Most recent topic is more than 90 days old.

Sigh... joining the club.

At first I thought it was a pulled hamstring. But thinking back on it, which happened 3 weeks ago, it started in my butt then the "pull" was felt down my hamstring. Calf then affected the most, got horrible cramps and twitches. Gave what I thought was a pulled hamstring, 2 weeks rest. Pain did not worsen, but eager to get back into my normal activity so I saw a Chiro. Didn't like my experience with the Chiro, so went back to GP for some options and requested an MRI.

Two places, L4-5, L6-S1. Mild to moderate herniation. Wish to see my scan some time.

Waiting impatiently for an emergency refferal to an Ortho, then hopefully a physiatrist ( always thought this was some fancy name for a physical therapist, but they are actually medically trained).

On methyprednisoline. Pain tolerance, 3 before steroid, 7 or 8 after taking them. Takes a lot of the "edges" off.

This better not threaten my active lifestyle. Gonna go nuts.

Post injury questions.
Can you lift? If so how heavy?
Can you run long distance?
What did your therapy include?

1/28/2010 9:51:30 PM

cool story, bro

1/28/2010 10:10:34 PM

I have a feeling that I'll be part of the group in a month or so if my 8 weeks of physical therapy dont work - i've been to 3 sessions so far. If I'm still in pain after then I'll be getting an mri to try and find the problem. I have pain starting in my right lower back and travelling through my right leg. Just started taking prednisone today, have a 9 day supply.

the wife and i had our first child in mid-december and those bills are starting to roll in, I realllly dont want to add an mri (and whatever follows) to the pile.

1/28/2010 10:12:01 PM

just fyi, there is no L6

do you know if it's a posterior herniation? if so, you don't want to be bending forward. lifting and running are no-no's too, because you'll just be encouraging the disk to bulge even more. more than likely you'll get extension based exercises (mckenzie) which will help the disk return to its normal spot, and some lumbar traction. you'll probably start feeling better, but don't rush back for obvious reasons. good luck with it

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 10:38 PM. Reason : .]

1/28/2010 10:32:20 PM

I'm in this group and it's pretty disheartening to know this is something that will be with me the rest of my life. I only have it in one spot (L4-5 I think) and it's just bulged, not herniated, but it's been enough to be a massive pain in the ass regarding trying to stay fit. I did this in Nov 2007, and have tried on probably 3 separate occasions since figuring out what it was to give it a real effort at loosening things up (ie, 30-45 minutes a day every day or every other day to loosen and strengthen) so that it isn't annoying and it helps a lot if I'm not active but so far I've found it's nearly impossible to be active and not have a lot of tightness and pain following workout days without resorting to Alleve. I haven't been consistently active enough to need a cortisone shot, I'm hoping that will happen this summer but I'm already not looking forward to the nag of it leading up to needing a shot.

As to your questions:

Quote :

"Can you lift? If so how heavy?"

I was able to do some pretty heavy (rofl, relatively speaking) leg presses and some good form squatting after I had built some strength and flexibility up for a couple months. But it was always tight the next day, which pretty much served to piss me off and discourage me from trying to get/stay fit.

Quote :

"Can you run long distance?"

Running seems to be less of a problem for me than cycling. I think if you have a pretty strong core then your back shouldn't take so much of a pounding until later in a long run where your core is starting to tire.

Quote :

"What did your therapy include?"

Ultrasound to warm my back up (which didn't seem to do anything at all) and tons of stretching focused on my hips and hammies.

Quote :

"but eager to get back into my normal activity so I saw a Chiro. Didn't like my experience with the Chiro"

Same here. These fucks are pure crooks. I went to a chiro who had actually done some good ART massage on some quad muscle thinking he'd be legit for my back. Nope. I described my symptoms and he had me bend over and made a diagnosis from that. He popped my back and said come back in two days and they'd pop it the other direction to realign it (and would ding my insurance company for another $135 for 10 minutes worth of work). It hurt worse the next day than it had at any point since I pulled it.

Quote :

"If I'm still in pain after then I'll be getting an mri to try and find the problem."

Oh yeah, I had xrays done and they couldn't find it with those. It took me an mri before they could see it. Honestly, if you don't have sharp pains, just burning hammies that might go down into your calf from time to time and a tight back, you should try stretching your hips and hamstrings and strenghtening your core for several weeks to see if that helps. DO NOT stretch your lower back.

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 10:37 PM. Reason : .]

1/28/2010 10:34:55 PM

What is the difference between a herniation and bulging? I thought they are one and the same but most people use it interchangebly.

