Gutted... Lower Back Went On My Track Day.

Nothing worse,
Had lower back surgery twice now, First time I lost control of my legs and water works etc, Had the surgery and left hospital like a new man, Unfortunately had a recurrence and after the second opp ive been left with my left calf and half my left foot numb, I had the chance of them operating to try to correct it but decided against it after much advice(to high risk with 3rd opp), Been like this almost 7 years now,
Tbh I manage perfect on a sports bike or naked, Changing gear can be a bit of a faf not been able to feel the lever great but well used to it now, Biking is a big part of my life and did think it was over for sure,
Was on all the pain killers and diclofenac I was on for over 7 years and it wrecked my stomach to the stage I was passing blood and severe pain due to erosions that the diclofenac caused, Felt misserable 24/7, Been of all the meds for a year or 2 now and don't feel to bad at all other than a few times a week having terrible pain in my left toes, It can be that bad some times I think ide be better without them
Was an Hgv mechanic all my days and had to move on to an easier going job which couldn't have turned out better tbh, I was pretty lucky as I worked for the local council at the time so was on full pay all of the 7 months I was of work in total (4 then 3 months), Really cant be easy been self employed mate,
I looked so forward to going to the physio to have 20 mins on the traction machine to get an hour pain free and the tidy physio defo helped lol,

You really need to look after your back, No heavy or awkward lifting etc, Good luck and hope you get sorted soon mate, Like others have said doing the correct exercises defo help

 

My wife is going through this. Spent NYE in A&E and now shes slowly recovering. Shes doing really well as she is strictly doing the physio excericises etc. Its a slow but steady recovery.

GWS to all who suffer this. Its been an eye opener to me.

 

Sorry to hear of your problems, it seems surgery for you wasn't that successful .
I take it the surgery was on the lower back ? What was the initial diagnosis & what was the surgical procedure to correct it & was it done by a Neurosurgeon ?... also how long since your last op.

 

And I thought it was just me.... Had lower back problems for years but slipped a disc or two on the 4th Jan (after having back injury in November) and ended up with squashed nerves and 2 dropped feet (couldn't lift them up so walking was interesting) didn't get surgery as bowel and bladder were fine so just got drugs which didn't actually help with the pain at all (avoid codeine as constipation combined with nerve pain is extremely unpleasant) so gave up on them. Being a contractor I came to work (desk job) even though driving was bordering on tears at some points of the journey (glad I've got a big comfy Jap auto car). Managed to get the bike out for an MOT in July which was awkward but manageable and I'm still struggling to do things I would normally take for granted. It's been a painfully slow process but I'm getting back to almost normality - consultants and physio weren't too much help but I don't think they could do much more tbh. Hope you get over it quicker than I have - I'm resigned to recovery taking a lot longer than I want it to as others have found. Simple stretches to stop you completely seizing up and keep moving about is best advise I got from physio.

 

Yep L5 S1, Was herniated disk, Had part of it removed, After the first surgery wasn't successful I asked to have it fused at 2nd opp and the neurosurgeon refused point blank, Told me wasn't possible but never explained exactly why, If I site in a certain position I still get a little pain down my leg but its certainly bearable, Last opp was 7ish years ago, Mind at the time they kept telling me do this exercises and that exercises but when your in agony due to the pain its a massive struggle, The physio kept telling me to go swimming( best exercise you can do for a bad back ) I hadn't swam for near 20 years before that lol, I spent half an hour in the pool and when I went to get out I virtually crawled to the changing rooms in severe pain, When in pool I felt good, I go out my way to look after my back now, Was told by neurosurgeon that each opp you have doubles in the risk of it not been successful and the risk is fairly high, Cant mind the risk factor they told me but say opp 1 was 7% fail opp 2 would be 14% and opp 3 28% etc, That's the reason I turned down the 3rd opp, To big a gamble when there is a choice, I use a small device thingy ma jiggy when wearing shoes for drop foot but I hardly ever wear shoes, Always above ankle boots, You want to see me try to run lol, Its near impossible,
Have sympathy for you guys that's suffering, Its not nice.

Cheers Jack

 

Cheers mate, getting there slowly - you too

 

ITV on painkillers now (7.30 start)

 

Yes watched it, all that was said was absolutely true, GP's dish em out like smarties as they do with other pills, its initially cheaper for the NHS than other treatments or surgery.

PS..."Statins" is one other to watch out for they can do a lot more harm than good for some people.

 

Yes watched it, all that was said was absolutely true, GP's dish em out like smarties as they do with other pills, its initially cheaper for the NHS than other treatments or surgery, but it seems now its coming back to bite them...the NHS is in a mess

PS..."Statins" is one other to watch out for they can do a lot more harm than good for some people.

 

how are you doing @webbo and @jack999s and @Harry Bell ? this thread is a definite consolation for me right now.

 

Hi Chris, Hope alls well mate, Im not on forum that much now with both Ducati' sold, Back is holding up ok but had a reminder last week after giving my son a hand to build a small wall (6" blocks) 5 days of pain after that but seem to be ok now, Not worth it, Im finished with lifting anything,
How's your back now mate? Any better?

 

Thank Goodness you got away with it, that's what we do don't we? Made the mistake of helping a mate which involved lifting at the end and i just wasn't thinking, no-one to blame but myself but was 3 months ago and gone chronic so far. I normally cycle about 100 miles a week but had to stop for now.
Thanks for your kind words, glad life is ok for you at the moment.

 

Thanks Loz, I know you have similar.

 

Really sorry to read that webbo. I will P.M.

 

Further to previous post not sure if you’ve investigated hyperbaric therapy yet but I know someone who it has helped tremendously - easiest if you are near a chamber as you’ll need a months worth of intensive sessions then maybe one a week still

Give them a call if your interested (you don’t need to have MS to use. Well not in the Warminster one I used to go to ) http://glosmsinfo.org.uk/home/what-we-do/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy/

 

Hi Chris, I'm actually doing a lot better now. 18 months on and slowly getting back to normal, I no longer get the 'electric shock' pains I seem to only get stiffness and mild pain down my legs. I should probably try stretching more as I don't bend as good as I used to but can ride the bike without pain (which is nice) still haven't tried the pushbike in anger.
It's either almost there or I've got used to living with the pain and increased my pain threshold? Whichever, there is light at the end of the tunnel which I hope you guys can see too - 18 months is still a long time to not be over it!