Anyone here had back surgery?
 

Like it says, anyone? Looking to hear both good and bad. I've already heard that most don't work and some people are worse after surgery. No good results have been reported yet.

Yes , I had back surgery 3 years ago and its the best thing I ever did . I was in constant pain , my left leg was weak and numb and hurt all at the same time from Sciatica due to nerve damage . My surgeon Fused my 3 lower Vertebra and sorted out the nerves that were causing a lot of the pain ,most of that in my leg . When I woke up in recovery I knew he had Fixed my back . I never needed the pain meds he prescribed for after the surgery .I had hurt for more than 20 years and he took that pain away .I would have been Disabled and miserable if I had not had the surgery .I followed his instructions for recovery to a T ,including a lot of physical theraphy and lots of walking .

That's what I wanted to hear John. How old were you when you had the surgery?

53 ................................................

We had 3 neighbors that had back surgery. All were as bad or worse after the surgery. But that was over 20 years ago. They've learned a lot since then. Is this for you Tony? I know you've had some back issues in the past. You need to come up here. Get on your tractor and run it into a steel post, I hear that does wonders for the back.

Long story Hank. Yes, for me. I'm trying to get some brush-hogging done before the temps get into the eighties today. After 300 bucks and multiple trips to the Chiropractor, I did strap in and bash the tree. Took 3 hits, but I finally got some relief. I am going to try and hold out on any surgery. Will look for a specialist when I get back to Michigan. The MRI of my back is horrendous.

I used a great Dr in Atlanta , he works on all the Professional Athletes in Atlanta , he is very good .

Sit ups or stomach crunches. Strengthening your core/stomach muscles is one of the best things you can do for your back. Worth a shot and it's free.

I had a discectomy 9 years ago at the age of 31. Hurt my back when I was 18 and the disc just kept degrading until it finally ruptured. I have nerve damage in my right leg but my back has been much better since the surgery. I stretch every day and exercise to keep the muscles strong and flexible. I also visit the chiropractor and massage therapist once a month to keep everything in line.

Went to the spinal surgeon last week. I am only going to consider any surgery as a last resort. I started therapy last week. The therapist was honest and said there is no therapy that is going to fix me. Only try to change the pain level. Yup Hank, the therapy is supposed to strengthen my core. The surgeon said he can cut part of the blown disc out and grind some of the bone away from the nerves.

That's what I had done and it was very successful for me. But generally speaking the discectomy is generally just a temporary solution before a fusion surgery. At least that's what I've been told. Good luck with the therapy. Have you had the injections yet? For me the injections helped a lot with the pain but once the nerve damage became so bad I couldn't straighten my leg I had the surgery.

I have not gotten the shot. We discussed it, and the surgeon says that it is just a "mask" for the pain. Man, I hope this doesn't get so bad that I can't straighten my leg. That sounds like you were in a LOT of pain. Mine is still tolerable, so the therapy is worth a try. Surgeon also said that I should be looking at pain management with drugs. No thanks.

I probably had between 1-3 courses of physical therapy every year for 13 years. It helped for a while until the last year. I never took any drugs stronger than ibuprofen. They make me feel horrible. I couldn't even do muscle relaxers. But every back injury is different. Do what your PT tells you and hopefully you'll feel better. Good luck.

I really dont know how anyone uses pain meds longterm as I could not take a Shit after surgery until I took a laxative and I had to take small doses of laxative as the Dr did not want me straining at all . Plus I dont like how they made me feel , itching from the inside out .

Judy goes in on July 10th for her spinal surgery. Her L4 is blown out. She has been in constant pain down her leg and into her foot since her hip surgery on April 9th 2018. This new Doctor said he is about 100% sure all of her pain will be gone after this new surgery. He said your gonna hate me for about 6 weeks...….then your gonna love me, I said oh no she aint……….and we all laughed.

Well she had her surgery on the 12th. They got her up to use the bathroom and when she stood up...….the look on her face was priceless...…….Ken, theres NO MORE PAIN !! Shes just a little achy but that's to be expected.

Her Saitic Nerve was being pinched between the L4 & L5 and was starting to grow onto the L5. He sculpted the L4 and added some material, removed the nerve and used screws and rods to fuse the 4 & 5 together.

She was walkin about 200 ft, climbing a few steps today......comes home tomorrow.

Congrats so happy to hear the good news.

That's great Ken. Good for her.

Keep us up to date on her progress Ken. That is good news. I hope she heals fast.

This is Monday...….last Friday we went for a walk down the block and back...….was first time she tried it without the walker or a cane. Did pretty good but I think the stress of doing it without any aids scared the crap outa her. We go see the Doctor tomorrow morning and see what he has to say on her progress.

Sounds like success. Glad she is doing better.

That's progress Ken. Tell Judy we're pulling for her.

