Injection #2

[wizardmickey]

Was supposed to do Lumbar Epidural Injection #2 Monday, only to be postponed until Tuesday.

Got there and apparently the doctor who had needed to bump me back didn't put me on his schedule for the day either, so they had to track him down. After the first numbing shot, he waited a minute and asked if I could still feel anything, and I did, so he renumbed me before starting the procedure.

I musta looked a wreck later yesterday (even after another 7 hours of sleep when I got home) 'cuz our drummer stopped by so I could disperse money from our last gig to him and he took 1 look at me and said I "looked wasted"!

This morning I got up and was having serious spasms... to make my usual matters a bit worse, as I went to get clothes out of the closet, the bar had come loose from it's holder on the wall (it had broken somehow?) so I had to find another, use "power tools" to cut a notch out of it and attach it to the wall, then lift the bar back up into place. So, the spasms only got worse, and I decided to stay home and pop pills all day if I have to.

I was told last time that the actual Cortisone/Steroids usually don't take full effect for 24-48 hours, so I'm still within my window, but last time I got almost instant relief, so I guess I was expecting better. Also, last time since they weren't sure exactly which discs needed injecting (although he was looking on the monitor) they injected L4/L5... this time they directly injected L5/S1 which is where the worst protusion & degeneration is.

[jjramsey]

Wow, sorry you are not doing well!

When I saw you on VFK a little while ago, I was interested in how your finger was doing...I guess when it comes to you and what-not, we will need to 'bone' up on our rendition of the bone song...let's see...

With the finger bone connected
to the hand bone,
and the hand bone connected
to the arm bone,
and the arm bone connected
to the shoulder bone,
Oh mercy how they scare!

Somewhere over the rainbow they connect to the backbone...oops mixing those musicphors :blush:

[WDWfanatic742]

No idea what half of that stuff means, but doesn't sound very good. Get well Ice :pixie:

[PirateLover]

Hey WizardMickey, not sure what prompted me to come into this area but I just saw your thread. From what it sounds like you are going through the same problem my fiancee had this time last year. He has degenerative disc disease and had 3 herniated discs, 2 of which were seriously bulging. He went through I believe it was 3 rounds of cortisone injections. They provided some relief, but not enough. He ended up undergoing a discectomy for the 2 serious bulges, and he's been almost symptom free since then. The only side effect has been numbness in his left foot, which was probably a result of some dried blood somewhere and the doctor says eventually it will go away.
If you have any questions about what he went through please let me know and I'll pass them along. If I remember correctly, he did receive more of an instant relief from his first injection as well. Good luck!

[mickeytinkerbellprincess]

Apart, from the spasms, I'm glad that you didn't get another accident from power tools! Get better, Ice.i! :pixie: :)

[wizardmickey]

Thanks everybody.... dunno how long I've been asleep, but got up a few hours ago because the cats were "demanding" to be fed!!!

Yes Piratelover, would love to exchange info to get some insight from someone who's "been there, done that" as well.

And I enjoy the mixed up medical-musicphors Stitch!!! Yeah, when I saw ya early I was waiting for the muscle relaxer to kick in.

A couple of people from work called today as well as my Mom-in-Law to check on me. Other than sounding weak or half asleep I guess, I'm feeling better!

[TinkRocks]

:pixie: for you, Ice.

Hope you're feeling a lot better soon...

[milklady]

Ice i had the first shot and it worked for maybe 2 hours. Did the second shot (hurt like you know what) and it worked for maybe a day. That is when they decided to do the surgery. I have a fused C5/6. C2/3 are next but waiting on that one. If the first shot worked then you might be ok with the second and third. I have talked to other ppl who have had them and they said it works great! Best of luck to you! Sending pixie dust your way:beer::magic:

[jjramsey]

All joking aside, a friend of mine had a degenerated disk and it was bulging. He had tried a lot of things and was in extreme pain. He found a chiropractic clinic that felt they could help him. They put him on a table attached it to the upper and lower body, then stretched like he was on a rack. He said that when he first lay down and they stretched, it hurt like (not repeatable). After a short while they pain went away and he went to sleep on the table. They gave him a brace to wear and a diet with lots of water and supplements.

It has now been a couple of months, he is walking around better, wears a lighter brace, the disk is regenerating. He feels a lot better!

[PirateLover]

We are going away for a few days, but I will try to remember to talk to him some more to get a refresher on everything he went through, and how they came to the decision to do the discectomy.

[PirateLover]

OK I'm back. His disectomy was done on the L5 and L3 discs. The L5 bulge was pinching a nerve and cause the majority of the pain. The reason he had the disectomy was mostly due to his youth. He was 24. He definitely received the most relief from the first shot, but never got much better after that. He was out of work through all of the shots and through his surgery. After the surgery, he was back to work I believe in a month or a little longer. I'm not sure how old you are, but he remembers his doctor saying that the older you are, the harder it is to recover from this type of surgery and they will most likely try to exhaust all the medicinal options first. His surgeon said fusing is very iffy for the lower discs as opposed to the ones in the neck area.
Here is a link that pretty much summarizes everything about the procedure and recovery process. Hopefully the shots work for you, but just in case, it's something to think about.... http://www.webmd.com/back-pain/discectomy-or-microdiscectomy-for-a-herniated-disc

[terri.m]

Sending lots of :pixie: your way Ice!

[wizardmickey]

Thanks for the info PirateLover!
My situation is kinda... well, weird?
I have had weak bones due to a bone disease ever since I was a child. I was told I'd "outgrow it", instead it developed into degenerative bone arthritis as I got older.
I used to have a running joke going that Evel Knevel and I were having a contest to see who could break the most bones before we died... No disrespect meant!
The genesis of the back injury was from totalling a motorcycle back in 1985. I went to a chirocpracter for 2 years straight and then off and on again for another 2 years as needed when it would flare up. Needless to say, as I've "aged" and the degenerative condition has progressed, so has the severity of the back pain.
Surgery isn't an option right now; The ortho doc says that the disc has bulged straight out instead of side to side, which pinches nerves if to either side. Fusion or repairing the surrounding damaged discs (at my middle age) would be a long healing process and possibly cause more problems than treating with drugs until it gets out of hand. His long term diagnosis is maybe another 5-10 years give or take before I require back surgery.
He's actually still more concerned about needing to replace the knee's in less time than the back... whatever.
I play in a band with members ranging from 47 to 38; our lead guitarist has some back and neck pain but doesn't see a doctor yet, our drummer has had back surgery after ruining his discs when slipping on a butter pat (don't ask), and our bassist has lower back problems and see's a chiropractor faithfully for relief. Hence why with all of our problems we ironically are called "RELIX"! Heh...

[milklady]

Wont ask about the butter...but is it ok to laugh?

[wizardmickey]

It's safe to laugh; trust us... We laugh at him all the time!

[WED1901]

Hey Ice I hope you get to feeling better dude! :pixie: :mickey: