Herniated Disc Pain Relief
86Dealing with the side effects
Painkillers do two things to do: dry you out (dehydrate) and constipate you. The first is relatively easy to deal with (drink more water); the latter is almost impossible to deal with.
Try stool softeners and laxatives, and maintain a very high fiber diet. Unfortunately, in my case, I did these things and still stayed "stopped up" most of the time. You can build up a dependency on stool softeners and laxatives, so don't use them for more than a week or so.
An enema might be necessary if you really need relief after a few days, but you can build up a dependency on them, too, so be careful.
A herniated disc is one of the most grueling pains to deal with, because it's truly unrelenting and sometimes insurmountable no matter what you do, even with the toughest painkillers available. This is my advice on how to deal with the pain, with respect to painkillers and other strategies.
Keep in mind that I'm not a doctor, and I'm simply relating my own experience. You should consult with your doctor about what sort of pain relief program to start.
During the course of my herniated disc experience, I tried just about every analgesic available. My general advice is:
- take painkillers before you start to feel intense pain--most narcotics work better at preventing an onslaught of pain than diminishing it once it's on full-strength
- never up your dose as a step - work up very, very gradually according to your needs. Keep in mind the painkillers do not completely eliminate the pain - they just bring it down to a manageable level.
- if you wake up in the middle of the night in pain, try walking around before taking a painkiller. I would grab a book, magazine, iPod or my laptop computer (I'm not joking!) pace back and forth for about 30-45 minutes before taking a painkiller. Then, the pain will have subsided enough to allow the painkiller to work.
- Distract, distract, distract. Try anything - everything - to get your mind off the pain. I guess this depends on your personal philosophy, but with a pain like sciatic pain from a herniated disc, I've found that concentrating on the pain does absolutely nothing except remind you you're feeling miserable! I became a big fan of comedies and engrossing scifi dramas.
Beyond painkillers
Here are a few tips that worked for me:
- walk, walk, walk - even simple pacing usually helps reduce pain; try walking before taking painkillers if the pain is especially intense
- lie on a couch with your legs lifted up onto the armrest. This tends to feel better than lying down completely flat.
- avoid sitting on anything soft. Sit on completely rigid seats (like flat wood).
- stand as much as possible, and gently rock if your legs start to get tired. (Just ignore those that think you look like a crackhead!)
1. OTC painkillers
Advil (ibuprofen) or Aleve (naproxen sodium) do well if the pain is very mild. Note, you can not take these if you're gearing up for a spinal injection or surgery. You can try Tylenol (acetominophen) but I found it not to work too well on its own.
2. Vicodin (hydrocodone + acetominophen)
Vicodin is the next step up from the OTC painkillers. It lasts about 4 hours, and hits its peak of pain relief at the 1.5-2 hour point.
Keep in mind that it is a narcotic, like all those below, so you shouldn't drive a vehicle or make any important decisions while under vicodin.
Vicodin is composed of hydrocodone and acetominophen, and states the proportion of both ("5/325" means 5mg hydrocodone and 325 mg acetominophen). Acetominophen is toxic to the liver, so you should never exceed 4000 mg of it per day (or approximately 12 pills containing 325 mg each), but I would suggest keeping it below that.
Keep close track of how many pills you are taking per day. When you start getting to the 10-pill-per-day point, ask your doctor for something stronger.
3. Norco
Norco is basically double-strength Vicodin - double the dosage of hydrocodone and the same level of acetominophen. It's the next step when the safe dosage of Vicodin is just not managing the pain enough for you anymore.
4. Percocet (oxycodone)
A similar opioid narcotic to hydrocodone, but considerably stronger, oxycodone is also mixed with acetominophen to make Percocet (OxyContin is the time-release version without the acetominophen).
