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  • Is something really wrong

    I had surgery 2 months ago today- May 3rd and I am feeling worse than I did before I had the surgery . On my left side, I am having the same pains going down my leg and my back .It is just as painful as it was when I came out of surgery if not worse.The pain is going down my left arm to the point where I cannot type on the keyboard with my fingers or use my hand for anything.The pain is causing me to wake up again at night 2 or more times. I cannot get comfortable to sleep anymore. I am just miserable. I am seeing my surgeon on Wednesday.

    Melissa

  • #2
    hi Melissa
    i am so sorry that you are suffering this way!

    when you say the pain goes down your arms to your hands, etc...do you think there is a chance the pain is nerve related? is there numbness and tingling stuff going on?

    i am so glad you're seeing your doctor Wed...i know it cant come soon enough!

    are the pain pills not effective with this pain..?

    jess

    Comment


    • #3
      There is nerve and tingeing going down to my hands yes and the pains pills help but I only have a few left

      Melissa

      Comment


      • #4
        Very sorry to hear this, Melissa! That you are not only in severe pain, but left suffering without a clear diagnosis and not even enough pain pills, sounds like a special kind of hell - ambiguity and lack of pain control on top of feeling all that pain...

        I hope all can be resolved soon!

        From reading this site, I have been struck many times by how much surgeons hate to be confronted by post surgical problems. There ARE so many kinds and sources of post -surgical pain. Most are "just" a natural result of so much invasion, foreign bodies and structural changes. However, some are early signs of processes that should not be happening.

        Naturally, surgeons don't want to call in the "fire brigade" for pain in the first category and when in doubt (most of the time), they have a strong preference for a wait and see approach. Guess they figure anything serious will be diagnosed first by the fact that it didn't "just go away".

        This is very, very hard on the patient. The problem is. there is SO much pain involved in this surgery and the underlying conditions. Though agonizing, most is not intrinsically dangerous . I feel awful for you that you've been left in this gray area for so long. That's especially rough since your pain is worse than before and because of your isolation (described elsewhere).

        I agree with Jess (implied) for whatever it's worth - it sounds like nerve pain. If you have a neurome chart handy, it might help to come to the appt prepared with one downloaded (and after checking whether your limb pain seems to follow any of the nerve root paths).

        Wishing you strength, faith and good fortune in dealing with this pain and stress!
        Last edited by Back-out; 07-04-2010, 04:06 PM.
        Not all diagnosed (still having tests and consults) but so far:
        Ehler-Danlos (hyper-mobility) syndrome, 69 - somehow,
        main curve L Cobb 60, compensating T curve ~ 30
        Flat back, marked lumbar kyphosis (grade?) Spondilolisthesis - everyone gives this a different grade too. Cervical stenosis op'd 3-07, minimally invasive

        Comment


        • #5
          If it is nerve pain what does that mean to me?

          Can I be helped?

          Was this the biggest mistake I have made in my life then?

          Am I just going to have to suffer with this pain then?

          elissa

          Comment


          • #6
            Melissa
            no i do not believe that for one minute! it is too early to even think that!

            nerve pain is custom made to be helped with epidural injections...every doctor, every surgeon told me the same thing...so if this does not resolve with time, i would check into that.. a pain management doctor is your best bet...

            but BEFORE anything like that, i think you need to call your surgeon and let them know what is going on! you must get the pain meds...no one expects you to cope with this without help!!
            and there are meds that treat nerve pain as well...

            i'm also thinking maybe you should private message some surgery folks on forum who've had similar fusions to yours...

            you sound so full of despair...but i know it will get better!

            jess

            Comment


            • #7
              Roll on Wednesday, you poor thing. You need answers, so ensure he gives them to you, or at least does the appropriate tests to discover the answers. In the meantime have you got enough meds to get you through to Wednesday? If not, give him a ring asap.

              So sorry to hear this Melissa, but I still feel this will resolve, just based on the pain others have had, that came good in time. I've got everything crossed for you.
              Surgery March 3, 2009 at almost 58, now 63.
              Dr. Askin, Brisbane, Australia
              T4-Pelvis, Posterior only
              Osteotomies and Laminectomies
              Was 68 degrees, now 22 and pain free

              Comment


              • #8
                Melissa,

                You did nothing wrong. A main point I was trying to make is that most severe spinal pain is not the sign of anything "dangerous", However, we're primed to regard pain as a sign of something endangering us, while it is mostly NOT - except for the pain itself. It is shocking how different life looks when the pain no longer exists - which CAN happen almost like turning off a switch.

