Back Surgery Thoughts

[jbzeus]

Hey all.

Have bulged disks at L4-5 and L5-S1. Been struggling the it for years. Dr wanted to put me on pain management several years ago. Told my daughter she is an NP) and she responded “Oh, narcotics”. Hmmm… so I asked the dr if I will do more damage if I just live with it. He said no so I live with it.

Now I need two new hips too. With the back thing and the hips I’m really starting to feel the limitations. Two young grandsons to play with but it is limiting.

Used to be I could do stretching and something would pop in my lower back and I would be good for a few days. No more.

The shoulder thread prompted me to post. (Along with I can’t shoot prone anymore. )

Not looking for sympathy but some of your experiences. Surgery is probably my only option. My wife has had two hips with no issues. Lady down the street still has to use a walker after a year plus. Terrifies me to end up in a wheelchair vs just struggling along. I can walk but standing starts to bother me after a short time.

 

[AlNyhus]

When was your most recent MRI imaging of your lumbar spine?

 

[Dimner]

Hey all.

Have bulged disks at L4-5 and L5-S1. Been struggling the it for years. Dr wanted to put me on pain management several years ago. Told my daughter she is an NP) and she responded “Oh, narcotics”. Hmmm… so I asked the dr if I will do more damage if I just live with it. He said no so I live with it.

Now I need two new hips too. With the back thing and the hips I’m really starting to feel the limitations. Two young grandsons to play with but it is limiting.

Used to be I could do stretching and something would pop in my lower back and I would be good for a few days. No more.

The shoulder thread prompted me to post. (Along with I can’t shoot prone anymore. )

Not looking for sympathy but some of your experiences. Surgery is problem my only option. My wife has had two hips with no issues. Lady down the street still has to use a walker after a year plus. Terrifies me to end up in a wheelchair vs just struggling along. I can walk but standing starts to bother me after a short time.

My wife had two back surgeries for the same areas. They both worked kinda...... she has permanent nerve damage due to the issues with the disks. Pain was still very much a problem after the surgeries. So the pain management doctor prescribed a spine stimulator. And it has worked very well. There are some bad days, but nothing she cannot get through and she works on her feet all day. Quality of life is 90% better since the stimulator.

But without the two surgeries first, the stimulator would not have worked.

 

[Lone Hunter]

My wife had fusion on L4,L5,& S1 on Feb 28. She is getting better but she has had a lot of pain. After a week she stopped taking any pain meds except Tylenol Extra Strength. She still is in pain but refuses to take opioids. They make her sick and she vomit’s taking them. They want to replace both knees but I don’t think that is going to happen. She has had Sciatica and said it is about gone. She has thrown up several times each day since surgery but has not in the last week. It is going to take awhile to recover but she is now feeling better every day. You can’t bend, lift, or twist for awhile and nothing over 5 lbs. She has been told it will take up to a year to fully fuse and get her movement back but it’s going to be a long road. You don’t heal as fast when older. In Dec. 2021 she had shoulder surgery. Wondering what is next…. Oh wait, took her to E.R. Last Saturday morning and she was diagnosed Pericarditis. Inflammation of the Pericardial Sac around the heart. Thought she was having a heart attack. Same signs and symptoms. Released 2 days later.with My advice from what I have seen is to talk to people “that have been there, done that”. Then maybe you can get an idea what to look for and expect. Wish You Much Luck On Whatever You Decide.

 

[ngb1787]

I had the surgery l4 l5 in 1998, never looked back,

 

[SG4247]

I had back surgery 26 years ago at age 30. Cause was Just from heavy lifting. Permanent nerve damage in the right leg. Lived with back pain every day since.

Of course, the two disks above the surgery have now been bulging for the last 15 years or so. Surgeons want to operate again, but I am begging for narcotics. I can manage it with just a few full strength 325 mg pain pills per month. These are hard to get in my state, due to opioid laws.

I shoot prone with a 284, matches every month.

So it just depends on how bad you currently are, and what your expectations are.

Id get the hips, and wait on the back.

 

[Retired shooter]

Hey all.

Have bulged disks at L4-5 and L5-S1. Been struggling the it for years. Dr wanted to put me on pain management several years ago. Told my daughter she is an NP) and she responded “Oh, narcotics”. Hmmm… so I asked the dr if I will do more damage if I just live with it. He said no so I live with it.