The dosages I took were 5/325 and 10/325 before surgery. I was taking more than 12 pills of the 10/325 dosage on the day before surgery, so I would say this is the medicine of last resort. There is one more option - morphine - but I personally found it to not work as well. (A morphine IV drip would, probably, but the time-release pill did not)
My treatment history
If you want to read what I went through with respect to treatment (including cortisone injections and a discectomy), please read my hub on herniated disc treatment options.
What didn't work as well for me
These painkillers didn't work too well for me, but YMMV so you might want to ask your doctor about them if you're in a lot of pain.
5. Kadian (time-release morphine)
This did not work well for me - I felt high but in pain - but is a popular painkiller for a badly herniated disc so it's apparently often prescribed.
I personally don't like the feeling of being high at all - I guess I'm a control freak over my brain function! - but I will say the high is not a particularly pleasurable one. Please don't take that as a challenge!
But if it ends up working for you, ask your doctor for a coupon card for this - I didn't even have to pay a copay for it, since I had $50 per month covered by Kadian.
6. Dilaudid (hydromorphone)
This painkiller is supposed to last longer than the typical 4-hour window of vicodin/norco/percocet, but I found it to, like Kadian, not work all that well for the pain. It's supposed to be especially effective for nerve pain, and was supposed to allow me to sleep through the night without waking up. Didn't do that for me.
7. Ultram (tramadol)
Ultram didn't work as well at managing pain, either. Ironically, it's supposed to help with neuralgia (nerve pain). I was given free samples by my doctor.
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Comments
oberbreckling: Based on my experience, you should consider surgery. Take a look at my other Hub and definitely talk to your doctor about getting a referral to a neurosurgeon:
I too believe that the walking helps. Another thing that sometimes helps me is a dip in very cool water say about65 degrees until my body chills down some. Works for me for most bodily pains. May be something to do with the inflammation. C.S.
I have had surgery twice with some relief. Over the weekend I was helpind move a friend and think I have done it again. I am in a lot of pain but am very afraid that like in the past the only thing that will help the pain will be Percocet. I had a very hard time getting off of them the last time. Has anyone had to get off them after 2 years of use? What helped?
Mike - I was on Percocet for about 3 months, at a pretty high dosage at the end (about 12 pills per day, 10/325). I've always heard tapering down very slowly helps. I came off Percocet pretty abruptly, rapidly tapering over the course of a week, and I had really bad headaches, anxiety, etc. But what pulled me through was seeing (imagining, really) the light at the end of the tunnel.But longer-term usage might be harder to kick. I think there are other milder painkillers (think methadone) that help you get off stronger narcotics like Percocet. Good luck.
I am a physical mess as well and swimming helps me so much. Forget any surgery!
After having an MRI I just found out I have a herniated disk in the L5 S1 area. I have pain pretty much all the time from the right side of my butt down my leg. The doctor has recommended epidural injections and possibly surgery. I will see a neurosurgeon this week to find out what my options are. I don't really know anyone who has a slipped disk. I'm just wondering does the pain go away on its own in time? Does exercise help to make it go away. If anyone knows what my options are for relieving pain besides surgery it would be greatly appreciated. Or is this just something I will have to live with forever? Thanks for your time!!!
Lisa - sometimes it goes away on its own, sometimes it does not. You should not be doing any exercise except simple walking and stretching until you and your doctor figure out more. Please take a look at my other Hub on treatment options. You should *not* just have to put up with the pain, though.
livelonger-Thank-you for the information, it seems to be more positive than the other information I've been reading on the internet!!!I may have more questions after meeting with neurosurgeon on wednesday. Thanks for your time!!
I have a disc problem I had back surgery never again I have just finshed a hub
http://hubpages.com/hub/A-Chiropactor-saved-my-lif A chiropactor has been back savouir also fish oil capsules are good for joint pain especcially now that new reasearch shows codine pain killers can cause deafness in some people .
I had a herniated disk 10 years ago. Tried all conservative treatments and finally had surgery. Ten years later I am doing well. I worry about a recurrence, but from the research I've done, it looks like 85-90% of people do not have further problems. I do 100 situps a day and other stretching exercises. If anyone has any really good exercise regimens, I would love to hear about them. Of about 8 people I know who had surgery, 1 needed a fusion last year. He plays golf, and still does- not too smart in my opinion.
