1. Community
  2. Brain and nerves
  3. Spinal Problems

Pars defect, disc herniation, nerve compression.

Posted , 6 users are following.

kayleigh84695
kayleigh84695

I'm new to this site and don't know where to start.

November 2011 my horse (which due to this i no longer have which broke my heart) stopped at a jump, I went flying and landed on her neck.

With in about 10 minutes I had severe pain in my left hip and lower back intermittently throughout the day and every day. The severity has always stayed the same but it's has now constant and I'm practically disabled.

I can't bend, twist, lift, sneeze, laugh, weight bare, walk far if at all, can't even list everything. Pain is always lower back and severe at the top of my left hip my leg and sometimes legs are aching dead and my toes go numb one side. Occasionally my right hip aches.

I first went to the docs who checked movement and gave pain killers. I eventually went back after several appointments in tears and end up in physio with my occy health (as i work for NHS) which was making it worse but no one would listen. I then end up in community physio through my gp who had more experience and I still wasn't listened to. I was laid on my tummy, pressed on both hips and told I just probably had muscular pain or back strain which is made worse by stress rolleyes and so this went on and I was referred to pain management.

I underwent another press on the hips and leaning assessment and I tried every pain killer imaginable with no effect other than being high as a kite and still in pain. Finally an MRI was ordered. I had an annular tear of L4/L5 and L5/S1 both degenerative and herneated. This my Consultant assumed was the answer and carried on trying conservative pain relief and lumbar epidural injections with no effect. I was exasperated and exhausted of making emergency appointments because I just couldn't cope and no one would listen to me.

One day I went in to my app and asked to be transferred to spinal and my pain management consultant agreed that he is running out of ideas and that he would refer me but expected me back.

by the time I first saw my orthopaedic surgeon it was Feb 2015.

Straight away he said he thinks there is more going on than I've been being treated for and ordered a repeat MRI which again revealed the same. He called and said he wasn't happy with that and ordered a CT. The CT revealed I had a bilateral pars defect one side still broken and the other healed and broke so many times it had mended in some form but was a stress fracture. I cried with relief thinking I had the answer, however he ordered a bone scan with nuclear medicine which revealed although the breaks had caused the disc problems, the breaks were no longer active and not the source of pain.

I'm now booked in for a discogram/discography on 5th August 2015.

I have just turned 29 I have had this four years in November. I have a 2.5 yr old and a 9 yr old. I can't do the things I should be able to and haven't been able to since he was born. I'll drive them with my husband to the park and struggle to get to a bench but sitting is a problem without holding my weight on my hands. The only way it stops is if I lay flat on my back. I do everything I can to do things with the children and in all this I've only been signed off work for five weeks since I couldn't stand. I've been really trooping on. I'm in excruciating agony. I need help with almost everything. Even shutting a car door when I'm in it because I can't reach over.

could anyone talk to me or give me advice or help.

I'm at my wits end and feel like giving up, just glad I've got my boys to live for.

what if the discography is negative and I have to live like this.

Thanks k you so much for reading.

Kay

2 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • tamel15202
    tamel15202 kayleigh84695

    Posted

    Hi , Kay I to suffered as you did I under went surgery twice due to the first surgery the screws broke , but the second surgery help a lot I have a spinal fusion at L5/S1 that relieved the the pressure off my nerve so no more pain in my left leg. I hope this helps. I'm 36 with three young kids and I too was couldn't do the simple things like going to the park it had gotten so bad I couldn't even cook and help around the house my husband had to do everything. I'm now 7 months after surgery I can help do just about anything. So don't give up.
    • kayleigh84695
      kayleigh84695 tamel15202

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply. I'm in a bad place at the moment and just sitting at home trying to keep my little man happy is so hard. I do go in the garden but I can't walk properly to get there or even get up very easily. It's a really lonely place.

      It means a lot to hear from someone who knows. My husband tries to understand and he's very good when I need help standing or getting up from the floor etc or help bending to the oven washing machine but he doesn't know how much it gets you down when he can work and play football.

      I'm relying on the discography to confirm. I don't know what they'll do with me if it doesn't prove that's where the pain is coming from. I can't carry on like this

    • tamel15202
      tamel15202 kayleigh84695

      Posted

      I really do understand I had to see someone, because it can make depressed. You should try seeking a second opinion. They actually found out my nerve was being pinched by x-Ray . Then some sort of electro thing to pin point where my nerve damage was coming from . It's a long road to seeking some sort of diagnosis that why I said hang in there it took 2 years to get recommended for surgery. .
  • cynthia64188
    cynthia64188 kayleigh84695

    Posted

    Hi Kayleigh, I understand how the pain can alter your entire world. I hurt so much, I was literally nauseated from it. I am now 4 wks post a laminectomy and anterior spinal fusion L4-5. When the neurosurgeon got in there, he said the extent of my injuries were not well- represented by the MRI and other films. I was a mess of stress fractures, bone spurs, a large cyst, on top of the herniated disk, and spondylolisthesis. He also told me that based on the variation of injuries, my body had to have been telling me something was wrong for at least 2 yrs, but I obviously wasn't listening. I guess what I want to say is please don't give up and please don't think surgery is the end of the world. I contemplated it for several months, fearing the new limitations it would place on my body. But, I soon realized I was already so limited, it couldn't get any worse! I was extremely fit and I'm sure that has a lot to do with my rapid recovery. But, you're a lot younger than I and it sounds like you're pretty active, as well. I am now walking 1.5 miles at a time, off pain killers, and the whole world looks brighter because the pain is gone! Still won't be bending, twisting, or lifting for another 5 mths, but it's great because my husband is doing the cleaning for the first time in 30 yrs. Coincidentally, his back just started hurting for the first time in his life. It just dawned on us that it's because he's doing some of what I've done our entire marriage by myself. He says his new pain speaks volumes and now he truly appreciates the load I carried along with that little "incidental hobby thing" otherwise known as a full time executive job!! Just for disclosure: I'm a non-smoker, non-drinker, slender 54 yr old, have always stretched, have run since grade school and took up mountain biking about 6 yrs ago. Having strong leg muscles no doubt made it that much easier.
Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.