My Microdiscectomy Journey

Hello Pie, I am so glad to read things are going as well as they are for you. The fact that you are doing many of the usual things is very encouraging. You know, a lot of it all comes down to, it take time to completely recovery. It has taken you this long to get to the point you are today. It just confirms something I always tell folks when it comes to any kind of surgery, these drs talk in terms of text book talk only when it comes to recovery time. Most of the time they tell folks oh you will be healed in 6 weeks. That is pure nonsense, its not possible. At best that scar will be healed but that is it, lol. Remember, do not sit for long periods without changing your positions. Sitting puts a lot of stress on the spine.

Keep up the good work & we look forward to your next update. Take care....

hey Pienic - i want to say thanks SO much for posting your journey! i too have looked for people who are longer than a few weeks post surgery.
long story short i had a l5s1 microdiscectomy 5.5 months ago...ive had every symptom and pain after the surgery you can imagine, muscle spasms, twitches, burning, aching, stabbing.... my symptoms went from one leg before surgery to both legs.
my surgery was not an option, i had foot drop and couldnt even sleep, eat, walk to the bathroom... i was bedridden and living on pain meds which werent touching the pain. my entire disc had herniated out causing "severe stenosis".... ANYWHOO! lol i have had an MRI at my 3 month post surgery, they actually said everything looks amazingly well... my disc height is "VERY GOOD" and no nerve impingment... regarless, i still have lots of nerve pain. i started water therapy 2 months ago and my ability to do daily tasks has greatly increased, andim not laying down nearly as much and i too and trying to stop taking my butt load of otc pain meds. i dont need my liver to give out too lol.
some days my pains at a 5/6 (worst days) and some days its only a 1/2 (obviously best days). id say right my good days and bad days are about half and half. i def thought by now id be SO much better but i kept a pain log and to look back to right after surgery when i couldnt even ride in the car without laying down and an ice pack.... now i can go grocery shoppin by myself. granted i have to walk slowly and only get lightweight stuff but hey im doing it :P
today is actually one of my worse days. i think im in this cycle of i feel good one day, my pains low and i kind of forget and do more than i prolly should....sit longer than normal, clean the house more than i normally would on a bad day, stuff like that. then i pay for it for 2-3 days of pain. then i rest and feel better and repeat. i try to remind myself to quit but when u feel good after MONTHS of pain its hard to not want to do everything. i still dont lift anything over 20 lbs or anything like that even tho my surgeon said i could....
i think its hard because i also have a 19 lb 7 month old baby - all the lifting of him daily def takes its toll on me....but theres really no choice there.
ANYWAYS i digress.....i just wanted to say thanks, keep up the posts, its encouraging. i cant wait to hear hwo ur doing!

PieNic, thank you so much for posting your recovery story of your microdiscectomy. It has given me a level of comfort in knowing that the progress can come slower than originally thought. I am just over 3 weeks post op from a L5/S1 surgery. I have recently started walking about a mile a day. It seems since I've started that pains and aches in my back don't last as long while I'm active. The biggest issues I am dealing with right now is whenever I lie down in the bed. Whether it is on my back or my side, I am fine while I am in a lying position, but whenever I initially try to move around in the bed and eventually get up, I get a lot of pain and stiffness in the lower back. I literally have to stand in place for a couple of minutes before moving because I am so stiff. A lot of spasms are occurring as well during that time. Eventually, I am able to start moving around and the pain eventually subsides. I am also dealing with numbness in the calf and foot if I sit for too long. I'm trying to remind myself to get up after about 20 - 30 minutes and just walk around the house for a while.

If you happened to look at this forum PieNic, I have a question for you. I had my first post op (2 week) appt last week with my dr. and inquired about when I might be able to resume regular workouts. I'm a gym guy that likes to engage in weightlifting and cardio activity. He mentioned probably about 3 months post surgery. I noticed that you mentioned you have weightlifted in the past. I was just curious as to whether or not you resumed any weightlifting and if so, what were you experiences like. I imagine when I start, I won't be as concerned about doing upper body movements, but will probably be terrified to do any lower body movements.

I also start PT next week as well. I am hoping that this will help my recovery along as I am thinking they will concentrated on strengthening my core which I definitely need.

1 YEAR POST OP

Hello everyone I am back . Just like I promised . I am glad to hear that sharing my experience has helped you out and given you guys hope. I was just like you guys searching online wanting to know how others experiences went . Lying in bed for days wondering if I was ever going to get better . So here I am one year later micrco-D. I am doing a lot better since my last post 4 months ago . Its amazing how long it takes for nerves to heal. The last time I posted I was complaining about hip and groin pain . That pain is gone . My doc was right about the nerves healing from the bottom up . That's how I healed . Leg pain gone. Tail bone pain mostly gone . Sitting down is not really an issue anymore.

I have been busy this summer . I went on vacation to San Diego . It was a 6 hour drive and the drive didn't bother me . We made 3 stops to stretch out . I went to the beach and got into the ocean and played in some good size waves . Two weeks ago I was in Las Vegas walking up and down the strip .

I know that some have asked if I ever got back into weight lifting . No I have not lol. I've decided not to use that as my form of exercise . I now swim, bike ,walk, and use my own body weight for strengthening . I just don't want to take a chance at blowing out my disk again. Even though I am not sure what exactly was the cause of my injury .

My only complaint is that my back still aches . Not sure whats going on inside . Bending still causes me some discomfort. I am not sure what to do . Should I wait and see if it gets better . I am thinking about getting an MRI to see if they can find out whats going on . Hopefully its nothing major . Maybe it's permanent nerve damage ? or do I still have some pressure on my nerves?

Life is almost the same as it was before my injury . Although I still have some pain . I am not 100% but I am happy with my results . Having this surgery was the right decision for me. I was so miserable I believe it was the only choice . I don't think that any amount of physical therapy would of helped me. I was too far gone . No regrets here .

I will keep you guys updated when I decided to get another MRI . I am going to continue to be patient and wait to see how it all works out .

Hi KimE,
Yes I do believe that 7weeks is way too early . Give it more time . I am now 16 months post op . I am doing a lot better but I just never fully made it back to my normal self . I am still having trouble with my lower back . It still aches . I had an X-ray and MRI done. Didn't show that I re herniated so I am still searching for answers . My surgeon has now sent me to pain management . Where I have had 2 epidural injections so for . They seem to work but don't last long. Each shot lasted 3-4 weeks .

The best thing you could do is not sit for long periods of time. Try to stretch every chance you can & give it time.

Hello KimE & welcome to the chronic pain forum. Glad that you found us but sorry that you have the need to be here.

We do ask all new members to post a separate intro post so that all members will see it & be able to say hello & welcome aboard. To start a new thread, look to the left & click Post New Topic, type in a heading & if you like, copy & paste what you have written above that would be perfect.

I agree with PieNic, sitting for long periods is probably the culprit as to why you are having so much pain. about every 30-45 minutes or so you need to get up & move around & do some stretching. Sitting puts an awful lot of stress on the low back.

Take care.

Hello eejay & welcome to the forum. Glad that you joined us but sorry you have to be here. We do ask all new members to make a separate intro post so that all members will see it & be able to say hello & welcome aboard. By posting on PieNics thread not many people will see your post. What you have written above would be perfect for an intro post, so perhaps you can copy & paste it. Since this is PieNic's thread we don't want to hijack it, lol.

We look forward to getting to know you.

LimerickLass if you would please start your own separate thread about your surgery. Lets not hijack PieNic's thread. Click on your name & it should take you to your posts & you can pick up there if you started your own thread back then. Thanks.