Slipped Disc. Private guestimate?

goz83

Thanks maggie. That's account helps put my mind at ease. And the reference to cement is chillingly familiar and current with me. I am still mostly bed bound, but when I do get up, I can sometimes look like I am walking like a normal person. My leg pain is gone, except for the occasional shot of pain in the left leg if i move a certain way. The back pain has improved, but the back itself is very weak, only lasting a few minutes at a time vertical.

Spook_ie

hope you're doing ok and that your little one arrived safe and sound. I found the first 2/3 weeks post op the toughest, I remember when I'd get out of bed, I'd be saying ooohh this doesnt feel too bad and I'd say head to the kitchen and put on the kettle and then I used to have this sudden 'feeling' like my body was too heavy and I'd have to make a bee line for the couch to lie down. The risk of re-herniation is greatest during the first few weeks so take it slow. Did the physios see you before discharge ? My first checkup was at 4 weeks post op and by that stage things were considerably better

goz83

Yep, I certainly have that feeling. Get up, feel grand for a few minutes and then the battery starts to die below the waist. Trying to be extra careful insofar as is possible. My work is very light (mostly i talk) and allows me to sit and stand and even lay down between clients, but I have only been seeing a few clients to take it easy.

I was seen by a physio the morning before discharge that evening. He was happy with me and gave me leg and butt movements to do. Very light stuff. I am told my post op consultation will be in January. So, i guess 6, or 7 weeks after surgery. Things are improving for the most part. It's just so slow at a busy period, where I need to be able to do more. It's tough when you have to lie down when you really need to be doing something for work, or helping out with the new arrival, who arrived on schedule and is doing great, thanks.

Eircom_Sucks

hey how are you getting on ?

i have a microdiscetomy on 13-04-16 planned with Dr Poynton in the mater private

luckily for me i have vhi so there is no cost for me ( thank god ) i have a herniation l5 s1 and in ribbons with pain at the min , have my pre-op assessment sat 03-04-16 , at the minute i just cant wait to get this done , i know it will be weeks even months before i get back to normal but anything is better to how i am now

chatjunkie

Eircom_Sucks wrote:

i have a microdiscetomy on 13-04-16 planned with Dr Poynton in the mater private

Best of luck with it. I have had two ops with Mr. Poynton and can't speak highly enough of him. Wouldn't let any other surgeon near my back. Both ops have been a great success. Great nursing care in mater private too. Good luck!

Eircom_Sucks

chatjunkie wrote: »

Best of luck with it. I have had two ops with Mr. Poynton and can't speak highly enough of him. Wouldn't let any other surgeon near my back. Both ops have been a great success. Great nursing care in mater private too. Good luck!

cheers man , appreciate it

goz83

Eircom_Sucks wrote: »

hey how are you getting on ?

i have a microdiscetomy on 13-04-16 planned with Dr Poynton in the mater private

luckily for me i have vhi so there is no cost for me ( thank god ) i have a herniation l5 s1 and in ribbons with pain at the min , have my pre-op assessment sat 03-04-16 , at the minute i just cant wait to get this done , i know it will be weeks even months before i get back to normal but anything is better to how i am now

I missed your post and just seen it now as I came to update the thread. How are you post surgery, as it's a few months now?


In my case, more than 7 months have passed since my surgery. I'm a bit fuzzy on detail, as I couldn't have had more than an hour of sleep last night, as I have a fair bit of pain in my back (not as bad as before though).

It's been and continues to be a challenging journey. I have much better mobility than pre-surgery, but i'm still nowhere near what I was before. I know it's not really that long since surgery, but when I read about others recovering quickly, or not recovering at all, I still get the same horrible feelings of anger. Angry that others can heal quickly and that I haven't. Anger that others haven't recovered. I'm a bit cranky at the minute....so I realise my tone isn't sunshine and lollipops, but I will update things now.

