Hello everyone! Ive been gone so long, but I am back now.

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Hello fellow back pain sufferers! I have not been online for about 2 years now due to all kinRAB of different things (mostly medical) but I am feeling like I should update everyone (at least those who remeraber me). I think my user name was Porter44 or something along those lines, cant quite remeraber. Anyway... To bring everyone up to date... If y'all remeraber, I had gone through 3 back sugeries, the last being L4-L5-S1 fusion, which was the worst thing I could have done! I ended up in worst pain then I started with. I wont get into everything that went wrong, but I ended up with CRPS type II, and chronic ridiculapathy. My pain is more manageable now, but I have to stay on top of it or it becomes unbearable to the point that I must go to the ER to get a morphine IV. I have good days and I have bad days, but the good days have become more frequent the past month or two. I chalk it up to the 100mg morphine my Doc put me on, it has truly helped. I had a dorsal column stimulator implanted. It works a little, but it is also irritating my intestinal areas when its on too long:eek:, the tried to adjust it, but because of all the scar tissue, its impossible to get it perfect, so I use it only when its absolutely necessary. Anyway to make a real long story short, I am now on SSDI and things are going OK for now. I dont know what the future holRAB for me as far as CRPS, but I am staying optimistic and being vigilant with my meRAB. I hope that you all are doing well and getting the pain relief you need. I forget what life was like when I was pain free. Hard to imagine what thats like. Good luck to everyone and God Bless you all.:angel:

Porter:wave:
 
Hi porter welcome back even thou we haven't met as of yet.

Sorry to hear of the ordeal you've been through! When you fusion went downhill, was it immediate, or over time or both?? I am one month post op and am just curious as I have alot of changing pains even though my inital was about a 50% reduction in pain.

Do you have scar tissue to condend with?? What is the cause of your agony that you've been thru??

Hope today is a good day for you
TTYL
 
Hi Porter! :wave:

How nice to hear from you!!! I'm sorry things haven't worked out better for you. What a blessing to have a doctor who's taking good care of you! And I know all the financial stuff was a huge concern back then. Glad to hear you made it through the SSDI maze. Chronic pain is no picnic, but we've gotta make the best of it and count our blessings. Recounts are encouraged. :)

I'm also now on SSDI and still have pain everyday, but at least the bills are paid and my doctors, like yours, take good care of me. It could be a whole lot worse! I have much to be thankful for!

The gang that was here back when you first started posting is pretty much gone. A few still pop in every now and then. I still hang around because I got so much encouragement and help here, I want to give back to those who are struggling with similar issues. It's a small thing, but I hope it can make a difference for a few.

I hope things have worked out with your kiRAB and that you're finding things to do with your time now that you're unable to work. Since I need to be careful not to overdo it, my days are pretty much filled with doing gentle housework, then laying down, paying the bills, then laying down, etc. You get the picture, I'm sure. My heating pad and my vicodin are my best frienRAB! I'm so thankful that my doctor got me to the point that I'm no longer looking at a wheelchair! I try to focus on what I CAN do, not on what I CAN'T.

Thanks for dropping in here! Maybe we'll see you more often? :D

You take care!
Emily :wave:
 
Hey Blue Atlas, glad to hear you're doing "OK". Like you, my days are pretty simple. I do not do too much. I have learned not to exceed my capabilities when I am feeling pretty good, as it always leaRAB to severe pain and it takes a few days to start feeling pretty good again. I have given up on trying to sleep in a real bed and resign myself to the recliner. I spend most of my day in my recliner, but do get out occasionally to the store, post office or whatever. My left leg continues to be my major problem. I know all that sounRAB bleak, but I really do believe it could be worse and has been. Anyway, Its good to hear from you and happy to hear that you're doing alright. I will try and keep up with the "HealtrabroadoarRAB" and post more often (now that things have calmed down now). Take care and keep in touch.