Glad to hear you had a very successful recovery, busbees! It's been about 10 weeks for me, and so far, so good!
Thanks, mulder. I understand now why my kids and I have been noticing that my hearing is in the tank. I've been on Vicodin and Kadian. Hopefully, if I stop the Vicodin right away, this hearing loss won't be permanent.
Lisa, I have 2 or 3 blown discs. When they first got really bad, the pain started in my low back, down both buttocks, wrapped around to the fronts of my thighs and continued down into the arches of both feet. At its worst, I literally had to just scream for a while sometimes. My doctor explained that the disc bulges were so bad that they had gone through the sheath into my spinal cord - so it was not just pressure from the bulge but an infiltration into the spinal cord.
Narcotics helped some, but thankfully a friend told me about a natural health food product that apparently healed the nerve sheath within about a week. If anyone wants info on this product, you can call me at (916) 236-5784 pacific time. So I still had the referred nerve pain (which continued to get better) but that screaming nerve pain was completely gone. Within a few months I went from bent over and unable to walk to physical therapy and upright with little use of my cane. Unfortunately, my physical therapist gave me a stretch to do which was either not good for my condition or done wrong by me and I believe it caused me to blow out another disc. So, I am back to square one almost, but trying to stay focused on getting back to that upright position again. Right now the thing I am struggling with is trying to get any sleep. The narc meds seem to agitate me or kind of wire me, rather than making me drowsy. My doctor says 10% of people resond that way to them.
My doctors want me to have a discectomy, where they trim the bulging/herniated discs. But I know more and more people who have had success with this fairly new, non-invasive procedure called 'spinal disc decompression' which is done by some chiropractors. Naturally insurance doesn't cover it, but I have met SO many people who have had one-multiple back surgeries with little to no improvement. I am glad the folks here have had good results. But I've heard that as high as 70% of people do not have an improvement after back surgery. I'm sure people would disagree with that statistic, but back surgery is still kind of scary and can't be undone.
Are there people on this site who have had experience with the decompression treatments? I have one friend who had it done 2 years ago and says she has a completely healthy back - heavy gardening and all.
Hi Livelonger, When your feet hurt as people mention, could that feeling be like (tingling numb stinging) feeling (it feels like my feet have nerve damage), to where its hard to wear shoes cause your because your shoes feel like they are contricting your feet? Or is the pain in your feet from a herniated disk feel different?
stylegirl: I did not have any luck with decompression treatments, and my back doctor said it was worthless. It might feel good because it stretches muscles that might have shortened, but it won't correct a herniated disc (unless it would have done so on its own - and many do).
Dragon: I think that's something different. A herniated disc causes sciatica, which creates pain down the back of your leg. But I have read that it can extend down to your feet, so I'd check with your doctor, if I were you.
I have fibromyalgia plus two herniated discs in low back and bulging disc in neck. I take ultam, and soma for years pain. I take harmonal therapy for the fibro that seems to work good. However, I still end up tolerating flare ups. I'm not sure sometimes if it's the fibro or the herniations. It's been 10 years since car accident. That's what actually pushed me out of fibromyalgia remission. I'm wondering if ther is anyone out there possibly in my same predicament that can relate and encourage me with some tips, experiences etc.
thank you, godbless you all,
judy
Just diagnosed with ruptured disc at L3/L4,and herniated disc at L5/L6. Will my pain ever go away? I have sciatica, numbness in legs, and lower back pain. Somedays are better than others and sometimes all symptoms are itermittent. What are some exercises I can do? My doc recommende epidural injection and physical therapy for starters and see how it goes. I am affraid to have a needle in my back and just want pain relief that will last. I'd rather do exercises everyday for the rest of my life than get frequent shots and prescriptions. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
One more thing, will a herniated disc ever recess back to normal? I've read on the internet that yes and no. Thanks.
John K: First, take a look at my hub on treatment options:http://hubpages.com/hub/herniated-disc-treatment
The injections hurt for literally a split second (and they're more like a static electricity shock, in my experience, than actual pain), and they only happen a maximum of 3 times (if they don't work by then, they won't be continued).
Yes, sometimes a herniated disc can go back to normal, but typically that happens within a month of the onset of pain, and if the pain is not severe. I would trust your doctor's advice.
As for the pain of the epidural injection, I suggest taking a look at Nashville G-man's hub exactly about this:
I am 40 and female, overweight and out of shape. Six months ago I blew out all my discs from L-1 to S-1 one night laying in bed when I sneezed! Obviously it had been a long time coming, but the sneeze was the straw that broke MY back. I was misdiagnosed and prescribed 1600 mg. of Ibuprophen twice a day, as well as 10mg. of cyclobenzadrine (Flexerall). The pain would abate for 4 or so hours, and then return as soon as the meds wore down, I hated taking these meds! I took no narcotics even though they gave me sixty pills, because I did'nt want to become a junkie. Finally I had a CAT scan showing all of the ruptured dics, was given a Medrol dose pack of steroids to take, and VIOLA 80% reduction in pain. I've gone from laying in bed in agony to walking one and a quarter mile every day now. My sympathy to all who have experienced this hell.
It's been awhile since my last entry and have been feeling a bit better. Thanks for the info "livelonger". Just one other question I cannot seem to find the answer to anywhere. What treatment do they do for ruptured discs? What do you think is giving me most of my pain and numbness my L3/4 ruptured disc or my L5/6 herniated disc? If anyone can give me any answers or point me in the right direction I'd be greatly appeciative. The problem I am finding with getting any info on ruptured discs is that they refer to it as "herniated or sometimes called ruptured". So I can never tell which one they are talking about.
john k.: I would check out my treatment history in this Hub:
http://hubpages.com/hub/herniated-disc-treatment
I really have no idea if there is any general difference between L3/4 and L5/S1 with respect to pain - I vaguely remember my doctor saying one would produce pain in a certain part of your lower body, and the other in a different place, but you'd have to ask your doctor. I had an L5/S1 herniation/bulge/rupture (I think they all mean the same thing), and my pain was down the back of my leg, from my glute all the way down to my calf.
First of all, back pain can be some of the worst kind of pain so we feel for anyone who is suffering with it. My dad had serious upper back/neck pain about a year ago triggered from a fall from a seizure. Anyway, his doctors (neurologists, primary, orthopedics) were all basically telling him surgery was a possibility, but very risky in the area of the problem or possibly some cortisone shots I believe was another option. Other than that, they provided him no relief or answers!
My husband and I always look to a naturopathic or holistic approach to our health, but convincing my dad can sometimes be a challenge. However, he was in such excruciating pain, he agreed to meet with our chiropractor. He had the spinal decompression therapy which was referenced above and improved tremendously over a few weeks time. I'm not sure what would have been the outcome had he not pursued that route, so I am very grateful that he was willing to be open to something new to him like chiropractic care.
Ironically, about a week ago my mom woke up with severe lower back pain and he called me to see if I thought going to the chiropractor would help her to which I said yes and I'll be right over. It was a project just to help her even get up out of bed, but she went to the chiropractor that day and the next and also made tremendous improvements in just a couple of days getting to the problem before it got worse. Talk about a change of heart with my dad...
We hope that everyone finds the answers right for their situation, but encourage you to visit a good chiropractor as there is a possibility they may be able to help you avoid potentially unnecessary and risky surgery. We definitely think it's worth the visit to at least find out your options, don't you?!
Good luck to everyone and we hope that those of you suffering are feeling much better soon!
