captured the hearts and attention of a large number of fans in the 80s. Over the last two decades, Gilbert has had to battle a series of health problems and has had 4 different surgeries to address what she calls "a long history" of neck and spine issues that began with surgery to fuse her herniated disc in 2003, reports People. 

She updated her fans on the status of her health after her most recent surgery in an Instagram post last week. The caption reads,

"Surgery was wildly successful! Dr Bray was able to remove all the old hardware, shave off bone spurs causing numbness in my right hand and, and, and, he was able to give me the artificial disc!!!"

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The actress is seen in good spirits flashing a bright smile in her photograph. She is still in her hospital gown in the photo, and it is clear that she still needs some time to recover from the surgery. She also adds in her post, "So now I focus on recovery and remaining Covid free. Thank you all for your love, support and prayers. I send so much love back to you all. Happy Thanksgiving indeed!!! Love and love and love..." 

In an earlier Instagram post last week, Gilbert elaborated on why she needed surgery in the first place, saying that she had reached a point where the pain was " nearly constant" and added that her fingers on her right hand were "beginning to tingle." Gilbert had already had surgery in 2016, but her C7 vertebra's hardware was "boring a hole," and she needed to be operated upon in April this year already. 

However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, she had to postpone the surgery until the last week when it was finally given the green light. She then flew to California to have her spinal surgery done by the same doctor that has been treating her since 2001 after she broke her back and needed a spinal fusion, reports Fox News. Her surgeon, Dr. Bray, has also helped other stars who are dealing with back and spinal issues.

In 2012, Gilbert sustained two separate injuries that exacerbated her already existing neck and spine issues, reports People. While performing on Dancing With The Stars, she suffered a whiplash and concussion after a fall in April. Months later, the balcony of a house she was renting in Studio City, California, collapsed and hit her over her head. This injury was severe and caused two head and neck injuries that led to two herniated discs in her spine. 

“I was standing under the back balcony talking to my kids and it detached from the house and it collapsed on my head,” she recalled when it happened. “I ended up with a concussion and stitches in my head and it compressed two healthy discs in my neck.”

The injuries from this accident eventually led to nerve damage and pain, which caused her to drop out of the Congressional Race she was running for in 2016. She had decided to run as a Democrat in Michigan in August 2015, reports Us Weekly. In an interview with People, she said, “I have numbness in my right hand, shooting pains in my right arm and numbness in my neck.” She added, “So, after years of care, my neurologists are sending me to a neurosurgeon because I need to have another spinal surgery.” The surgery from this month addressed the complications from her previous surgery in 2016. 

In her Instagram post prior to her surgery update, she referenced the nickname her former character had and wrote in the caption, "I’m channeling my inner Halfpint for this one. The one who believes anything is possible. The one with courage and moxie to spare!!" It looks like her courage and moxie helped her pull through, after all!  

We are happy to hear that her surgery was a success and that she is now on a good road to recovery. We wish Melissa Gilbert the very best and hope she gets well soon!

We wish Melissa Gilbert a speedy recovery! You can join us and leave a comment below to let us know what you think of Melissa's courage and perseverance during this time. Be sure to share this with your friends as well!