Bulged Disc

[Deepsouth]

Didn't see an injury forum here, so posted here. Mods if this is the wrong place- please relocate.
Always had a little pain/soreness in my lower back(left side) but never unmanageable. Then about 6-8 weeks ago I woke up @0200 and went to the gym(don't remember what I worked but not super heavy), went to work my normal 12 hrs shift, got off and went home and rode dirtbikes with my son. I had a few adult beverages of course to unwind. Wokwe up the next morning dang near crippled. Sciactic(sp) nerve had pain from my left Glute than ran all the way down my hamstring through my calve and my outer side of my foot was numb. Stayed this way for about 3-4 weeks and I muddled through it never missing work just hobbling around. My Dr. gave me Vicodin and a steriod pack with some anti-inflamitories, but nothing touched the pain. I have sinse seen a spine surgeon and had an MRI- X-rays- and an EMG done. the pain has all but subsided and I still walk with a little limp and can feel tension down my ham and calve. Surgeon reviewd eveything and has suggested a Laminectomy/Discectomy. Said Pain management and physical therapy wouldn't fix what I have being I could tolerate the pain and I exercise and Discetomy or fusion were my two options. I have 2 bulged disc- 1 between L4-L5 and the other between L5-S1. Being the pain isnet bothering me and the atrophy in my legs has stopped , I think things are heading in the right direction and I'm considering NOT during surgery. Has anyone else here had something similar????

 

[Tom]

i can tell you this much. my ex-wife has now had 3 back surgeries. first one a discectomy followed by 2 fusions with titanium cages. she says she is no better than before the surgeries and regrets having the first one. maybe not the case for everyone as i'm sure there are many success stories too. she wishes she would have tried intense therapy with stretching and flexability work before going for the surgeries. she too was told it would not help but in retrospect i think the doc could smell the money. now she can't function without the oxycontin. she lives in a very depressed state and is on total disability.

 

[Deepsouth]

sorry to hear that about your wife. I have been much research and praying about what path to take and I've heard good and bad on both sides, but I'm starting to lean on not getting surgery unless the atrophy and pain is more than I can stand. I thank you for your imput and welcome others please

 

[BroBovine]

I was told by 2 seperate doctors that therapy and the like would not help me either bro..
I suffer from congenital spinal stenosis, facet syndrome and level 1 degeneratioin of L4-L5 to the degree where they actually press up against the nerve.

Some days pain would just flat out put me to sleep.
Walking daily - both legs would give out (totally numb)

Once ur out the acute phase and before u decide on any surgeries.
Look into decompression therapy through a chiropractor.
That coupled with active release, electric stim, specific stretches and some stabilizing exercises have allowed me to continue not at 100% but much better than if I had went with the Laminectomy.

I can no longer dead lift, squat, clean or perform snatches or any super heavy overhead exercise but I found a way around almost every exercise including squats (hip belt squats).

The decompression therapy works wonders...

 

[RONJON]

I am opening a clinic in Kemah after school if its still a problem brutha

 

[mikevegas]

(1) Give it time. I had full recovery from a crippling buldging disc. Had to miss 3 months of work. Now I deadlift again in the 400's. Took me a full year to feel right.

(2) LASER DISC DECOMPRESSION - google this, it is by far the best option out there. Check it and PM me any questions you may have. I researched the shit out of this, it was my next step if time didn't cure my bulging issue.

 

[Amazon Doll]

I am 52 and I herniated a dics when I was 20 deadlifting.

It took me awhile, but figuring out what muscles to stretch and decompression are the key! I would avoid sugery until all options with the 2 I mentioned are explored.

I am fine but peeps I know that have gone under the knife regret it to this day

 

[triathloncoach]

I would be very reluctant to go the back surgery route. From my limited research, more often than not it benefits only the surgeon.

Good luck, and welcome to the board.

 

[LEX]

number one...if you can live without surgery then do it.
number two...laser is a joke don't do it, its all marketing.
number three...spine surgery takes pain from a 10 to a 3...rarely unless its cervical do people not still have some pain after.
number four....micro-discs do work for a lot of people however just know that you are starting down the road for a fusion, and structure your life-workouts with that in mind.

good luck to you man....

 

[LEX]

(1) Give it time. I had full recovery from a crippling buldging disc. Had to miss 3 months of work. Now I deadlift again in the 400's. Took me a full year to feel right.

(2) LASER DISC DECOMPRESSION - google this, it is by far the best option out there. Check it and PM me any questions you may have. I researched the shit out of this, it was my next step if time didn't cure my bulging issue.[/QUOTE


Mike, I work in the industry and can tell you there is nothing special to Laser its all marketing.

 

[kdtl61]

At 31 I blew out the L4/L5/S1 disc. Good clean rupture. The mri showed the rupture clearly. Showed the nerve floating/curving away from the disc. I had the sciatic nerve problem all the way down the leg into calf. I had 3 shots in the location "Epidurals" to get past the pain. Did not take much pain meds really. Ortho doc said to me "you are too young to cut on. If I do cut what if my blade just touches something it shouldn't"? He then said "try getting in shape and strengthen that abdominal wall." Yep, that was the first day I started to learn about working out.