Lynne and Chad :)
Hello all. I have 2 herniated disks at L4/5 and L5/S1. The pain was so severe I couldn't move fore almost 2 months. I ended up on the living room floor and pretty much stayed there. I was given hydrocodone, tramadol, ibuprofen, gabapentin, and I had the epidural injection. Nothing helped the pain. So I went in for a microdiscectomy last Friday. Both disks are bulging to the right and pinching my nerve and during pre-op I was told they where going to do both discs. Anyway surgery is over. Doctor said it went off without a hitch, but he only did the disc at L5/S1 and so I still have pain. He told me that the nerve was probably just bruised from the L5/S1 disc and will need a couple days to feel better. Has anyone ever heard of this? From everything I have read you either wake up with no pain after the surgery or you do and it stays.
Some of the pain and numbness is gone and it does make it more tolerable during the day. My main problem now is I cant sleep for more then 4 hours. I was able to sleep in my own bed last night instead of the floor for the first time in 2 months but my leg starts hurting intensely about 3 hours after I fall asleep. If I take painkillers right before I go to sleep I can push it out to 4 hours. Has anyone experienced this? I can be somewhat fine during the day but when I sleep I always hurt. Always.
Should I go back in and have them remove the other bulging disk he was suppose to take out the first time? Or should I just wait and see if it will actually go away on its own.
I apologize for the rambling nature. its 2 in the morning and I was just forced out of sleep and am still extremely tired.
Luke: It might sound like a copout, but you should do what your doctor recommends. I'm guessing he will suggest doing the L4/5 too. My suspicion is that the reason you had pain after surgery (if it is indeed the same kind of pain, and not a deep soreness, which is due to the surgery and recovering nerve) is that your L4/5 is still pinching your sciatic nerve.
I completely understand the 4-hrs at a time sleep schedule. That was my life for months. I would wake up at around 3am and have to pace around for an hour while waiting for the painkillers to kick in. It was hell.
I would wait a week and then, if you're still in pain, talk to your doctor about the nature of your pain (is it the same kind as before, but less?) about other treatment options or going back in for a discectomy for L4/5. I will say this - after my discectomy, I never woke up in the middle of the night again.
It is the same pain just less. But what has me so frustrated is that he was SUPPOSE to do the L4/5 at the same time as he did the L5/S1 so I wouldnt have to do surgery again. I asked during pre-op and even the day I went in for surgery I checked again to make sure he was going to do both of them. It wasn't untill I was out of surgey and still in pain when I asked him if he did both and he told me no he only did one.
I have never like doctors. In my experience they only ever care about how much money they can squeeze from you. They don't seem to care about how much pain you are in or how if they don't do the surgery corectly the first time you will be fired from your job because now you have to wait and rescedual another surgery to take care of the problem that should have been taken care of the first time.
Sorry for the venting. Just don't know what to do. I havnt been able to play with my son, eat at the table, sleep enough, or work for 2 months already. I have no idea how anyone can put up with this level of pain for years.
Luke: I feel for you. Really, I do. My memory is fading fast on that 6 month ordeal mostly because I think it was so painful. I can't imagine that sort of pain for years, either.
I think your doctor owes you an explanation for why he didn't do your L5/6 too. At the very least, you're looking at jumping through insurance hoops and disrupting your life for a few days for the 2nd surgery, not to mention dealing with the pain for longer until that surgery takes place.
If you're not satisfied with your doctor's answer, I'd consider getting another doctor. I was very happy with my doctors - I think I just lucked out.
Thank you. There are only 2 doctors where I live that deal with this surgery. One has several malpractice lawsuits against him and has cause several paralysis. Then there is the one I went to which has a good reputation. I just hope he can fix me.
I hope so too! Good luck!
Thanks for this hub livelonger - I had a workplace accident about 8 years ago when a bookcase full of heavy accountancy folders fell off a wall onto me...i now have 3 herniated discs and have tried all sorts of things to help me from facet joint injections which cost so much money (each injection costs in the hundreds) and don't last longer than a couple of weeks, to years of physio to taking the painkillers and nothing works - I am now taking up swimming and going to try chiropractic - too long in pain from sciatica down both legs etc - I wonder if it is now too entrenched!!! not much fun...