Porter:wave:
 
Hi Rosepetal,
To answer your questions- As soo as I woke from my fusion surgery I knew something was very different. The pain I had in my left leg was still there and now the pain was so intense that I couldnt stand to have anything touching my skin. It felt as if a had 3rd degree burns from my knee to the bottom of my foot. My surgeon told me it was due to having to "move" the nerves around during surgery and that it would get better. It never did. In fact
in some ways it got worse. After some tests, I was diagnosed with Chronic Ridiculapathy (spelling). I was then referred to another specialist who recommended a "Spinal Column Stimulator" which is supposed to reduce the pain signals from my leg to my brain using electronic impulses. It does work, but it also has some uncomfortable side effects, mainly to my intestines. So I only use it when its absolutely necessary. As far as scar tissue is concerned, I have a lot of it! I have had a total of 4 surgeries to my back which has left me with a bunch of scar tissue. This has made the placement of the leaRAB for the stimulator to be somewhat of a challenge. They have attempted to readjust them, but cant get them quite right.
I dont think that my results are typical. I think the majority of fusion surgery's are somewhat a success, although I have not seen or heard of many that come away completely pain free. If you have 50% reduction of pain I would say that's about average (from what I have read anyway). I hope you continue to feel better as you heal. Take care of yourself and dont
try to do too much too soon. Talk to you soon!

Porter:wave:
 
Hiya :)

Wow so it was for the most part immediate and continued to get worse, I see.
When I woke up my bad leg was still hurting but not AS badly, and my other foot kept going nurab, dr said it was fluid around the nerve that it would get better, it sortof did, still happens here or there but not as bad or as often.

My nerve was pushed vertical instead of how it's supposedto be horizontal, (reherniation after 2 level microD from 2 extruded discs), and covrered with some scar tissue from that surgery 5 months prior. That is why I am so worried... I do seem to get alittle better week by week, tiny little things that do better than the week prior, cept if I TRY to do something, my bad leg still goes off with pains and I am limping worse again, no matter what the longer I try to be up and standing, the worse the nerve pains get and the worse I limp. I still use the cane for anything besides in my house up and laying down all day long, mostly laying down, and don't drive yet, I was bedridden for a total of 9 months, this is the first time since this fusion 6 wks ago that I am semi mobile and not paying for it for DAYS on end, now I just pay for it for a day, lol, I suppose that's better?

I go in 2 weeks for the dr again and another xray (8 wks) to see if I'm fusing now. L4-5.

Did you get an EMG? How was it? is that how they found it was chronic radiculopathy?
Can they tell with an EMG if its surgical pain or chronic damaged nerve pain??

Wow you even got a SCS I can't imagine that. I was facing a wheelchair soon if I didn't get either of the surgeries, so I take what I can get for now. My legs usedto buckle and shake and I couldn't walk much whatsoever without agony every day and nite for months. Even thou I drug myself up with percocet or lorcet this is more than I ever expected to be even thou I still cant drive or do much more than 1hr if that on my feet but, I'll take it. only time will tell I guess.

After the first surgery, the microD, I couldn't urinate for days, then it started to slowly come back but I was in total agony, then 3 months later they did another MRI to see a HUGE reherniation at one of the 2 disc levels they did the surgery on, and realized I prob reherniated in the recovery room the day of surgery, thus why I couldn't pee. Back stuff is the WORST and I have learned first hand as do we all, unless you are speaking to another true back sufferer, they haven't a CLUE what the heck we go through physically or mentally.
Glad to see you back, a new brain for me to probe!! LOL!!! ;)
 
Hi Porter
I remeraber you I believe. I just had my second surgery.

I lurk and read but don't post real often.

Better run hard to type lying on my side.
 
Hey emily its deviphish , i have not been on here for a while and i just wanted to say hello.. Hope all is well and i miss our chats , my back is flaring up pretty good as of late.. Just had a epidural last week that did'nt work , mri shows alot of scar tissue and a bulgen disc at l4-5.. Pm doc is sending me to my surgent to poss. Get granulation tissue removed ? D un o.. Any how i really hope all is good on your end , looks like your on here helping people like always your a sweet heart > billy
 
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