I've been in and out of pain management for 10 years for lumbar pain. Between procedures I've been on everything from, I call it candy hydrocodone 5/500, through morphine and which I weened off as well when a procedure went temporarily well. About 3 years ago, my L5/S1 was fused. I behaved physically to heal and weened myself off of hydrocodone 10/500. A year after the fusion(my recovery/play it safe time) I was hopping in the beach water about knee high with a four year old. INSTANT excruciating pain....I thought here we go again. So I want through the regular Dr. tests, pain management, injections again hydrocodone 5/500. Didn't touch the pain this time. So nerve blocks, radio frequency ablations, nothing was working more than a couple of weeks and the hudrocodone was raised again to 10/500 3 times a day. Skipped right passed the 7.5. Well the 10/500 did nothing for me. It relieves the pain for about 2 hours and this was supposed to last 8. HA!! So back I went and I was put on Norco 10/325 5-6 times a day. That helped for a short while. Next step a disco gram!!!! If you haven't had the pleasant pleasure of a disco gram, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy! Legal torture. Bit it proves where the damage really is in your spine. PIN POINTS THE PAIN!! My neurosurgeon told me I have 3 options, continue with pain management for the rest of my life, a neurotransmitter implanted in my back or a spinal fusion that would leave me a stick at the grand ole age of 46. Well the only option I would consider was the neurotransmitter since the drugs weren't doing the job. So I went searching for another option, a different surgeon. I found one 150 miles away from home. I had to change my insurance coverage and everything just to go to a consultation with him. I met with him we went through everything I had been through. He read my MRI reports, told me I didn't need a fusion, I needed 3 minimally invasive procedures and he said he cod guarantee me a 95% reduction in pain. You could only imagine my thoughts. I started to cry, he said cry when I fix you!! I had his surgery two weeks ago this Thursday. I would say my pain has been reduced between 95-99 percent!!!!!! I started weening myself this last Friday, off of the pain meds again 1/2 the dose of the pain med and then Xanax to offset (try to tame) the horrible shaking, diarrhea, sweating yet freezing at the same time, irritability. Is there anything else I can do besides institutionalize myself to ease these side affects? I do know it will get worse before it gets better (not my first go round) but I don't want my family to suffer along with myself. Advice please!!!!!!!