[Vrae]

Lumbar Plexus Block at L2 both sides w/ steroids guided by x-ray.

Okay, did my first block yesterday and thought of you Nanc ALL day long and how you do/did these with NO sedation... omg. You Rule! and anyone else who does the same.

I am defiantly not a pro yet and will be a bit sore in my lower back for a bit too I think. I was such a cry baby. Much to do about nothing really. I think just worry of the unknown and letdown of it all when it was over. Did I mention Flo is coming to visit? ..ugh! I figure this would be a good time test a block though. One more hormone and my life will be complete. My husband thinks so too I'm sure. So they're telling me how the block may mess with my cycle and make me agitated, and the steroids may make me grumpy and I am like; I just need one more thing messing with my mood and my poor husband. I would like to remain married ya know..lol. all in jest, we're fine, but seriously... quit testing us already!!

The Good news, YES I AM FEELING BETTER ALREADY, YAY!

My right forearm is much better, praise God. This area was really getting BAD. I could barely lift a coffee cup. My upper back which has been riddled with CRPS for months now and would literally take my breath away is SO much better too. This area was thought by others to be from my large breasts, but I knew better, although I knew it was possible, but I also KNOW what CRPS pain feels like and they don't. Yes, like instantly... GONE! Amazing! The liquid fire in my ankle/heel... gone. Oh and my foot has not been cold. This is HUGE! wow! My legs seemed some better. My hips still aggravated. My legs tonight hurting a bit now, but were not earlier. I know I may need more, but will enjoy any reprieve given.

BUT my lower back is definitely not happy. It's real sore and acting like a spasm might be possible. Bruised feeling. the site looks good though. It was poked, so I imagine it will be sore for a minute or two. It's time to cycle anyway, the weather is changing, again.. springtime in the Rockies, so I slapped a patch on it for the night. ahh.


BTW I failed to ask, what is it they put in the block before the steroid?? just an anesthetic? I should have ask them.

[Brambledog]

Really glad to hear you've got some good relief so far Vrae

As for the cry baby bit lol, I think we'd all freak out a bit at the first go - after all, there's a lot at stake for us...this isn't just about helping a bit, it's about taking some of that horrible pain away...maybe...just maybe... Glad its worked for you in that respect!!

Moods will stabilise again, particularly once your Aunt has gone back home lol

Well done gal.

Bram.

[zookester]

Yippee Yahoo!! That is awesome, I am so stinkn' happy for you that I'm actually doing a happy dance

I hope the injection soreness goes away without issue.

Have a super day,
Tessa

[birchlake]

That is very good news Vrae! It must be simply nice to feel SOME relief!

When I had blocks, the site soreness went away within a couple of days, so I hope yours does too.

Hopefully the relief will allow you to start using your body parts more normally again, which can build on itself and help even more. Be very careful not to overdo it though; sometimes that happens with the new found enthusiasm.

Good luck to you and be sure to keep us updated!

[Nanc]

YAY VRAE!!!! So happy that you have found some relief. Having such relief from the first block is promising!! Yeah, my last pain dr didn't use any sedation (the one I saw before him did) and he did SGB's, lumbar and cervical blocks on me. Honestly I prefer no sedation because of how I would feel later in the day. The soreness of the injection site will go away, for me it was within a couple days. I will not lie, sometimes it hurt like hell and I cried at times, but I kept telling myself this was temporary, it will end soon. The psychologist I was seeing for the SCS neuropsyc evaluation taught me how to breathe during these procedures, it helped because I forget to breathe and just hold it...that doesn't work too well

My dr used numbing medication, like lidocain, before the steroids. I wish I could get some more of these blocks, but as usual for me I started having adverse reactions to the steriods

I truly am sooo happy that you have gotten some relief!! You definitely deserve a break with all that you have been through lately! Are you scheduled to have any additional blocks??

Nanc

[AZ-Di]

So very HAPPY for you Vrae!! Sedation or not you're still brave.
Who knows ,even with the hormones maybe Flo will be easier to tolerate
because you've got some extra pain relief.
Maybe we should start up a support group for our spouses/partners who
have to deal with us. (ha-ha) Your's sounds like a pretty good sport.
I'm interested in how long the blocks work for you.
I'm going on #22 in the neck & I'm thinking of trying to stretch them out a bit.

