For the first time in 7 or 8 years my back has gone out again. It's done this off and on since I was 15. Usually I'm back to snuff within a week, but this is Day 10 and I am still needing muscle relaxers and lortab to make it through the day. Last summer I had several tests done on back (mri's, ct, emg, ncv) because I was having terrible foot pain. Degenerative Disc Disease showed up, but nothing was remarkable enough to explain the foot pain. Had a series of 3 transforaminal epidurals in L4, L5, S1 (the last one was in Nov.). They did not take away the foot pain so pursued other avenues on that. But now my lumbar is screaming. Oddly enough, my foot pain is at a much more tolerable level although it still speaks to me at times.

I went to the dr last Tues. since I was having to pull myself around by the walls of the house in order to move from point a to point b. He put me off work for 2 days, gave the meds mentioned above and we discussed what I had already been doing to keep my back healthy. His opinion was that I was on track but that I am developing foot drop which probably contributed to my back going out this time. He ordered another mri and ct that day. I did the ct but asked for appt. for mri at different facility since theirs is a closed one and they are very uncomfortable for me...would rather do the open mri. I am scheduled to go back to him this Fri. for a recheck. He also wants me to see a neurosurgeon 2 hrs away.

Hopefully I have given enough background info. My question is would it be worthwhile to have another mri done at this time? I hate to go and have the expense and time issues to do this if it's not necessary. Should I just wait this thing out and see how it rides since it's only been 10 days, or if this was you, would you go ahead and see the specialist? The neurosurgeon that I saw last year couldn't get me out of his office fast enough when he saw that I was not a surgical candidate. It was almost humiliating and I would like to not experience that agian!