Herniated disc - awaiting surgery - timescale advice

I know from previous threads that many of you suffer from back/ spinal issues. Firstly can I send all love and support for the excruciating pain I know you have experienced/ are experiencing.
After a recent spell in hospital (A&E admission, 3 days in hospital (UK) while they did scans and xrays), I'm told I have a serious herniation ( plus other gen. Age- related wear and tear , dessication etc).
I've got to have a section shaved off my disc which will, I think, let the jelly stuff move back into place and relieve the pressure on the nerve, thus stopping the leg pain (sciatica). They couldn't do the op then and there due to waiting list and wouldn't be fair for me to just jump the queue. So they are saying October probably although I don't have an exact date yet.
For anyone in a similar position who is now, or has gone through this, may I ask a few questions?
For the first 2 weeks after hospital release I could only move on crutches between bedroom and bathroom (fortunately on the same floor). Now a little further as in occasionally going downstairs and the odd little walk with crutches in the garden.
How have you coped in terms of moving around? I am scared to do too much but equally scared to do too little. I can feel my left leg seizing up and it's becoming increasingly difficult to get my left heel on the ground.
When they say October for the op, is this realistic or do they give an optimistic early date when really it could be much later? ( Absolutely no diss intended here on the NHS, I know how stretched they are and how bloody wonderful 99% of them were in the hospital except the top consultant himself..but I will leave that for another time).
How do you cope with the depressive feelings in the meantime of feeling useless and a burden on your family? How much of these feelings are the real 'you' and how much are down to the meds? How do you cope with normal life going on around you whilst having to spend 23 hours a day flat on your back?
I'm looking at 5 months (started June) plus of being on a cocktail of meds including morphine and diazepam. For someone who normally takes a paracetamol as a last resort,this terrifies me. I'm worried about the long-term effects of the drugs both physically and mentally. I'd love to hear others' experiences.
Concentration- so so hard! I can't even read a book. I feel my mind is turning to mush. I'm guessing it's the morphine which makes me very sleepy and a bit disoriented.
How long have you had to wait following diagnosis, MRI etc to actually receive your op date? think having a date in the diary would give me a goal and create a focus and a 'count down'.
Having been made redundant I was supposed to be job hunting but all of that's on hold for now.
I'm normally really a very active person, lots of yoga, swimming, hill walking etc. I'm terrified as to whether I will ever be able to do these things to the same level again.
Oh and we just moved house before this happened, 300 miles away from family and friends, to the wilds of Wales, for new adventures etc. Hello irony.
Sorry this is a long post, trying to get it all out there in one go.
I'd just be grateful for your experiences, if you're willing to share, to give me some hope. Because right now I just feel broken, physically and mentally. At least the pain is under control so I don't have to deal with that aspect. I am eternally grateful for that.
Thank you for reading xx