lfoster21

Hey ladybug, I hope you start to feel a little better ea. day, from the epidural. I remember that the 1st 4 or so days, it felt like it wasn't getting better. Well, I guess the 4th day it felt better, but then I went out and ran errands and then I was having to stay put for the next few days. From the sound of your yesterday...I can only imagine that you would be in additional pain. Did your Dr. tell you to stay off your feet for a few days? I think I was told 3-5 days, but I was probably in pain for a few days longer than that.

If you have the RF, you absolutly will need the sedation. I had it done twice, because they did not explain the trial to me correctly. What happens is they will do a trial, using a numbing medicine. You should get a 70-100% relief for the next hr. or so, while you are still numb. Once that med. wears off, you will have the post-procedure pain, like you are having now. Then, when you go back for your f/u, you will be asked if in that 1st hr., you got any relief. If so, they will do the RF in the same area and you should get the same affect as you did in the trial.

When he explained the trial, I did not understand that the lanocane would only last for 1 hr. and I needed to take note of how I felt during that period. Then, what happened was 1st, the Dr. put a lot of lanocane in, during the test. So much so, that when I got out of the car, my foot was numb and I could not step on it. So, I was focusting on the weird heavy feeling foot. That then came back to normal w/i that hr. but the pain of the post procedure came on. When I went back, I did not know how to answer the quesion if I got relief, because I wasn't thinking about it immediately after the procedure. So, we did it a 2nd time and the Dr. was very clear that time around, focus on the relief that you get during the initial hr.

As for the procedure, getting to the nerve I was able to bear it, but it wasn't "easy". Then, once they get to the correct place, they will turn up the heat, a little at a time, and I was told that if it starts to hurt...to let him know and he would turn the heat down. However, the secret is the higher he can get it turned up, the more relief I'd get. With ea. round of "burning", they have to keep it on the nerve for aprx. a min., so I told him, when I started to feel pressure, and he would ask if I could bear with it or if he needed to turn it down. I found it helpful to ask him to let me know the amount of seconds left in the minute. That way, if I knew say there were just 5 second left, I'd grin and bear it. But if it was unbearable, I told him to turn it down.

Please let me know if you end up doing this procedure. I could work, you never know until you try, as it seems to be with most of these procedures, huh?

Good luck and I am thinking of you.

Lorie

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