I guess there is an L6, it was written on my prelim report.

http://catalog.nucleusinc.com/generateexhibit.php?ID=296&A=2

1/29/2010 12:42:31 AM

I imagine it's the degree of rupture or whatever. I dunno. I know that my pain wasn't really ever sharp right in my back or anything like that. Mostly just some a burning calf when it got bad.

1/29/2010 7:17:21 AM

i herniated my L5 disc when I was 14 and the injury still lingers as of today....pinched L5S1 nerve...I've lost my achilles reflex in the right leg and my right calf muscle is underdeveloped compared to the left, despite my right leg being dominant Quads are the same.

As far as lifting? my parents don't care for the fact that I do, they'd prefer I lift light with more reps, but I actually find that much more taxing on the area.

Long distance running, not a problem. Its actually swimming that gets me. A push off the wall and the right calf will cramp up, or during a fluttering kick. I've yet to have a cramp while running or lifting, only swimming.

Therapy just had me doing a good amount of exercises to protect the area. I was doing ab/adductors, clams, kick backs...really anything that stretched and worked the quad multifidi & spinae erectors. I've retriggered the injury twice so far and required 3 epidural spine injections each time. They really help with inflammation.

Worst pain in the world and I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy. I too thought it was a hamstring pull...I walked around like I had crapped my pants for 3 weeks before my parents finally believed something serious was actually wrong. I guess the crying every time I would stand up wasn't enough. I saw a chiro for 2 weeks to get "adjustments". He only adjusted my bank account. Get drugs, lots and PT.

1/29/2010 7:34:25 AM

For those who have had herniated/bulged discs, how do the rest of us avoid this?

I don't wanna be a statistic. this sounds rather uncomfortable, to say the least

1/29/2010 7:46:48 AM

ok L6 is an atypical thing, my mistake. but anyway, the order of a bulging disk goes from a protrusion which is just a slight bulge, prolapse, extrusion, and finally all the way to sequestration, where the outer rim of the disk is completely torn and the jelly inside is floating around inside your spinal canal. i doubt you've got it that bad, or else you'd likely have an infection in addition to the pain.

^ most of the time they happen from a combination of bending at the waist and twisting, so just use proper body mechanics

[Edited on January 29, 2010 at 8:07 AM. Reason : .]

1/29/2010 7:58:00 AM

Quote :

"how do the rest of us avoid this?"

It can happen from the smallest of movements, my client's father has a pinched nerve from 20 years ago just from bending over to pick something up. Mine was the result of a weight lifting injury & improper form.

I guess some tips would be...never round the back, always lift with legs, stretch the low back daily. I'll usually do it before even getting out of bed.

my injury has been pretty good as of late, I used to get woken up nightly with a leg cramp but I haven't had one of those in months. Probably not since my last injection back in October 09

1/29/2010 8:08:01 AM

Quote :

"A push off the wall and the right calf will cramp up, or during a fluttering kick. I've yet to have a cramp while running or lifting, only swimming."

Not saying this symptom wasn't the result of your back injury, but this seems to be pretty common among the swimmers I talk to. I have been swimming about 3 times a week for a while now and I noticed that when I push hard on interval sets, I get calf/foot cramping as well. I don't have any history of serious back problems.

1/29/2010 8:25:10 AM

^^

thanks. I'm usually pretty good about lifting with my legs, except when i'm picking up my daughter. I'm always having to pick her up while in awkward positions, and I just know it will not end well. At least she's only fifth percentile in weight for her age.

1/29/2010 8:33:55 AM

Quote :

" Its actually swimming that gets me. A push off the wall and the right calf will cramp up, or during a fluttering kick. I've yet to have a cramp while running or lifting, only swimming. "

same thing happens to me broski . i'm not brokeback.

1/29/2010 9:08:52 AM

I hurt my back carrying a full keg of beer

I thought I was on the ground at the bottom of the steps leading from my front porch, when in fact I was still on the last step. I went to walk forward (thinking I was on the ground) and when I started to fall down from the step I tried to overcorrect and keep the keg from falling. Put a TON of stress on my lower back. It took a couple weeks for the pain to really set in, but I've had the pain ever since, this happened about a year and a half ago. I thought I was a tough guy and could do my own "physical therapy" to fix the problem, I was wrong

1/29/2010 9:23:44 AM

I'll be part of this one day The family bone structure seems to have crapped out at the back region. Dad's had 2 surgeries for herniated discs and etc and is going to have another one within the coming months.

