CALIFORNIA The Whole State thread - Page 235

Drat!! Thank you for the help. I guess I will have to find him a new home eventually.

Thanks! She does not like to be held, or have her picture taken. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by mycutekitties 

Just a little update on me. Went to the pain doctor on Monday and he said my back is very messed up (HELLO- I KNOW!). He said I am in the condition of someone that's 80 and he has never seen so much degeneration in someone my age. So he has two procedures that he thinks can help. I'm just waiting on insurance things to be approved. I am so bummed because he took me off work. I only had 16 days left but I couldn't handle it. I feel like I'm letting everyone down.
Doctor put me on morphine and Vicodin until I can get these procedures so I can't work taking those medications.
So I am hoping I get these done so I can go back for the last week.
Ugh!

This bring tears to my eyes....I don't ever want to return to that pain! I'm 7 weeks post op from two spine surgeries. Both a little over 5 hours, two days in a row but within hours of the second surgery I was up and walking and my leg pain was virtually gone! I had an XLIF and the next day fusion. I went home two days early and was able to get much more comfortable at home. The recovery is long but after living in that kind of pain for so long it's nothing. I've been told I've had the text book outcome and although they warned me that I would have more bad days then good in the first 3 months, I have only experienced a few days that I felt pain that scared me back to not overdoing. Other then that, I have quality of life, even with all it's limitations, that I had forgotten existed.

Prior to surgery I resisted the next level of pain management but finally gave in when I could barely get out of bed. I think you made the right decision to start the morphine and vicodin...those 16 days would have felt like 16 years!

I had surgery in San Francisco from a surgeon that I chose after searching for over a year. He was referred by a surgeon who had him do his own back surgery. My surgeons name is Fred Naraghi. I'll PM you my phone number, please call me with any questions you might have. I'd love to help you.

Sunny......they've come a long way baby! I hope you can move forward soon.

I have to jump in on this too. Mine was Congenital Spinal Stenosis. I lived with it for 20years and had multiple nerve damage, regeneration cycles with it. I finally had surgery for it after my right foot became paralyzed after three days of terrible pain. The Surgery was in 2008 and my nerves and muscles from the knee down to the big toe are still recovering. I can lift my right foot about 70% of normal but it is noticeably weaker than the left foot. Without the surgery, more nerves wold have been crushed until I would have been wheel chair bound and paralyzed. The pain was terrible.

The surgery was microsurgery and out patient. I went home the same afternoon of the surgery. It was amazing and in the past four years I have only had a couple times where I had back pain and it was just muscles. It feels like I have a new spine.

I hope you can get an appointment with the surgeon BigDaddysMom suggested.

Ron

Quote:

Originally Posted by mycutekitties 

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigDaddysMom 

Quote:
This bring tears to my eyes....I don't ever want to return to that pain! I'm 7 weeks post op from two spine surgeries. Both a little over 5 hours, two days in a row but within hours of the second surgery I was up and walking and my leg pain was virtually gone! I had an XLIF and the next day fusion. I went home two days early and was able to get much more comfortable at home. The recovery is long but after living in that kind of pain for so long it's nothing. I've been told I've had the text book outcome and although they warned me that I would have more bad days then good in the first 3 months, I have only experienced a few days that I felt pain that scared me back to not overdoing. Other then that, I have quality of life, even with all it's limitations, that I had forgotten existed.

Prior to surgery I resisted the next level of pain management but finally gave in when I could barely get out of bed. I think you made the right decision to start the morphine and vicodin...those 16 days would have felt like 16 years!

I had surgery in San Francisco from a surgeon that I chose after searching for over a year. He was referred by a surgeon who had him do his own back surgery. My surgeons name is Fred Naraghi. I'll PM you my phone number, please call me with any questions you might have. I'd love to help you.

Sunny......they've come a long way baby! I hope you can move forward soon.

You are so sweet!
I can't wait to be normal again!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ronott1 

I have to jump in on this too. Mine was Congenital Spinal Stenosis. I lived with it for 20years and had multiple nerve damage, regeneration cycles with it. I finally had surgery for it after my right foot became paralyzed after three days of terrible pain. The Surgery was in 2008 and my nerves and muscles from the knee down to the big toe are still recovering. I can lift my right foot about 70% of normal but it is noticeably weaker than the left foot. Without the surgery, more nerves wold have been crushed until I would have been wheel chair bound and paralyzed. The pain was terrible.