So, I started physio at the end of January and had a few weekly sessions. I started to improve, getting my strength back and then being able to drive again was good, as I felt trapped when I wasn't able to drive. I had circa 10 sessions and had good flexibility overall. I started back at the gym, as recommended, which I was really looking forward to, having put on a fair few kilos since the accident. I was restricted to stretching and light exercise. Anything that would risk back injury, or cause additional back pain was avoided for the most part. Swimming, I tend to avoid, because I have this really annoying numb sensation I notice when I get into the pool. It's on the outer edge of my left foot down to the small toe. I can only describe it like a feeling that skin is very thick in that area and I think it's the rest of the foot registering the change of temperature that causes this sensation. It doesn't seem noticeable in warm water though. To be honest, I used to enjoy the gym. I was never a high frequency visitor, but when I went, I was able to work-out hard and felt great after. Now, it kind of feels like a chore and I try to avoid it. I make sure that I get my stretches done when the pain dies down and I do this every day unless I have a really bad day and I have had a few of those throughout last month and this month. I went to my GP with my concerns and was given anti-inflams which have done nothing.

I know things are better since the surgery, because the pain is less. I can be a 5-6 on the pain scale in the morning, 7 on a really bad one, but overall, I am usually down at level 2-3 for most of the day. I also haven't had the leg pain, so I don't think I have re-herniated. I also continue to have trouble with my neck, which I believe is aggravated by poor posture, which is caused by the back pain :rolleyes:

So, what have I been doing? Well, aside from the gym, which I have been managing about twice weekly (hoping to increase that). I try to get out walking daily. It could be short, 10-15 minute around the park with the dogs, or a two hour stroll if i'm out hunting. I took up a new hobby, doing target practice with a rifle and clay pigeon shooting with a shotgun. A local farmer has let me control pests on the land and it gets me out walking on the flat fields. It's good for me, because I haven't been able to get back into my car hobby and the most I managed was an oil change, which was not an easy thing for me to do, even though the car had an oil drain valve and it wasn't necessary to remove a sump bolt. The things I find difficult and very uncomfortable are some of the most basic things, such as putting a plate into the dishwasher, making the bed, or the worst...putting my 9 month old into her cot. Anything that requires me to bend with my back is sore and feels risky. I do be terrified that the disc will go and it causes me anxiety every day.

Another big problem is that it makes it very hard for me to keep my business going. I generally have no issue selling my products/services to clients, but I am restricted to work when I am having a good day and can't call on clients if i'm in considerable pain. Earlier this week, I had a client referral on hours drive from me. I arrived and could feel sharp pain. I spent less than 10 minutes with the client and had to wrap it up and leave. I didn't want to draw attention to the pain, as I find it embarrassing and annoying when people notice. I drove home, sitting on the left cheek of my butt to try get comfortable (thank god i was driving an autobox). I had to go to bed when I got in and was unable to do other planned work.

The pain I best describe as a think belt of pain just above my buttocks and covering the entire lower back, radiating to the sides. The pain is intensified around the incision site. While I have no pain in the legs, I do have loss of sensation of about 10-20% in the left leg on the outer side. I regularly get pins and needles in the sole when sitting and sometimes when standing. This sometimes encompasses the whole area below the knee when sitting. It's exactly like getting a sleeping leg and the intense pins and needles when you change position. Aggravating this, is the neck pain and shoulder pain.

Of course, all this is difficult for my family too and I do feel like a burden at times. I used to have frequent morbid thoughts, but I have these much less now and usually only on the really bad days.

So, yes, I have improved....but the new normal is far from comfortable and I think I had a major boost when I started physio and returned to the gym, but I am struggling to keep a level head now. At this stage, I am wondering if anyone else has can say their recovery was similar to mine and that things did get better, but just took longer than expected. Thanks for reading. I'm just delaying a promised visit to the gym.

horsey63

Goz83 - I'm one of the 'lucky' ones, I had a microdiskectomy with Michael Kelleher a few years back but had a recurrence a few months ago and because the facet joints were so bad, I had to have a spinal fusion. I have done so amazingly well and have been doing physio up in SSC and am now 95% pain free. I do feel for you as it sounds like you are still suffering significant pain. Are you still attending for checkups in Santry ?

ozzie21

X

All is good thanks 😊

screamer

Had it done in the hermitage a long time ago was under 10k. There is a clinic in Dublin that does decompression treatment for disc herniation, it’s non surgical and is less than 2k. No idea about how good it is but look it up. I had a micro discectomy and it gave me back my life to be honest, do t regret it for a moment,