[Lottie]

Vrae - I'm ecstatic for you!! Any day with diminished pain is a gift. Enjoy!!

I've had 4 lumbar sympathetic blocks. Im not sure how different that is from what you had. I had immediate warming of my ice cold right foot and pain diminished. It came back but not as severe. For me it was worth it.

[Hopeless]

The unknown is always the hardest part with any procedure. You imagine all kinds of things. No matter how much info you obtain, until you "see for yourself" you still worry and imagine what YOUR procedure will be like. I have never had any sedation for any of my nerve blocks so I can't compare the differences. You are NOT a cry baby.

So glad you are having some good results. Hope your improvement continues and it gets even better every day.

So glad you shared your good news.

[Vrae]

Hey guys, So it’s been an interesting couple of days so far. I have felt many different sensations in my legs and continue to feel them. My foot is cold again... bummer. The warmth there only lasted like 24 hrs. My legs are spasming like crazy when I walk around. Why? My legs and hips are not very happy right now but it’s cycle time and I am not lying in bed crying .. yet, so we’ll see. But so far they feel funky and are starting to hurt more.

From the waist up where CRPS had spread is SO MUCH BETTER! I am very happy about that! Very, very happy! Was worth it for that alone! I hope it will last a while.

My sheet they gave me says it can take the steroids 4-5 days to take effect. I have had some swelling. I don’t typically swell, but boy, yes I could feel it and still somewhat in my legs.

My back (injection site) is WAY better but still a tad sore. Ya know, I looked a little green/yellow after all this when I got home. Like.. sickly. Kind of freaked me out a little. My color is better now. I follow up with my Doc on Monday and I guess I’ll find out more about what’s next if anything. I think now I would like to try one of these when flo is not a factor and see what that is like.

Aren’t lidocaine injections/infusions an option? Are they just too short lived? I guess that’s what they gave me first that made my foot warm, etc? I’ve never had steroids so I’m really not sure what to expect from the drug. All I am thinking is oh no, more weight gain? <sigh>

Thank you so much for all of the support! What in the world would I do without you all? I have truly appreciated every single comment! Thank you for sharing your experiences with me. Makes mine less scary!

And wow… it sounds like one could end up having MANY of these. I wonder if that would perhaps allow me to back off the gabapentin for a bit at some point. My guts would sure appreciate that. OH! And speaking of guts… good Lord, I was burping up what was like eggs… YUCK! Gross!! Is that steroids?? And all kinds of flatulence too, lovely. So much so that my husband and I couldn’t stop laughing! It was crazy! I shouldn’t tell on myself, but I had no idea that was coming. I told my husband, wow you’d better watch out! I’m gonna blow you outta bed tonight! Lmao.. I’m just getting more and more sexy by the minute. He quickly ran and got the gas-ex for me. Awe.. how nice ..lol We really did have a good laugh. I never pass gas in front of him and I was ripping them left and right. lol Oh, why is farting so FUNNY! Thank God we haven’t lost our sense of humor! But seriously, is that all steroid related? Yikes!

[Nanc]

OMG Vrae, you are soooo funny! Thank you for the laugh, I really needed that tonight!!! Never understood why farting is so funny, but it is. I am not sure if the steroids cause gas or not, I guess it is possible. I don't remember, which I should because of all the steriod injections I have had. But, I am more on the gassy side anyway with all my digestive issues, etc. I know a lot of people don't do that in front of their spouse, but I would explode if I held it in...sorry TMI

I am happy to hear that you are good from the waist up. And it is good that you are not crying and in bed right now (I was until I read your post). I am curious to hear what your dr tells you on Monday. I would expect that he would recommend more blocks because of the positive results from this first one.

Glad your coloring is better now too. I know that each time I had one of these procedures done, I looked pretty rough...even when there was no sedation. I think it is pretty tough to go through mentally and physically. You are brave to have done it. In addition to the various blocks I have had, I have had steroid injections in many other areas of my body. Those definitely took several days to take effect...the first few days hurt like crazy.

Glad you posted an update, I have been thinking about you and wondering how you were doing today. And yes, so glad we still have our humor

Take care.
Nanc