Chronic Low Back & Hip Pain

  • Thread starter Thread starter luvmikiddz
  • Start date Start date
L

luvmikiddz

Guest
Hi, I'm new to this forum and looking for advice from people that have had the same symptoms or knowledge of this. I know this is a long post but I am a desparate women seeking desparate measures...I am a 47 yr old female that has always worked out and been active. Last spring I was working towarRAB becoming a fitness instructor, and this fall I started having lower back pain in the mornings where it is really hard to bend over and brush teeth etc. but would improve as the day went on. Continued my exercise routine 4-5 x week until in Jan. 08, I felt the pain move into my left buttock. Thought okay, i'll do Yoga for it, but it just got worse...Then I got an Xray in Feb. and it said:

There is marked degenerative disc space narrowing present at L5-S1. Mild osteophytic spurring at the anterior margins of L3, 4, and 5. No facet arthropathy present.

Started going to physical therapy and was doing OK until in early March I woke up one morning in so much pain I couldn't walk. Literally had to crawl, crying to my kid's rooms to wake them up for school. My Dr. put me on steroiRAB (Decadron, 4mg/day) and Vicodin at night. He called it a therapeutic trial, saying that sometimes disc problems resolve themselves w/a short-term use of steroiRAB.

For the week that I was on steroiRAB,I felt great, like Superwoman. All my pain and inflammation was gone, I had more energy and motivation and looked 10yrs younger! Amazing drug!

Well, after coming off steroiRAB, things deteriorated. Inflammation gradually appeared again, needing more Advil and Vicodin, and by April I woke up with intense pain/throbbing in my left buttock. The pain is so bad it makes me cry and I wake up every night at about 4am and can't go back to sleep. I have taken so much Advil, Vicodin, etc. I'm sure my liver & kidneys are shot. Not to mention throwing some booze in for a little pain relief. The doctors don't seem to understand the level of pain I am in....Tonight I am going to just get drunk. Tomorrow I am going to a Orthopedic specialist to see if he can give me a shot of steroiRAB in my butt and give me some good advice. I'm also going to look into medicinal marijuana for pain relief, cuz I can't keep up all this Advill and Vicodin.

The woman I have become is so far away from what I was, I feel depressed and hopeless. I know I have alot to be greatful for and it could be so much worse, but it is hard to keep the happy face when you are in so much pain and have so much uncertainty...I should probably just get a MRI so I know what I am dealing with...it's just soo expensive and we would have to pay it all. Anyway, if anyone has any advice or support for me it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much for listening....

Debbie
 
Hi, in my opinion, you should definitely have an MRI done as x-rays cannot see all the soft tissues. If the x-ray alone showed marked degeneration, then the MRI will probably show alot more. You might have a herniation between
L5-S1, which might be causing your buttocks pain. I had this myself, except my pain went from my buttocks, down my leg and into my left foot. I also have pretty good relief from steroiRAB (both oral and ESI's). However, you might also have things going on in the other levels, you might even have some stenosis. The first thing I ever had was an x-ray, which only showed mild degenerative changes & mild scoliosis. Just having this done did not explain any of my pains. Well, it was over a year later until I finally had an MRI and oh boy, what a mess my spine was. I was not happy to find out all that was wrong, but in the same token, I was happy because it showed all the things that were causing my pain!

4mykiRAB - I had bladder issues several times, but never loss of control. But I have noticed that when I have severe sciatica in my lower lurabar spine, that is when my bladder seems to act up. All of a sudden I couldn't really go to the bathroom, it just dribbled slightly and happeneed every time I tried to go. I would go on for a couple weeks like this without going much and only dribbling each time; then all of a sudden I would constantly feel like i had to go and would go at least 20 to 30 times per day, round the clock, though still dribbling each time. But all day & all night I felt like I had to go. This same thing has happened to me a few times. And each time it does, it seems like I have severe nerve pains. And when I had MRI's done, it was usually some problem at L4-L5 or L5-S1. Even before I had surgery ( I had severe lurabar stenosis), I had problems going. It was like my bladder was filled to the brim & about to burst, but nothing would come out. I had some tests done by my gyno's office to check for interstitial cystitis and also a CMG test...however, when I had these done, I was not having those symptoms and not having any bad nerve pains. I did tell that doc, though, that I noticed my bladder issues seem to start when I got severe nerve pains and would resolve any time I got ESI's. With docs regarding my spine, I was always asked if I ever lost bowel or bladder control (which I hadn't, so I always said no), but that was it. I just suspect, though, due to the timing it happened with me, that it did have something to do with my nerve compression. I also had severe nerve pains around my hip areas & slightly into groin after I felt something in my upper lurabar spine....but this never caused me any bladder issues. So from my own experience, I think the lower lurabar can cause it.
 
