still having alot of pain

[mitsie]

i had a cervical spine surgery 2 and a half months ago and i am still having alot of pain, weakness, and some numbness.  is this normal?  i had another mri 2 days ago and i go to the dr tomarrow.  but i am afraid something went wrong with the surgery.  i am still taking pain meds but am trying to slack off.  ive been off work because i can not return with any restrictions.  is there anything i should ask my dr or any other options for me?  

[lilrob]

Hi. I am new to this forum.  I guess I am not the only one who seems to be frustrated after a surgery that was suppose to fix my pain.  I had a two level acdf 4-5/5-6 at the end of Nov./07.  I thought I would be almost pain free by now.  I still have a lot of shoulder, neck and arm pain.  About the 4th week post op I started feeling better.  When I started to use my arms more and raised my level of activity I reversed back to pain.  I feel worse now than before surgery.  It still is early but I would think that I should be progressing forward not backward.  I start back to work next week and I am worried that it will trigger more pain.  It seems that no one has any answers to why we are still in pain.  The only answer that makes sense to me is that once muscles and nerves are traumatized they take long time to heal.  I even wonder if body type makes a difference.  I am a person who loves physical exercise so my body type is thin and sinuey, therefore the muscles tend to be hard and tighten easily.  My biggest problem is keeping my neck and trap muscles from tightening up.  I can't seem to loosen them.  I stretch all the time but it doesn't seem to be helping.  I have been on muscule relaxers since surgery.  I know your pain and frustration.  I guess we all have to keep at it and not give up.  

[mitsie]

NO MY INJURY WASNT WORK RELATED ALTHOUGH I THINK IT HAD ALOT TO DO WITH IT.  IM NOT REALLY SURE WHAT HAPPENED I THINK IT WAS A COMBINATION OF A FEW THINGS.  I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU MEAN ABOUT NOT WANTING TO LIVE ON NARCOTICS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE I DONT EITHER.  I HAVE SEEN THAT WITH MY DAD.  HE HAS SIX BACK SURGERIES FOR HIS LOWER BACK AND HAS BEEN ON PAIN MEDS FOR ALMOST TWENTY YEARS NOW.  I JUST FEEL LIKE IM TALKING TO THE WALL WHEN I TRY TO MAKE THESE DRS UNDERSTAND THAT IT REALLY DOES STILL HURT.  MY NS IS A VERY GOOD SURGEON BUT DOESNT HAVE MUCH OF A BEDSIDE MANNER.  ANYWAY I DO APPRECIATE KEEPING IN TOUCH.

[bev62]

I know what you mean. I have had MRI's, x-rays, CT scans, nerve conduction tests and I'm told that they are all perfect.  But they still can't explain what is causing all my pain.  My NS says he thinks that I have some nerve damage that's not showing up on the tests, but no offer of how to get rid of it.  All he can do is say that pain management should make me feel better.  That is only going to cover up what ever is causing it.  I don't want to live on narcotics for the rest of my life.

Was your neck injury work related?  Your doctor sounds like a company doctor.  They usually want to get you back to work as soon as possible.  I've been lucky with my NS, he has been very understanding and has tried to find the cause of my pain.  He hasn't tried to push me back to work.  He is sending me for a functuanal capacity evauation.  He says that workers comp requires that after a year, to see if I am able to go back to work.  Hopefully the doctor will put enough restrictions on me after he gets the results that my company will not let me come back.  I honestly know that I could not go back to doing my job.  It was also very physical, as are all the jobs at my company.  If I can't go back my attorney will handle the rest of it.

I agree completely, thank God for good husbands and family members.  I would never make it without them.  Good luck, I hope things get better for you.

[mitsie]

I WENT TO MY NS TODAY AND HE SAYS MY MRI IS PERFECT.  I JUST WANT TO KNOW IF ITS PERFECT WHY AM I STILL HAVING SO MUCH PAIN.  HIS IDEA IS TO GIVE ME MORE MEDS AND SEND ME BACK TO WORK IN 2 AND A HALF WEEKS.  MY JOB CONSISTS OF ALOT OF LIFTING AND BENDING PULLING AND PUSHING I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THEY CAN NOT FIGURE THIS OUT.  I APPRECIATE YOU GETTING BACK WITH ME AND BELIEVE ME I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE GOING THROUGH I DON'T HAVE SMALL CHILDREN THEY ARE 16 AND 13 WHICH IS A GOOD THING THEY CAN FUNTION ON THEIR OWN.  AND THANK GOD FOR HUSBANDS AND FAMILY I HOPE EVERYTHING GOES WELL FOR YOU AND THANK YOU AGAIN.  A LITTLE UNDERSTANDING GOES ALONG WAY WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE JUST MAKING THESE THINGS UP TO GET PAIN MEDS.  GOOD LUCK TO YOU

[bev62]

It is still early, but I understand your concern.I had a two level ACDF (C5-C7)  in Nov of last year.  It has been almost a year and I'm in more pain now than before I had surgery.  I have constant neck, shoulder and arm pain.  I also had surgery on my ulnar nerve 3 months ago.  My doctor thought that my be causing the pain and weakness in my arm and hand.  It has not helped anything. My NS says that I am totally fused now.  He has done every test that can be thought of but still can not explain the pain that I'm in.  I have not been able to return to work and I am on Demeral and muscle relaxers.  He has now decided to send me to pain management because he will not prescribe anything stronger and my pain meds are not helping anymore.  He says that most people do very well after this type of surgery but a small precentage will have presistent chronic pain.  I guess I'm in that small precentage.  I am now dealing with depression due to the pain.  All of this is the result of a work injury.  I'm 45 and was in excellent health before this surgery.  I have two small children ages 4 and 7.  Without the help of my husband or a family member I can't even care for them.  I hope you have better results than I have.  Good luck.