Spine blocker

Hey all about a month ago i posted Where does the mind go once under anaesthesia
and now im back in hospital with a back problem.

My shoulder reconstruction is a sore and slow recovery but i am recovering.

My back was injured whilst i was in the Aust Army and for the last 15 years have put up with the pain and have been able to manage it.
I woke not long ago with it now going down the back of my leg. Im in hospital ATM and with all the tests and scans, it seems i have a Acute Disc Protrusion squashing a nerve root end.
THE OUTCOME

I have to have a blocker in the spine for now and maybe, a BIG maybe have the disc's trimmed and shaved in about 3 weeks.

Have any of you Mac Forum buddies had something similar. Its scaring the beegeebies out of me. They say the blocker is like getting a epidurel ??

Anyones experience with spine blocker or back operation would be greatly appreciated to ease my mind about them playing with my life. And to help me make that decision on having that OPERATION...... scared i am, have had a mate become a Quad because the surgeon "SLIPPED".

If my old man was alive he would be saying, "your in the wars mate".

They say things come in 3's...... so im just waiting.

Cheers

My wife had an epidural when we had our first child, and a spinal block when we had our second one. Both are very similar, I guess the difference is in where the injection is placed. From what she tells me, it was the easiest part of the whole procedure. Although I have to tell you, watching it gave me the willies.

Good luck and I hope all goes well for you.

Oh man, I really feel for you mate...
Is all this a consequence of you're recent accident?
I know you mentioned you've had this problem for 15 yrs, but did recent events trigger all this in your back?

Anyways, you're not alone... if you feel like posting more, we'll read it;D
Good luck, stay in touch man...

TatMac. Unfortunately you are going to need heaps of what we men types don't have much of..... patience. ;D

Done in '95 after an accident in the RM. S1 to L4. Works a treat, beats a wheelchair, but not much of a choice. No pain since waking up post op.
The piece bottom right is the coccyx, not a penile extension.



Followed by both knees. Now that was painful.

Sur3Mac said:

Oh man, I really feel for you mate...
Is all this a consequence of you're recent accident?
I know you mentioned you've had this problem for 15 yrs, but did recent events trigger all this in your back?

Anyways, you're not alone... if you feel like posting more, we'll read it;D
Good luck, stay in touch man...

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Thanks Sur3Mac. I believe it was a result of the shoulder injury. Considering i put on nearly 13kgs, its my belief that my wait put the pressure on the spine, aggravating this latest problem.....

Lycoming said:

TatMac. Unfortunately you are going to need heaps of what we men types don't have much of..... patience. ;D

Done in '95 after an accident in the RM. S1 to L4. Works a treat, beats a wheelchair, but not much of a choice. No pain since waking up post op.
The piece bottom right is the coccyx, not a penile extension.

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LOL @ penile extension. Those x-rays didnt look to nice. Patience is what i have a lot of being in back pain for 15yrs, this is just another leaf in the book. I wood be grimacing as well if i was you, with those ugly pieces of metal inside me. Aches in the cold ????

cwa107 said:

My wife had an epidural when we had our first child, and a spinal block when we had our second one. Both are very similar, I guess the difference is in where the injection is placed. From what she tells me, it was the easiest part of the whole procedure. Although I have to tell you, watching it gave me the willies.

Good luck and I hope all goes well for you.

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Thanks cwa ...... you are right, after going though with the procedure it is a matter of where they put the needle...


Well after a week in hospital im finally home and on the good stuff. I had a epidural in the L5/S1 and they had to get in there whilst i was under a xray and still it took the Doc 2 goes at getting it right. Was only under a local and once out of recovery and back in my bed, i had the worst feeling not being able to feel anything below my waist for about two hours.
Then came the cold clammy feet with pins and needles for the next cpl hrs. Finally got the feeling back and could walk around without a problem. Why didnt i have this years ago. 1st time since i cant remember when, i havnt had pain in my back and it felt amazing.
The Doc said it would only work for 70% of cases so im grateful. Still have a tiny niggle half way down the leg so it wasnt 100% but me no complain.

Still have and probably will do it, and thats to have the disc's shaved and trimmed and have the 2 disc's fused together in the not so distance future.
But for now im happy. Thanks for the well wishes peoples. Appreciated

Cheers

Good luck tattooedmac. Any kind of surgery is scary to me because the only thing that has happened to me is my wisdom teeth out and a torn ligament in my wrist.

@ Lycoming .............ouch...

Nah, none of it aches in the cold. All the arthritic pain in the knees goes as the affected bone has been cut away. It's still uncomfortable, but bearable.

The absence of that spinal pain is wonderful. BUT, and it's a huge BUT, you need a very good surgeon and obey his instructions to the letter to enable a successful outcome.

