It's been 4 months since my lumbar decompression. My hopes were high that it was contributing to my SFN. However, at this point, my feet are much worse than before the surgery. I only wish now that I could get back to my original baseline level of pain.

Beside the surgery, I have changed 2 things since then. One, I have stopped my B6 supplement which has caused my B6 level to drop from 117 to 28. Second, I have been unable to do my 2-3 days per week of water aerobics because of the surgery. All other meds are the same.

I have noticed that my tailbone area is more sensitive now which seems to be directly affect the feet pain. Sitting is very, very difficult. However, that same situation used to come and go prior to the surgery. I also have something going on in my right hip. I had an injection in it about a week ago which has eased the pain but time will tell if that solves it.

So now I wonder, did the surgery flare up the SFN? Are the nerves trying to repair in my feet and are therefore firing like crazy now or exactly what is happening?

I hope to return to the water aerobics very soon. Once I do so, it will be very interesting to see what effect the resumed routine will have on the pain.

The sacral nerve plexus is in the tailbone area. This may be inflamed for many reasons.

The Lidoderm patches may help your pain and feet if applied to that area. (I have a new Lidoderm thread on this first page showing with a link, where this is)

Lidoderms are very effective for this type of pain. I think you should try them.

mrsD, I assume I would place the full Lidoderm lenghwise just above my "crack"?

Also mrsD, do you use a roll-on biofreeze and where can I buy it?

Yes, you could try that. They may need to go more laterally across the top of your buttocks. But try that placement first.
About an inch above where the crack ends.

Clean the area off well, soap residue often stays there, and will impede the adhesive.

Sweating also will be problematic. You may have to stick them additionally with plastic surgical tape (available in any pharmacy or WalMart, etc). The tape isn't expensive.

When I had my groin injury...I used them there on the sacral area, mostly on the side where I had the tendon tear. If your backside is really curvy, they stick less well. But that lower back is pretty flat and doesn't make a huge problem. I was upNorth and had little else to use, and these made it bearable (horrible pain for 2 weeks). When I got home I had PT and that helped more.(ultrasound and electrostim). You might consider asking for PT if you find the Lidoderms are helping. The ultrasound was fabulous IMO. The IFc was also helpful.

For curvy spots, I cut them into long strips, and used tape and stuck them on in a row around the curve. That stuck better than one whole patch.

The biggest downside to Lidoderm patches is the poor sticking quality they sometimes have.