1/29/2010 10:42:42 AM

i had two discectomies on teh L4-L5 to try to correct a herniation. Three physical therapies. Five injections and it is still stiff and sore most of the time. I used to run three miles a day / 5 days a week and now cant do any of that. I used to have to take about 3-5 days off after working in the yard for one day, but now im doing alright. Ill need a fusion eventually, but with a newborn around i cant take the time off work to have a fusion down now. doctor said it will have to be done within ten years.

i just wish i could jog again. its been just over 2 years and the weight is starting to stay on

1/29/2010 12:06:58 PM

I had a complete herniation of L5. Shit was busted out everywhere. Dr. said it was one of the worst he had ever seen. Weird thing was, it wasn't brought on by any tramautic event, it was just years of basketball and football that finally caught up with me.

One cortisone shot later (about 8 months ago), still feeling better but can tell my limitations. no hard core running, jumping, or extremely heavy lifting.

This sucks and I will likely end up opting for surgery, as I have already done PT and Chiropractors, but I'm trying to hold out as long as I can.

No matter how bad the herniation, a disc will always heal itself, it's just a matter of how long it takes and what you do to slow down the process.

1/29/2010 1:13:30 PM

Quote :

"For those who have had herniated/bulged discs, how do the rest of us avoid this? I don't wanna be a statistic. this sounds rather uncomfortable, to say the least"

I was being a total dumbass. I used to be well balanced strength wise all over in college up until 2006 because of general weightlifting. I did triathlon all of '06 and got really unbalanced strength wise. By mid/fall '07 I had generally become weak in my upper body and core when I tried to rectify that. Several months of good upper body work but not good ab/hip work had me out of balance when I tried to change a tire on my wifes car. I'm certain the dipshits at the stealership put the lug nuts on with an impact wrench and rather than using a breaker bar for more leverage or stepping on the lugnut wrench, I was arched over trying to break them loose with my upper body. I knew as soon as I did it that it would be a problem. It wasn't an instant acute pain or a pull (fortunately). I went a year before finally getting an mri.

1/29/2010 6:58:37 PM

My ortho appt was moved to today. Did some balance test and I finally saw my MRI. It really wasn't that bad.

Are all orthos always so inclined to give steroid shots? He suggested that I do it to bring the inflammation down, and return to normal walking function. I didn't finish my Pred tablets b/c I hated how I felt on it. Due to the sciatic nerve, I still walk with a slight limp, as as if there is weight on my left ankle. My muscle function isn't normal, I can't lift my left leg up with my toes without feeling imbalanced.

The thing is, I'm not experiencing any back pain. Just a dull ache and very tight. I don't know if this shot is for me, although I'd like to return to running/normal fitness activities in early March.

My injection is tomorrow, but I am already getting cold feet. I dont think I need it, but the body will heal slower if I don't get it. Main thing is, I'm not in pain.

2/2/2010 9:36:17 PM

My ortho had me on a pretty high dose of naproxen for a week straight. By shot, do you mean an injection into the disc area?

2/2/2010 11:13:12 PM

yes steroid injection for the inflammation.

After careful consideration, although I know these injections are routine and I shouldn't worry, I think I will hold off on it bc I don't think I am a good candidate.

Leg pain is about a 2 only when I walk long distance or prolong sitting and standing. No back pain. No excrutiating pain. So I think this is probably a better decision.

Maybe try accupuncture? Any idea if this can help?

I'm just going to have to suck it up let this subside on its own, not matter how long.

2/2/2010 11:27:51 PM

i've had 6 shots total so far....definitely worth it...at least for my case

thank god for health insurance

2/2/2010 11:48:51 PM

Anyone experience muscle atrophy during the recovery process?

I used to have nice calves, and now they're uneven ( I can def. tell in the mirror that my left calf-injured one- is elongated and "wasted" a little).

I can't stand on my toes like I used. It's disheartening.

I think I am towards the end of my recovery. I'm going to take it slow next week and gradually get back into light excercise. Inactivity at this point is the worst thing I can do for the recovery process. I am 98% pain free, I think I'm ready to get back into things.

2/6/2010 12:20:57 AM

because my achilles reflex is completely gone, my right leg's calf is significantly smaller than the left, despite being the dominant leg. I also cannot flex the calf to it's fullest potential. My right one looks phenomenal but the left is definitely lacking. Although, I don't do many calf directed weight lifting, only compound lifts.

i hear ya though, disheartening hopefully you don't get the wretched cramps

2/6/2010 2:07:54 PM

If you get referred to physical therapy, try the ones at the Student Health Center. They work with disc problems frequently.

2/16/2010 8:50:54 AM