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Lumbar Fusion
I recently had a lumbar fusion done on L4, L5 discs. Its been three weeks and I'm still in severe pain. I follow the doctors instructions to the tee. Can anyone tell me how long I have to look forward to pain medication and what the future holds??????
i have l4 and 5 lumbar fusion a little more than 8 months ago and my back still hurt, cannot sit down more than 30 minutes , hard to sleep , taking the Med norco 10mmg 4 times a day. My left hip numb and hurt which i did not have that before the surgery. could not go back to work even office work.
Dr. said everything looks normal from CT scan and they do not know why, then said wait for after a year and hope getting better. So stressful
Dr. said everything looks normal from CT scan and they do not know why, then said wait for after a year and hope getting better. So stressful
I had a 2-level fusion (L3-L4-L5). This did not solve any problems, and made my condition worse. With that being said, I feel if I would have been helped sooner my surgery would probably have been a success.
Also, I had talked to three or so people before my surgery that had 1-level fusions that had great success (I'm SO jealous).
If the pain is unbearable, what else can you do? As I stated earlier, I feel that if I had been helped sooner, I would have never gotten to the point where I needed a 2-level fusion right off the bat.
Good luck!
Also, I had talked to three or so people before my surgery that had 1-level fusions that had great success (I'm SO jealous).
If the pain is unbearable, what else can you do? As I stated earlier, I feel that if I had been helped sooner, I would have never gotten to the point where I needed a 2-level fusion right off the bat.
Good luck!
Hi.. I'm 26 and I had lumbar fusion of L4-L5 and L5-S1 back in June of 2005. it was about 3 months before I started to feel any better... little by little each day I felt slightly better but i was able to sit up in a chair completely and sit at my job at about the 3rd month.. still at litlte discomfort but not too much.. I tried not to take the pain meds too much. therapy started at about the 5-6 month, since they wanted to make sure that the body agreed with the plates that they put in.. (i have two titianium plates, 2 cages and 6 screws). it's been 3 years and I still get some pain here and there and I have a hard time at times lifting things. bending.. i cant bend completely forward or sit up exactly straight as an arrow on the floor or reach and toch my toes to stretch all that good still but everytime i work out i get a little better... i do have to say that ever since i had the surgery 3 years ago i feel better than i originally did when i went in... dont get me wrong, i still have my bad days... maybe once a week sometimes twice (sometimes im good 7 days a week) but it all depends on how much i push myself... but nothing compared to the 6-7 days i was in pain at the ages of 17-23.
As far as the pain medication, its mostly mental.. try not to think of it as much and try to take advil or tylenol if you can, unless its completely unbearable... My surgery was through the front (i have a 6 inch scar on my stomach/pelvic area) and the pain from that was worse since sitting and standing was a bit harder as well as bending... but get plenty of rest and try to walk too... slowly but try to keep moving as much as possible so that your body doesn't stiffen up... it was hard to walk at first but try at least 10 minutes a day a few times each day... BUT DO IT SLOWLY!!!!! i would get out of breath fast... and make sure either you are walking with a cane that they sent you home with or with someone next to you, just in case you feel like you will fall.. and dont be afraid to hold on to things like the wall or something for stability at home... always remember to try and get yourself to stand up straight... that will help too... at first you will want to be comstantly hunched over... but slowly straighten yourslef up and it will help...
i also noticed that sleeping n my side with a body pillow under me and one in between my legs also helped with some of the pain and discomfort...
you will be back to your old self in no time... just remember that you have to think positive and you will get better soon!
hope this helps!
As far as the pain medication, its mostly mental.. try not to think of it as much and try to take advil or tylenol if you can, unless its completely unbearable... My surgery was through the front (i have a 6 inch scar on my stomach/pelvic area) and the pain from that was worse since sitting and standing was a bit harder as well as bending... but get plenty of rest and try to walk too... slowly but try to keep moving as much as possible so that your body doesn't stiffen up... it was hard to walk at first but try at least 10 minutes a day a few times each day... BUT DO IT SLOWLY!!!!! i would get out of breath fast... and make sure either you are walking with a cane that they sent you home with or with someone next to you, just in case you feel like you will fall.. and dont be afraid to hold on to things like the wall or something for stability at home... always remember to try and get yourself to stand up straight... that will help too... at first you will want to be comstantly hunched over... but slowly straighten yourslef up and it will help...
i also noticed that sleeping n my side with a body pillow under me and one in between my legs also helped with some of the pain and discomfort...
you will be back to your old self in no time... just remember that you have to think positive and you will get better soon!
hope this helps!
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