Of Nerves and Men
Many people who are in my facebook know most of this story; but here, in blog, I can tell is at leisure and include more intimate feelings. This I like.
As I note in the post below my back pain has indeed flared up. Ironically, it was the week I saw a specialist 90 minutes from my house. That week I was on campus 3 days, and it was driving home that 3rd night that the pain really hit: like a fire below my skin, really, a burning, awful pain. With rest from pressure, either directly on my back or sitting, that eased and I was able to go back to work the next week though I missed my department meeting. What that visit with a genuine orthopaedist led to (as opposed to the utter idiot that I saw twice near my house...the ortho who just kept telling me: exercise, no matter what it is, it will get better if you exercise) what the genuine orth did was set me up for my second spinal injection. I had an epidural to one of the nerve roots three or four months ago and it did nothing. This shot, though, was different; the anasth doc (no idea how to spell that) injected two shots into one of my lumbar facets on the painful side. An simple idea, when one thinks about it. Diagnostic as well as potentially therapeutic.
I woke up Friday from the injections (no memories of any of it) completely pain free. That is very important because it tells my docs where the pain has been coming from all this time: an injure facet joint, wounded 2.5 years ago in that grappling match with that fool who hurt me.
But that is not all the news. The fact that I was pain free for a few hours, actually the pain gradually resurfaced until about two days later when I when the pain came slamming back, this is good to know. But now the longer acting meds, the steroids that are also injected, get their chance to work. Some people are pain free for several months. I am a bit disappointed here; it's been four full days and so far no long term relief. Yesterday the pain really flared up horribly as the anaesthetic was gone and no steroids were working...it was the very worst ever and it caught me off guard and I was panicked and not taking enough pain meds. Today is more like a normal bad day in the last two weeks. I took Monday off work and today missed a meeting but plan to drive down tomorrow.
So, the steroids may yet kick in; if they don't within a few more days though it is apparently unlikely. Luckily, the steroids are not the only option for long term management of my symptoms. There is a procedure called rhizotmomy where a doc goes in through a tube, I guess a kind of scope, and uses radio waves to cook the two nerves in the facet that cause the pain. That sounds pretty scary, but if this injection fails to help I would consider it unless they want to do another injection and see if different meds do the job. I hope so.
The rhiz, if it works, is supposed to work for a long time, maybe a year or more until the nerves grow back. Still, it's a newer procedure and spooks me.
I am very sad the steriods are not (yet) working from this recent injection. I think they should have by now, but I know it depends on the person, etc.
Well, at least we know what is broken. It makes me very sad I did not know this earlier. Sitting compresses the discs but also the facets, and I sat an awful lot the 18 mos. I was in second life. If I knew I had a structural injury I would never have done it. I don't know how much difference knowing would have made in the long term, but there it is. I think I would have really tried to strengthen the muscles that support my spine, etc., had I known the problem was on the spine itself.
Damn. I did have a few truly pain free hours. I could not sleep Fri and Sat night because all I could think about was working out: sparring, lifting, all the things I used to do. I wanted to run again, most of all kickbox. Now, I'm not sure. The orth did tell me cardio is helpful in healing back injuries, and I did walk 3 days straight this weekend, a brisk walk, up and down around my house.
I've also relaxed about taking the vicodin. Sorry but it doesn't seem that strong. It makes me tired like cold medicine, maybe a bit spacier, sure, but it helps with the pain. Not as much as I'd like with the amount I take, but it helps. It seems totally fine to use that to manage the flare ups like this one.
Last fall, walking 3 times a week and not sitting, I managed to get things feeling a lot better by December, and that includes all my driving. Then, I spent 30 hours in SL or so, crouched in front of my computer in January during break, and that was the beginning of the slide. fuck. that does piss me off.
Well, the docs seem optimistic, at least my primary doctor, now that the problem is isolated. I ordered one of those inversion tables cause I heard that helps with facet problems and it just seems like a great stretch anyway. who knows, it might help a lot. It shipped today from amazon.
And that is it right now, gang. A mixture of news good and not so good. At least it doesn't seem to be the disk causing pain. Those are harder to work with, I think, depending on what the problem is.
Right now, it hurts pretty good though. Burns. Is that bone on bone or muscle in spasm? It reminds me a bit of the pain of levator...I don't know. It's much better than yesterday though! That pain, coming off having a needle stuck in there and stuff injected, that was the worst. Sorry for the graphics....
