Discectomy - After the Operation

[Serdolliv Villodres]

Hi,

Do not sit it out you may have a lot of nerve damage in a year. I have had such a hard time with the NHS. In the last 8 weeks i have been in A&E 4 times with pain and urination problems. They just seem to go through the same thing of pain killers and a quick check of your responses and then send you home. The only reason why i am seeing a sergeon today is beacause i have been to my GP over and over and over again. They finaly gave me an MRI 4 weeks ago and when they looked at it things seemed to move quicker as they seem to be a little worried now. I hope today that i can get an op quick but i have no faith what's so ever in the NHS. I can go private as i have been saving for a car and have the money but i shouldn't have to. Oh and by the way i am in the fire service and again they do not do a lot for you a bit of treatment here and there but thats about it.

I will let you know how things go today but like i said i have no faith, I can see myself having to pay out for a private op.

Olli

 

[msnweather]

Hi All,

Saw the surgeon today and i will be having my operation in about 7-10 days. They are going to phone me on Tuesday for a date. Hope all goes well and i will let know how it goes.

Olli

 

[SALLY MILLER]

Hi

Well done. The worst part is not knowing. I and the other 2 people who had herniated disks( 3 in all) in the ward all had instant relief and success. The pain isnt bad and is managable. I am three days out and feeling great. Codine helps. Going for walk into village today!

I totally agree with your comment about not leaving the operation too long. My surgeon said that that as time goes by the chances of success diminish and it increases the chance of nerve damage. Also my mate who is a GP said a similar thing.I think you need to make as much fuss as possible to get this done on the NHS. Glad you have your date, the rest will follow.Good luck.

This is a biased view but from my limited personal experience I think discectomies are a great solution to this problem. From what I have read this procedure maximises your chance of success.My sciatica and dropped foot simply werent improving.

When you are ill it all seems pretty depressing but it is worth remembering that for the men and women carrying out this procedure, compared with what they do generally it is pretty routine. Having said that it carries its risks which if the force is against you can be serious but statsiticlly not very likely.

rod

 

[adultgirl]

Hey guys, i have been reading up on this site for about a year as i have a L4/5 disc prolapse, i was 27 when diagnosed (won't give any clues to my age but i am 30 in a few months!)
I have had this problem for a few years now!
I had my first microdiscectomy&lumbar decompression surgery on the 20th October last year, and for the inital few weeks i made a really good recovery and was back at work 6 weeks later.
However, my symptoms returned with a vengeance on christmas eve the same year, so am facing further surgery.
I have my repeat MRI scan next monday, and the last 5 months have been really hard. At some point, you come to accept the constant pain as a part of your life as you become used to it.
I am also a single mum to a 7 year old, in which this has been hard for her too because i cant run round and do stuff with her, she also found me being in hospital first time round really hard, as it scared her.
Have also been told by my surgeon that if the disc has prolapsed again, (which i am certain it has by my OAP shuffle!), That the only option is more surgery.
Has anyone here had 2nd time surgery? If so, i would like to know how it went?
Thanks.

 

[spejduirikyirseov]

Check this site out. www.spinal-foundation.org

 

[angelcake]

Got my date. Next wednesday the 4th of june. I have to say i am very nervous about the operation. I just want it to work. I have had bad leg pain for about 5 months and have spent the last 2 months not being able to sit or hardly walk, it would be so great to stand and walk with very little or no pain.

I will let you know how it all goes and how i on with my rehab. By the way i am going to a private with after op treatment as i have so little faith in how the NHS handle people after surgery. I think this is why so many people end up having to go back to the GP with more back pain they are not given the right or enough treatment after such a big operation in such a important area of the body. I am luckly that the fire service will help me pay for the treatmeant as i know it can be very pricey. £30-£40 a time 2 or 3 times a week is just too much for some people.

Anyway had my rant and will let you know soon how things go.

 

[Court]

Hi Olli,

I see that you have your op date.
Just sending you a message to wish you well.
It is very scary the first time round, i was petrified! But the hospital staff were really good, and reassuring.