Lycoming said:

Nah, none of it aches in the cold. All the arthritic pain in the knees goes as the affected bone has been cut away. It's still uncomfortable, but bearable.

The absence of that spinal pain is wonderful. BUT, and it's a huge BUT, you need a very good surgeon and obey his instructions to the letter to enable a successful outcome.

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Thats good on the knee pain. Im hopeless in winter with my complete tear of my posterior cruciate ligament, on my left knee is very arthritic in winter. Hot packs and the 1st 3 hrs of the day i need to come alive lol

Agree with you on following the surgeons recommendations, as he has already said NO surgeon will look at me if i dont stop smoking because the spinal disc's need as much oxygen as the can get for there complete recovery.
Cant be any better incentive than that to get a better life
Once i get to a scanner ill post the xray of that big bloody needle in my spine lol

Thanks all
Cheers

BUMP
Update
Well i cant win a trick ATM ..... Didnt understand Dr talk and what they game me was just a Epidural at the L5S1 which i now no to just be a GENRAL injection. They go in at the tail bone and it works its way around the spinal cavities.
Been to see the Pain Specialist 2 days ago BC its wearing off and now he says, "ill give you a Spine Block", which now after the explanation from him is a more direct injection, right at the spot of the nerve being squashed onto my spine

One has to wonder why they didnt do that 1st time. Oh well he reckons this pain relief should last MONTHS haha believe it when i see it....

Rock around Tuesday and can only be happy that Dept of Vet Affairs are covering it

My mom had a slipped disk and she had surgery to have it shaved down. A few weeks of bed rest and she was back on her feet. It's years later and she's completely pain free.

If you have a good doctor, I don't see a reason to be afraid of the surgery.

Yea thanks Kash. After doing research and talking to a lot of people Im getting less and less worried about the surgery now. There is 3 ways we have talked about on how they will fuse it. Depends on time frame of recovery and i suppose the recommendation of the Ortho Surgeon.

My final goal is to be pain free and after the initial Epidural and how i felt for 3 weeks after it is a amazing feeling and kick myself for not having it done years ago when i 1st got Authority to have it.

Me being me though, thought i was indestructible when i was younger and didnt want time off work...
Brighter and wiser now.... And not forgetting better looking LMAO

Hey tattooedmac, I had back surgery in 2007. My problem was that I had a disc that part of it fragmented and moved against the sciatic nerve. This caused pain in my knee (of all places). I could only walk about 20 feet and then have to stop and rest and let the pain subside.

My surgery was a great success. The incision was no more than 1/2 inch long and the doc with his orthoscopic tools was able to find and remove the small piece of disc. Back surgery today, provided you get a good surgeon, is 100 times better that 15 years ago when my son had back surgery and took him nearly a year to completely recover. My surgery was at 8 AM. At 1:45PM that same day I walked out of the hospital, pain free, at least from the nerve problem. Since I have three disc bulging in my back I still have other problems but none from the original problem I spoke about. In my case I would recommend it 100%, but each case is different.

I would seriously consider the surgery but I would first have some very detailed discussions with the doctor. If he would do that find another until you and the doctor both feel comfortable with the operation. Good luck.

Just a update .... After 5 spine blocks/epidurals over the last 6 months i finally got to see the best neurosurgeon where i live and im up for a bloody discectomy and another little procedure.
Will be 8 weeks off work and they cant even guarantee the procedure will work. There is a huge 30-35% chance that i will wake up out of surgery and still have the exact same agonising pain, i have had now for the last 8 months.
I was scared to have surgery 17 yrs ago when first diagnosed with a problem, caused by military service, that i said no. I had a mate with similar problem and they cut a nerve in his spine and now spends his quad life in a wheel chair.
17 yrs on and they still cant give a better diagnosis for me. I thought surgery has come a long way in 17yrs but seems not.
Well i have a uncle in the know, so i have decided to go for the Full Gold Card Pension and all its benefits to Vets and hope they dont up me to TPI just yet so i can continue working and living on morphine tablets.
I was really hoping for a better outcome and was hoping for a more positive day, but peoples severe pain can really take its toll after a while. And its been a while.... ....

Thanks for your time i have VENTED now and feel a lil better and time for a coffee

cheers

Orthopaedics is a wonderfully skilled form of surgery. But, it's a big but, it's going to look like butchery in years to come. In the same way we look back at the acts of carnage in the orlop of HMS Victory and shudder at the thought of a piece of leather between your teeth while your mates hold you down so that the 'medic' can hack off your leg.

The discectomy is simply part of the process, the list of hoops you have to jump through prior to the final op. ;D Good luck.

