pain seems worse now after epidural

Hi Angela

Sorry to hear you are suffering.

I have had that same feeling numerous times throughout my 3 operations. With my case, is was because a disc was pressing into my spinal nerve cutting off feeling. It also made my right leg become very painfull towards the ankle and foot.

I would try not to worry too much if it only happens now and then. If you cant feel anything i.e.your bum or you know what, go straight to hospital and no messing.

I was told if feeling went in that region, it is an emergancy hospital case. When mine went completely it was.

Anyway, hope things get better for you. Big hugs.

Jessica

Hi Jess,

I can understand you being down and your frustration. I can safety say that since my ops I have been totally fixated with time........so long until this appointment, so long since that appointment, x number of weeks since the first op, x number of weeks since the second, so many weeks until I should reach this milestone, e.g going back to work, or that milestone, e.g reducing the meds. It is quite painful focusing in this way, reflecting on it all, but how to make it stop??? I hate the loss of control, just if you like, being a victim to my circumstances. And now I have asked for a different neurosurgeon so on and on it goes. I wish that I could have just one day when I could put it all away, get through a day at work without being totally exhausted and a night when I had some decent sleep without this dodgy leg that I just want to unzip at the hip and park at the end of my bed!!

At least if you are out of your head on the meds that is an escape. Not ideal, but hey ho anything that helps right???

When do you have to go back? What did he say about the new problems with your left leg?

Best wishes

TFU

Hi Tfu,

Thanks for your reply, I did get my Mortgage sorted out thanks, I'm now only paying the Interest off which to be honest is only £70 less than normal. But I suppose it's another weight off my mind.

I've been to see the Doc today he's told me to try to cut my tablets down, I'm dreading it. I'm scared of what might happen as I've been on them since January 2007. I don't feel ready either I've still go pain.

I'm just so fed up at the moment, I'm sick of being SICK , I want to be NORMAL again!

If the Consultants are puzzled about your problems what hope have we got then! I can't believe that they may be to blame for your pain, surely they know that when there's a tear the nerves etc should be dealt with. What are you going to do, can you Sue for the damages?

Yes I've had the same Consultant right through but I have seen 1 of his side kicks, he done my Nerve Root Block.

Hope everything works out for you. Take care.

Angela

Hi Jess,

Thank you also for my reply, it's a strange feeling isn't it. My left leg and foot are totally numb, it's feels so heavy and if I wear a slight heel I keep going over on my foot. I have no numbness anywhere else. I know how you feel I was also rushed into hospital when I lost all feeling in my bottom and you know what! It was sheer agony, I hope I never feel that pain ever again. Even the Morphine didn't work for me.

I hope you're feeling ok? Best wishes.

Angela

Hi Jess,

I'm sorry that you're feeling so low at the moment. I know exactly where you're coming from. I feel the same. My heads telling me that I'm ok so I try to do something then my body tells me NO WAY! It's so frustrating. I can't believe you might have to have another Op. Your tablets should be getting less not more. It's alright them telling us to put up with it, I wonder how long they'd cope with the pain without going crazy.

The Morphine Sulphate tablets I take make me fall to sleep, it's terrible as soon as I sit down, I nod off.

Try to keep positive, I know it's hard when everything seems to be going wrong for you but surely things can only get better as they say.

Bye for now, keep your chin up!

Angela

I was screaming the place down last September and unable to sit, stand or lay without screaming. I waited more than an hour for an ambulance n couldn't walk or even sit in a wheelchair without gas and air. One and a half canisters of gas and air later, I was left at A & E, where they gave me a suppository of pain relief (which did nothing) and expected me to do a urine sample, which was impossible as I couldn't get back out the wheelchair again! 5 hours later, I was x-rayed and told nothing was wrong.....it was just sciatica. It was only then that a kind nurse couldn't bare to see me in any more pain and gave me morphine. This was promptly followed by the Doctor discharging me all drugged up and telling me to go to my GP if I needed strong pain relief such as morphine.

I had to take nearly a month off work, only getting statutory sick pay, and spent the whole time dosed up with painkillers. I eventually tried acupuncture with herbal medicine and have to admit that it appeared to help, as I went from taking nearly 100 painkillers a week down to only a few.

Another bout followed this January, though not as bad, and I just got Tramadol from the GP and had some more acupuncture.

Regrettably, on 4th March, I bent down to look at a bottom shelf in the supermarket and, as I got up, the pain shot down my back and right leg. I just about managed to get to the car and home with tears down my face.

The next day was a trip to A & E. I was limping and sobbing with pain. The doctor refused to x-ray me, saying there was no point as the September x-ray showed nothing. He insisted it was muscle pain, despite my telling him I know the difference between muscle pain and sciatic pain. I was given a pain suppository again and then sent home with just Diclofenac and enough Diazepam for a few days. Again, I was told to go to the GP if I was in pain. I left the hospital in the same condition I arrived.....limping and crying in pain.

