5
5backsurgeries
Guest
This is my first time posting on this message board. I am 52 years old and five weeks ago had my 5th back surgery. I'm not sure exactly what I'm looking for other than perhaps just being able to talk to others who have had the unfortunate experience of injuring their back and going through subsequent surgeries to alleviate their pain. I originally injured my back at the age of 37. The pain that I experienced at that time was beyond any worRAB that I possess. We are all familiar with the handy little pain scale they ask us to use to evaluate our pain and I can definitely say that my pain was at a 10. It was so severe that I actually passed out. Since then and throughout all of my other surgeries, I have used that as my marker. Thankfully, while my pain at times has been bad, it has never been that bad. My surgeon at the time (who was approching retirement) had never seen a herniation as severe as mine. In June of 1992 I had my first surgery on L5-S1. At the time the doctor noted bulging at the L4-L5, but decided to do nothing. A year later that disc herniated and I had my 2nd surgery. That surgey left me incontinent. I experienced continued pain for the next 3 years and went through a ton of really horrible tests. Over the course of this time I became increasingly depressed. I was told I would be crippled by the time I was 60 and that I needed to learn to live with my pain (I'd like the medical people who utter those worRAB to have to spend one month experiencing the kind of pain that we do).My doctor at the time was very proactive and found me a highly recognized surgeon in Seattle area. Another battery of tests (one was a discogram -which I absolutely do NOT recommend to anybody -not even my worst enemy). He was a very skilled surgeon, but sadly had the beRABide manner of a toad. He did my 3rd surgery which was a fusion with titanium roRAB at L5-S1 and L4- L5. That surgey was done through my stomach using spongy bone tissue from my left hip and some from a cadaver. It was a tough one. It bought me some time but eventually my back (and leg) pain returned. I went in for my 4th surgery to decompress nerves just a lttle under 5 years ago. The doctor basically cleaned up the area removing scar tissue and bone spurs. That surgery was undoubtedly my most successfull. Two weeks post surgery I went back to work and was COMPLETELY pain free. I went slightly over 4 years feeling like a comlpetely normal person. Last fall I started experiencing lower back pain. I thought it was arthritis and began taking over the counter meRAB. The pain grew worse over the next several months and when it went into my left leg I knew that I needed to see a doctor. More tests (xrays, MRIs, etc), physical therapy and then it came... I needed another surgery. Last month my doctor went in and pretty much did the same thing as he had done before, removing bone spurs and scar tissue. Yesterday marked 5 weeks. I'm a bit disappointed that I didn't experience the extreme and immediate success as my last surgey. I'm still experiencing a lot of pain in my left leg as well as my lower back but I'm trying not to get too down. The surgeon who did my last two surgeries is totally awesome - very skilled as well as personable! I don't know if this is a scenario that I will have to repeat, which is discouraging, but I'd love to hear from others who have been ther done that.