Member

Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 141
Location: Lafayette, IN

Hi all,

Just as a disclaimer, this is a bit of a b-tching session for me, but I consider you all my friends, so here goes...

Last June I had spine surgery to take out very small pieces of two disks. The disks were pressing on nerves coming out of my spinal cord, causing severe pain and numbness in both my back and leg. Things went well for a couple months and I felt great, the pain was gone, etc. Sometime in mid-September though, the pain started to come back and I times I could hardly move. I saw my spine surgeon again and had another MRI, which showed one of the discs I had operated on was re-herniated, causing all the pain again. Since then I've been seeing a pain management doctor (emb145, I think I told you about her) and my spine surgeon regularly. I've been getting epidural steroid injections (yes, that's a big d-mn needle) about once a month, and they haven't really helped. I'm also on some really powerful pain medicaton...you know, the good stuff, lol.

Well, I saw the spine surgeon again this past week, and it turns out my pain is being caused by scar tissue from the previous surgery. It's not the doctor's fault, I just didn't heal correctly. I was told the only option now is to have surgery again. The difference this time is that both bad discs will be completely removed, plastic cages and bone protein will be put in their place, and bolts and screws will be put in three of my vertebrae and attached to metal framework to keep everything in place. Needless to say, I am NOT happy about this. I had some complications in the recovery room after my last surgery, so I'm not looking forward to anesthesia again.

For now, I'm going to continue seeing the pain management specialist until I absolutely can't take the pain any more. At that point, we'll go ahead and schedule the surgery.

Ok, I feel better Sorry to make you read all that, lol.

Dan

Member

Joined: 18 Jan 2008
Posts: 106
Location: Indianapolis

That sucks.
I had my appendix removed, then had to have surgery for an infection that came up from the first surgery, then had to have another surgery because the first surgery had hurniated.

Site Admin

Joined: 15 Jun 2005
Posts: 2316
Location: Indianapolis, IN

You know if you do that surgery you will for the rest of your life set of metal detectors at airports around the world .

Member

Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 141
Location: Lafayette, IN

Yeah...does it make me a super dork if the metal detector thing was one of the first things I thought of? lol...