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I have 3 slipped discs in my lower back. After suffering great pain for years, I finally went to a back specialist. He took x-rays and discovered I had a curvature of my spine and told me there was nothing to be done for it, but definitely warned me against surgery.
After my fall, my back was broken, but strangely is no longer painful, although I've had to give up driving or being able to go for my usual walks.
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DH is 5 years after surgery now with spinal stenosis, with sliding vertebra and herniated disks. He chose surgery when nothing else helped anymore, even though 3 disks had to be aligned. Surgery went well. Last year some pain seemed to come back but went away quickly when he returned to careful weight training, something the surgeon had advised against. Up to now, the surgery is a success.
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Thanks everyone for your input. I appreciate it so much.
After further discussion with my primary care doc and the neuro guy it has been decided that we take a very conservative approach first. I am to have Lumbar Epidural Injections several weeks apart to help with the pain and inflammation. Once that gets under control then I will be seeing a Physical Therapist who will help me with what exercise will be best for me, that won't hurt me more. I am feeling really positive about this now. Of course, there is a chance that the injections won't help, but I won't allow myself to think otherwise....
The main reason for this less aggressive approach is due to my having Lupus. I've had bad recoveries from other surgeries in the past because they have triggered serious autoimmune reactions which really impedes the healing process....
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Wildflower I'm so sorry to hear that. My Mom has it too and she was given the same bad news.
My Mom is 78 and her doctor didn't recommend surgery. Now that could be because of her age and lack of physical conditioning, or it could be because she belongs to a lousy HMO that does all they can to avoid paying for surgeries (we had to fight just so she could have the MRI).
So far she is managing it with steroidal epidural injections every few months. I hate that and wish that she would go back to trying acupuncture, but she's not into it. I can't see this being a good long term solution.
I would look acupuncture, yoga and chiro before doing surgery. Taking the least invasive route first always seems to be a good idea.
Hope you feel better soon.
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Glad they have recommended a conservative approach. My DH has a different condition -- spondiolysthesis (say that four times fast in a row...), which is where one of his vertebra is slipping forward out of alignment, along with some disc damage. When he was originally diagnosed with it here in China, they handed him hospital admissions paperwork and said he needed surgery the next day. Thankfully I dissuaded him from that idea. He got a second opinion at a great spine center in Seattle, and they strongly DISCOURAGED him from having surgery -- he went for PT for awhile, which helped some, but what really helped in the end was losing weight (he was probably a good 20-30 lbs overweight at the time). Losing the weight and improving his physical fitness and muscle tone so far has kept things in check.
lhamo