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My grandma had to be rushed to the hospital a few weeks ago due to severe pain around her left hip and waist area; she was in so much pain an ambulance had to be called. While there she was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and degenerative disk disease. At this time she has been transferred to the nursing home for physical therapy however she keeps saying she is in so much pain she is not able to do her daily therapy and is requesting the pain meds be increased. She has been told if she can't keep up with the therapy, surgery would be the next step; which I believe is not a good idea at her age. Does anyone have any information or experience to share; I'm very worried about her and don't like seeing her suffer. She's a wonderful lady.
Please do a search on "Sciatica" on the Health & Wellness Board. Use the search function, go to "Advanced", add "sciatica" or "spine" or similar as your keyword and then filter your search to the Health & Wellness board only. There are many threads that discuss this, including one that is active right now. Let me look for some....okay, here are some threads that discuss spine issues.
I'm sorry to hear your grandma is in pain. Hopefully, the therapy, medication and other non surgical interventions get her relief so that she can avoid surgery.
Last edited by Texas Ag 93; 10-15-2022 at 06:53 AM..
My grandma had to be rushed to the hospital a few weeks ago due to severe pain around her left hip and waist area; she was in so much pain an ambulance had to be called. While there she was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and degenerative disk disease. At this time she has been transferred to the nursing home for physical therapy however she keeps saying she is in so much pain she is not able to do her daily therapy and is requesting the pain meds be increased. She has been told if she can't keep up with the therapy, surgery would be the next step; which I believe is not a good idea at her age. Does anyone have any information or experience to share; I'm very worried about her and don't like seeing her suffer. She's a wonderful lady.
You forgot one important piece of information, her age. How old is she Honey?
I also agree for you to look at the previous threads, lots of information in them.
See my reply in this thread which is the first thread linked above. I posted an image, print it out and see her, marking her pain on the print out so you know exactly what pain she has and where.
See my reply in this thread which is the first thread linked above. I posted an image, print it out and see her, marking her pain on the print out so you know exactly what pain she has and where.
You and I love the dermatome map and descriptions, don't we? Seriously, though, they're very informative and helpful.
I remember when Mom was in the care center. She'd have neighbors who made good conversational companions and one day they'd have to go for surgery and come back almost in a vegetative state from the anesthesia.
It was because of this she chose palliative care rather than surgery toward the end of her life.
Sounds like you care for her very much, OP. Be sure to be well-informed and to give her as much help and honest information as you can as she makes her decisions.
There are minimally invasive endoscopic alternatives that work very well (if indicated) in older people. I'm 77 and was evaluated but not a candidate for surgery because my stenosis was not advanced enough.
I was in so much pain that I couldn't tolerate PT either
I was referred to a Physiatrist (sp?) a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) specialist. Basically, a non surgical back and neck MD
After 2 hip injections, a spinal radio frequency ablation (killing some of the pain nerves exiting the spine) and a Sacroilliac joint injection, I am walking 2 miles a day, doing water aerobics and almost back to normal
OP most doctors will tell you that surgery should be the absolute last resort. There are other methods for treatment such as corticoid injections, radio frequency ablation etal. You should see a pain clinic and discuss the options to relieve the pain without surgery.
I'm probably older than your grandmother and have gone through the exact same situation she is experiencing and I at first had the rf ablation and now about once a year the injections. You probably got an MRI at the hospital so get a disc copy and take it to an independent pain clinic for further review. It should also show where she has arthritis problems too.
This is unfortunately not an uncommon dilemma for people of an advanced age, concern for not surviving the surgery. What does her doctor say about her chances of recovery?
Painkillers only mask the symptoms her body is signalling to her with the pain sensation. Painkillers themselves have another sad outcome for anyone who becomes dependant on them for relief. They become addicted and the dosage escalates but it is still never enough and the painkilling effect starts to diminish. So back to the pain it is.
I don't know how old your gramma is or how her overall physical is.
My mother was in her low 80s and recovered from two separate hip replacement surgeries and survived Covid-19 in ICU at age 86. Today she is 88.
Kind of amazing, really. Maybe gramma will do okay.
Gee, you can donate a kidney up to 76. I expect to be able to go into a surgery at 77, not far away! But, I don't know about her heart and BP and all that.
Stenosis is a terrible thing...if caught early enough she could find such relief.
Put your index finger in your hand and now close it and squeeze....that's what is happening to her nerves!!
This is unfortunately not an uncommon dilemma for people of an advanced age, concern for not surviving the surgery. What does her doctor say about her chances of recovery?
Painkillers only mask the symptoms her body is signalling to her with the pain sensation. Painkillers themselves have another sad outcome for anyone who becomes dependant on them for relief. They become addicted and the dosage escalates but it is still never enough and the painkilling effect starts to diminish. So back to the pain it is.
I don't know how old your gramma is or how her overall physical is.
My mother was in her low 80s and recovered from two separate hip replacement surgeries and survived Covid-19 in ICU at age 86. Today she is 88.
Kind of amazing, really. Maybe gramma will do okay.
Have you ever been on narcotics for pain? You don't sound like you were.
People taking narcotics for pain don't get high off of them. If they take them as directed, they will not get "addicted" to them in the sense that you mean to where they are going to want and need more.
People can take narcotics long term and not need a higher dose or need to take more. Been there and done that.
I put my script in a weekly container so that every day I knew how many pills I had to take and how I was generally doing managing them.
Sure there will be an "addiction" to where you can't just cut them out cold turkey depending on the dose you're on, but you can get off of them if you get weaned. There will be withdrawal depending on the dose the person was on.
People need to stop making others feel bad that they need narcotics for their pain. Narcotics help, for some people they're the only medication that does help take the edge off. It doesn't mask the pain.
People needing narcotics are not dirty little drug addicts. There is not a thing wrong with admitting you have to go on them in order to have some quality of life. It really sucks because people needing narcotics get dirty looks from doctors and pharmacists like we're some low life scum drug addict. We're just people needing help with a chronic pain issue. It is getting harder every day to find a legit pain clinic taking patients. Honest people in pain are being kicked out of their long term pain management for stupid reasons. One blemish and your gone no matter how many years you've been there. Good luck finding another. I can't count how many people I know needing meds got wrongly kicked out yet people who don't even take them, they get the prescription to sell them are still there. Something wrong with this picture.
An addiction should be the least of anyone's worries. Worry about taking your narcotics as prescribed, you'll do fine.
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