Hi,
First time being on one of these and ready the article you wrote was really interesting.. a lot of it made sense. I have DDD and other health issues.. I have had 4 back and 4 cervical surgeries and have awesome movement after the last surgries. I was diagnoised about 2 weeks ago with another herniated disk and spinal stenosis....sick o fall this.. I had been on Oxycontin for about 4 months and that really helped me get through it and i was able to function because the pain was bad enough it helped with out sending me into lala land.. after trying an epidual i had gone hyper sensitive and then the oxycontim sent me flying... it was a reaction between the two .. so in 4 days i tapered off of the oxycontin which was up to 40 mg 2x a day...I am now on percocet 10/325 4-6 timrs a day. i can eat them like candy if i wanted to but i don't we will do surgery in July as personnal things have me waiting.. i think th ebest anyone can do is look inside themselves and find the strength and if they believe in God seek his help. it has been 2 years of this and I knew God wanted me to call the Neurosurgeon after the failed epidural . he found the problem adn we will deal with it. I am Blessed with a Top Notch surgeon I have full turn radius with m neck and back. so I have been a luclky one..no one would have guessed I had surgery before.. Dr. Uchiyama from Scripps did my last neck surgery in 2006 then in Feb. 2007 i had rotator cuff done by Dr. Keefe at Scripps and have full use of my arm.. and then last back surgery was 2002 so i feel i have done great with Scripps so a plug for them... but find a competent Dr, Neurosurgeons I prefer.. I am a wife and mother.. I taught my children to have patience and caring cause you never know what a person is going through. a wonderful husband of almost 30 years who has stuck by my side... we can all tell and elplain what we have gone through in hopes of helping someone else get through it...i am living proof you can.. i pray after this surgery in July that I still ahve full range of the back.. I am 47 yrs old and this will be surgery #14 in total in the 29 yrs we have been married.. so if any of you have a spous ewho is not the one oin pain and reading this.. just remember compassion goes a long way..DDD is not something we asked for..
God Bless youa ll and I pray your pain ends soon..
ps. I had taken ex-vicodin for over 8 years and heavily but as soon as I know longer needed it I had no problems gettingoff it even other pain meds because I used only when I needed them.. sometimes your body reacts because you were having to much pain meds in you ...whenyou really only needed a smaller amount..
wow my friend and i have these problems. me, i would first take any opiate they gave me and keep taking it heheh Dilaudid YAH! well it doesnt work for my friend. We had a home device for real traction that worked perfectly. I know you can never predict your condition but this could help ease some pain without medications -- for awhile anyway. No way would my friend or i have surgery. I have heard too many horror stories.
IVE BEEN HAVING TIHIS PCHRONIC PAIN AT MY RIGHT KNEE I HAD TWO SURGERY AND IS S TILL THE SAME AND I HAVE 2 HERNIA DISK AND IT KILLS ME SOMETIME I STAY PARALIZE I CANT GET UP FROM THE BED AND IT GET SO BAD I LOSOE MY MOVEMENT BUT I KNOW GOD WILL HELP ME
Yah I have that... it hurts, it takes all dignity away from my life, it changed my life. As limited I got , I was loosing contacts, friends even family. Not able to travel (only laying on the back seat of the car) for last 5+ years, I can't breached the ocean where my aging parents live. I lost my job, I lost all fun and enjoyment in biking, hiking, swimming, dancing and the big one - traveling. I was holding hope for being able to enjoy my Tai-chi, joga, walks. But even in those I am limited to the point of abandoning those last of my possible contacts with the normal world. By WSIB's decision that I was on compensation long enough, I ended in pain, withou income. I would like to know, how those who can make such a decision will like to have it ... pain, no money, nowhere to turn to... The most vulnarable we become when we sick and in pain. When we are not able to defend ourselves because either no money or much needed strengh to fight. And They = WSIB know it. I used to be young and in very good athletic shape not such a long time ego. Same as those who dismissed me as unconvenient number in their agenda. But I am not a number !! I am living human been, with all the hopes, desire for happines and chance to maintaine my pain to berable stage so I can at least live with basic human dignity.
