self restrictions and limits

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I have ddd in my neck and  lumbar spine, and now after mri i have a bone spurs with spinal stenosis in l4 l5 spine  area,i see ortho surgeon in april 2013. what some thing i should not do or should do till i see the dr.?

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any kind  spine surgery is scary. i just dont want to end up ever being able not  to do stuff i have a 10 y/o son its  hard now hopfuly if i do need/get surgery i will be able to do more stuff and not just sit and watching him.des cold wheather make it worse i live in michigan and when it gets cold my pain is worse. and it been real cold last few days.

[Loopster]

Glad they at least gave you meds while you wait.

I'm on norco 10/325 4x a day, but no muscle relaxers.  Honestly I think that's where most of the pain is coming from (spasms) so I'm going to ask for some flexiril or skelaxin today, hopefully it will cut down on the pain and I won't be eating these Norco like candy.

Mine doesn't flare up at night like yours, it's constant, sharp pain.  I wake up in the morning and feel GREAT.  Within an hour of starting to move around it comes right back and I have to go lay back down, especially if I start housework or something. This is old.

Today I go back to the ortho, I had a new MRI on Monday, and if he suggests surgery I'm going to go for it.  

I'm 42, (F) and I can't stand laying around and being in pain anymore.  

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im on vicodin 500 4 x a day flexiril   2x a day  and xanax to sleep. it ***** i cant get into ortho dr, till april but i guess he is a good dr,  does yours flair up at night that when mine hurrts the worse.   the thing that really helps is a hot bath.   are you gona have surgery? i hope i dont but probaly will. im only 45 and that *****....

[Loopster]

I have similar issues in the cervical spine.

Here's what I was told.

No lifting anything heavy at all, bending without bending the knees, sharp movements/turns, maybe avoid prolonged sitting/standing too?.  Take breaks if you have to sit/stand for a while.  If any activity hurts, avoid it like the plague.

Wow, you have to wait till April to be seen?  I'm so sorry.

Rest if you can, the resting seems to help the most.  Gentle stretches (very gentle) if you feel up to it.  If it hurts in any way at all, STOP.

I have tried alternating moist heat/ice/ibuprofin for pain and spasm.  Unfortunately it's not working and I'm taking narcotics, but they don't help all that much either.

Also, if you have trigger points for spasms laying on a tennis ball can help too.

I'm not a doctor, but this is what I was told by my physical therapist and orthopedic doc.

Best of luck to you, wish you didn't have to wait so long to be seen.