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Anyone had to have discectomy or spinal fusion?

Lyrica and other crap did not do anything for pain. How the hell can weed help? I get randoms anyway.
 
GearAddict said:
Dennis... Amen, just f'n Amen

I work for a very large fortune 500 company and was managing a plant of about 150 employees when this hit me hard 5 months ago.. I didn't sleep more than 2 hrs a night for 2 months.. during that time, I was introduced to Vicodin (had had for dental work years ago). Sleep depravation + Vicodin, Fioricet, cyclobenzaprine and a few minor NSAID's during day = lucky I still have a job. It all went sideways fast.. When I finally realized how bad this was, I went to the doc and were able to adjust so that meds were focused on getting me sleeping and then less agressive pain killers during day and a small perscription of emergency pain killers for the really bad days

Reading the emails I sent during that time is truly cringeworthy

I make my living on my mind and my mind is busy trying to process constant pain all day.
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Sorry to hear you were just given pain meds instead of getting to the source of the issue as soon as possible.
 
polywideblock said:
L3-L4 ,L4-L5 and S1 all at the same time , 30 odd years ago. the phantom pain down the front of your thighs, buttocks and soles of the feet is the hardest to deal with as you "know" its not anything you can do anything about . for those old enough it was just as 60 minutes did the exposé on spinal fusion and people being paralysed etc so NO surgery for me . don't take pain killers (haven't for 25+ years ) so just "take the pain "and be careful how I bent or pick things up . have been called a "cranky old bastard " more than once but would rather be cranky than addicted to pain killers
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I'm with ya.. It took me 4 months to come to terms with the fact that I was problably going to have to have surgery, when I finally resigned my self to the idea, I felt a sense of peace, like maybe it was the right choice.... That all blew up the day the "best Neurosurgeon in Tampa" told me I was too f'd up for surgery and sent me directly to Pain Managemt. Having been through the crazy pain killer period just 2 months ago.... I lost it, the thought of never being myself again.. I can't even type it.

Thanks guys, I'll keep this thread going and try to post updates
 
Dennis H said:
Lyrica and other crap did not do anything for pain. How the hell can weed help? I get randoms anyway.
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Dude, you live in a state where you can go answer that for yourself. :D

It does seem to help on mild to medium days, the pain doesn't go away, but it sorta gets filed in the background.. still not a solution, just a patch
 
GearAddict said:
I'm with ya.. It took me 4 months to come to terms with the fact that I was problably going to have to have surgery, when I finally resigned my self to the idea, I felt a sense of peace, like maybe it was the right choice.... That all blew up the day the "best Neurosurgeon in Tampa" told me I was too f'd up for surgery and sent me directly to Pain Managemt. Having been through the crazy pain killer period just 2 months ago.... I lost it, the thought of never being myself again.. I can't even type it.

Thanks guys, I'll keep this thread going and try to post updates
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Please do keep up with this thread. There are lots of readers that may just be biting the pain bullet when a fix is easy.
Being older is to be wiser not hurting.
 
ws23jrt said:
Please do keep up with this thread. There are lots of readers that may just be biting the pain bullet when a fix is easy.
Being older is to be wiser not hurting.
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well according to the doc Im well over 100 years old, so A) This is clearly why I am so wise, and B) Respect your elders!
 
If your not in pain when you wake up in the morning how do you know your alive? Been the physical therapy routine. It helps, just have to remember its a life long commitment and not a short term fix. So far visiting the chiropractor every 3 weeks keeps me moving. The wife has degenerative bones and on constant pain meds and embraces stairways like a 2 year old.
Then we see those in wheel chairs and think how lucky we still are.
Do not really have a answer for you just some advice if they mention deck jobs tell them to stick it. It is not the answer. Keep moving and hope you find some relief for the pain.
 
If you can sleep your not in "pain" I'm on so many pills just to try and get the pain subsided enough so I can try and sleep it's horrible some days I just lay in bed because it hurts to roll out . I got a special bed that puts me in a zero gravity position it takes the pressure off your hip and low back area it is very helpful. But was $5-6K then there's the long hot showers and the electro therapy and pills .I do back stretches about 3-5 times a day and sometimes those put me in bed for 3 days. But if your the insurance company I'm OK its not medically necessary and they want to wait till I blow my brains out or jump off a bridge they are useless I have 3 doctor s fighting saying the boy is screwed. No one cares about there fellow man it's all about the money!
 
GearAddict said:
Dude, you live in a state where you can go answer that for yourself. :D

It does seem to help on mild to medium days, the pain doesn't go away, but it sorta gets filed in the background.. still not a solution, just a patch
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Only thing that helps is the Inversion Table.
 
This is a thread I'd rather not be on. But I feel I should give a positive voice if I can as most seem to be negative. Believe me it's not as thought I don't understand those in pain because I had my own 10-15 year journey with it. I don't want to go into a lot of detail here - but I've had 4 nerve damage related surgeries and mind blowing pain for the whole time mentioned above. To be clear only one of the surgeries was on the spine - c5 - c6. The others were on my right arm and all was related. I get what everyone is saying - I can only relate with a good caring surgeon, excercise, and a lot of Gods hand being in the mix you can get better. Nerves can regrow themselves and will given time. They first need to be freed from there impingement. I'm giving you a 60 second snapshot of a many year complex journey that's seen it all - including the healing. Don't give up and don't give in.
 
Couldn't stand for 5 minutes due to sciatic pain. Had a discectomy in 2000. Hospital for 1 day. Worst pain after surgery was riding home in the car. Off work for 1 week then LD for next 30 days. No sciatic pain since. Worked well for me.
 
