I had my alif in Sept L4/5 5a/1. I am still in such horrible pain. The numbness in leg and foot is gone which is great, but my lower Back, buttcheeks, pelvic area, thighs, all way down to my knees are just killing me. My dr did xrays 1month ago said looks great . Then when I went back 2 weeks ago he ordered mri he said it looked beautiful. He also said I could come out of my brace which originally was 6months. He then asked where my pain was and I showed him. I feel like someone is inside me squeezing and pulling stabbing. He said he doesn't understand how it why I am in any pain. And of course all his surgeries have all been successful he said. Yes this one also was cuz I can feel my foot and the numbness is gone BUT, the pain now is terrible. What else I think is wired, he has never touched me since srg like refluxes , pushed on back etc. Then he asked me what meds I take, I told him and one is an anxiety med welbutrin, he then said he thinks that is playing Games with my head and feels I should go talk to someone (as in a shrink ) ! My first 3 surgeries were laminectomies and disectomies so this is my 4the srg in 16mnths. Does anyone have any advice, comments, anything? I know what I feel and I'm not crazy. I can't sleep on back sit door long periods .. lower back to knees just horrible. help. ...
I can't relate to your description of the pain, so don't really know what you mean -- the squeezing, pulling, stabbing. Sometimes when a patient forms scar tissue post surgery, it can attach to a nerve. I suppose that could feel like a pulling sensation. Did the doctor mention anything about scar tissue? Does it pull in the pelvic area more than elsewhere?
Did you get a copy of the MRI and the radiology report? If not, I would suggest that you do so. It is a good idea to get in the habit of keeping copies of your records as they pertain to this spine problem
In my experience it is common for the spine surgeon to not touch the patient. Mine never looked at my incision or did any type of exam. After surgery he just relied on the x-ray or MRI...and whatever I told him about my pain/symptoms.
What pain meds are you taking? I had pain alot longer than most I was told, and I also developed all sorts of other pains, couldn't believe it. I backed off on PT alot and have a new medicine that makes me so much better.
As noted above regarding scar tissue: have you been walking alot since surgery to help prevent scar tissue? Sorry you hurt. I disagree with it "being in your head" and maybe see your regular Dr for more help with pain if the surgeon wont. I hope you feel better and get answers real soon.
im on vicoden and muscle relaxer.but he told me he can't fill anymore.... and yes.i.got my mri reports.. he said there's.no scar tissue in mri after 4 surgeries in 16 months that's a miracle
You may need to go to an interventional pain management doctor if your surgeon won't prescribe for you any longer. Unfortunately a lot of these guys who claim to only have "successes" don't want to listen to a patient who is still in pain and they tend to overlook their concerns. He sounds like the kind of doctor who doesn't really discuss the MRI with his patient...just kind of brushes over it by assuring that everything looks great. I 'd be amazed if you have no scar tissue. Probably it is just that it hasn't attached to a nerve and therefore is not a problem.
In any case, see how you do with PT. Three months is still early in the recovery process and some people don't begin to feel better for a long time...so try not to get discouraged. But pay attention to your body during PT. If you find it is making things worse, then you may need to back off for awhile or at least talk to the PT about it. Some therapists are more experienced with spine rehab and it is important that the therapist match the treatments to where you are at the time -- no "one size fits all" type rehab...that can do more harm than good.
The Following User Says Thank You to teteri66 For This Useful Post: my2boyz22 (12-20-2012)
