hi guys. hope everyone doing well painwise. my laptop broke so havnt been on in a while. i got my long awaited mris on friday and after 10yrs of suffering something showed, i have a moderate disc bulge at l5 s1 hitting off a nerve, because iv been suffering so long and tried everything else iv been booked in for a micro disectomy. there is a year waiting list in ireland for this surgery but iv been put on the cancellation list so could get a call to come straight in at any time. im happy they finally found something and il have to take the chance with surgery to try get my life back, im in constant pain and its getting worse. i was told to watch carefully for bowel and bladder symptoms or leg weakness which i get from time to time if the symptoms last longer than 2 hrs then i have to go straight to a&e.im not sure if this will stop all my pain but hope it can reduce it. thanks for listening and all your help and any ideas would be great. take care, shelsers.
That is terrific news --not that you have to have surgery...but it is nice to find a reason for your pain. You might think about getting your living space organized in case you get called in right away. You shouldn't be all that laid up with a microdiscectomy, but you will still need to avoid bending and twisting at the waist, lifting, etc. for a couple months (to be on the safe side). Just think about moving things you use all the time into a zone between your knees and shoulders so you won't have to bend.
Do you have a "grabber?" If not, be sure to get one. If you're not familiar, it is a device that allows you to pick things up off the floor. After you are recovered it will still come in handy when you drop something behind a piece of furniture that you cannot reach, etc.
One caveat: my surgeon told me that he has the most "trouble" with his discectomy patients because they usually feel so good after surgery. After years of pain restricting their activities, they can do all these things without pain or with little pain...and as a result, they want to make up for lost time. These overly eager patients usually end up end up overdoing it. This can result in a relapse, and some even end up reherniating the disc.
So just be aware of this and guard against it, should you be lucky enough to walk up without your current level of pain!!
Don't be a stranger! Let us know when you have your surgery so we can send positive thoughts your way.
hi teri, thanks for your reply. i always swore i wouldnt have surgery but i want to try get my life back. thanks for the tip about the grabber il get one and il try be very careful im already trying to show the kids i can only pick them up while im sitting down. im lucky i have a lot of help i dont normally ask but i will. my mom has had back surgery so she will come stay with us to help. il keep in touch i have my laptop back. take care, shelsers
Sounds like my reasoning in having surgery...I was losing everything to the pain and I needed to take the shot at feeling better. I'll assume you've done your research and tried other stuff and that surgery is where you need to go. I'l have m fingers crossed for a cancellation....I know they happen with a decent amount of frequency, esp in cold season (they won't do elective surgery if the patient has a bug...for one surgery, i showed up to my pre-op w/ walking pnemonia....i didn't care about the bug, but cried when surgery was delayed).
I agree with Teri...get ready so you are able to jump when a cancellation comes. Another piece: Keep a list of people to call....a support system helps and obv you need to let some folks know you'll beout of comission for a bit