                IMO nerve pain (following the path of a nerve, which can mean a nerve is entrapped at the vertebra) is one of the least dangerous and MOST painful reasons to feel severe suffering. The last surgeon I saw had me given a ten+ page questionnaire (part of his research protocol) and the main point made over and over was the lack of direct association between severity of pain and danger. (Also that exercise can help).

                I think a CT myelogram (I just had one - much easier than I'd feared) is pretty much the best way to check where pain is coming from. Maybe you can have one. A radio-opaque dye is injected (usually) in the lumbar spine and a cat scan traces how it moves in the cerebrospinal fluid - blockages, pinching, herniations, stenosis, etc.

                Jess is right. Injections and nerve block (she ought to known!) can greatly relieve nerve pain, especially once the exact path is identified.

                Hang in there. There IS a pain-free world out there, still!!! You can inhabit it. Life looks completely different with and without severe pain. You'll see, Don't draw conclusions. What you feel now is just that - the present tense, NOT the future.
                Not all diagnosed (still having tests and consults) but so far:
                Ehler-Danlos (hyper-mobility) syndrome, 69 - somehow,
                main curve L Cobb 60, compensating T curve ~ 30
                Flat back, marked lumbar kyphosis (grade?) Spondilolisthesis - everyone gives this a different grade too. Cervical stenosis op'd 3-07, minimally invasive

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Back-out View Post
                  Melissa,

                  You did nothing wrong. A main point I was trying to make is that most severe spinal pain is not the sign of anything "dangerous", However, we're primed to regard pain as a sign of something endangering us, while it is mostly NOT - except for the pain itself. It is shocking how different life looks when the pain no longer exists - which CAN happen almost like turning off a switch.

                  IMO nerve pain (following the path of a nerve, which can mean a nerve is entrapped at the vertebra) is one of the least dangerous and MOST painful reasons to feel severe suffering. The last surgeon I saw had me given a ten+ page questionnaire (part of his research protocol) and the main point made over and over was the lack of direct association between severity of pain and danger. (Also that exercise can help).

                  I think a CT myelogram (I just had one - much easier than I'd feared) is pretty much the best way to check where pain is coming from. Maybe you can have one. A radio-opaque dye is injected (usually) in the lumbar spine and a cat scan traces how it moves in the cerebrospinal fluid - blockages, pinching, herniations, stenosis, etc.

                  Jess is right. Injections and nerve block (she ought to known!) can greatly relieve nerve pain, especially once the exact path is identified.

                  Hang in there. There IS a pain-free world out there, still!!! You can inhabit it. Life looks completely different with and without severe pain. You'll see, Don't draw conclusions. What you feel now is just that - the present tense, NOT the future.
                  Thanks

                  I did find some pain meds from that should last until I see the doctor

                  Melissa

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Do You think that using my tens units will help me?

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      i dont know whether a tens unit helps nerve related pain...

                      jess

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by mbeckoff View Post
                        Do You think that using my tens units will help me?
                        I was told that I could no longer use the tens units now that I have spinal implants.

                        I hope you see some improvement and that your pain is just temporary.
                        __________________________________________
                        Debbe - 50 yrs old

                        Milwalkee Brace 1976 - 79
                        Told by Dr. my curve would never progress

                        Surgery 10/15/08 in NYC by Dr. Michael Neuwirth
                        Pre-Surgury Thorasic: 66 degrees
                        Pre-Surgery Lumbar: 66 degrees

                        Post-Surgery Thorasic: 34 degrees
                        Post-Surgery Lumbar: 22 degrees

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Melissa,
                          So very sorry you are going through this. I agree about the TENS. I would at least call your doctor's office this morning and ask them if it is okay. I was told that TENS interrupts the nerve signals, so it might be worth a try if it is deemed safe.
                          Be happy!
                          We don't know what tomorrow brings,
                          but we are alive today!

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by debbei View Post
                            I was told that I could no longer use the tens units now that I have spinal implants.

                            I hope you see some improvement and that your pain is just temporary.

                            That is strange as I was using my TENS unit at rehab after my surgery

                            Melissa

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              hi Melissa
                              is the pain any different today than yesterday...?

                              hope you are feeling a little better...

                              jess

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