We went and saw the Doc on Aug 14th (I think) and he said everything is looking good. She still has a lot of pain down her leg and into her foot like before. We go back and see him next month...…..she still hasn't driven since July 10th...……..kinda shot our car season this year.

Ken, is her pain any worse than before the surgery or is it better? Therapy hasn't done a damn thing for me, and this shit is getting REAL painful now.

She doesn't have any more pain in her back since the surgery......she mainly has the same pain in her lower leg and foot like with her hip replacement she had last year. She hasn't done any PT yet......shes kinda seeing how far she can do things on her own right now. After surgery Doctor had her on no BLT.....bending, lifting, twisting. Will let you know what he says on the 8th of this month.

Thanks Ken. Curious to see how she heals.

I gave up on my chiropractor. I went to school with him, so I have remained loyal to him for decades. He hasn't kept up with technology, at all. I started a program with the new guy Monday. He took a full set of x-rays, did some range of motion x-rays, and has a digital computer thing the shows the nerves and how much electric impulses are going through them. My lower three vertabre are almost fused solid now. He has made three adjustments so far and I already have had some pain relief. Very aggressive treatment.

I've done push ups most of my life. They do keep your back strong and keep you injury free.... I also do sit ups, crunches and pull ups.. They keep you feeling good. At 62 I am so glad I did this, my friends are cripples and watch me work on my car...

Ken, Judy needs PT. Don't care what she thinks it makes a difference. I've heard people say they did the PT and everything is fine now. Then there's those that don't follow through with PT and claim the surgery was a waste of time. Convince her to give it a try.

Tony, hope your new chiropractor gives you some relief.

I mentioned before that the ortho surgeon I saw a 3 weeks ago said you have some arthritis. Maybe someday you'll need a replacement shoulder joint but not now. He had nothing more to offer. Saw a different Doc last week. He also said rotator cuff tear was minor and really didn't require surgery. He said the joint is some what misaligned and he felt that was causing part of the pain. So he gave me a cortisone shot which did help alot. He also wanted me to see this other Doc, saw him today. He zapped my arm with electrical pulses and stuck some needles in in different spots. Trying to determine what was causing the tingling and numbness in my hand. Carpal tunnel he thinks so now I have a wrist brace.

Good that you don't need the surgery. Wrist brace going to slow you down on the complete remodel of your daughters new place?

My new chiro has made me feel a little better. This program is normally an 18 month deal. He's trying to do it in 21 days on me.

I have a customer who is a back surgeon, she said don't let them touch you unless you cant walk....

Judy starts her PT on Monday. She's very close to getting back behind the wheel, after not drivin for 3 months.

Hank, it sounds like you had a EMG test. Judy had that before her back surgery....was kinda neat watchin and hearing the machine while they were doing the test.

Yeah Ken that's what it was. Really though I don't think it's carpal tunnel. Seems like how I position my arm/shoulder affects the numbness/tingling more than anything, even when wearing the brace. Glad Judy is going for PT, those guys know there shit, more than the docs when it comes to rehabing.

Tony, 18 months down to 21 days. Sounds a little aggressive to me.

I agree with her. I've talked to people that have had surgery, only a very few are glad they had it done.

Very aggressive Hank, very aggressive. I am seeing an improvement. At least I can walk and stand up in the shower now.

Hank, kinda weird when you say positioning your arm a certain way gives you numbness and tingling feelings. Back in 17 when I was going through that shit with COPD, Heart and numbness feelings on my left side. When I would sit a certain way I would get a bad numbness feeling. When I finally went to see a Chiropractor, he took 3 xrays and said Ken I see some damage near the top of your spine. To me it looks like its 50 years or so old. 49 years before, I was in a car wreck where I hit the windshield frame and got a kind of whiplash injury. He showed me the xray and then showed me a model with nerves and lights. When he pressed the model where the my xray showed my damage the nerves would light up exactly where I was getting the numbness. Long story short...he put me on a stretching machine and that did it....no more pain or numbness.

Boy... we are so fragile. My dad hurt his back last month. Still in a lot of pain, more in his hip and leg now. He's been to several doctors, had an MRI, etc. No nerve damage or torn muscles. He has been going to PT twice a week, slight improvement. They say he is very tight in that area and are trying to loosen him up. The biggest hurdle is his breathing, his diaphram is paralyzed. I am trying to get him to lose some weight, I have been for several years. I think it would do him a lot of good. It is killing him not being able to work on his cars.

Good luck with your dad. I bet it is driving him nuts not being able to get much done.

It is, which in turn leads him to aggrivate me more than normal.

Well it finally happened...……...SHE DROVE !! Didn't drive far yesterday but it kinda made her a little sore and tight. I told her I think that's normal because you haven't used these muscles for 3 months. Today was better for her...….Tomorrow we go to NPD....HOT DAMN !!

That's great news Ken. Hope she keeps moving forward. Maybe you could pick up a few things for me at NPD and deliver them. J/K, that is good news Ken.