Keeping up hope.
As I note in the post below my back pain has indeed flared up. Ironically, it was the week I saw a specialist 90 minutes from my house. That week I was on campus 3 days, and it was driving home that 3rd night that the pain really hit: like a fire below my skin, really, a burning, awful pain. With rest from pressure, either directly on my back or sitting, that eased and I was able to go back to work the next week though I missed my department meeting. What that visit with a genuine orthopaedist led to (as opposed to the utter idiot that I saw twice near my house...the ortho who just kept telling me: exercise, no matter what it is, it will get better if you exercise) what the genuine orth did was set me up for my second spinal injection. I had an epidural to one of the nerve roots three or four months ago and it did nothing. This shot, though, was different; the anasth doc (no idea how to spell that) injected two shots into one of my lumbar facets on the painful side. An simple idea, when one thinks about it. Diagnostic as well as potentially therapeutic.
I woke up Friday from the injections (no memories of any of it) completely pain free. That is very important because it tells my docs where the pain has been coming from all this time: an injure facet joint, wounded 2.5 years ago in that grappling match with that fool who hurt me.
But that is not all the news. The fact that I was pain free for a few hours, actually the pain gradually resurfaced until about two days later when I when the pain came slamming back, this is good to know. But now the longer acting meds, the steroids that are also injected, get their chance to work. Some people are pain free for several months. I am a bit disappointed here; it's been four full days and so far no long term relief. Yesterday the pain really flared up horribly as the anaesthetic was gone and no steroids were working...it was the very worst ever and it caught me off guard and I was panicked and not taking enough pain meds. Today is more like a normal bad day in the last two weeks. I took Monday off work and today missed a meeting but plan to drive down tomorrow.
So, the steroids may yet kick in; if they don't within a few more days though it is apparently unlikely. Luckily, the steroids are not the only option for long term management of my symptoms. There is a procedure called rhizotmomy where a doc goes in through a tube, I guess a kind of scope, and uses radio waves to cook the two nerves in the facet that cause the pain. That sounds pretty scary, but if this injection fails to help I would consider it unless they want to do another injection and see if different meds do the job. I hope so.
The rhiz, if it works, is supposed to work for a long time, maybe a year or more until the nerves grow back. Still, it's a newer procedure and spooks me.
I am very sad the steriods are not (yet) working from this recent injection. I think they should have by now, but I know it depends on the person, etc.
Well, at least we know what is broken. It makes me very sad I did not know this earlier. Sitting compresses the discs but also the facets, and I sat an awful lot the 18 mos. I was in second life. If I knew I had a structural injury I would never have done it. I don't know how much difference knowing would have made in the long term, but there it is. I think I would have really tried to strengthen the muscles that support my spine, etc., had I known the problem was on the spine itself.
Damn. I did have a few truly pain free hours. I could not sleep Fri and Sat night because all I could think about was working out: sparring, lifting, all the things I used to do. I wanted to run again, most of all kickbox. Now, I'm not sure. The orth did tell me cardio is helpful in healing back injuries, and I did walk 3 days straight this weekend, a brisk walk, up and down around my house.
I've also relaxed about taking the vicodin. Sorry but it doesn't seem that strong. It makes me tired like cold medicine, maybe a bit spacier, sure, but it helps with the pain. Not as much as I'd like with the amount I take, but it helps. It seems totally fine to use that to manage the flare ups like this one.
Last fall, walking 3 times a week and not sitting, I managed to get things feeling a lot better by December, and that includes all my driving. Then, I spent 30 hours in SL or so, crouched in front of my computer in January during break, and that was the beginning of the slide. fuck. that does piss me off.
Well, the docs seem optimistic, at least my primary doctor, now that the problem is isolated. I ordered one of those inversion tables cause I heard that helps with facet problems and it just seems like a great stretch anyway. who knows, it might help a lot. It shipped today from amazon.
And that is it right now, gang. A mixture of news good and not so good. At least it doesn't seem to be the disk causing pain. Those are harder to work with, I think, depending on what the problem is.
Right now, it hurts pretty good though. Burns. Is that bone on bone or muscle in spasm? It reminds me a bit of the pain of levator...I don't know. It's much better than yesterday though! That pain, coming off having a needle stuck in there and stuff injected, that was the worst. Sorry for the graphics....
Keeping up hope.
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