The same night, the pain was so bad that I had to call an ambulance and repeat the initial procedure with gas and air to get me to hospital. I went through the same again.....just given painkillers and hanging around to see if the pain went. About 12 hours later, they realised how bad the pain actually was and put me in a side ward and called the doctor back. They eventually decided I may need to stay there after all. However, it wasn't until the shift changed and another doctor came to see me that things started to happen. This doctor decided that maybe an orthopaedic consultant should examine me.

The orthopaedic consultant came to see me in the early hours (having been there 24 hours by then) and said I need an MRI scan urgently. The next morning a team of orthopaedic doctors examined me and agreed and the scan was arranged same day. I was then moved to a proper ward.

After the scan, I was told I can go home with painkillers and return in 2 weeks for the result. The physiotherapist arranged a Zimmer frame for me, as I could barely move. However, as I stood, I was crying with pain again. She sent me back to bed and called an orthopaedic doctor. It was then decided I should stay and was given morphine regularly for the next 24 hours. The following day, an orthopaedic doctor looked at the scan and confirmed I have a prolapsed disc. I was discharged with Tramadol, paracetamol and Diclofenac, although the Ward did say I could stay in if I wished so that they could give me oramorph.

I have now seen the consultant, who tells me that the disc is massive

\"like a king prawn in the canal\" and has referred me as urgent for an injection for pain relief, for which I will need to go in and have an anaestetic.

My advice to anyone in such pain........ don't be fobbed off. Call an ambulance. Cry, shout, refuse to leave A & E, insist on an MRI scan or x-ray at very least. Tell them you will sue them if they mis-diagnose. I've spent over £1,000 on acupuncture

thanks alot for that it's nice to know someone understands i am still under my consultant but i've told them i want transfering to another hospital i'm currently awaiting results of my recent MRI which i get on 4th april to find out if they have stuffed it up to badly to have any further surgery :cry:

I was told before the surgery that i would be looking at being in a wheelchair by the time i was 40 but now that surgery as gone wrong i'm looking at younger than that the way i feel at the moment next week :lol:

vicky

Well, here i am after micro discectomy on Jan 30th this year.Everything happened very quickly, saw n/surgeon jan 24th and was having surgery 6 days later ! Two months later things seem to be progressing slowly ( or maybe i am just impatient ).Still get back ache and leg pain still bothers me but its no where near as bad as it was.What concerns me is lack of follow up by the hospital.....just few excersises from physio before i was discharged and thats it.I am very lucky as i have a wonderful GP though.

I also joined a local gym where a very gentle excersise program was devised for me and this does seem to be helping.

I have now been offered a part time job in the restaurant at the gym , 25hours per week, not heavy work but a reason to get up in the mornings now.Am not sure if i am doing the right thing by taking the job as i get tired very easily but i think am just going to have to give it a try...what do you guys out there think..am i trying to do too much too soon ?

Hi there

I really feel for you and reading your post reminded me a lot of my experiences last year. Are you being referred to a neurosurgeon now or are the docs going to see how you get on with the injection for a while? A word of advice from one who has yelled from the rooftops too, even if the pain subsides, keep pushing for ongoing treatment, in particular if surgery is required. I say this because it will take weeks to get an appointment to see a neurosurgeon and many weeks more to get surgery if you need it. Best get started now! You can always drop out later. Also beware of the pain being joined by numbness in your leg/foot. That generally means that the nerve is very badly compressed. Ironically, pain is better for you in the long run than numbness, which can be irreversible.

One time I ended up at A&E in agony. I couldn't sit, walk or lie down and having stood up for about 24 hours eventually I could hold myself up no longer and I collapsed just to get up for a few minutes and collapsing again. This happened over and over again. Eventually I went into shock and couldn't stop shaking. My family took me to A&E and the staff there were about as useful as the people you saw!!! One doctor said to my daughter \"it's all about managing the pain!!\" Giving him a look that would kill a dog a ten paces my daughter said to him \"well she clearly isn't, is she!!\"

I hope that your life can get back to some sort of normality soon, whilst you can get some longer term more permanent help. On a positive note at least you know for sure what the problem is now.

Best wishes

TFU

Hi Linda,

Gosh you got your surgery quickly. That was really lucky. Most people end up waiting for months after seeing the neurosurgeon. And now you are in recovery. I had two operations in December and I'd say take it easy, but follow your instincts. Just do what you feel able to do. Personally it was important for me to get back to some sort of normality as soon as possible. There was many a day when I never thought I would.

Generally after a microdiscectomy you can go back to an office type job 4-6 weeks after surgery but it is longer if you are going to be on your feet all day, and up to six months if you do manual work, e.g builder. You should probably get proper advice before you decide, either from your GP or the hospital. Did they say if you were going to be offered a follow up appointment in Outpatients. I think that most hospitals do this, but some weed out the so called uncomplicated cases due to waiting lists. I think they figure that if you have a problem you'll yell!!! Everybody heals differently and progress isn't always constant.

