Back pain!!

[GSUdawg521]

So I spent like 4 hours one night followed by 3ish hours the following night sitting on the floor trying to wall-mount an entertainment cabinet and then run all the various cables and wires, so lots of bending forward while in that position. Back was sore. The next morning I woke up and my feet were tingly. Been that way for about a week now :/ My back has been okay, not too achy, but my fucking tingling feet

Been stretching and stuff hoping it just goes away.

[haybale97]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Damn, it's that temporary? My mom and my brother both have had lower back problems as well and have said that the epidural really helped them a lot.

I've already had back surgery once, and I know it's a quick fix which gets right at the problem, but I'm trying to avoid surgery this time. I herniated the same disc that I had operated on, so I only have one more operation left on that disc. If it were to herniate a third time, they would just remove the disc and I would have to get the fusion surgery, which is a fairly major operation. So I'm trying to avoid the second surgery to avoid the fusion, if that makes any sense.

You want to avoid a fusion for as long as possible, their success rate (significant reduction of pain) is relatively low compared to other surgeries.

[fridge112887]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Going for an epidural injection on Friday. First time I've ever gotten one, anyone have experience with them and can offer some insight as to their effectiveness?

PS- Praying this science experiment works. Hasn't been tested millions of times or anything like that, really feel like the fate of my life is hanging in the balance with this one! [/sarcasm]

Best of luck to you man. I was given the option but turned it down. I've heard both good and bad about epidurals.

Since I moved to AZ my pain has decreased a slight bit. I'm able to deadlift again but it's always stiff. I had high hopes that the move to AZ with the dry head would completely wipe the pain out. That has not been the case. I moved here for school but I'm transferring back to IL (family reasons) at the end of this semester. I'm trying to stay positive and tell myself that my back won't get any worse moving back to the tundra.

Edit: these two exercises have helped me. Google "glute bridges" and then try these: http://cdn-media-5.lifehack.org/wp-c...brastretch.jpg

[salrx95]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Going for an epidural injection on Friday. First time I've ever gotten one, anyone have experience with them and can offer some insight as to their effectiveness?

PS- Praying this science experiment works. Hasn't been tested millions of times or anything like that, really feel like the fate of my life is hanging in the balance with this one! [/sarcasm]

It may not be that temporary. Everyone is different. Since your back pain is new and not chronic, you might respond well to it. You could get the relief you need and it could last a while.

My first 1 lasted a while, the next one less. I had roughly 12-15 injections in my back over the years and each one worked/lasted shorter than the next. My last set of injections, which wasn't a true epidural was brutal. Not to scare you or anything as I was 8 years into back pain but I got 6 injections, 3 on each side of the lower back that was absolutely brutal to go through and it gave me absolutely zero relief. It was at the point my pain management Dr said he could do nothing more for me and I moved on to an orthopedic surgeon.

Good luck!!

[M. Steng]

Thanks for the support and feedback everyone. I'll be laid up in bed all day again Friday so I'll be sure to give an update, not like I'll be able to do much else

My pain has gone down significantly in the past few days, though, thankfully. In fact I felt almost no pain all day except for the morning aches. I'm starting to question whether I really even need the epidural at all.

[fridge112887]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Thanks for the support and feedback everyone. I'll be laid up in bed all day again Friday so I'll be sure to give an update, not like I'll be able to do much else

My pain has gone down significantly in the past few days, though, thankfully. In fact I felt almost no pain all day except for the morning aches. I'm starting to question whether I really even need the epidural at all.

How was the injection itself? The thought of having a needle stuck directly into the spine sounds rough. I'm told you have pretty severe headaches all that day.

[salrx95]

Originally Posted by fridge112887

How was the injection itself? The thought of having a needle stuck directly into the spine sounds rough. I'm told you have pretty severe headaches all that day.

