Sciatica: Ever experience it? ***RECOVERING RAPIDLY**

[Desin]

Good luck with your surgery. I'll be watching this as I've got a disk in my back that is protruding and hitting a nerve causing massive pain in my legs. They just injected to anti-inflam into both sides of my spine this week for the 4th time. It is working well at the moment but will only last about a month. I'll be looking into the knife at the end of this summer. It scares the shit out of me because I would die if they made the problem worse.

 

[OverVolt]

I had it and got over it, it was mostly psychosomatic due to stress and tense muscles. It also had to do with mt bad posture when I sleep sometimes. The ability to spread out and relax will prevent alot of sciatic troubles. If you sit for your job that is probably where you were injured.

Surgery hurts like a bitch do everything you can to avoid it IMO. Standing alot even though it hurt at first helped greatly.

 

[hdfxst]

My appointment with a specialist recently basically confirmed my only option was surgery. The first specialist was chosen by my doctor specifically due to his ability to keep patients away from surgery. This specialist basically said there was nothing he could do to help me being that the herniation of one of the discs being so large and my spinal column being so narrow. He referred me to a surgeon who went over my options. Basically he said its a common procedure that he has performed over 800 times. He says if the large ruptured disc is not taken care of I could lose control of my bladder or other function including but not limited to numbness and weakness of legs. I have had some numbness recently in my toes. So ready to be done with this pain and getting back to being my normal self.

Surgery scheduled for monday and the surgeon said I would be walking out that night as long as the bleeding has stopped. Here's to hoping a life without pain is in my future!:thumbsup:

this sounds almost exactly what my doctor said to me,he even gave me a 70 % success rate.i had 3 discs repaired and a 3 level lamenectomy(spinal stenosis) and now i have an 8in. scar up the middle of my back and my back doesn't bend anymore(it wasn't fused)i can't even bend over and tie my shoes and i'm limited to lifting 20 pounds(the surgery was in 08).nerves take 12-18 months to heal and surgery won't change that(my nerve damage was permanent).don't rush into surgery,I thought i would gain more of my life back but i ended up losing more than i gained.Now the surgery failed for me and may work out for you but once it's done it's done.

 

[Moonbeam]

I read about an experimental procedure a few years back where they inject a new disk of some sort to cushion the vertebrae and spread them apart. Wonder where that research went.

Maybe here: http://books.google.com/books?id=Dn...page&q=Injecting a rubber spinal disk&f=false

 

[nanobreath]

Surgery scheduled for monday and the surgeon said I would be walking out that night as long as the bleeding has stopped. Here's to hoping a life without pain is in my future!:thumbsup:

I hope it goes well for you. My Dad had complications after the surgery. The nurses never listened when my parents told them he was having trouble breathing. "You're talking, you're breathing just fine" Till he finally, literally stopped being able to breath. Just a few minutes without oxygen to the brain is very bad to say the least. Over a week in ICU after that, months in a neck collar, and over 5 years to not only physically recover, but mentally as well.

 

[NoStateofMind]

Well I'm home licking my wounds. Still in pain but the doctor says that should all subside in a few days.

So I went in yesterday morning about 630am. They took me into a prep room where they started an IV and put the tight stockings on to help with circulation. I literally didn't go into surgery until 1030-11am. A lot of waiting. They finally wheel me back and one of the odd things I noticed was a bucnh of speakers. Apparently my doc likes to listen to music while performing his godlike abilities. Well according to the people I asked anyway. This guy put on this "oxygen" mask and tells me to breath in deeply. Thats the last thing I remember before waking up with crazy soreness in my back from the sutures and the massive dry mouth which felt like sandpaper. I immediately start complaining about the pain and how I wanted water. He told me he could only give me ice chips. WTF?! So while im eating ice chips and the nurse assigned to my side shot me up with something to ease the pain. A few minutes later he gave me more as my complaining was probably getting on his nerves. They took me up into my room about 3pm. There I slept off and on. Later that night I asked the nurse for assistance in turning on my side. In great pain she asked what my pain level was and I replied "10". She then gave me 10mg of morphine which almost immediately took away the pain and lasted a couple hours. After that all I could get was Percocet. Gave me three types of antibiotics in my IV and occasionally a shot of pepsid. Unfortunately I had to stay overnight but at least they gave me ambien to help sleep.

This morning I was introduced to real food. Eggs, grits and a biscuit. The night before was water, ice and broth The physical therapist came by and tried to get me to stand up. I could but was painful on the right side. Using a walker i was able to walk down the hall and back. After explaining that where I lived I had to go up steps she requested that I try a few. I must say its like a full blown workout trying to manage pain and balance. After that was completed all I had to do was wait for my doc to release me. Around 2pm he shows up and gives me the lowdown. He said that the disc ruptured and had gone down and around the nerves which was a bit tough to get to but he was able to get it all. Something he found alarming was the arthritis in my back. I am too young for this and thinks its genetic (my dad has back issues to but he never went for surgery). He said that if I didn't lose weight I could be seeing him again in a few years but if I got my weight down and kept it off I may not ever need surgery again.

Right now my back is sore where the sutures are, there is pain and weakness on my right side leg which according to the doc should go away in a few days. My chest is sore, my lip is busted from the tube they shoved down my throat which in turn also caused sore throat (duh). Feel like I've got a lot of muscle soreness just about everywhere. I'll update my condition in a few days. Meanwhile here's a couple tips if you have this problem and elect for surgery.

1. Ask for a "dramamine" patch behind your ear to stop you from feeling sick immediately after surgery. I got this tip from a friend who's been put under before. I never got sick or felt the slightest tinge of nausea.