Hi I'm new to the message board. I was reading your symptoms and they are very similar to mine. I hope that you can find relief. I was wondering if any has had any bladder control issuse with their back pain. I have had some with this last onset of back pain. I had and mri and the findings said there were siginifcant osteophytic spurring at L5 S1. Could this be causing the back pain and bladder issuse?
Lynn
 
Thank you for all the good advice. Any bit of information is helpful. My next step is to see my dr. again to dicusss the pain issue and the MRI. I hope to get something so I can get more that 3 or 4 hours of sleep a night. It's sure hard to function with pain and little sleep.
 
Funny you should mention your symptoms, I've been hurting real bad myself these past 2 weeks. I had a laminectomy/disectomy about year and a half ago with no relief. About 2 months ago I was looking at myself in the mirror and saw the weirdest thing, my belly button was shifted to the right and my upper body was at an angle. It's like my whole body was shifting to the right. I don't know if this what's causing the intense pain I'm having now. I went to see my general dr. yesterday and asked him what he thought. He asked me if I looked like this before the surgery. I told him no, he said it looks like scoliosis. He couldn't give me anymore information because my back situation is a wc issue. I don't want to scare you, it's just what I was told. Good luck.
 
Michael, from what I read it can really distort ones' muscles, especially if it happened pretty quickly, rather than over many years. But again, I cant say that is the case for you, it was just a possibility that might be. I get neck & left shoulder spasms on & off...and one time my shoulder was so awful it was actually pushed forward & I couldnt even pull it back. I wrapped things (such as a belt or my PT stretch leash) around my arm/shoulder and brought the enRAB behind my back, and tried to pull my shoulder back into place with my right hand. It didnt' help, but I was desperate. SO this is just an example of how a really bad spasms can move body parts around.
 
Hi, thanks for the response. I haven't had the bladder issue with mine, but the orthorpedic specialist I saw yesterday asked me if I had. I do remeraber him saying that the bone spurs can press on nerves and give you alot of pain. Maybe they can also press on nerves that control your bladder...You should ask your doctor. I am having an MRI tomorrow, so that I can have a steroidal injection into the inflamed area, which I hear should help the pain. Since you have already had a MRI, what is your next course of action?
 
4mykiRAB- you're welcome....please let us know what your MRI results are when you find out as I am definitely curious.

Michael - are you having really bad back spasms at all? I have read that continuous severe spasms can actually cause a type of scoliosis called "functional scoliosis". It's temporary in that if the spasms are stopped then the scoliosis goes away. Of course Im not a doctor, but if you have spasms, it might be a possibility.
 
Hey Bay, quick question. Let's say it is scoliosis, ain't I a little old to be diagnoised with it? I'm 42. Shouldn't they have picked up on it on my MRI's, I've had 3 plus numerous x-rays. But it has been a year since my last one and my body hadn't shifted. The whole thing is just weird to me, seeing your body change so dramatically so fast.
 
Michael - are you having really bad back spasms at all? I have read that continuous severe spasms
Hey Bay, what I'm having is pain in my lowre back and both legs. The pain I'm having in my left hip is real bad. I can't put weight on it without it hurting. My whole body is a spasm now, especially when I bump into something. This "functonal scoliosis" would it move your body? The more I look into the mirror the crazier it looks.
 
It is quite possible that your disc problem is causing pressure/irritation to your sciatic nerve resulting in lower back and buttock pain. Try talking to your doctor about gabapentin or a medication in the same family. It's brand name is Neurontin and it's actually a med originally developed for seizures. It is being used a LOT these days for neuropathic pain (and it is fabulous for sciatic nerve pain!).
For my back pain, I found that an extra firm mattress is great help. A soft mattress topper helps keep the firmness of the mattress from making my hips sore.
Good luck!
 
Also do not rule out SI joint pain which will not appear on an x-ray and will also cause this type of pain. When I had extreme SI joint pain of the sort you describe, I needed the pain to be managed with painkillers stronger than Vicoden and used a Duragesic patch which provides 24 hour pain relief. I would definitely not self-medicate with alcohol in addition to the painkillers and would be real upfront with your doc about the extent of your pain. Best of luck to you!
 
Michael, of course I'm not a doctor so I can't be sure, but I wouldn't think so either. My scoliosis is mild and was seen on my first x-ray, but it is not causing me any problems. I could even see it when the doc put the film up on the light box. But I had never had any x-rays on spine ever before then. If you've had recent x-rays or MRI's, then it should probably have picked it up ( I would guess, at least). But that's why I mentioned the functional scoliosis, as it could just be severe muscle spasms twisting things out of shape. Maybe it's just doing it to your muscles and not your actual spine.
 
Thanks for the info Bay, time for some research til I see my wc dr. My pain is getting worse, I woke up many times last night. My hip was throbbing for some reason.
 
Back
Top