[Norwood]

2002 discectomy L4/L5. Had siatica so bad I could not sit for more than 5 minutes at a time. Best thing I ever did, compleat relief. Then spinal stenosis. On September 11 I had another surgery with the intent of a fusion. The surgeon decided to do a Laminectomy instead. Almost 5 months now and I would say I'm about 80%.

[GT182]

Originally Posted by Norwood

Almost 5 months now and I would say I'm about 80%.

You are one of the lucky ones.

[pontiacs-r-us]

Fyr,I am very sorry to hear of your problems.After fighting this for over 15yrs,I cringe every time I hear someone is going thru it.I wouldn't wish it on anyone,PERIOD! I've had 3 procedures on back.Still in pain everyday.Out of work 10yrs on Feb 2nd(it sucks),& only 46 yo... As you can see there are lots of different stories.First let me say,everyone is different,& there lots of different problems & a lot of different fixes....almost impossible to make accurate comparisons... First you said Dr told you ultimately up to you.Thats a good thing,if Dr says you must or only option,he's not for you.More opinions is not a bad thing. Also eliminate all non operative options. As Someone stated keeping weight down an staying active is of great importance.I agree whole heartedly.This time of year is the worst for me.Due to weather my activity level drops and pain level increases.Laying around is worst thing you can do,period... I want go into my problems or surgery's here,but you can PM me(or probably anyone else here) with any questions.I recommend you educate yourself as much as possible before deciding on surgery... I wish you all the best with this...Kenny


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[ultraman]

whats foot drop?

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by ultraman

whats foot drop?

Its L4-5 related. I have it as well as some other nerve root related problems on my right side. It means you are buying lots of pairs of shoes to wear out the front toe area of one side you drag. Either nerve or pain relaxes it down. I dont drive with that leg for that very reason

[ultraman]

thank you bruce.

[rexs73gto]

Back in my 1st post I said I won't do it & I live with just taking the meds. I to didn't liset very close to the doctor about losing some weight, but this year, well last year now I put my mind to it . I hit 298 lbs & decided I won't hit that dreaded 300 lbs mark. I have lost now 53 lbs. It wasn't as hard as I thought but it took some time & the presents of mind to do it. I cut down on the amount of pop I drank , I don't drink any more & it's been about 10 years now. I use to bounce, for about 22 years & I drank every night I worked which didn't help. I also now go to the YMCA & use their warm therapy pool to soak in which helps my back a lot. I go about 2-3 days a week & it helps. Plus you get to talk with others with the same problems & learn about the ways they help to relieve the pain. Start with the weight lose & that will help, at least it did for me. I only walk with my cane now during the cold weather to. But I won't let them cut me until it's so bad I can't walk on my own. I'll take the pills till then. I can still drive my 73 GTO which is a 4 spd. , & it was getting hard to do until I lost the weight. I think that might have been the biggest reason, but it worked & I can drive with only very little concern now.

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by Norwood

2002 discectomy L4/L5. Had siatica so bad I could not sit for more than 5 minutes at a time. Best thing I ever did, compleat relief. Then spinal stenosis. On September 11 I had another surgery with the intent of a fusion. The surgeon decided to do a Laminectomy instead. Almost 5 months now and I would say I'm about 80%.

Wow, your doing pretty well considering. Its so hard to keep spirits up with sciatica. I had a far Lateral blow out that was missed at the hospital MRI's and it did nerve root damage as I delt with it and they tried PT and shots and a spinal tap happened...Few months later I have it removed , a type of discectomy, and the shots hit my L4-5 and affected my foot and drop issue. getting the REM sleep is difficult, so I'm cranky at times and up at odd hours.
Traction gives relief to a degree, and oddly enough doing a few semi pull ups on my rear sway bar on my Firebird seems to help.Like most here that have had work in the back I have scar tissue and it shows up in MRI's and sometimes blocks what they want to see. recovering from holes drilled in your spine isnt plesaant, but can sure be worth some relief .
Im Happy your doing better Craig..

