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Hi. have you had a milogram? That process will say for sure what the skinny is. The Doc sticks a long needle into your spinal cord, actually, it's a very thin membrane that contains the very long nerves that run from the brain to the bottom of you spine. The nerves look like a piece of cooked spagetti. The nerves are in this spinal sac that is filled with fluid to keep the nerves lubed up. He numbs up your back so you don't feel the needle. The only thing you'll feel is when the needle pierces the spinal sac(cord) and hits a nerve. Big ouch, and then it's over. They then x-ray your entire spine from head to toe.
As far as withdrawal from a drug, that's all you can do. keep taking less and less until your dependency is over. You are saying that you are taking less now, but in doing so your pain comes back. Red Flag. Have a long talk with your doc and explain what's going on with you. Do NOT let your doc intimidate you. Make him or her listen. You have a serious condition that shouldn't be taken lightly. (forgot to say the doc injects a dye that highlites you spine and shows any ruptures) Good luck,skitow.
I had a lumbar laminectomy discectomy in Feb of this year. I am 27 years old and was told I had the back of a 60 year old! I honestly cant think of a specific event that caused this injury, but I do know that my stenosis was getting worse with my pregnancy, I had the worst back labor in the world, and after having my child, my back got progressively worse with constantly bending and picking her up, changing diapers having to bend over, etc. I actually had my back lock up while I was changing her diaper at a water park and then I knew something was really wrong.
After a CT scan, the doctor said the disc in the L5-S1 area was severly bulging and I was diagnoised with spinal stenosis. I was having problems with my legs going numb, tingling, etc. I had a steroid epidrual done before seeing a surgeon to see if that would work and it didnt.
After the surgery I felt like a new person! I was suprised at how quick and easy the surgery was (only took an hour) The doctor said he just cut the disc, and there is no hardware in my back. I was off of work for 4 weeks and have been feeling great except for some muscle issues around the incision. I've been going to physical therapy which has helped.
I was just curious to see if anyone else had this surgery before and what their experience was. I know they say to avoid back surgeries at all costs but it has been a positive life change for me. I am not 100% yet but hope to get there. I was having problems with muscle spams. One side of my muscle is healed and the other side is not and the Physical therapist has really been working that area.
I'm also concerned about needing any future surgeries. I'm fine now but I'm kind of worried about getting pregnant again but my surgeon seemed to think it would be fine. I'm also concerned about disc degeneration in the future...
Hi... I thought of 'not' answering your question...eek.
We have alot of people in the practice I work in who we have referred to Dr Petra Gurtner, you may have heard of her. She is out of Norfolk. Wonderful surgeon.
Nothing but good things come from what she does.
We have had so many patients in need of help, whether it be from the l-s spine, all the way up to the c spine, also she is a neuro surgeon.
All good results.
I think, with age, most of our spines tend to have degeneration. I schedule Mris all the time, and have to get them auth.
I have to go back, from years prir , read the reports and let the ins co know what was found in old reports, vs what is going on physically now, what we have tried, meds, PT, etc.. and they they auth the MRI..
A Lot of the time, Spinal stenosis, disc bulge, or degeneration shows on the Mri.
Some times it is very serious, other times , not.
We have a young man that comes to the office...now he needs surgery...bad.
he goes through the pain pain pain. Says he will not have it til he needs it. I say you dont think you need it? he says yes... LOL
If your surgeon thinks you can have another child, and that your back can withstand it, I am sure it can. Ask your OB/Gyn as well. They can consult. Do some research online, childbirth after lumbar laminectomy, etc.
One problem I will say that I have seen in I would say about 4 people in the practice, surgery not performed by this physician....pain comes back...need more surgery, dont want more surgery. Hooked on the narcotics. Not a good scene. At All.
I have back pain, and It is not anything like what you have had, or what they exp, but what they have now, is an addiction. It is as though the pain isn't there, or if they wouldn't know it if it was, just that if a little bit of pain creeps through, the drugs that they are on, so much that they are on, cannot handle the pain, they need more. They have to be hospitalized...
I have seen this so many times, be put on IV pain, Dilaudid... week stay at the hospital at least once a month.
There are the people who have back pain and get mad, insurance wont pay for an MRI because they have not had a plain film and PT...
Dag on! Just do it. Do it in order to see what is wrong with your back, I know you pay for your insurance, you know it, but you have to play by their rules.
Ok, I am ranting, I am off for a week and not in the medical field and I am at home packing for a different move than expected, yada yada.
I am sorry.
I would do some research, and if you are not sure on what your Dr says, get a second opinion. I see your location, I highly reccomend
Last edited by Suzet2262; 03-24-2008 at 12:20 AM..
Reason: Sorry no advertising....
Thanks so much for your reply! It was very informative and helpful. I have not heard of that doctor. My PCP refered me to Dr. Paul Savas in Williamsburg and he was WONDERFUL. Today is my last session of physical therapy. I feel alot better right now and my muscles are going back to normal.
I had an MRI yesterday showing that I have a severe bulging disk - which I think is the same as a herniated disk. I have an appointment with my doctor next week to see what my course of treatment will be. I have a question I am really curious about - I hope someone can help me with this. I have been reading what I can on this disease and I have read numerous times that a herniated disk can eventually heal on its own and the pain will lesson or go away completely. My question is - how does this happen? Does the bulging area of the disk actually go back into place?? I just don't understand - please help. Thanks! Tishaunt
I guess it depends on what is meant by 'healed.' If the pain is caused by the irritation of the disc on surrounding nerves, and the disc moves off those nerves, the pain is lessened, but the disc continues to bulge. So, I guess that it could be considered healed. But it isn't.