Hey man Good luck to you on your surgery, hope it all goes well. My dad had a spine fused and he still gets the pain, he says its not as bad as it was. But I tell you what, 3 days after his surgery he went back to work. Had a 5 inch slice down his lower back. It was crazy.
So Good luck to ya man hope it all goes well.

Lycoming said:

Orthopaedics is a wonderfully skilled form of surgery. But, it's a big but, it's going to look like butchery in years to come. In the same way we look back at the acts of carnage in the orlop of HMS Victory and shudder at the thought of a piece of leather between your teeth while your mates hold you down so that the 'medic' can hack off your leg.

The discectomy is simply part of the process, the list of hoops you have to jump through prior to the final op. ;D Good luck.

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Thanks mate. Yeah it all seems so simple easy and uncomplicated to some, but honestly the fear i have is genuine and to be operating sooooo close to a nerve root has me scrambling to the morphine packet, and then trying to convince myself that the pain is ok
I KNOW i need to do this and am thankful its covered by our Veteran Affairs, but on top of that i have worked my whole life from the age of 16 and the thought of having to sit at home doing nothing is a bigger scare. Going to go and get that 2nd opinion though, and the way our health system is it will be a while to see another specialist. Million things running through the noggin ATM lol


Cheers

Update !!!!!!!

Over the last 12-18 months my back has got considerably worse to the point of being on 100mg Oxycontin (Morphine) a day. I need these tablets or i just can not function. The one time i just hadnt got to the pharmacy in time for a repeat those couple of hours with no pain relief im knotted up in the stomach, headache grumpy and sore. Yes i am now addicted to them
But the reason for this update is i have recently met someone that has inks in the RSL (Returned Services League) and further more with the DVA (Department of Veteran Affairs) and Repatriation. Now he is a ex soldier currently with his Gold Card TPI which is the veterans entitlement card, getting a pension off the government every fortnight with assistance in Car Rego, rental allowance etc . . . .
Now years ago bc they (DVA) dont let on and help you out to know what is involved and what your entitled too i have never pushed for more pension and upgrade the now already worsening injuries. (Honestly i was afraid it wouldnt be enough to comfortably live on) so i thought work was the best option.

Now to get to the point this person asked for my Med Docs and is going to 100% take on me and my case and work with me to get my TPI Gold Card and to have me retire in the near future. Apart from my back there is Knee, both ankles as well that are already accepted disabilities and he says going through my Docs that i have a great chance to get the other 35% i need to get my 100% incapacitation.

Now im not a dole bludger by any means and i have paid my dues i think. It sort of exciting in a way but to not ever work again is going to be one tough time for me. Even with the pain i am in daily and have been for the past 16 odd years i have worked every day of that but im looking forward finally being looked after by the government and to have the time i need to get the operations i so need.
Im hoping it = is not going to be a long process but the Government really like to drag things out and run by the book when trying to get it but once i have got it they will bend over backwards and offer more than they need to . . . . . Retired by 40 yea, i can get in that fishing i miss lol And be afraid M-F be very afraid, ill be around a lot more lol

So yes this is it, the start of this chapter and with a Dr's appt on Mopnday to start the ball rolling . . . . .


Cheers

@Lycoming Mate I appreciated the PM and is good to know im not alone and that someone understands me and what m going through. It does mean so much and now through my reply i understand im worse of than i first thought. I will fight this all they way now even with the hurdle that was just chucked in my way.

Bc i was a Black Hat (Armoured Corps) i go in for hearing and breathing test on Tues. Hearing bc a good % of black hats end there days with loss of hearing due to the close proximity of the gun, and breathing bc of all the cordite breathed in. And my back will be re assessed . . . . . . . Fingers crossed for Tuesday.

Now just as a query, if you had to retire at 40 what would you do or have always wanted to do and didnt have the time to do, that you would do now bc of 40-50 yrs ahead of you not working. ????
If/when this pension comes about, im only aloud to work to supplement the pension 8 hrs a week, so i wil have so much time to do other things.
Im going to sploil my self and upgrade and get a decent iMac and learn myself IOS development and hopefully i could get a help into a UNI course on coding or something??
So just wondering what others would do, with serious answers please.

Cheers

"Im going to sploil my self and upgrade and get a decent iMac and learn myself IOS development and hopefully i could get a help into a UNI course on coding or something?? "

You got it in one. Just as soon as the grand sprogs have grown up. Then it'll be great grand sprogs so the bank will never be in the black again. ;D

Of course now that i have new knees my ballet shoes are useless. Any offers chaps.




Here they are in use.




As my dear wife has just commented. "Mad as a Mongoose."

Lycoming said:

Of course now that i have new knees my ballet shoes are useless. Any offers chaps.

Here they are in use.

As my dear wife has just commented. "Mad as a Mongoose."

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I concur