There are European injections named Discus Compositum, they might help you.

Hey Mikey1352010,

I know some of the pain as I went through a WC case that gave me a lot of trouble. Without know what state you are from I do want to let you know that your lawyer is not your best friend and you need to educated yourself on your WC laws. I know that in GA you can change your doctor, it's called a board change but you only get one of those. I also know that even if you do get sent back to work you are still covered under Workers Comp if you injure yourself. I know this is tough on the mental state, trust me, I was loosing my mind and still am even with closing my case. The Workers Comp system has gotten worse and this passing year laws have changed but you need to see if you can change doctors and find out if your lawyer recommends one or can get a list from your workers comp adjuster of the ones that are in network. Also your mental state is part of workers compensation and you can see if your doctor can get you are referral for mental health help. I wish you the best man and educate yourself no matter how down you feel.

Hi there,

Yes, the dizziness, being lightheaded and the vertigo could all be associated with the cervical disc herniation, I've also experienced all of it (have a cervical disc herniation at C7-T1)

You can also experience severe headaches, upper back pain, shoulder pain, pain in one or both arms/fingers, a lot can be affected.

The pain can be horrendous, you must be so careful, pain started in my neck then progressed to shoulders and left arm/fingers.

A few things, keep your shoulders down as much as you can. The more tense you are in the neck area, the more pressure you add to the situation. I had a cervical fusion a couple of years ago and I healed fully and went back to running, lifting weights, etc. with no pain. I would keep yourself physically fit and strong and work on posture and upper back muscles and your core (carefully of course) to lessen your chances of the discs getting worse. If they do get worse, know that there are many people who had very successful surgeries on the cervical spine. You could also get a second opinion from a different doctor. The massage therapist at my chiropractor's office was the best person at stopping my muscle spasms, which can increase the pain (and insurance paid for it). None of the meds work for my pain either, so I understand how hard and frustrating that can be. Best of luck with everything!

After a new round of injections, my surgeon decided the only option left is surgery.

My options he gave me were:

1) Do nothing

2) Two-tier spinal fusion in my C5-C6, C6-C7. He tells me this would limit my neck range of motion by 20%.

3) Two-tier disk replacement in same sections. He tells me this could put me at full recovery at a fraction of the time as a fusion. He is very comfortable with this procedure. He would use LDR's Mobi-C device.

I am having trouble finding reliable information on how much a replacement can be trusted. This is making it very difficult to decide what to do. As I am only 28, surgery is a difficult decision anyway.

Where can I find more information on this very tempting replacement? What is the success rate of this replacement surgery?

I should point out, this two level replacement can not be done if three or more levels need surgery. I have three herniated discs, and an MRI that is more than six months old...

I must thank all of you so far who have offered information and support.

It is greatly appreciated.

Just a couple of thoughts for you…

Have you been in physical therapy these past few months, to see if your cervical problems can be managed conservatively? (I would think your surgeon would have written you a prescription for PT on your first visit, that's pretty standard procedure.)

Have you sought out any second opinions as to whether or not to have the surgery? (You're entitled to more than one, I believe, as you explore your options on this very serious decision.)

If you do decide to go the surgery route, you might want to ask your surgeon (whomever you choose, based on qualifications, experience, etc.) for the names and numbers of 2 or 3 of their other surgical patients who have had the same procedure(s) done. This way, you can talk to people who have been right where you are and ask them any questions you may have re their experiences with it. (There're no privacy concerns, as long as they've agreed to talk with you.)

Do you have a neurologist and/or a primary care physician you can bring into the loop as to what's going on with you? Encourage your docs to talk to each other about your case… and most importantly, to you! The more specialists you have advocating for you, the better.

That's it for now. I know this is scary stuff, especially for someone as young as you are. But I think you will feel better about things the more informed you become - and the more people you have on your team. If you do decide to try PT for 6 - 9 months before making any decisions, and you need help managing your pain, you might want to consider adding a Pain Management Specialist to the treatment team as well.

Let me know what you think! We're here to support you.

Alison

Have you had an MRI recently? You might have cervical spinal cord compression from the hernia that is causing myelopathy which is a very serious condition. The electric jolts could possibly be Lermitte’s phenomenon and the watery diarrhea could be related to bowel malfunction.

Don't wait, get checked right away.

I suppose I would seek another opinion Mikey. Even go outside the company. Also the moderator may be right to try to seek some kind of other employment within the company. Have you tried Ketamine infusions, and sought the advise of a pain specialist? Currently I see a doctor called a physiatrist. In my case she thinks outside the box. Your doctor is correct about the surgery. That is only a last resort, when you MRI starts to say " severe" in the language of it. I hope you find a good solution so that you can stay active and still work. ginnie