5 month post op - low back good, neck terrible still

I've been doing PT twice a day and only missed one session on the 4th of July. My low back is beginning to show signs of recovery. It's really only sore now, not painful. I can walk from 3-5 miles without pain. My neck still continues to be the main source of my pain. I am at a pain level 6-7 all day particularly on the right side where there is a herniation.
My physical therapist has discharged me. He is a compassionate man who was obviously sad that my neck pain is still so severe. He recommends continuing my therapy at home but feels further medical attention could be necessary. It feels a bit like deja vu on my low back but I'm hoping not to go down that road.

My left leg and foot did get numb and tingling during my walk today but subsided by the end. My ankle has been bothering me but that does not seem related to this more like an overuse feeling. These types of feelings cause a cycle of anxiety in my mind about what problems might be coming.

Despite the severe neck pain, I'm feeling overall positive that this will somehow work itself out. I am thankful that I am here, trying to enjoy as much as I can. Although, I do have pretty severe anxiety I recognize it and am hopeful that its temporary. A great friend of mine is moving away this week which I know is contributing to my uneasy feelings.

My mom has Mandi up north and they seem to be having fun. Even being down one child really helps me.

I appreciate the continued support and prayers. I still need it.

4 months Post Op - Intensive Physical Therapy Continues

I have been religiously following a very targeted Physical Therapy routing for a month now with the new therapist. He is head and shoulders above any others I've seen. I have some minimal improvement in both neck and low back but not nearly where either of us hoped I'd be at this point. I have an hour of neck and core strengthening to work on twice a day and a walk. Some days I can walk 2-3 miles at a decent pace but it usually means the next day I am much slower due to the low back. The therapist is saying I just have to keep working on the strengthening work that he is giving me to increase my endurance. The only reason I am able to stick to this strict regime is due to my mom and her husband who have taken my two little girls with them. If it were not for them, I think I would be stuck in the viscious cycle of daily life getting in the way of this rehabilitation.

We walked all day at Carowinds on Friday and I used a whole tube of Ben Gay to get through it. My left arm went numb that day but I realized that was the first time that had had happened in over a week so that was good news. The neck pain is constant at level 6 all day and gets to an 8 by the night time. Again that is some improvement over my being at painful, crying level pain by mid afternoon.

My low back is averaging a 4-5 but I actually had a day this week where I didn't notice it at all until 3:00 pm which was something that hasn't happend in 3 years so that is pretty great.

The therapist encourages me to stay as active as possible without increasing pain level. He's also helped me through some of the psychological aspects of this too because I'm getting pretty pissed off that I am working so hard and not feeling great results. He understands the whole aspect of looking good yet walking around at a pain level of 7 and feeling so bad and tells me its just a "cross that spinal patients alike have to bear". Put that energy into rehab and it should all fall into place.

Again the only reason I can do any of this is because of my mom, her husband and my husband's support. Thank you all so much!

At this point two spine doctors have read my MRI and neither believe surgery is necessary (thank god) so time will tell where this goes.

Just typing this post hurts the neck so I've got to sign off.

In the meantime my mom and I will be off to the beach with the girls for a few weeks which is always relaxing and a great place to walk.

14 Weeks Post Op - Worse than pre surgery

I just forced myself to walk around the block. My low back is about as bad as it was presurgery -severe pain on the left side. My low back feels like its gone downhill in the past few weeks. I can't say its because I've overdone it because I haven't done much due to my neck pain. So that is really discouraging. My neck is horrible and continues to burn.

I made a macaroni salad for a cookout we are going to later and it took everything I had to do that. I was out of breath , my neck was burning. And yes, we could go to the store to buy it but my girls have been asking for the kind that I make it and I enjoy making it. Its as if I want to prove to myself that I can do something, anything small. But the sad part is that I really can't.

Its also awful because I look absolutely fine. I think its hard for anyone to understand especially if they didn't know me before this all began. I don't want sympathy, I just wish it was more understandable.

