Increased pain after microdiscectomy

I had a microdicectmoy 3 weeks ago at L5/S1. I'm 29 and I have had back pain for 5 years but it had always affected the left side, and my doctors always waved me off with painkillers (apparently tall people are more prone to back pain so at 5"11 I should just suck it up). Then last December I started getting pain in my right leg. My GP originally diagnosed this as a tendon injury but as it got worse and worse I eventually got sent for a scan and after 4 months on a waiting list got surgery. By this point I had a permanent limp, needed to walk with a stick, work had to move me to an office role and I basically had no life, and painkillers didn't touch it. By the time surgery came around I was on oramorph, tramadol and gabapentin which did nothing for the pain (but did help me sleep!).

The day after surgery I had intense pain in my right leg which the physio told me not to worry about as the nerve would heal slowly. However I'm now 3 weeks later and the pain is still very intense. I get spasms down my leg every time I stand up, these can be crippling some times. It sometimes flares up when walking and if I turn slightly or roll over in bed wrong I get the same crippling pain down my whole leg. Has anyone else had a similar experience? I'm concerned as so many people are saying they had instant relief after surgery. I know everyone heals differently but I don't know if I need to be more patient or seriously concerned?

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