still suffering

[babyd36]

hi.. thim new to this so heres my problem... last year i was having painful back pain and left hip pain.. it got so bad that i couldnt even walk. the first spine doctor keep telling me i was fine.. went thru all the test.. and injections which i was having an alleric reaction to went thru 4 weeks of pt and they said they want touch me anymore it was doing more damage than good...plus had mri done and it showed i had a herniated disc plus damage nerves in my left leg..my only opition was surgery which i found when i had a second opinion... he was really upset that my first opinion let it go this far... anyway i had the surgery may 20,2011 and the old pain is gone and i can somewhat feel my left thigh now since the surgery i have more powerful pain in both legs in the calf and feet... it started 2 weeks after surgery and it has not let up since... i cant sleep at night and take cat naps during the day... im on gabapentin and percoits... and the pain overrides that... i cry everyday from the pain and it has taking over my life...im 41 years old and im a very active person now im not able to walk stand sit for nomore than 15 mintues... going to the bathroom is a task.... i wear a brace when i walk and a bone stimulator 24/7 im scared that something else went bad and i dont know what to do...i called my surgeon and still waiting on him to return my call... in the meantime i need help before i end up so depressed and have a break down... the pai is so bad i just wanna cut my legs off... please anyone with advice would be appreciated...or if you think you might now whats going on.... please help me.......suffering in pa


This discussion is related to Lumber infusion L4-L5.

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi there!

Well, with your description of the pain being more in the calf and feet, possible diagnoses that need to be considered are peripheral neuritis/ neuropathy, muscle strain, inflammation/ dystrophy, vasculitis, peripheral vascular occlusive disease etc. You may consider an evaluation by your doctor to rule out the mentioned possibilities. Meanwhile you may take adequate rest and try ice packs/ hot fomentation along with NSAIDS/ prescribed pain medications, for relief.
Hope this helps.

Take care!

[bigsissie]

It sounds as if you are having nerve problems. Do you have tingling almost like electrical shocks? Ask for a nerve conduction test when you go to the doctors. There is nothing they can really do for nerve pain. Ibuprofen may helps some along with your pain meds. Also gabapentin is generic for neurontin and I had bad side effects from it. It did nothing for my pain and made me crazy. Literally I could not keep up with my mood swings and had major depression. I eventually was put on Gabatril and it worked wonders. You could try laying with your legs elevated or on your side with a pillow between your legs. Also alternate hot and cold in the shower. It didn't work for me but it was recommended by the dr. Hope this helps. Hang in there. Someone else may have some better advice than me than may help. Good luck to you.

Sissie