Now I need two new hips too. With the back thing and the hips I’m really starting to feel the limitations. Two young grandsons to play with but it is limiting.

Used to be I could do stretching and something would pop in my lower back and I would be good for a few days. No more.

The shoulder thread prompted me to post. (Along with I can’t shoot prone anymore. )

Not looking for sympathy but some of your experiences. Surgery is probably my only option. My wife has had two hips with no issues. Lady down the street still has to use a walker after a year plus. Terrifies me to end up in a wheelchair vs just struggling along. I can walk but standing starts to bother me after a short time.

Hate to hear about that.
Have had both knees replaced, have beat prostate cancer now for three years, had left shoulder operated on last Jan, torn rotator cuff and torn bicep muscle.
All I can offer is take inventory of what you want to do or accomplish for what ,or where you are in life. Ask some of your Drs. for who they would have operate on them, referrals from other Drs worked for me. Did not like several of them due to their attitudes, finally found the right one..

All I can offer is you are the one that has to make the decision, will you be better off after, or will it be about the same as before, lots of excellent hip specialist out there, may even find someone that can help the back.
Find a good pain specialist and try injections, my wife does that multiple times a year!

Shooting from a bench ain't all that bad. Let the young ins wear themselves out getting up and down.

Best wishes

 

[RetiredArmy]

Went through c-4/c-5 fusion back in 2015. Wish I had never done it. Have since found a great physical therapist and could not be happier. Have found exercise is key even if its just a walk.

 

[Toms]

Hey all.

Have bulged disks at L4-5 and L5-S1. Been struggling the it for years. Dr wanted to put me on pain management several years ago. Told my daughter she is an NP) and she responded “Oh, narcotics”. Hmmm… so I asked the dr if I will do more damage if I just live with it. He said no so I live with it.

Now I need two new hips too. With the back thing and the hips I’m really starting to feel the limitations. Two young grandsons to play with but it is limiting.

Used to be I could do stretching and something would pop in my lower back and I would be good for a few days. No more.

The shoulder thread prompted me to post. (Along with I can’t shoot prone anymore. )

Not looking for sympathy but some of your experiences. Surgery is probably my only option. My wife has had two hips with no issues. Lady down the street still has to use a walker after a year plus. Terrifies me to end up in a wheelchair vs just struggling along. I can walk but standing starts to bother me after a short time.

I have back problems for 40 years. 89 I had a cyropractor straighten me out. He said I would have problems in the future. Went to nerologist and he said put up with it as long as you can. 2015 had hip replaced. Was a chip shot. Was walking 2 miles a day in 2 weeks after. 2017 I had kidney cancer and had kidney removed. Was told. I couldn't take inseds any more. February 2018 had 7 level fusion with interior fusion. 14 hour sugary. I can do lots of things still. 2021 had reverse shoulder replacement. My knees are in need of replacement so they will be next. I was raised on a ranch and have spent 50 years in construction, carpenter. I have been blessed with great Drs. Glad I had it all done. I would rather hurt then take opiods. Good luck whatever you decide. Tom.

 

[jonbearman]

I had surgery in 2003 and it failed a year later but then the disc snapped off which healed my drop foot. I have had back pain since but it isnt anywhere near as bad when my legs shutoff causing me to face plant on concrete. In the end it was worth it.

 

[Scott-ak]

ok I'll share a story you won't hear often. Why not often? Cause orthoepic surgeons are great at fixing structural issues but have poor outcomes in stopping pain.
Lumbar surgery was 20+ years ago. Very little disc was left in 3/4 and bone on bone in 4/5. Disc was in the spinal cord space. Also have severe compression fractures in T9,10 &11.
Anyway back then I couldn't walk 100 yds due to the lumbar issues. After a very long eval including several rounds of epidurals (so I could go hunting) the old doc agreed to do surgery, rods & fusion. His only requirement was that I sell my ATVs and snowmachines. I said no, we gotta find another option. After about another year of effort he got me get into an FDA trial for artificial discs. I was one of the first patients in the US to get two levels done. It was a smashing success.
Sadly few have as good of outcome as I had/have. The devices were approved by the FDA but they didn't replace rods and fusion like everyone hoped. Still many believe it's better because fusion almost always results in failure at the adjacent level.
I had the work done at Texas Back Institute, several thousand miles from home.