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by rexs73gto

Back in my 1st post I said I won't do it & I live with just taking the meds. I to didn't liset very close to the doctor about losing some weight, but this year, well last year now I put my mind to it . I hit 298 lbs & decided I won't hit that dreaded 300 lbs mark. I have lost now 53 lbs. It wasn't as hard as I thought but it took some time & the presents of mind to do it. I cut down on the amount of pop I drank , I don't drink any more & it's been about 10 years now. I use to bounce, for about 22 years & I drank every night I worked which didn't help. I also now go to the YMCA & use their warm therapy pool to soak in which helps my back a lot. I go about 2-3 days a week & it helps. Plus you get to talk with others with the same problems & learn about the ways they help to relieve the pain. Start with the weight lose & that will help, at least it did for me. I only walk with my cane now during the cold weather to. But I won't let them cut me until it's so bad I can't walk on my own. I'll take the pills till then. I can still drive my 73 GTO which is a 4 spd. , & it was getting hard to do until I lost the weight. I think that might have been the biggest reason, but it worked & I can drive with only very little concern now.

WARM Therapy pool sounds very good... I use an arm crutch mostly , seems better than a cane .. Good luck.. the meds, well thats another story

[pontibeast]

I am one of the "didn't go well" ones. I did nerve and disc damage to my L3/L4 and S1 nerve in a training accident while in the Army. I put up with the pain for 7 years using a lot of pain meds and gritting my teeth. I had a discectomy at the VA hospital to relieve the pain cause I just couldn't take it anymore. I woke up from surgery and half of my left foot was completely numb, never had a problem with it before surgery but after it has stayed numb with severe pain in the other half. VA says it wasn't their fault/don't know what happened. Anytime you go under the knife you are taking a chance, I have a few friends where they got great results and are very happy but I know a lot of vets where their back surgery did more harm than good. Best advice is to look at the doctors track record very closely and just be aware of the possible complications. My back is way worse now than before and I am 100% disabled as a result. I tried a TENS unit, acupuncture and the shots. Only thing that did help was pain meds but the VA has dropped narcotic pain meds from anyone that has chronic pain and I have been in very intense pain for over a year. I lost 85 pounds last year hoping it would help but no luck. Accupuncture did help with the foot pain some and I would tell people with chronic pain to at least give it a try. At some point you just have to accept that you will live with the pain and try to make the best of it. I hope whatever you choose it works out for you because living with chronic pain sucks.

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by pontibeast

I am one of the "didn't go well" ones. I did nerve and disc damage to my L3/L4 and S1 nerve in a training accident while in the Army. I put up with the pain for 7 years using a lot of pain meds and gritting my teeth. I had a discectomy at the VA hospital to relieve the pain cause I just couldn't take it anymore. I woke up from surgery and half of my left foot was completely numb, never had a problem with it before surgery but after it has stayed numb with severe pain in the other half. VA says it wasn't their fault/don't know what happened. Anytime you go under the knife you are taking a chance, I have a few friends where they got great results and are very happy but I know a lot of vets where their back surgery did more harm than good. Best advice is to look at the doctors track record very closely and just be aware of the possible complications. My back is way worse now than before and I am 100% disabled as a result. I tried a TENS unit, acupuncture and the shots. Only thing that did help was pain meds but the VA has dropped narcotic pain meds from anyone that has chronic pain and I have been in very intense pain for over a year. I lost 85 pounds last year hoping it would help but no luck. Accupuncture did help with the foot pain some and I would tell people with chronic pain to at least give it a try. At some point you just have to accept that you will live with the pain and try to make the best of it. I hope whatever you choose it works out for you because living with chronic pain sucks.

Local shots including epidurals can cause nerve damage. A spinal tap will surely do it and if you are under you will never know. My right leg is numb, but very painful to touch, kneecap pops out and pain spikes to my big toe, and I have foot drop...and your pain,... Even with Floro they cant see exactly whats going on and where the nerves are, and with disc issues the nerves get pushed around. I feel your pain...ONly think I can say is traction. hydo or machine or inversion table.. Its just an idea.. Good luck.. "getting on my nerves" has a REAL meaning to those who have real nerve pain..