I am seeing this new neuro doc.He may do surgery, but first another MRI.My last one is not recent enough for him. Then he will decide what if anything he wants to do with me.And I hate meeting new Docs.Afterwards I am always wondering ,Does he think I am just a Hypocondriac?I am so sick of all of this.I wish I had never been in that car.I was in college, had a job, my whole life in front of me. Now I cant even support myself or my kids.Blahh!!!
I went to a chiropractor for two years.It didnt help me,but she was the nicest, kindest woman I have ever met.She tried everything she could.Even since I have not met someone with the willingness to do as much as she did.In the end she sent me for an MRI and she was the one who dicovered the real colprit to my pain.I still see her once in a while.Good luck to you and I hope yours is as compasionate as mine.
Hi Chrystal I have only one suggestion to give you before you have surgery well maybe two. Please make sure that at least two neurosurgeons think you need this surgery. And the other thing is to check out other procedures that can be done first to help your pain before surgery. I am considering a procedure were they numb the nerves in the spine to see if that will help relieve my pain. I have had back surgery and I m worse off because of it. It ws not the surgery that was the failure but they but a internal brace in my back to help hold the fusion in place.
The screws that held the brace in place came loose. I carried this loose brace for 9 months before tey removed it. My pain was so bad before they took the brace out I cried everyday.
Then my nightmare began. I have had chronic pain since 1996 and it is getting worse. Please make sure that you know this dr and don’t be afraid to ask for refrences of patients he as operated on. This is not the time to be intimidated by the dr. your life is in his hands and you have the right to make sure he is competent and not just cut hungry.
ps: I am a nurse and i am having problems with my dr right now and i am in the process of changing physicians. I want someone who understands what I am gong through not one who just pushes pills onto me.
Oh my god Becca!!! That is EXACTLY what is happening to me. I had my surgery 3 years ago…they put in a titanium cage to hold the fusion together. I have 6 or 8 screws, I don’t remember…but my last xray showed that some of the screws are not where they should be. They suggested surgery to remove it but my 1st one was such a nightmare…it put such an emotional and financial strain on my family…my daughter who was 13 at the time, started cutting due to the stress of taking care of me and her brothers…it was awful…a time I can never get back. I’d like to talk to you more.
Crystal, while surgery is certainly a last resort, it is sometimes necessary and not always bad. When I was 34, I somehow ruptured my L5-S1 disc. For months, I was told that I merely had “sciatica”. I lost more and more strength in my left leg to where my employees started calling me “Hopalong”. Then I suddenly lost the ability to urinate. Not only could I not, I didn’t even feel the need to do it. This was certainly worrisome. I called the extended hour nurse for a clinic and was told that it was merely a reaction to the meds. After a couple of more days, I became even mroe worried and called my primary care physician’s office. I didn’t see him, but another doc. He ordered an emergency MRI for that night and I was scheduled for surgery the next morning. They did a discectomy (removed 85% of my disc) and a laminectomy. While the pain did not go away 100%, the difference was amazing! Well, fast forward three years. I was lifting a 50 pound bag of chicken feed from a cart to the car. I didn’t pay attention and used poor biomechanics and actually twisted a little and felt my disc give again. The first neurosurgon I saw was a total ass and spent a total of maybe ten minutes talking to me. He didn’t listen to me at all so I fired him. This delayed treatment for a couple of months, but I did find a better doctor. By the time I finally had the surgery, I had done permanent damage to the sheath of my sciatic nerve. I couldn’t even stand long enough to brush my teeth the night before surgery. Once again the surgery has provided immense relief, but I do have permanent nerve damage. I take Soma 3 times a day to help pervent back spasms. Acetaminophen 3 times a day and Ultram ER once a day for pain. I also take Celebrex once or twice a day for inflammation otherwise my left foot tends to go numb on me. So while I do have persistent pain and some other problems, I am able to lead a more or less normal, active life. I do my chores, travel, shop, go hiking and camping, etc… To be honest, most days my chronic pancreatitis bothers me more than my back. If surgery is warranted, have it done. Make sure that you are comfortable with your neurosurgeon and that he takes the time to discuss everything with you. The fact that he wanted a more recent MRI is certainly a plus in his favor. Best of luck!
Warbi,
I’m so glad to hear of a positive experience. I’m so happy that you were able to get your life back. I"m also glad that Crystal can now have good advice on the other side of the spectrum.
Believe me when I say I have indeed tried everything else.It has been almost seven years since the accident and I continue to get worse.I have had discographys,nerve blocks,injections,and much more procedures than I can think of right now.This is my LAST hope.I have been seeing a very good musculal skeletal doc and he is the one who sent me to this neuro surgen.I have indeed done it all and cant remember much of it due to drugs from the New York Pain Center.They were good but they dropped me when I lost private insurance.Now I just have good old medicaid total care.Note the sarcasim.Anyway I do appreciate the input.I hope everyone has a survivable day.