I am a migraine sufferer and never had a headache, which, of course, doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

[M. Steng]

Going for epidural #2 tomorrow. The first one helped for a while, but I have some serious driving to do in about two weeks and then I'm sitting for the bar, which will be two 8+ hour days sitting at a likely very uncomfortable desk, so it's more of a precautionary measure than anything. Been doing PT for almost a month now and have seen a little improvement in my day-to-day, but not much. Sort of just being used to being in at least a little bit of pain every day, definitely sucks but there's not a lot I can do at this point. Really hoping to avoid surgery still.

Fridge, the first injection wasn't bad at all. It's more of an odd sensation more than anything; no real pain but a little bit of discomfort. Having a needle in your back is for sure an unusual feeling, but it's definitely tolerable. I'd say it's more uncomfortable than painful. Also, no headaches at all for me the day-of, hoping that holds true tomorrow as well.

[M. Steng]

Saw an orthopedic surgeon today. Looking more and more like I'm going to get surgery. I'm leaning toward a fusion, since this is my second time herniating the L4/L5 disc and there is a markedly increased risk of a third herniation if I get a second discectomy. From what I understand, a fusion is a more major operation, but will permanently fix the problem with the degenerative disc I have now. I just need something that will get me out of pain, it's been five months and I've been pretty miserable dealing with this.

[KevinTH]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Saw an orthopedic surgeon today. Looking more and more like I'm going to get surgery. I'm leaning toward a fusion, since this is my second time herniating the L4/L5 disc and there is a markedly increased risk of a third herniation if I get a second discectomy. From what I understand, a fusion is a more major operation, but will permanently fix the problem with the degenerative disc I have now. I just need something that will get me out of pain, it's been five months and I've been pretty miserable dealing with this.

That's awful, Mike. I hope you get that worked out. As you may remember from the Lifting Thread, I was having some serious back pains dating back to late August. The pain is finally gone, but I still feel something back there and am nervous to hit the gym again. I can just feel that it's not 100% and am afraid to get back to the gym and 2 weeks in I pull it again. That pain is just miserable. I feel for you dude.

[M. Steng]

Originally Posted by KevinTH

That's awful, Mike. I hope you get that worked out. As you may remember from the Lifting Thread, I was having some serious back pains dating back to late August. The pain is finally gone, but I still feel something back there and am nervous to hit the gym again. I can just feel that it's not 100% and am afraid to get back to the gym and 2 weeks in I pull it again. That pain is just miserable. I feel for you dude.

Thanks for the kind words, Kev. Unfortunately I had another episode last night into today where it flared up very badly, just as bad as when it first happened. It's crazy because I've actually been feeling pretty good since I got my third epidural about three weeks ago, and last night when I got home from work I could barely walk. Now I'm laid up in bed again for the immediate future. I think I'm gonna just schedule the surgery ASAP and fix this once and for all. I'll deal with whatever consequences later, I can't keep living like this.

[M. Steng]

Well, it looks like I'm getting a fusion done next week. As I mentioned above, I had another flare up of my injury from May, been laid up in bed since Thursday night. Saw two neurosurgeons and they both said a fusion is the best option rather than another discectomy. I know it's a pretty major surgery and that the recovery is intense, but I'm at the point now where I just need to fix the problem. I feel like another discectomy is only going to prolong the inevitable and I have no confidence that I'll go the rest of my life without another episode at that level. Sucks that I'm going through this at only 25 but from what I've read and from what the docs have told me, I'm a prime candidate for a successful fusion.

[bartender_man]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Well, it looks like I'm getting a fusion done next week. As I mentioned above, I had another flare up of my injury from May, been laid up in bed since Thursday night. Saw two neurosurgeons and they both said a fusion is the best option rather than another discectomy. I know it's a pretty major surgery and that the recovery is intense, but I'm at the point now where I just need to fix the problem. I feel like another discectomy is only going to prolong the inevitable and I have no confidence that I'll go the rest of my life without another episode at that level. Sucks that I'm going through this at only 25 but from what I've read and from what the docs have told me, I'm a prime candidate for a successful fusion.

