Constant pain for at least 4 months. Shoulder pain same side. Electric fire running down the arm in certain positions.
Doctor visits reveal herniated disk between c5 and c6.
Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon suggests....wait for it....surgery. Wants to fuse vertebrae together, bone graft from a cadaver, etc.
He'll give me a script for physical therapy, which I intend to do and take seriously...but it's clear from the MRI (wow, those things are awesome!!) that this condition ain't going away...shtein is farged up in there.
My mother and her father both had these problems; this is not a result of work or car accident injury, etc. If anything, it comes from too much head banging in my now long dead youth.
motherfarger
I've had that in my lower back, so I know what that pain feels like. You have my empathy- that firey pain is intense.
Probably obvious, but I'd get a second opinion before agreeing to have my spine fused.
Not being a doctor, but for my lower back I had a much less invasive surgery (microdiscecthomy or something like that). I don't know if that's available for you or not.
But I can agree. That farging hurts.
Yeah, I'll take a second opinion before getting cut for sure. But the guy makes sense and the pictures are pretty clear. It's a classic case.
Yoga massage and PT aren't going to make the gooey shtein stop pressing on my spinal column and go back to where it's supposed to be, that's for sure.
I've had lower and upper back problems for the past decade, my lower back got so bad they wanted to cut a part of it out and fuse a rod to my spine. I said no thanks and opted to use traction and physical therapy.
Good luck with that Dio, what type of meds did they give you? My g/f just got flexiril for her sciatica
haha
seriously though Dio, take PT seriously, work your ass off they know what they are doing unless they are young. Surgery is a bitch man, especially that type. But if its the only shot they can give you for a pain free life, i'd do it.
Sorry to hear all that. Hope it gets taken care of, no matter what course you take.
How's this going to affect the new career?
I haven't lost any strength, and I can work just fine. For now, it's a matter of pain tolerance. I cna handle the pain, but it makes me cranky and I'm losing sleep from having to adjust position a lot. My mobility is down a bit...have to sort of roll into the car because it hurts to duck my head. But for now, no work trouble.
Of course if it gets worse I'll start to lose function in my arm and that would suck.
Right now, the plan is to give PT my all and at the worst case scenrio, schedule surgery for winter when I have less work anyway.
Regarding meds, I've told them I don't want to go that route. I need to preserve liver function for booze and recreational drugs. I'm wary of the slippery slope of pain management through pills.
If it gets real bad, I'll go for it but for now I'm just dealing.
Sorry to hear, Dio.
All bullshtein aside, as I am sure you can attest to since it was a family issue, but fargin around with backs and necks is tricky as hell. Make sure those 2nd and maybe even 3rd opinions are dead on with the first because once they cut, it will never be the same.
Good luck with the therapy.
Sounds like you're getting good advice here (shocking, I know). Surgery should always be the last option. Isn't there a less invasive version of that procedure, as well? I suffer from some arthritic nerve impingement, and I've looked into the options.
I've been doing my own things, from stretching and lifting to relaxation and tai chi. It's really working. Not exactly the same scenario as you, I know...but I think (in my non-medical opinion, natch) that strengthening the muscles in the neck and surrounding areas will help support your spine, and take some of the pressure off of the disc(s).
And if you have to do pills, stick with ibuprofen.
Agreed, Phreak and Sus.
I had no choice (had done PT and Cortizone), and the surgery made the difference like night and day. Did more PT (as much as allowed by my health insurance) afterwards. Still feel the occasional tingles in my feet, and even ripples of pain if I overdo the lifting, but I'm fully functional. I just have to be smarter about things and take care of my back.
I'm a big guy (6'4" and 240), and my doctor said that I could take the maximum amount of ibuprofen if needed for up to a week, then take at least one day off. I hardly ever need it anymore, but on the bad days, they usually do the trick.