My mom is going to take the two littlest girls for the next several weeks. I had to tell my job that I cannot work. These are not decisions that I made lightly - these are horrible choices to have to make. Accepting that I cannot do my job at home with the kids or at work.

This is as much a journal for myself now so that I can chronicle the pain and hopefully look back at this and read that I've made improvements.

Results of Cervical MRI 5-22-08

Well, I had a cervical MRI on Tuesday and we met with the doctor for the results today. I'm not sure what I expected or wanted to hear but MORE PHYSICAL THERAPY was not it.

I have a small bulge at c5-c6. He thinks that is typical for my age and is not the cause of my neck pain. Another reason he doesn't think its this bulge is the fact that it is on the right and my numbness, tingling is on the left. Of course, I can remember the first results of my lumbar MRI and the doctors saying that degeneration at my age is normal. Well that pain was not normal among anyone else my age that I know. So, although I want to believe that I think the jury is still out.

So, he insists that I now see his highly experienced PT for more aggressive treatement. He says this therapist will know in a few weeks if he can fix me. I'm aggravated because I've gone to another PT for several weeks now with no relief and just wish that the doctor had started me with this one to begin with. Now, my kids are out of preschool so I have to hire a sitter and drive to downtown to go to these appointments.

He prescribed Arthrotec and said I should know in a week if that is working.My husband came with me to the appointment. He's normally quiet but this time he explained how this is affecting (ruining) our lives. He's had to stay home from work because I can't take care of the kids. My mom is searching for plane tickets to take the girls up North with her for a long stay to give me relief. We told him I'm crying in pain every night but the doctor just says that its going to take "a lot longer than I would like" to get better.

I can't say much more except that this really SUCKS!!!!

MRI was this morning

I had a cervical MRI this morning. I won't have any results until the doctors appt next Thursday.

I had a Toradol shot last week and started the medrol dosepack this week. The shot helped my low back but not my neck. The medrol hasn't made any difference.

Severe neck pain continues. Its actually a burning now at the back of my neck. And it has moved into the sides and front of my neck which I would describe as a strain. I have a lot of "popping" in my shoulder and hips whenever I move.

Will update after dr. appt next week.

Doctor says its bad genes

I saw the doctor this morning. He xrayd my neck which shows some degeneration at C5-C6 but he doesn't think that is the source of the pain. He feels that is consistent for my age. I'll have an MRI on May 27th which may or may not give us some more insight. If that is inconclusive then he'll order an EMG. He firmly believes that the low back surgery had NOTHING to do with my neck problem. He says its purely coincidental. The bottom line is that he says I have bad back genes.
I am trying so hard to keep positive that this will go away but actually hearing that its unrelated to the surgery has made it harder to believe that.

I follow up with him on June 5th so we'll see where that gets us.

11 weeks post op - Dr. appt in the AM

I have been going to Physical Therapy three times a week for my NECK!!!! Its so ironic. We do some small core strengthening after we've worked my neck but not much. The terrible spasms have subsided but I cannot sleep without muscle relaxers. I am just in shock that this has happened. Surgery on lumbar spine and now I have neck problems which I never had before.

I go to the doctor tomorrow morning and am requesting (demanding if needed) an MRI on my neck. I need to know if there is degeneration there. If it shows nothing then I will have patience that this is going to work itself out over time.

I can barely comment on my low spine because it seems better, sore but not as painful as prior to surgery. However, I have remained so limited in my activity levels its hard to tell where its really at right now.

I will update after the doctor tomorrow. I have to miss Muffins for Mom at my daughters preschool because these appts are so hard to comeby. Luckily I have a dear friend taking her but I do hate how much this has interfered with my family life.

I will finally return to my part time customer service job in June which although I am looking forward to it, will be quite a challenge to sit at the computer as long as may be required.


More tomorrow.