 

[rjtfroggy]

Here is my opinion, DON'T DO IT I had my first one in 1988, and since then I had 7 more. I am fused from tail bone through L3 and live in pain 24/7. Sciatic pain is constant, I can't walk across the house without excruciating pain, and now because my back has been slightly off center for so long my right hip is shot, and both knees are bone on bone, rt.is over 90% and left is almost 90%.
In between all this I developed bladder cancer and 2 1/2 years ago my bladder and prostate were removed, so far cancer free.
Now on 5/23 left eye cataract will be done and 3 weeks later right eye will be done, after that I will start the process for hip and knee replacement.
Gettig old sucks and it certainly isn't for sissies.
Unless you can not stand the pain try every other option first except the narcotics.

 

[Pres100]

I have broken my back 3 separate times from extreme sports and haven't spent a pain free day since 1990 when I had back surgery. Probably never should have had it at the time when I was young enough to let my body recover, but I lost a lot of mobility and feeling in my legs from the severe impingement.

Not everyones story and situation is the same but from my experience most people don't do enough to take care of their back through regular, fully body stretching routines. Whether it's ignorance, apathy, laziness, pain, time/routine, or what ever; they just don't do it. I often find myself in most of these categories and have to get busy with my plan.

Almost every muscle is interdependent on the the entire system and as soon as one is in bad shape others start compensating and creating new problems in the chain. With my lower back pain, I struggle with a lot of spasms and tightening which causes pain. Hips, glutes and hamstrings become tight as piano wires and start to hurt and it starts to spread out to knees, calves, mid/upper back, shoulders and neck (all of which I have had some level of trauma to over the years). It all pulls on that back and aggravates the the condition.

Surgery alone with some PT afterwards likely won't let long if you don't have some level of maintenance to the muscular structures around it. I would definitely recommend putting off surgery as long as possible and make sure that you have a regimented routine for stretching and strengthening that fits your age and condition. A lot of times you have to work through a lot of that sciatic pain to get to a place that's manageable.

Best of luck ... "I feel your pain" ... literally.

 

[6MMsteve]

Skyline in Nashville Tenn is the place for back surgery..from what several friends have told me, lot of athletes go there

 

[Shooter13]

Two new knees (four scopes before replacement over 40 years), SI joint (waste of time, pain and money), mortens neuroma (both feet) cut out the nerves between my toes, Achilles heel (both feet). Said that to say this, the knees are doing great for the most part, still have some pain but no comparison from before. Several (I lost count) epidural shots in the back and as long as they last 3-6 months I'll never be cut on, need new hips but having cortisone shots in the groin area and they too last about 3-6 months. I guess I'm saying this beats the alternative but by how much I don't know ............ yet. Good luck to you.

 

[JimPag]

I had a laminectomy done after a rupture between 4 & 5 at physical therapy after my 2nd shoulder operation. The pain was so bad that I missed Thanksgiving dinner at one of my ex girlfriends sister's house. I had to stay in bed all day because it was so excruciating. A week before the operation the muscle that runs down to my right ankle overloaded with pain and almost totally shut down. I ended up with a dropped foot out of it. I had no choice to be operated on and it was the best thing I could of done. It fixed the problem for good. Over 20 years later and no back problems.

 

[CharlieNC]

Hope you do well. After reading all these posts I don't feel so bad this morning.

 

[markT]

My neighbor (79) just had surgery 8 weeks ago. He is doing great. He did his research and found a surgeon in ATL. The surgeon removed areas of bone that were pinching nerves. If you are interested send me a PM and I'll get the surgeons name and his website..

 

[6BRA]

A quick story.. and then my background opinion. Had a friend that was 27 years old went in for back surgery about 5 years ago. A simple back surgery put him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. There are no guarantees. Now for me, I have a plate /fusion c5 c6 and arthritis and another bulging disc next to fusion. Happened 2004. I don't see having another surgery. In 2018 I fell off ladder on concrete, ladder slipped. Crushed L5 almost 40 percent. My recommendation, endure as much pain as you can tolerate. Life is not the same. Good luck! Another opinion of mine, use a neurosurgeon, not an orthopedic.

 

[Liven The Dream]

Short Tail . I live with Back Pain. Been to a few Doctor took shots and work out program. I have more than one friend that had Back Surgery that went south.
Now for the Hip Job. The best thing I ever did. The Hip Pain was over the top and could not sleep.
I had the Hip done and never knew I had it done.

The Best of Luck.