On September 13, 2012 I suffered a herniated disc of the L5/S1 space from severe coughing with a bad bout of bronchitis. I suspect I have had bulging discs for years because I have had bouts of sciatica for about 12 years now that has previously been successfully treated by a chiropractor. I also work for a chiropractor now as well so I get free care. Let me interject that I know some have had bad experiences with chiros but this guy is great and he knows his limitations. He has many times referred patients on for an MRI and medical work up when he feels the condition is not improving.
When this herniation occurred I was bedridden for 2 weeks then went into physical therapy for 6 weeks. I was also on steroids, pain pills and muscle relaxants. My HMO would not pay for an MRI until these steps had been taken first. The MRI revealed the L5/S1 herniation and a bulging disc at L4/L5. I had severe muscle cramps, right sided sciatica with numbness, nerve burning, weakness etc. I recovered to a point and did go back to my part time job as an insurance clerk but never got pain free so in December I saw an orthopedist. He gave me a steroid epidural which just seemed to irritate the nerve and make everything worse. He then wanted to do surgery but I decided to get a second opinion because this guy was a bit of a jerk and had a bad bedside manner. In Jan 2013 I saw a Neuro surgeon. He repeated the MRI which showed the same as the first and also did a NCV test. He said I did not show permanent nerve or muscle damage on the NCV and he thought I really would benefit from a discectomy.
On March 22, 2012 I had a discectomy and laminectomy. I awoke in far more pain than I was expecting to and my nerve numbness and irritation was still present. 11 days out from back surgery I had a major set back. For about 3 days I had more leg pain/irritation. I thought maybe I wasn't moving around enough and so this past that Sunday evening we got out of the house and went to the park to walk. I walked a mile and it felt so good to be out in the fresh air. The walk was slow and at times I stopped to rest but I felt okay and like it actually did me some good. Monday morning I awoke to very bad nerve pain, burning etc. down my entire right side from my low back to my ankle. I could hardly walk when I got up. I burst into tears as this is what I felt like before surgery when I was still in the throws of much pain. I put a call into my doctor's office and the nurse there said that it can happen to have increased nerve irritation along the way in recovery. She talked to the PA and they called me in a steroid dose pack. I was told to stay on ice alternating with heat and get up and move around every hour. Then we waited to see how things went from there.
It took me all that week to recover from this back set and feel like now I was about back to where I was the Friday before. The next week they started me back into physical therapy (per my request because I had to do something to help with the nerve pain) and little by little I began to see some progress.
There have been many ups and downs. Rainy weather seems to have a horrible effect on nerves just like it does on joints for those with arthritis. It seems we have had rain every 3 out of 5 days since I had surgery. That is not an exact figure but I can assure you not a week has gone by that was totally dry. On the few days that have been clear and sunny my discomfort levels were MUCH better.
On 4/15/13 I saw my Dr. for follow-up. I told him that I have not had the "pain free" moment following surgery that some have and he said that it was disappointing to hear. On the other hand, he said he feels that having the surgery to relieve the compression of the nerve will allow it to heal more quickly than if I had not had the surgery. I told him I was still holding onto that hope myself.
On 4/22/13 I went back to work at my part time job at the chiropractor. The first week was really hard. By the time I got home from my morning shift I would collapse and spend pretty much the rest of the day resting and doing my PT stretches so I could get up and go again the next day. Last week was a little better. This week has been even better with today being my best yet.
On 5/6/13 we celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary! I also had my physical therapy assessment that day. She did strength testing, flexibility and range of motion. All have improved and she was very encouraging about that. We both agreed that I am doing about 75% better with the lack being in the nerve irritation department. Those rainy days still do me in! We also discovered that I do have some muscle weakness on the left side on certain tasks as well even though my surgery was on the right. It could have always been there, I dunno. I am not a well fit person so who knows? I guess overall I am doing better.
So that folks is the long story of where I have been and why you have not seen much reborn progress going on at Lil Dumplins Nursery. Our youngest daughter's high school graduation ceremony is the end of May and I am hoping to be able to get back to painting babies after that.
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