2. Expect to urinate while laying down. Yeah this isn't easy and they give you one of those plastic urinals. Have to be very patient. It sometimes took me 20 minutes to finish.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Ugggg, best of luck to you. I really want to know how it goes.

I had really painful sciatica for more than half a year after doing improper deadlifts. All the shitty doctors do was prescribe painkillers. Worthless and it costs me money on every visit. Of course the painkillers dull the pain, and of course the pain comes back after the meds wear off. Duh. It's a structural problem.

Went to a chiropractor for a couple of months and the pain subsided, but I hit a plataeu. He said I should get an MRI done. And then I went to Mexico and got food poisoning. Puked throughout the night and passed out for the entirety of the next day. Afterwards, the pain was greatly subsided and has continued that way. I still get constant pain in my one leg, but it is very small. Sometimes I feel pain when I get out of my car after driving for hours on end, but a standing stretch puts it back to normal.

But basically, this is a chronic condition that will probably only get worse with age. And I've heard that surgery should be the absolute last option, as the side effects are not good at all. I mean, they take out the disk altogether. No more cushion. Vertebrae are more or less fused. They don't repair the herniation. They just remove the entire thing.

I'm too scared to do it. I will do my best to avoid it unless they can come up with a way to either push back the herniation permanently, or take out the disk and replace it with an artificial one that's just as good.

Surgery nowadays is still too much about butchering than about healing for my taste.

 

[stargazr]

Best of luck with your recovery. I suggest walking as much as possible when you can handle it. They will probably tell you that in therapy. You have one chance to keep things loose in there as the scar tissue begins to grow.

I recovered pretty good in that sense. I had some leg pain afterwards that was mostly gone by the time PT was over. Part of it was aqua therapy and it's great if you can get it.

Lower back pain is another story.

 

[Dr. Zaus]

I will do this now

 

[mmntech]

Good to hear your surgery went well. My dad had sciatica. Guess it would be, wow, seven years now. Doesn't seem that long ago. I remember he was in terrible pain and couldn't barely get up for a month. He's always had issues with back pain as long as I can remember. But he still thinks he's 20. A dangerous combo. He'd never admit to it but he tried to lift our snowblower after it got stuck in the garage. I think that's what triggered it.

He didn't get surgery. Doctor said it wasn't advisable in his case because of where the nerve was pinched. Took a long time but it got better.

 

[NoStateofMind]

So I've been getting better daily since release. I used the walker I had been given from the car to the stairs the day I was allowed to go home but have not used it since! That night I was up and walking around. Soreness that I had experienced? Gone. Sutures sore? Minor. I sleep through the night and showers no longer bring tears. There is minor sciatic pain in my left side which my doc thinks is inflammation related. I really feel like a new man even though I haven't 100% recovered. Numbness from my right knee down will still take time and so will regaining my strength there.

I love my doctor.....no homo.

 

[OverVolt]

And then I went to Mexico and got food poisoning. Puked throughout the night and passed out for the entirety of the next day. Afterwards, the pain was greatly subsided and has continued that way.

Yea one of the moments that my back got better was when I passed out drunk/vomited everywhere.

 

[Phoenix86]

Good to know you are doing better, is this quick of a recovery expected?

 

[Dr. Zaus]

So I've been getting better daily since release. I used the walker I had been given from the car to the stairs the day I was allowed to go home but have not used it since! That night I was up and walking around. Soreness that I had experienced? Gone. Sutures sore? Minor. I sleep through the night and showers no longer bring tears. There is minor sciatic pain in my left side which my doc thinks is inflammation related. I really feel like a new man even though I haven't 100% recovered. Numbness from my right knee down will still take time and so will regaining my strength there.

I love my doctor.....no homo.

Fair enough.

Glad to her things are going well.

 

[TheShiz]

I had it for a few months. numbness going all the way down my leg to the side of my foot along with bad back pain. It was depressing because I read a lot about it and it seemed common for people to have a really hard time getting back to normal. I think I was lucky. I was given exercises to do and they really helped and I was back to normal after a few months.

 

[OverVolt]

I had it for a few months. numbness going all the way down my leg to the side of my foot along with bad back pain. It was depressing because I read a lot about it and it seemed common for people to have a really hard time getting back to normal. I think I was lucky. I was given exercises to do and they really helped and I was back to normal after a few months.

Yea a big part of it is psychological sometimes it felt like it was never going to get better but that is 100% not true. When you were initially exercising that first month and it would flare back it it may have been like "ah fuck me" but its a good thing you stuck it out. Thats really important IMO.

I got a job where I did alot of standing/walking and initially I thought I was trashing my back even worse but it turns out it helped alot. Sitting is in general bad for your health.

 

[busydude]

That is great news. Your doc seems pretty cool. All hail the advancements of modern science.

Just take care.. don't get carried away and do some stupid shit.

 

[n7]

Sounds like a nightmare.

Glad to hear you are healing well.

 

[grohl]

It will be ten years in June since I had surgery on L5/S1 discectomy.

I had immediate relief from my symptoms when I woke in the recovery room. Life was fantastic for about 5 years. I very much eased back into my routine (2 weeks off, no running or walking). I have since resumed all of my preop activities over the years, running, lifting, hiking, weights, etc.

My only warning is that you WILL have some return of your symptoms, eventually. Expect it; do not fear it. When it comes, don't panic, do your therapy and exercises, and be patient. Yoga works well for me. It will eventually calm down.

Good luck, from one bad back to another.