I had the C6-C7 replaced with Cadaver bone and plates and screws. They went through the side of my neck. Don't expect the surgery to cure you to 100% of what you were like before the issues started. I still have issues with my neck.
 
GetX'd said:
This is a thread I'd rather not be on. But I feel I should give a positive voice if I can as most seem to be negative. Believe me it's not as thought I don't understand those in pain because I had my own 10-15 year journey with it. I don't want to go into a lot of detail here - but I've had 4 nerve damage related surgeries and mind blowing pain for the whole time mentioned above. To be clear only one of the surgeries was on the spine - c5 - c6. The others were on my right arm and all was related. I get what everyone is saying - I can only relate with a good caring surgeon, excercise, and a lot of Gods hand being in the mix you can get better. Nerves can regrow themselves and will given time. They first need to be freed from there impingement. I'm giving you a 60 second snapshot of a many year complex journey that's seen it all - including the healing. Don't give up and don't give in.
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Thanks, I appreciate that, I know it can be a very different journey for each, our bodies, injuries, means, doctors and surgeons skill or engagement and our own mental states can all impact it and many of these are things we percieve we can't control and many we only have the illusion of control. I'm hoping to learn from the good and the bad as I still believe the illusion.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I have 2 close friends who had lived with this level of pain or greater, for other reasons (one for a rare disease and the other for wrecking a 67 Camaro and spent a month in a coma, 6 months in traction and a year in physical therapy). I learned from them, that this type of experience leaves a mark on your pshyche even long after the physical picture changes. I am only dealing with this for a little while and I know that there are aspects of it that I can't bare to discuss most days as it cuts too deep. My heart goes out to all of you that are suffering and for those that made it through but were indelibly marked by the experience. I don't wish this on anyone.
 
Coronet 14 said:
I had the C6-C7 replaced with Cadaver bone and plates and screws. They went through the side of my neck. Don't expect the surgery to cure you to 100% of what you were like before the issues started. I still have issues with my neck.
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Thanks for sharing. Since you live only minutes from me, can I ask if you had your surgery here and if so, would you reccomend them even if only for a consult?
 
Daves69 said:
Couldn't stand for 5 minutes due to sciatic pain. Had a discectomy in 2000. Hospital for 1 day. Worst pain after surgery was riding home in the car. Off work for 1 week then LD for next 30 days. No sciatic pain since. Worked well for me.
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Good to hear another positive story, I know it is possible, but not garunteed by any means..
 
Dennis H said:
Only thing that helps is the Inversion Table.
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Is that like for inches to milimeters? :)

Sorry, just trying to keep some levity on a shitty subject

I haven't tried that, Does it differ greatly from traction? I am struggling with the over the door traction unit. Seems to help some, but I have TMJ (Jaw problems) and the weight on my jaw kicks in a migraine 1 out of 5 times.

BTW, there is only one thing I want less than this neck pain and that is going back to weekly debilitating migraines that I had from age 12 to 25. luckily once freed of a missguided religion I was able to find medication and medical advice that cut that down to 2 a year (from 50).
 
Bb70charger500 said:
If you can sleep your not in "pain" I'm on so many pills just to try and get the pain subsided enough so I can try and sleep it's horrible some days I just lay in bed because it hurts to roll out . I got a special bed that puts me in a zero gravity position it takes the pressure off your hip and low back area it is very helpful. But was $5-6K then there's the long hot showers and the electro therapy and pills .I do back stretches about 3-5 times a day and sometimes those put me in bed for 3 days. But if your the insurance company I'm OK its not medically necessary and they want to wait till I blow my brains out or jump off a bridge they are useless I have 3 doctor s fighting saying the boy is screwed. No one cares about there fellow man it's all about the money!
Click to expand...

I'm sure I'm not where youre at man, that sucks (and belive me I know that's an understatement).

I did go buy a $8K bed when this all started and I thought it would help, but didn't understand my problem well and it turns out the cat and my wife are sleeping fine in it, while I sleep on a handmedown recliner that is really the only thing that I am able to sleep in, albeit a fitfull and limited sleep at that.

I'm also getting there on the hot showers, It is an utter requirement that I soak for 45 mins each morning (to which my employees can attest and can tell when I only took 20min shower as they will regularily tell me to go home and soak some more as I'll look stiff, tentative and in pain).

Pills, yeah

electro therapy... like eStim/Tens? (dont put it on your balls my friends... y'know, since youre all giving advice from experience).
I have used the tens but felt nothing more than momentary relief.
 
Tens is deff not a heavy hitter by any means I ware it all day some times . It's all b.s. no lie I just 30 mins ago had a really bad pinched nerve why I was standing in my kitchen. Luckily I was at the counter or I would of went down wife had to get my Cain help me into the shower and turn it on hot!! And help me stand there till something gave now I'm laying in bed with the tens and a heating pad under my back. Some days I wonder why I bother trying to keep going!
 
My surgery was done in Minot nd. I'm also on Savella. Lyrica didn't work anymore. Sometimes the pain overrides the meds I'm on. There is not much I can do when it happens. I will never get the Spinal Injections ever again. The injection in my Siatic nerve did nothing. So that is another shot I will never do again either. I tried going a week without taking any of my pain meds. When the fourth day hit I couldn't stand it anymore. It took sometime for the meds to build up in my system again. Cronic Pain causes all kind of other issues. From stress and no sleep to cronic fatigue. You have got to pace yourself. If you can only work on your car a couple of hours at a time do that. Don't kill yourself trying to do stuff. Two weeks ago I helped my Dad get my sisters Jeep running I was in a ton of pain for 2 days.
 
You could try this place ahttp://health.usf.edu/medicine/neurosurgery/patient_info/spine_institute.htm
 
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