Sorry for my comment being so long and so personal, but it might feel a little better if only for a while.
Good luck with to all of you who are suffering Mila Vrab
My heart goes out to you. If you have health insurance, I strongly suggest seeing a back specialist, since, in my experience at least, a discectomy completely fixed the problem and ended the pain that had crippled me for months.
Hi,i have a bulge on L4 AND L 5...i am a proffesional dancer,so i need my back...unfortunitly i hade to stop to get some relief from the pain...5 years ago i hade the same that is when i all started...so this time is a relapse ...5 years ago i was taking ,,neurontine 400 2 times a day....for the siatic pain..and i took ,,triptezol,, for the neuralgia,what is a very good painkiller...i took that when the pain would be severe....i was mis diagnosed because i never hade backpain,that seem the be common whit people that do lots of sports...so i just got this terrible leg pain out of the bleu,i went to 7 dokters mostly to be told that i was imagioning i hade pain...because nothing seem to be wrong with me they said...by luck i found a dokter in a emergency clinic that said ,o dear if your calf hurt on that side you have a slipped disk...and it was neglected for a long time and became neuralgia...i took rest for 3 weeks and went back to work slowly the pain went...after 1 year....i was pain free medicine free for 4 years only now it came back...so i a hope again it will be gone after 1 year from startpoint...but for anyone ,realy try triptozol,it is a muscle relaxer ,but a very very good painkiller i know it is not a fix, but it was and still is my best friend...i am not lucky i live in dubai and triptozol is now band for a reason? but for you out there try it ,it will make your life better when you have lots of pain...for me i keep on streching,swimming and just start walking again and can walk more now than 45 minutes...sitting is bad...dont sit longer then 10 minutes get up everytime so the disk can not swell...then still a small help dont eat tomato and or eggplant it cause anflamation in the body,stuff yourself with,,turmaric,,it is a natural antiinflametry...and try to be positive...negativ thinking make you have more pain...good luck everybody....
just a small idea...i am not very good with pc...but perhaps somebody can set up a facebook specialy for backpain ,,bulge,, ,,friends,,so we can al log on and see how we do everyday....keep eachother company and chat a bit see how we progress or not ,and what everybody is doing everyday to feel better...and it is not bad to have friends whit the same trouble,and who knows 100 brains think better then 1 so who knows we come up with some nice idea,s for eachother...like healthy food exersice,good dokters pfffff ( i could do with that lol) so anybody??
Wow, never expected to see all this. About 7 months ago my neck felt stiff and I couldn't turn my head at all to the left. It took me 4 months to finally see a doctor. I had an MRI done on the neck and my lower back. They found a herniated disc and degenerative disc disease in my lower back with some arthritis. I am now seeing a neurosurgeon who set me up with physical therapy and I take Hydrocodone (75's 3 times a day) and Lyrica, which barely touch the pain. My disc is pinching a nerve causing my left shoulder unbearable pain. I also lost alot of strength in the arm and my hand is almost completely numb. My neurosurgeon has already told me that I need surgery , but my insurance company is making me try everything else first. I wear a neck brace at night so I don't do any further damage. I also have lost 40 pounds to see if that would help. I eat healthy , am at a good weight and nothing is helping so far. I'm scared to death to have neck surgery, but from what I've read and the people I personally know who've had neck or back surgery are doing great. I also have lupus, fibromyalgia, and Grave's disease on top off all this. Talk about pain! I feel for everyone dealing with any kind of back pain. I can't enjoy my kids, who are 14 and 8 and it hurts more than the back pain itself. I feel like a hermit because of everything that is going on, but I'm strong and am going to fight it all tooth and nail. God Bless! Mary
I have suffered on and off for many years with this painful condition. I have an L6 herniated disc. Through looking for different methods of dealing with this I have found MY ANSWER to this extruciating problem. i have in the pas brought in massage therapist's taken different muscle relaxers, and all at minimal releif. With the onset of one of my L6 herniations I was talking to a co-worker who told me about this little old chinese lady who has this kin of thing treatable and also very fast. With hesiation I made an apponiment and she started her MAJIC. I will be very honest with you it was one of the most painful things i have ever had but i was walking and standing within two days with little evidence of the previous conditions. and after a week I was completely free of pain.