Ibuprofen helps a little, but the basic issue is the ruptured disk and that it allows stuff to leak out onto the spinal columun. That's not a swelling thing so much, so basically I'd be taking ibuprofen just for the pain. And if its a matter of that then hell...I'm not kidding...I'd rather leave the liver be to process two or three drinks a night than give that up in exchange for the ibuprofen relief. Call me a drunk but if I'm taking ibuprofen for pain (and not the anti-inflamatory benefits) then I might as well take nothing.
If it's neuropathic pain (i.e. nerve pain), the SSRIs (anti-depressants like Prozac) have done pretty well (meaning better than anything else).
And they only farg with your sex drive, not your drinking.
Plus, they might cheer your gloomy ass up ;D
Not much else to say. Try to manage it, and feel better. To the extent you can, try not to exacerbate it at work.
Quote from: MadMarchHare on April 15, 2008, 10:17:00 PM
If it's neuropathic pain (i.e. nerve pain), the SSRIs (anti-depressants like Prozac) have done pretty well (meaning better than anything else).
And they only farg with your sex drive, not your drinking.
Plus, they might cheer your gloomy ass up ;D
those things make me shtein like a viet cong peasant
My brother had the surgery you referred to above and it fixed him up in a jiffy, Dio. I think there was a couple of months of rehab involved (not really sure, actually) but he went from almost total incapacitation to living a relatively normal life afterward.
Not saying that's the course you should take but his horrendous back problems pretty much disappeared overnight. I believe he had the surgery done at Albert Einstein in Philly if that's any help.
Hopkins is an exception facility, though, and although they like to cut for obvious reasons, if it's unmanageable then you might just say farg it and go for it.
Anyway, good luck with it.
Quote from: Zanshin on April 15, 2008, 10:28:58 PM
To the extent you can, try not to exacerbate it at work.
And try to knock off the auto-fellatio attempts.
I have a herniated T10-11 (thorasic) and bulging L5/S1. PT didn't do anything for me, but chiro visits and the occasional percocet helps me make it through the week.
Good luck with it Dio. Welcome to the old mans club.
Quote from: Butchers Bill on April 15, 2008, 10:53:47 PM
I have a herniated T10-11 (thorasic) and bulging L5/S1. PT didn't do anything for me, but chiro visits and the occasional percocet helps me make it through the week.
Good luck with it Dio. Welcome to the old mans club.
Mine was the L5/S1, but had gotten to the point that I couldn't walk normally. Had to drive left-footed because I couldn't sit properly in the car (28 miles each way to work, shooting pain up my ass - surprised I didn't kill myself on I-75). Had to stop in the office to rest and ice my back because I couldn't walk from my car to my classroom. Was a miserable mother farger to just about everyone.
The breaking point was when I started to have to use the old-people's motorized carts at Target and grocery stores. The looks they gave me when I took one of THEIR carts was priceless.
My problems started in the summer of 2004 (felt like a hamstring pull at first), and just kept getting progressively worse until I actually got the surgery in early November. Part of the problem is that my MD recommended an orthopedic doctor at first, who perscribed PT for the apparent leg injury. The stretches they did for that leg probably made the back worse (put a belt around your foot and pull your straightened leg as high as you possibly can - that can't be good for a lower back injury). When I could no longer make it through the 10 minute treadmill warmup, the doctor did an MRI and found the blown disc. By that time, there was little question about needing the surgery (though we did try the cortizone, which worked for as long as the numbing medication for the epidural lasted).
On a side note, about three weeks before my surgery (just before I was confirmed for a blown disc), I played a charity softball game with my school. I had to DH because I couldn't bend down to pick up a ball, and I couldn't run at all because of the pain. Did hit two home runs in the game, though - perhaps my last sports hurrah. Also hit a line drive to the right field fence, but was thrown out at first because I just couldn't run fast enough with the pain.
Yes, I am a stupid male. ;D
Quote from: Geowhizzer on April 15, 2008, 11:16:16 PM
Also hit a line drive to the right field fence, but was thrown out at first because I just couldn't run fast enough...
Pat Burrell?
