Fear around spine surgery is something I hear in clinic all the time — and it’s usually not about the incision. It’s about uncertainty and loss of control. In my experience as a neurosurgeon, the most common concerns are neurologic injury, anesthesia, pain, and hardware. For patients who come into surgery with stable function, serious complications like paralysis are uncommon, and risk is carefully assessed before surgery using imaging, monitoring, and patient selection. Post-operative pain is r