I found the follow up not so good. It was just one appointment following the surgery, and even though i was ok at that point (was late November, 6 weeks post op)....my symptoms returned little less than a month later.
I have only just seen my surgeon 2 weeks ago, and booked the appointment in January!

Anyways, that besides, i really hope your surgery goes well.
Best wishes to you.

 

[cassyntrac]

Hi ALiH78,

I would have to go private to me that is not good enough a 7/8 months before you get to an appointment. I think that is so wrong they must know how bad that is going to be for your well being and day to day life not to mention your body. If i were you i would go private even if it means getting a loan. It costs about £5000 for the op so you have to way up if you want a year of more pain or to go for it and hope that you become pain free.

If i could have seen this coming i would have got private medical insurance it would have made things so much easier.

Anyway good luck and i hope things get better for you.

Olli

 

[dxenfuahibbiggelk]

7 days on - feeling fine - great in fact. Minimal pain. Can walk properly with no pain. Stopped taking codine. I am aiming to return to work on 9th June. Religiously doing the minimal physio i was given on NHS. Just thought I would report a bit of positive stuff.

Good luck for the op Olli. It was not as bad as I thought it would be.

Rod

 

[Maxime Lepine]

Hi Guys,

As you know i have my op date for next Wednesday. As i lay here on the floor with all of my bum in lots of pain and my left leg twitching and going into spasm and having a burning feeling going up and down it. I think can removing a bit of disc take so much pain away, it just doesn't seem possible. I know that it might not work but if it does i just find it hard that i may have very little or no pain in my legs. Does it take the cramps away as well or do they go after you start using your body in a normal manner.?

We shall see.

 

[Willbewill]

Quick update to say that I called the hospital today as I still hadn't even heard that I am on a waiting list with the NHS. It quickly became clear why - they say they haven't received any referral for me. Needless to say I was fuming as I feel I have been set back about 3 months. I faxed it all off myself in the end.

Good luck to those waiting for surgery / an appointment!

Wol

 

[pokiedot_346]

Hi Olli

I speak from my limited experience. I know of three other people besides myself who had had discectomys. All made full recoveries. Three (including myself) had instant results. From what I have read the operation has a high initial success rate (80 to 90%), particularly if it hasnt been left too long. The sciatic symptoms including pain and twitching are down to pressure on the nerve usually. After the op it can take time for the nerve to repair itself so expect the surgen to manage your expectations and not sound too upbeat about it; when mine spoke to me it sounded like he was trying to talk me out of it!. Once the pressure is taken off the nerve there can be an effect on all of the symptoms you mention. In the world of neurosurgery this is, I think, quite routine.

For me the post op pain was fine, nothing like what you are suffering now I bet. The op for me was like a miracle a move from being disabled, to fully up for it. There is no reason to expect that this will not happen to you. Good luck, all will be fine I am sure - send a post to let us know how you got on.

Rod

 

[????? ??x??? l?c?? ?????]

Hi For what its worth I think you will need to chase the surgeon's private and NHS secretaries to make sure all the notes etc got transferred. I must have been a right pain but excused myself by saying how worried I was (which was true)and emphasizing thet the symptoms were getting worse (which they were). I also rang up to check with the secrataries to see whether the MRI scan had been put under the surgeon's nose. I am not normally pushy but in this case I had to be. Take nothing for granted and check, whats the worst they can do? If the surgeon is aware that your symptoms are worstening you are very likely to be moved up the waiting list. I believe that the urgency is judged, amongst other factors, by how badly this is affecting your quality of life and ability to earn a living.

Rod

 

[fabiolapistola]

Had my MRI scan on Monday, flipping awful things they are!
Am looking at a 5-6 week wait for my surgical consult, in the meantime its codeine, codeine and more codeine!

Glad to hear you came through your op well Olli, i had some discomfort in my right leg after my 1st op, but the surgeon said this was because the disc had been sitting on the nerve for so long, that it was very irritated and so would need a little bit of time to settle down. (Lots of oramorph helped!)