Best of luck dude, hope it works out. Been dealing with major back/neck issues since 20's as well. Has been ok for a couple months but comes back periodically where I literally can't do anything

[M. Steng]

Originally Posted by bartender_man

Best of luck dude, hope it works out. Been dealing with major back/neck issues since 20's as well. Has been ok for a couple months but comes back periodically where I literally can't do anything

Thanks for the well wishes . I was supposed to have surgery this morning, but there was an issue with insurance approving the whole procedure. It's now scheduled for Thursday morning. I'm in less pain that I was last week, but I'm confined to the house still 11 days after my most recent flare-up. Can't wait to just have the fusion and be on the road to recovery.

[KevinTH]

Best of luck, Mike. I know this has been an agonizing ordeal for you. The good thing is that you're very young, so better to deal with this now and hopefully rectify it before you're older and recovery becomes more difficult.

[M. Steng]

Thanks, Kev! I'm a little nervous but I'm happy to just get it over with and be back on the road to being 100%.

[M. Steng]

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

[fridge112887]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

That's awesome to hear! Hope the road to recovery is a smooth one

[bartender_man]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

[2stepnstone]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

Thanks for sharing your experience and the updates. I'd be curious to see updates on recovery. I was just diagnosed with spondylolisthesis this past Friday with a fracture in the L5. First therapy appointment is December 7th, but in the meantime I'm doing some homework and getting a head start on strengthening. Doctor recommended therapy, then injections/therapy if that doesn't work, and ultimately surgery if therapy doesn't work. I'll give therapy a shot but my gut tells me surgery will be needed. I've read recovery can take months, and I'm not looking forward to fitting that into the schedule.

[WidespreadMule3]

Geez man. That sounds intense. Hopefully you'll get some relief with the surgery. Best wishes!

[KevinTH]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

Glad to hear you're on the road to recovery finally! My back was getting better but lately there's been a constant pain on a daily basis. I sleep flat on my back every night with my legs up, I try stretching it every few hours, I get up and walk around every hour or so, but nothing seems to be working. I am on a pretty regular basis tat at any minute I am going to pull it again and be right back were I started.

[M. Steng]

Originally Posted by 2stepnstone

Thanks for sharing your experience and the updates. I'd be curious to see updates on recovery. I was just diagnosed with spondylolisthesis this past Friday with a fracture in the L5. First therapy appointment is December 7th, but in the meantime I'm doing some homework and getting a head start on strengthening. Doctor recommended therapy, then injections/therapy if that doesn't work, and ultimately surgery if therapy doesn't work. I'll give therapy a shot but my gut tells me surgery will be needed. I've read recovery can take months, and I'm not looking forward to fitting that into the schedule.

Damn man, that sounds rough. My best advice would be to see what a surgeon says and then try the rehab/therapy route, just so you know what the procedure and recovery will be if surgery is needed. Unfortunately rehab/shots/PT didn't work for me, but I had a recurrent degenerative disc so there was almost no hope from the start.

I'm 12 days out from surgery right now and recovery has been slow but tedious. I'm able to walk without a walker and am getting stronger every day, but laying around the house all day is killing me psychologically. I'm hoping to get back to work as soon as I can, but I have a feeling like that won't be until after the New Year.

Originally Posted by KevinTH

Glad to hear you're on the road to recovery finally! My back was getting better but lately there's been a constant pain on a daily basis. I sleep flat on my back every night with my legs up, I try stretching it every few hours, I get up and walk around every hour or so, but nothing seems to be working. I am on a pretty regular basis tat at any minute I am going to pull it again and be right back were I started.

Thanks bud . I would definitely get an MRI and take it to a doctor. If there's any structural damage to the back (rather than just musculature), then you may be doing more harm than good by waiting it out, and even by stretching it.m

[salrx95]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Quick update- got the L5/S1 fusion surgery on Thursday, just got home from the hospital about 24 hours ago. The sciatic pain in my right leg is FINALLY gone, thank God! The operation itself went smoothly but lasted the full 6 hours. I'm pretty much confined to bed, but I try to get up and walk around once every 60-90 minutes because they say that's the best recovery. My back muscles are incredibly sore and my legs are pretty weak, but I'm feeling stronger than I was even two days ago. The thing that hurts the most is actually my hip/pelvis area, where they took the bone graft for the fusion. It's gonna be a long road to recovery but I'm happy that I'm finally on a path toward getting back to where I was and that the problem is finally fixed. My only wish is that I did the operation sooner.

