Life after Lumbar Spinal Fusion
 

I am a 39 year old male that has had three spinal surgeries.
1. Cervical dissection C-3 C-4 no fusion – date 2000
2. PLIF lumber fusion L-3 L-4, L-4 L-5 w/instrumentation – date Dec 2005
3. Instrumentation removed - date Dec 2006
My main issue is continued pain with the low back upon any exertion of the back. After the last two operations I am not ready to re embark on the journey to find the source of the pain. After all of the mylograms, discograms, MRI’s and X-Rays I am tired. Tired of the tests and all of the cost incurred by the tests, I now find myself considering pain management. Is it wrong for me to seek after appropriate pain medicine for the pain that I know will come just from everyday living? I am not in excruciating pain all the time, but the simple task of needing to get down in the floor or play tag with my daughter sends my pain level through the roof. I have taken just about everything for pain, my Nuro had me on Ultram ER and that was a terrible experiment in pain management. I found myself needing to take upwards of 600mg to get relief, and then I tried to back off of it and went into serious withdrawals. I am currently treating myself with Alieve that is not effective and reluctant to ask for Hydrocodone that actually works very well for me. All I want is to be able to manage my pain, so am I ready for pain management?

DavidE

Yes Yes Yes
 

If you cann't even play with your kid without pain tell the doc. your pcp should be able to give you atleast vicodins even if its just 1 or 2 aday. explain to him about the pain, tell him about what you have taken and what you know helps, but be careful if you had a hard time getting off that one med. you may have an even harder time getting off the vics.
I have been lucky as i have never had any problems(so far ) getting off of my meds and have been on all of them almost. i have so many spinal issues due to a fall at work that i am now at a pm who gives me fenlems not taking it, fentanyl and he knows that my pm gives me vic soma ambien and valuim, but even though it says to take so much each day i only take as needed maybe thats why i don't have problem not taken them, have never taken any while at work, so that may have helped also, though i would go home in such pain i would be crying. but anyway ask pcp if he says know get referal to pm, cann't hurt to ask, just don't over do meds and make sure they are out of reach of kids, i flush my extra's down tp every month if i have any, as i have teens in house and thats the new drug of chose fcor them good luck deb:grouphug:

opps
 

wrote femms not taken it disregard that has sometimes my computer backs up so i don't even know what that was suppose to mean.