Fast forward to today now I'm 50. Never been cut on for that area anyways. I still get back flair ups from time to time. However, it got me in a sport that I love and I have added much lean mass to my frame to support my structure
LIKE most guys are saying here "LAST RESORT" my friend. Stay away from that knife at all cost.

Best of luck to you.
K

 

[ojs]

I am 52 and I herniated a dics when I was 20 deadlifting.

It took me awhile, but figuring out what muscles to stretch and decompression are the key! I would avoid sugery until all options with the 2 I mentioned are explored.

I am fine but peeps I know that have gone under the knife regret it to this day

Same here. The pain is manageable. Though at times it does get crippling. But I take my time and stretch and hang and, well, I have a routine. I've been putting off surgery for almost 30 years.

The initial injury happened during a head on collision on the freeway on a very rainy day when I was 22. It really started bothering me by the time I was 35. And I've seen the results of even the slightest mistake during surgery. You can end up in a wheel chair for the rest of your life. So I decided I'd wait till I can't walk from the pain before talking a chance on surgery.

 

[bmcjames]

I herniated my l4/l5 disc

Back around December of 2008.
I had tried Chiropractics, stretching, everything, and nothing was working. Things were just getting worse and worse for me. It got a point where people would call me Quasi Moto because I had to drag my leg and hunch around. I couldn't drive my truck because I was unable to push the clutch in. Everything hurt, sitting, laying, standing, coughing, absolutely everything!

In February of 2009 I had back surgery where they remove all parts of the bulged disc, after the initial recovery of like 4 days I have been 100% pain free from there on out.

I guess alot can depend on the level of severity of the damaged disc. Mine was pretty severe to the point of incapacitating me for months on end so its not like it could have gotten any worse.

 

[Jonny]

I couldn't walk once, and went to the Chiropractor twice and was better. This might not work for every injury though. That's some serious pain though, I feel for you.

 

[jesse7159]

am I the only one that thinks adequan could help low back issues?

 

[red5260]

Find a good chiropractor. GOOD chiropractor. Most are crap and employ methods that are inefficient to you but make them money. I have degeneration in L4 and L5. It can take months and months to heal. But with regular therapy from a chiro and good pt exercises on your own, it can happen.
Find a chiro that has had back injuries himself. Those are the ones that care and know their stuff.

 

[thebrick]

I had cervical fusion surgery in March (C4-C6) I am now pain-free with no adverse symptoms. My weakness and atrophy have reversed.

This is what my surgeon told me. Cervical fusion has a predictably high rate of success (90%+) UNLIKE the lumbar region, which he said is much more uncertain and unpredictable for a good outcome. That said, I would avoid surgery, unless, if and/or when the pain gets unbearable or you start to suffer significant atrophy from nerve damage.

 

[tobefitt]

DS
I feel your pain bro! I injured my back and suffered for 12 plus years of on and off pain. I had exhausted every possible method to get to a better place including therapy, rehab, different exercise routine, time off, shots, Chiro, massage, water therapy, you name it I pretty much did it. The pain got so bad I was going to the hospital via ambulance a couple times a month. I was told that surgery was a must and at the time I was so looking for relief so I went to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, MD and had a L4-L-5 fusion with a screw fixation. They repaired a fracture in my spine in this same location and also addressed my arthritis, I spent 4 days in the hospital and then a long road of rehab. It took me almost 2 years to get back to about 85%, before I had another major issue where I was in worse pain. I later found out that the original fusion did not take and I required another surgery and this time because I went back to lifting heavy I now had blown out the disc below so I had to undergo a double fusion. They went in removed all the old hardware, refused L-4/L-5 and then fused L-5/S-1 and put me in a cage. I now have 2 rods and 6 screws in my back. I am 7 months post surgery and I am still in a lot of pain. I will always have issues and I will never ever be pain free. PLEASE do all you can to avoid the surgery until it is absolutely necessary. Once they fuse your back it is just a matter of time before you will need to have another one. It will depend on the injury and how well you recover and then how you decide to take care of it post surgery. A lot of people will tell you their opinions and you will have to choose what is best for you. I just wanted to share my 2 cents and let you know that I am one of those that had no choice. I appreciate what the doctors have tried to do, but still being in pain like I am, makes me advocate against back surgeries!! FYI my second surgery was done at the spine center at the University of MD. So both were done by world class neurosurgeons.
I wish you the best, do your best to stay away from the pain pills that could cause another whole issue.
Take care

 

[bruteforce]

I am a physical therapy student, I am done with all the coursework and just have clinical rotations left. I would recommend what others have said and at least try some conservative therapy before going into surgery.

Just like with chiros, not all PTs are created equal either. If you can find one that frequently works with training populations he will understand what you goals are and see if he can get you back. Other PTs may just say "stop training", so I would do some research and see if you can find a PT who knows understands what you want out of therapy. I have not seen many people who have had back surgeries recover well enough to get back to heavy lifting like they want to. I do know many (as others have stated) who have had multiple surgeries trying to get there, but end up no different.

 

[Deepsouth]

Man- I can't thank everyone enough for your imput. The more I hear from y'all, the more I know I need to stay away from getting cut on. I think I'm gonna just hold off on focus on PT for a while. I also had someone else mention decompression- I will definately be looking into that. "Lex" thank I will do a search on it. "Ron Jon" we need to hook up when you get down here bro!

Thanks again all- already feeling at home here