Anybody here have a bulging/herniated disc issue?

I had a similar problem, about four years ago.

It was far lower, around L4-L5, so I had leg pain along the sciatic nerve. But I had the same sleeplessness because I was in constant pain.

I fooled around with steroids, physical therapy, and other treatments. None worked.

I finally begged the surgeon to operate. He did, and it was the best thing I ever did.

I was pain free immediately.

Back surgery today is minimally invasive and the recovery is rapid. The risk of damaging other nerves is close to nil.

Your mileage may vary!

Matt

 

I had surgery on the disc between C6 & C7 in 2002. It "slipped" badly playing volleyball. Total loss of feeling immediately in my left arm. Tried physical therapy for 6 weeks before surgery but ultimately had to go under the knife. Six weeks of recovery in which I couldn't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk. Since then no problems at all. I did lose a little range of motion but that is my fault, I didnt follow my PT stretching to the letter. I'm always conscious of how I lift and turn and up until last year I was in a job where I would lift 40-80lbs and carry it on my shoulder 15-20 times a day. I have a Ti plate and 4 Ti screws holding the disc in.

 

Surgery,make it your last ditch effort,I had a Fusion also on my L4-L5 back in Feb of 2011,for some reason it never took the Pain away in my lower Back or Numbness down my Right Leg,I have been seeing a pain specialist since Oct of last year.He has Performed a series of Injections on my Spine and Pelvis,Which now the Pain is under control.My advice to you is research your alternatives,Laser traetment,Recompression therapy,Core strenghting,Sometimes Surgery(fusion) should be your last Treatment.Hope it all works out for you Harry.

 

I had 4-5 surgery in 2005. I have been playing baseball, basketball and golf pain free ever since. Prior to the surgery I tried PT and epidural shots with no success. The surgeon did a diskectomy and double lamenectomy. I walked out of the hospital the next day pain free and have never looked back. The most important thing is to find the right Dr.

 

No, not a fusion. Thankfully.

Good luck. I hope you can be repaired with minimal work.

 

I have two down low that sometimes give me trouble. It was much worse ten years ago.

Lost some weight, saw a really good physical therapist and have not (knock on wood) had any serious problems in 5-6 years.

Occasional flare up, usually when I do something stupid, but a few days of careful exercise and anti-inflammation meds usually clears it right up.

Too many years of rugby, I guess.

D

 

Drink Chocolate Milk to reduce inflammation

Take Motrin with food.

Sleep on left side with pillow between legs.

Keep right arm above duvet while gently laying knuckles into pillow, as it helps stabilize the arm.

If need be, keep a pillow behind you to keep from rolling over to sore/numb side.

Do what you can muster in Crunches.

Fortunately, Sex is the best exercise.

 

My L5 has been really bothering me for a good 10 years. i've been to every Chiro got nothing. My sister told me to try her Chiro Kinesiologist. WOW, after 1 session with Dr. Howard Cohn (google him) I feel like a new (er) man. I'm not 100% yet but from just 1 visit i feel 75% better. i'm going again tonight for my second (out of 4) visit. I've been bothered by this for 10 years. I'm so excited!!!!! www.cohnhealthinstitute.com

 

Not a rupture but very close. We played in a higher level league and the Dr. saiid if I would have been hit in the head blocking, with as hard as they hit a volleyball, I may have been paralyzed. Luckily I was 27 and healed pretty well so I moved onto a safer sport...I play hockey now. Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.

 

I'm very, very happy for you - Go Yankees.

^How to fit 5 Y's in a concise note^


via rubber ducky

 

yoga. lots of yoga.

Haven't missed a day of work or had any pain in four years. 41 years old.

If you're heavy, drop weight too. Went from 215 to 155 (5'10").

Cutting was to be an absolute last resort after I did what I could do (Wife's in medicine so we have lots of docs on first name basis.... 2 of 3 wanted to cut). Glad I went that route.

edit: I was at point where if I moved wrong I would see stars and be in so much pain I would start to black out. Pinched once while tying my shoes and couldn't get off floor for hours... ended up calling 911 when I finally could CRAWL to phone.

 

I herniated a disc in my lower back a few years ago from playing tennis (don't recall which one it was exactly). I did the PT thing when it first happened and have been managing the pain with anti-inflamatories and stretching/exercise. It flares up a couple times a year but the pain is usually gone within a week or two.

Unless it gets much worse, I am going to avoid the idea of surgery.

 

You might also investigate VAX-D. Non-invasive, and I had good results with it. It's a de-compression table, basically. You do it every day of the week for 4-5 weeks. Treatments take, all-in, about an hour to an hour and a half, which is a commitment. BUT, like I said, it worked well enough for me.

CW

 

L3 - L4 discs give me a problem but only when I ride my tractor or motorcycle. The vibration seems to irritate the sciatic nerve and I have a bad limp for about 5 minutes.

 

Had problems with L3-L4 disc and L4-L5 disc. Tried everything. Physical therapy, rest, anti inflam meds, injections. Finally did minimally invasive surgery to trim the discs. Still had big problems. After very serious consideration, went for the nuclear option - fusion of L3-L4 and L4-5. The bad: recovery took 1 year with the first 3 months consisting of catastrophic pain. The good: Problem has completely gone away. I am very active and no longer even think of my back, but my God - what a year.

 

KatMan - How old were you when you had the surgery?

Thanks

 

Me 2

 

I was in my mid 60's when I had my L3-L4-L5 fusion done. BTW, I was under the impression that the artificial disc has become a controversial procedure.