However, the chances of a badly bulging disc moving back into place are very slim. It just doesn't happen. Sometimes, depending on what a person does, it can be tolerated. It could mean a very sedimentary like style. Perhaps even wearing a specially made back brace.
Take the doctor's advice as to what is your best course of action. You do not want to risk doing permanent damage to those nerves.
As the article states, if you do not have spinal stenosis - if your spinal canal has not narrowed to the point there's no room for the disc to go back into place - then you have an 80-90% chance of this healing naturally with physical therapy, medications, exercise and possibly epidural steroid injections to decrease the size of the bulge and help it slip back into it's natural position. Only if you have a neurological deficit - if you're losing your reflexes, there is stenosis, or you had something really weird happen where you lost control of your bowel or bladder (very uncommon), is surgery usually considered. Much can be determined from the amount of symptoms you are having, which of course is subjective to the patient and how much pain or numbness and tingling you can deal with.
It's best to give this every opportunity to heal by itself. Exercises to strengthen the back muscles and allow the spine to align in the normal position will help, your doctor will most likely suggest that along with a course of physical therapy. When we have pain in our back, we tend to "give" in an effort to reduce the pain, but if the spine is straighter then the canal isn't crunched over and there's more room for the bulge....rather than poking out, it eases back into the spot it started from. The key things in the report would be nerve root cutoff, stenosis, or something called spondylolisthesis, where the discs actually slip down one on top of the other. Severe disc degeneration can also be a problem. You don't indicate your age or what type job you work at - if it's very physical you may have to go to light duty or at least make some adjustments where you can change position frequently.
I hope this helped a little bit - your doctor has the best plan of action. I don't know if you are seeing a spinal surgeon or neurosurgeon, or if this is just your first finding from your primary care physician. At any rate, I would recommend finding a practitioner who specializes in disorders of the spine and not just a general orthopaedist. Here's a place to start:
Spine Care Finder (broken link)
You can also probably access your state medical society directory and find those surgeons who are board certified in neurosurgery or spinal surgery...and don't be afraid to ask what their credentials are, how many surgeries they have performed, where they trained at.....not all surgeons are created equal!
Thank you both so much for your replies. That information definitely helps. I will use it when I see my doctor next week - he is my primary care physician, but I am going to ask him to refer me to a specialist. I really want to try to avoid surgery - that really scares me. Thanks again for your replies. Tishaunt
As the article states, if you do not have spinal stenosis - if your spinal canal has not narrowed to the point there's no room for the disc to go back into place - then you have an 80-90% chance of this healing naturally with physical therapy, medications, exercise and possibly epidural steroid injections to decrease the size of the bulge and help it slip back into it's natural position. Only if you have a neurological deficit - if you're losing your reflexes, there is stenosis, or you had something really weird happen where you lost control of your bowel or bladder (very uncommon), is surgery usually considered. Much can be determined from the amount of symptoms you are having, which of course is subjective to the patient and how much pain or numbness and tingling you can deal with.
It's best to give this every opportunity to heal by itself. Exercises to strengthen the back muscles and allow the spine to align in the normal position will help, your doctor will most likely suggest that along with a course of physical therapy. When we have pain in our back, we tend to "give" in an effort to reduce the pain, but if the spine is straighter then the canal isn't crunched over and there's more room for the bulge....rather than poking out, it eases back into the spot it started from. The key things in the report would be nerve root cutoff, stenosis, or something called spondylolisthesis, where the discs actually slip down one on top of the other. Severe disc degeneration can also be a problem. You don't indicate your age or what type job you work at - if it's very physical you may have to go to light duty or at least make some adjustments where you can change position frequently.
I hope this helped a little bit - your doctor has the best plan of action. I don't know if you are seeing a spinal surgeon or neurosurgeon, or if this is just your first finding from your primary care physician. At any rate, I would recommend finding a practitioner who specializes in disorders of the spine and not just a general orthopaedist. Here's a place to start:
Spine Care Finder (broken link)
You can also probably access your state medical society directory and find those surgeons who are board certified in neurosurgery or spinal surgery...and don't be afraid to ask what their credentials are, how many surgeries they have performed, where they trained at.....not all surgeons are created equal!
Great advice! I was diagnosed with a herniated disk over 10 years ago and managed to get back to normal after 18 months of physical therapy. Since then, yoga has kept my back in good stead.
Tishaunt, its hard to get better advice than what Sam has offered here.
I had an MRI yesterday showing that I have a severe bulging disk - which I think is the same as a herniated disk. I have an appointment with my doctor next week to see what my course of treatment will be. I have a question I am really curious about - I hope someone can help me with this. I have been reading what I can on this disease and I have read numerous times that a herniated disk can eventually heal on its own and the pain will lesson or go away completely. My question is - how does this happen? Does the bulging area of the disk actually go back into place?? I just don't understand - please help. Thanks! Tishaunt
Years ago my dad had a herniated disk. He refused surgery. At night he slept on his back with a cardboard box under his knees (so that it looked like he was sitting in a chair that fell over backwards). He slept like this for many, many months, was very careful to lift correctly and put up with a lot of pain for about a year. Gradually the pain quit.
Last year he needed an x-ray; the doctor told dad that whoever had "fused his 2 vertebrae" had done a beautiful job. Dad told him that he has never had back surgery and the doctor was in disbelief. The 2 vertebrae has fused themselves over the years and dad has not had any pain these many years.
I am relating this story only to let you know that a person does not necessarily have to have surgery, however, I am sure it can still be a painful endeavor.
Good luck to you in whatever you decide to do.
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Lumbar Laminectomy Discectomy