I guess you could always try it for a fortnight to see how you get on. If you do get really tired at least you would know that you gave it your best shot! Then maybe you could try again after a month or so. You don't want to undo all your progress to date and really that should be paramount.

TFU

Hi Angela,

I do worry about you pain buddy. You have been through so much too and I expect that you had such high hopes for the January op. After my little experiment a few weeks ago, when I went without the meds for 24 hours, I became very despondent. I agree with you, we should be able to take less meds now. There should be some progress there. For me the experiment was a disaster and now I am taking as many tablets as I always was. I was quite shocked at how much underlying pain there was there, particularly in my back. It is much worse than before the surgeries. I suppose the point is that it is still early days for both of us. Maybe when you see the Consultant next week he will have some answers. As the appointment is so soon I would ask him what he thinks about cutting down the meds. If you are in pain with the meds, it seems a bonkers idea to me to cut them down. I think it will be a long time before I try again.

I too am sick and tired of being sick and tired!! I would love just one day with none of this. Sadly, I cannot remember a time when I was 'normal' and it has only been about 15 months. I was trying to think about a time when both of my legs were the same, but I couldn't. I also cannot remember being able to go to the toilet without my foot feeling like it is about to give birth!! Rather oddly, there is no pain in my leg, just this awful pain in my foot when I go. I know the pain must come from my spine (somewhere) and therefore it must go down my leg before reaching my foot, but I don't know why I don't feel it in my leg. Pretty freaky, eh??

At the moment I have a formal complaint against the hospital, where it all goes after that I don't know. But I'll keep you posted!!!

Best wishes

TFU

Hi all,

A question??

Over the last few weeks hardly a day goes by when I don't get cramp in my left leg. It is either in my thigh if I get up from the settee or my calf, early morning in bed. I can sort of understand the early morning thing, because during the night my leg eventually becomes a dead lump and when I move it the cramp hits. This morning was bad, my leg still isn't right again. This then has a knock on effect, because then I can't walk properly and then that pulls on my back.

Does anybody else have this? What to do?? This morning I was going to bring my stick to work, but couldn't stand the embarrassment!! So in the end, I just hobbled in an hour late and now at nearly 3 o'clock I'm still limping!!!

TFU

Cheers guys glad to know I'm not alone.

I have to go back in 4 weeks, and that will carry on every 4 weeks until he says stop. He said the problem with my left leg he isn't worried about unless it is still there by next appointment, he did say I have to lie flat most of the time and walk only a short bit i.e my house to neighbours and back.

No good for me having the bloody pain but hey, who cares when so doped up!!!!

Feeling better mentally but now have major bad cold that has gone stright to bad legs and back as well as my head and throat. In bed most of time.

Jessica :roll:

Hi TFU

Poor you again!!

My hubby suffers from cramp and as far as we are aware it is to do with blood flow in muscles. Therefore it maybe that because you leg is damaged you dont use it like you normally would so the muscles spasm and cause cramp on th slightest movement.

But, if it is affecting you most of the time, I would recomend you see your GP just to check this out. Could be a side effect of everything you have been through and the body going through recovery.

Chin up hun i'm sure it's nothing to worry unduley about.

Jessica

Hello Linda

All I can say to you is that if you feel well enough to cope with working, then give it a try. Lucky you anyway.

I've had 3 operation s now, 15th Jan, 30th jan and 28th feb. I too am in recovery but unlike you I will not be working for a long time.

Funny that - I never thought I'd miss work. I am effectively housebound unless some kind memeber of my family wishes to push me around in a wheelchair.

Your aches and pains will stay with you for some time unfortunately but you sound like you are a strong person who is coping very well and looking forwards. But listen to your body.

Give it a try but like TFU says only after you ask your GP. If it seems too much then let them know. Maybe they can ease you in gently say a few hours and see how it goes? a little like a taster session?

Regarding your follow ups keep ringing them and chasing them. It seems that in this day and age that is the only way us sufferers get any treatment. Shame but true.

Keep focused girl. You are still in the early days remember though.

Look after your body and it will look after you. PS TFU has really goods advice.

Jessica

Hiya Truly,

Yes, same here, I went through a phase for about a month approx 6 weeks post op, of having cramp in one or both my calves every night, which leaves an ache for the following day. I still get it approx 3-4 nights per week. I haven't done anything about it, I just think it's par for the course where the muscles were used very little for a year prior to surgery and now I think things are still a bit confused with my nerves and muscles and I'm still building strength in my legs. Also during core stability sessions, I find that my muscles cramp easily, but again I think it's just where they need to build strength.

I'm contemplating whether to return to my GP tho as I am having increasing sciatica back in the left leg and neuropathic pain in my head and arms....I hope this is only temporary but it's pretty worrying.....

If you're worried tho, you could ask your GP......

Good luck with it,

Take care,

Jules xx :D :D