Had my L5/S1 fusion with the spacer inserted and bone graft just over a year ago (last October). Best decision I ever made. Made me wish I had done it earlier and not suffered/managed my way through about 8 years of back pain.

He used my own bone from the area in back and ground it up I believe and reused it. I forget how he explained it but luckily he didn't take it from the hip area.

Good luck with your recovery. I hope it goes well. Slow and steady. Take all the time you need. You only get one chance to heal from this.

[M. Steng]

Originally Posted by salrx95

Had my L5/S1 fusion with the spacer inserted and bone graft just over a year ago (last October). Best decision I ever made. Made me wish I had done it earlier and not suffered/managed my way through about 8 years of back pain.

He used my own bone from the area in back and ground it up I believe and reused it. I forget how he explained it but luckily he didn't take it from the hip area.

Good luck with your recovery. I hope it goes well. Slow and steady. Take all the time you need. You only get one chance to heal from this.

About how long did it take for you to feel like you were back to normal, like able to exercise how you might have? Also, how long did it take for you to get back to work? I know it takes 18-24 months for the bone to fully fuse, which makes sense, I'm just wondering how long until I can start getting back into some sort of a workout routine.

Edit- Also (sorry for so many questions), did you ever do any PT post-op? My doctor said getting up and walking is the best recovery immediately after surgery, but I'm wondering if I'll get ha k to PT to get me back on the road to full strength.

[salrx95]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

About how long did it take for you to feel like you were back to normal, like able to exercise how you might have? Also, how long did it take for you to get back to work? I know it takes 18-24 months for the bone to fully fuse, which makes sense, I'm just wondering how long until I can start getting back into some sort of a workout routine.

Edit- Also (sorry for so many questions), did you ever do any PT post-op? My doctor said getting up and walking is the best recovery immediately after surgery, but I'm wondering if I'll get ha k to PT to get me back on the road to full strength.

No PT post op. Like you said, my Dr said walking was the best PT. I walked up and the hallway in the house. Once I was cleared to drive, which was maybe a month, I then would go to Target or grocery every day and shop/walk around. I am food shopper so I'd go each like the old people do and pick up a bag or 2. Obviously, no cases or anything heavy like from BJs or Costco. My biggest issue when I first started to go out alone was stamina. When I'd come back from going out, I was wiped and took many an afternoon nap. My stamina took time to come back. I would say about 3 months post op, I was "normal" as far as how I felt overall besides soreness in lower back.

I'm a pharmacist and stand for 10-12 hours a day depending on my shift so my Dr wanted me out of work for 3 months. I was back at work in 2 and 1/2 as I was deemed to be healing quick and ahead of schedule. I recovered fairly well, imo, which is why I wish I had done it sooner. My first week back to work were half days only. Other than playing sports with the kids, I don't exercise. I walk miles a day around the pharmacy and consider that my exercise, lol. I remember asking my dr about 6 months after surgery if I could play basketball with my 10 year old again and he cautioned me against jumping and playing all out. He said shooting around was fine but not much more. My brother, who had 3 levels in neck and lower back done, said he was babying me a little bit and felt I was ahead of schedule. I helped coach my 7 year old's baseball team in the spring and fall and no worse for the wear, catching and working with a bunch of little kids.

[M. Steng]

Originally Posted by salrx95

No PT post op. Like you said, my Dr said walking was the best PT. I walked up and the hallway in the house. Once I was cleared to drive, which was maybe a month, I then would go to Target or grocery every day and shop/walk around. I am food shopper so I'd go each like the old people do and pick up a bag or 2. Obviously, no cases or anything heavy like from BJs or Costco. My biggest issue when I first started to go out alone was stamina. When I'd come back from going out, I was wiped and took many an afternoon nap. My stamina took time to come back. I would say about 3 months post op, I was "normal" as far as how I felt overall besides soreness in lower back.