All the best for your recovery

P.S. Is there anyone here who has required a 2nd microdiscectomy? Could do with some advice, ta.

 

[Dick B]

Hi ALIH,

one of the guys in the ward i was in had had his second back op as the first one did not work. He said it was the same disc and he only had the other op 4 months ago. He had been in hospital 4 days and was going home today. He feels alot better after this op than his other one. In a way he said he could tell things were not right after the first one.

Sorry thats the best i can do. I think you just have to through the same again and see what happens.

The one i am mad about is that the hospital has not offered me any after op treatment just a bit of paper with exercises on it.

 

[Marcella]

Hi Olli,

Yeah, i initially felt no leg pain, then as i said, it started again. So, its good that the fella in hospital said he felt the 2nd one worked, gives me a bit of hope!

The post op follow ups weren't so great, i didn't have any excercises on paper, just a follow up appointment after 6 weeks, and had to make all my own physio arrangements. I was told to start physio at my local hospital 2 weeks post op, but it was more like 4 weeks post op because they had no record of my referral!
It was by the physio that i recieved the excercises on paper, and 3 weekly 5 minute physio appointments to show the physio i could do the excercises.

I hope you get better physio care!

 

[Shelley Feng]

Hello everybody! I'm not so alone after all. Reading through this forum has been extremely helpful and made me feel much better. I've endured a year of the most awful pain ever, and yes, I've even prayed for a quick exit from this world. I have had to fight like crazy to get my back looked at, but what a relief when the MRI showed I had 3 prolapsed lumbar discs. I only got to see the consultant a couple of weeks ago and it seems he's only operating on the one disc...does this mean I'm going to have more trouble later on? I really would like to have surgery that will bring long term/permanent relief. I was devastated when I found that I'm on a 6 month waiting list for surgery and don't know how I'm going to manage, it seems like forever!

I'm not able to work because my employers wouldn't adapt my work station and I had to give up my OU course because of the pain, so what am I supposed to be doing in all that time? Very unhappy indeed. Yesterday I had another MRI scan to investigate my upper back pain (those machines are so awful!) and I hope this will show another problem that may speed up the surgery....God I hope so!

As mentioned, my employers have been extremely unsympathetic and I am now facing the prospect of state benefits. And who are my employers? The National Health Service! I just wonder, and I am aware that my problem is comparatively minor, if this nightmare is ever going to end.

Thank you all for the wisdom and guidance provided in your messages.

 

[Bad Romance]

Hi

Keep going. Sorry you are suffering. It will not go on forever it will change. Try googling breathworks. Pester the living daylights out of the NHS team!

Seems to be a bit of a theme here. We are paying our taxes and guess what; fundemental members of our services such as firemen, doctors and policewomen and NHS workers are not helped. After all the spin and billions spent on health this makes me sick. I could go on at some length but shall spare you all.

No one really takes the pain and anguish made by prolapsed disks seriously.

Try to keep your spirits up.

 

[BLA]

Hi Guys,

Things are going ok. Back is still sore but can move about easier. Right leg pain still there a little bit but only if i do too much.

Good things are i can sit down, lay next to my wife in bed, walk for more than 5 mintues.

Things i am not sure of: How much should i be doing? i am doing my exercises and have been doing a couple of 10/15 min walks a day. The rest of the time i am resting or just pottering about the house. Is this too much or too little. I do not want to do too much and set my self back.

One more thing how long does it take for the nerves to settle down with regards to pain?

Olli

 

[martinduxbury]

So sorry to hear of your difficulties, and oh, the irony of the NHS who are unsympathetic.

My rheumatologist was most unsympathetic when i first saw him and thought i was messing him about because of my age (apparently it is unusual to have disc prolapses in younger people), i was 27 when my problems began.
I have had my first surgery last October, which was unsuccessful so am facing 2nd time surgery.

I really hope things get better for you, and am also glad you found this forum where people really do understand. I used the information in this forum to decide to go ahead with my surgery as i was really worried about the risks.
It good to know people sympathise and can offer really good advice.

Take care of yourself, and God bless.