Quote from: Butchers Bill on April 15, 2008, 11:21:41 PM
Quote from: Geowhizzer on April 15, 2008, 11:16:16 PM
Also hit a line drive to the right field fence, but was thrown out at first because I just couldn't run fast enough...
Pat Burrell?
Unfortunately, I think that at the time I made Pat Burrell look like Jimmy Rollins.
More like Greg Luzinski.
If the pain becomes unbearable, Naproxen (Aleve) has always worked the best for my neck/spine problem. Ibuprofen doesn't even do anything for me.
ive been on Perc's and Vicodin since November, but havent had any problems not taking them/addictions. I can smoke for months and stop right away, i dont seem to have a gene to get addicted to something other than beer and seckxs
Hope everything works out ok Dio. Any type of surgery is a biatch and I suspect that back surgery is probably the worst and hardest to come back from. Hopefully your physical therapy doesn't interfere with your ability to run errands or follow the Eagles games online.
My dad had to have the back surgery thing a couple years ago for busted out discs. Now it looks like his ass crack goes 1/3 of the way up his back when we're out on his boat.
Quote from: Seabiscuit36 on April 16, 2008, 09:36:58 AM
ive been on Perc's and Vicodin since November, but havent had any problems not taking them/addictions. I can smoke for months and stop right away, i dont seem to have a gene to get addicted to something other than beer and seckxs
Wait 'til that first kid comes - that seckxs addiction will quickly go by the wayside...
Quote from: Geowhizzer on April 16, 2008, 09:50:40 AM
Quote from: Seabiscuit36 on April 16, 2008, 09:36:58 AM
ive been on Perc's and Vicodin since November, but havent had any problems not taking them/addictions. I can smoke for months and stop right away, i dont seem to have a gene to get addicted to something other than beer and seckxs
Wait 'til that first kid comes - that seckxs addiction will quickly go by the wayside...
ha, i think a wedding ring is the first step for the women to cut that off
This thread just made me want to go to the gym even more.
Sorry about the news Dio.
I would recommend a special masturbation technique which allows you to drain different body fluids through your penis. The only one's I've manage to drain so far are semen and blood. I'm working on spinal fluid.
Screw pain medicine, take your girl and yourself to the himalayas and go find some Magi and ask them what they do for back pain.
God speed to recovery Dio.
isnt dio the one who rips others for showing sympathy to random people who die...and now he makes a thread about his neck?
what a farging bitch
Quote from: ice grillin you on April 16, 2008, 01:31:50 PM
isnt dio the one who rips others for showing sympathy to random people who die...and now he makes a thread about his neck?
what a farging bitch
lolz
Quote from: ice grillin you on April 16, 2008, 01:31:50 PM
isnt dio the one who rips others for showing sympathy to random people who die...and now he makes a thread about his neck?
what a farging bitch
POTW
too many drugs appear to be the cause of this thread
We had a dude on patrol with us a couple of months ago get hit in a blast he crushed 15 vertebrae. Remarkably he is pretty much fine now, though he is getting out of the Army now. After the blast when they checked him out they didn't think anything was wrong with him eventhough he was acting totally insane. He thought he was on fire and wasn't. I don't know that much about this sort of injury but I would think something like that would paralyze your ass.
you guys should have pee'd on him and told him you were putting the fire out. or found the nearest gatorade bottle.
If Dio dies from the surgery, we'll be sure to put him in the Good Riddance thread, as per his wishes.
Quote from: SD_Eagle on April 16, 2008, 01:46:56 PM
you guys should have pee'd on him and told him you were putting the fire out. or found the nearest gatorade bottle.
:-D
I hope you have a good recovery. Quick prayer to the God you don't believe in and you can't stop me.
Just rub some dirt on it.
Windex.
Use the Windex to clean off the dirt he rubbed on his glass neck?
Put some Tussin on it
(http://www.utterwonder.com/archives/images/ben-gay1.jpg)
(http://chig.blogspot.com/MGUK05-063-LeeCameronv4.jpg)
Gay Ben.