I'm a pharmacist and stand for 10-12 hours a day depending on my shift so my Dr wanted me out of work for 3 months. I was back at work in 2 and 1/2 as I was deemed to be healing quick and ahead of schedule. I recovered fairly well, imo, which is why I wish I had done it sooner. My first week back to work were half days only. Other than playing sports with the kids, I don't exercise. I walk miles a day around the pharmacy and consider that my exercise, lol. I remember asking my dr about 6 months after surgery if I could play basketball with my 10 year old again and he cautioned me against jumping and playing all out. He said shooting around was fine but not much more. My brother, who had 3 levels in neck and lower back done, said he was babying me a little bit and felt I was ahead of schedule. I helped coach my 7 year old's baseball team in the spring and fall and no worse for the wear, catching and working with a bunch of little kids.

Thanks for the insight . I'm also feeling like my stamina is an issue. I walk my driveway every day, and try to do one more "lap" every day, but I feel absolutely wiped afterwards. I'm finding myself taking lots of naps between 4-6. Being confined mostly to the house has been killing me though, I'm bored to tears and am itching to get cleared to go back to work.

I'm almost two weeks out from surgery and feeling pretty good as far as soreness goes. I'm walking fairly normally, although my gait is still a little draggy/crooked, haha. Do you still experience soreness in the mornings? I feel like life is going to be a lot different than I imagined it would be post surgery and that I'll unfortunately be much more limited than I thought I would be.

[bartender_man]

Dealing with lot of pain in lower back. From heavy lifting. I'm a fucking idiot for even trying to lift it.

[salrx95]

Originally Posted by M. Steng

Thanks for the insight . I'm also feeling like my stamina is an issue. I walk my driveway every day, and try to do one more "lap" every day, but I feel absolutely wiped afterwards. I'm finding myself taking lots of naps between 4-6. Being confined mostly to the house has been killing me though, I'm bored to tears and am itching to get cleared to go back to work.

I'm almost two weeks out from surgery and feeling pretty good as far as soreness goes. I'm walking fairly normally, although my gait is still a little draggy/crooked, haha. Do you still experience soreness in the mornings? I feel like life is going to be a lot different than I imagined it would be post surgery and that I'll unfortunately be much more limited than I thought I would be.

I get occasional soreness and ironically tonight, I got some weird throbbing sensation in the surgery area but generally I go weeks with no soreness. The soreness I was referring to started up after I went back to work as expected. I went from laying in bed or on the coach for much of 2 months to standing on my feet all day. After returning to work, I took aleve or painkiller before and after work to take the edge off the soreness coming and weaned down to nothing probably by March.

I am not limited at all and haven't been. Like I had said, by May, I coaching baseball trying to help 7 year old learn and play which isn't easy. I also drove to Charlottesville from Ct and back on a mini vacation in May with no issues. This past summer, we went a vacation with lots of amusements, driving, beaches, etc and no problems.

Like I said before in this thread, I wish I had it years earlier as it really went well for me. I think I came out on the other side better than most do. My oldest is now 10 and I remember my wife being concerned with me picking him up as a baby since I would get back spasms back then and throughout my years of pain that would take me to the floor if I didn't grab a counter or wall to hold on and brace myself and she feared me having one while holding him and falling.

[cry_minarets458]

To anyone recovering from surgery, don't think a surgeon is babying you with prolonging a recovery time. Surgery is constantly changing, so recovery and PT modalities are constantly changing. also back surgeries are a crapshoot. The human body is a wonderful thing, but the body's model is not ideal. We sacrificed a lot evolutionarily to walk upright. You don't see big cats (lions, etc) or horses with back problems, whether spinal or musculature, and that's because our bodies are originally designed to be down (seriously, some guy did a ton of research on this topic and our backs get beat to shot compared to huge cats that utilize their backs for huge bursts of energy and are constantly running and jumping). So, keep to what plan is laid out, Mike.

Good to hear people here have had good results from surgeries. Just always be cautious. See a ton of chronic back pain in the emergency department, especially in peeps with fusions.

/soapbox