if you would like more info on this treatment you can call me at 905-457-0600 I live in Brampton, Ontario,Canada and we are on Eastern standard time. I dont blog much so i wont be seeing these resposes to this post just thought some other people would like to know about this treatment method. trust me it works
For almost three years I was in excruciating pain but ignored it, Finally when I could'nt move from my bed, my husband took me to the doctor and was told that I have osteoporasis arthritis, dorsol spondolysis and herniated disk. Wow! I was in shocked. At this present time I am in so much pain I walk like an old grandma. I am only forty eight years old but my body feels like an old woman. I took tremendous pain killer and cortisone injection, but for me too much of these medication is not good for your body because they all have side effect. I walk everyday and when I sit and get back up more pain. My doctor recommend surgery because if I don't do the surgery he said it will crippled me and I will have to walk with a walking stick. He also said the disk are in it's worst situation. I have no choice but to go for the surgery. My sister told me I should try DMX 4000 I believe is something like that but it cost. It is non surgical and she said it works. Maybe I would try it.
Try chiropractic before surgery. Be careful about the drugs. The do help reduce the pain, but allow you to do activities that you wouldn't normally do. This can sometimes cause additional damage to the disc and spine. Once you have surgery it accnot be undone. It is necessary in some cases though. Try to find a chiropractor using a distraction technique. It may be applicable in your case.
Have a low lateral lumbar herniated disc at L2-L3. Odd location I am told. No narcotic relieved the pain, nor did a epidural injection with a steroid. Lyrica failed even at high doses. Pain was in the right flank and the front of the right thigh. Outside and bottom of right thigh totally numb and foot was catching up with numbness.
Found the cure. Though lyrica and gabapentin are similar drugs, gabapentin worked for me, while lyrica was a sugar pill. I quit lyrica at 400 mg /day and used gabapentin 300 mg first day, 600 2nd day and 1800 third day. Spread out of course. Well tolerated for me, just a little sleepy so left my heavy duty tools alone. Ask your doctor if gabapentin is OK to try and unless he forbids it for contra-indications, what do you have to lose?
It's too bad that drugs don't actually fix anything. In order to relieve pain you have to get to the source and remove the inflammation from the nerves. The problem with disc pain is Doctors have a lot of difficulty diagnosing the root cause. And imagine studies don't always help. Some people with amazingly scary imaging studies can be pain free while other with relatively benign studies can have excruciating pain. There is so little emphasis on spinal education in schools yet 80% of people will experience spinal pain during their lives. There just doesn't seem to be any escape for some people. I wish there was a real solution. Back Pain Relief seems worthy of research dollars but you seldom here about it.
Inversion Tables can be a great help in decompressing the spine.
oberbreckling says:
17 months ago
Hi livelonger Ive had a history of herniated disk along degenertive disk diesease and had surgery each time this last time was the siatic nerve being pinched Im still on darvcet with a narcotic 1 every 4 hours the pain to the foot is gone but I still have alot of pain in my lower back the doctor sent me to pain management clinic and said there was nothing more he could do at the pain management clinic they gave me 4 steroid shots and it hasnt helped Ive had a total of 3 ruptured disk and still have great pain hard to walk or stand or sit they want to give me pysical theraphy but I cant do any lifting or bending do you think I should see a different doctor and restart all this ~cool~ cya