 

The surgery was microsurgery and out patient. I went home the same afternoon of the surgery. It was amazing and in the past four years I have only had a couple times where I had back pain and it was just muscles. It feels like I have a new spine.

 

I hope you can get an appointment with the surgeon BigDaddysMom suggested.

 

 

Ron

Quote:

Originally Posted by mycutekitties 

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigDaddysMom 

Quote:
This bring tears to my eyes....I don't ever want to return to that pain! I'm 7 weeks post op from two spine surgeries. Both a little over 5 hours, two days in a row but within hours of the second surgery I was up and walking and my leg pain was virtually gone! I had an XLIF and the next day fusion. I went home two days early and was able to get much more comfortable at home. The recovery is long but after living in that kind of pain for so long it's nothing. I've been told I've had the text book outcome and although they warned me that I would have more bad days then good in the first 3 months, I have only experienced a few days that I felt pain that scared me back to not overdoing. Other then that, I have quality of life, even with all it's limitations, that I had forgotten existed.

Prior to surgery I resisted the next level of pain management but finally gave in when I could barely get out of bed. I think you made the right decision to start the morphine and vicodin...those 16 days would have felt like 16 years!

I had surgery in San Francisco from a surgeon that I chose after searching for over a year. He was referred by a surgeon who had him do his own back surgery. My surgeons name is Fred Naraghi. I'll PM you my phone number, please call me with any questions you might have. I'd love to help you.

Sunny......they've come a long way baby! I hope you can move forward soon.

You are so sweet!
I can't wait to be normal again!

     I'm going to call Pam's Doc soon myself.  I am loving all the mutual support we get on this thread!!!  Ron that nerve pain sounds very painful!!!  Glad you are healing but sounds like it's been a long haul for you to get as far as you've gotten.  Sure hope the healing process continues!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigDaddysMom 

Ron, my husband has stenosis and is next in line for surgery. I think people don't understand the chance of nerves being permanently damaged the longer they wait. My husband has finally agreed to surgery after seeing the relief I've gotten.

It's amazing that you are still seeing improvement. I've heard that recovery can take as long as the amount of time you suffered. A nerve heals very slowly!

Your Hubby too?!!  Oh my gosh you guys have really been through it haven't you?!!  I hope he has as good an outcome as you have had.  Pam I just want to say how much all your support has meant to me these past few months!!!  You are an amazing person to have been through the pain you have and still be so quick to be helpful and sympathetic when we all need it most!!!!!  Huge hugs to you!!!

Speaking of folks being supportive... Kim I also am not sure if I told you how much you helped me deal with my Mom's death 3 months ago.  Today is her birthday so I thought I would post a pic of her to celebrate.  I loved it when you posted pics of your parents to honor them.  Very cool.  So I figured I would keep the tradition going...  

Happy Birthday Mom!  (she's the one in the middle)

The nerve damage is why I had the surgery. The nerve was very damaged. It has to tunnel through the old nerve to regenerate. There are three or so nerve parts that leave the spine and join together to become the sciatic nerve. I crushed the one of the three that controls the muscle that lifts the foot. I have foot drop, but it is not too bad now. The nerve regenerates at a rate of 1/2 inch per month. The problem is that the rate decreases as the nerve gets further away from the spine and the peroneal nerve is the longest one we have. Another problem is muscle Atrophy because the nerve impulse has to be there for the muscle to live. After four years, my nerve has recovered tom my ankle. I hope that in the next year it will recover to my big toe and I will be able to lift my foot. If the nerve is not too damaged, recovery can be faster because the myelian sheath just needs to recover.

To help nerves recover, use Lions Mane mushroom extract.

The surgery they do now is a micro surgery. The surgeon used a three inch incision at one vertebrae to open the nerve channels at the other three to make room for all of the nerves that become the sciatic nerve. I was pain free with no problems from the surgery within a couple of days. The old surgery would have opened up all three of the vertebra's and would have had a higher risk of problems.

I hope all goes well with recovering from all of this back pain.

Ron

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigDaddysMom 

Ron, my husband has stenosis and is next in line for surgery. I think people don't understand the chance of nerves being permanently damaged the longer they wait. My husband has finally agreed to surgery after seeing the relief I've gotten.

It's amazing that you are still seeing improvement. I've heard that recovery can take as long as the amount of time you suffered. A nerve heals very slowly!