Medical Endeavors w/ my Herniated and Degenerative Lumbar Disc

Hello everyone. I'm really really enjoying my time pain free! I'm a whole different person. What really makes me comfortable is the fact that my disc is fine, and since i've had it for over a year, I think it's safe to assume that the endplates are permanently fused with my bones. Couple this mentality with no pain, and you have a guy in a great mood! Except this time, i'm conscious of what it means to be pain free and the need to keep it that way (there's nothing worse than feeling pain free and then falling back). So I got a reply from Mr. Boeree: Thank you for keeping me posted.  I am delighted to hear that the facet joint injections have been so helpful. I think it very worth while bearing in mind that there is an important difference between degenerative facets and painful and inflamed facets.  Essentially when we remove a degenerative and damaged disc this motion segment (that is to say one vertebra, its neighbour, together with the discs and the t...

Wow. This is what it felt like from month 3-6 post-op. Pristine, strong, pain-free! My facets have finally calmed down. There's one very important thing to note about this, that because only my facets were treated, the surgical site is absolutely pain free. The disc is doing a great job. What i'm wondering is why the facets started flaring up. Is it disc related? This didn't start happening until after the 6th month post-op. I hadn't had any sort of heavy activity for years until I started this restaurant. And the disc IS supposed to prevent facet degeneration by having constrained motion. So i'm left wondering, what caused this? I don't want to jump to any conclusions yet.. but I will ask Boeree his opinion. I'll let you know what he has to say. Cheers everyone! Now lets hope I stay pain-less!

I got my facet injections today! I had levels L4/5 and L5/S1 done. Initially I was only getting L4/5 done but mid through the procedure the doctor decided to do L5/S1 free of charge. I figured I don't want to go through another round of injections in case L5/S1 was the culprit. I'll be keeping a pain diary and i'll post an update in 2 weeks. Wish me luck!

So I went to see the sports medicine doctor. He wanted to use ultrasound to see my facets but the machine got scrambled signals because of the disc. We're gonna have to see another doctor that specializes in the spine to check them out. My appointment isn't until November 21st. My spine has settled down, pain is down, and i'm feeling a lot better despite the increased work load. So, everything's fine right now but I do want to get those injections. Good luck to everyone!

It appears some of Mr. Boeree's competitors are checking out this blog closely. I've gotten some very unprofessional comments these past few days on behalf of 'anonymous' posters that say my surgery was a failure. Nice job guys!

I talked to Mr. Boeree a few days ago. He called me from his home right after dinner. As always, extremely polite and generous with his busy schedule. I told him what was going on. I also asked him about my disc. He said the disc is in perfect condition and is still placed the way it should be. He said it might be my facets giving me issues. I immediately thought, oh no, degenerative facets. He said no, it's just that they might be pissed off with the new movements stemming from the disc and that this might be upsetting the muscles which tighten after they sense issues. He recommended facet joint injections at the L4/5 level. Here's his follow-up email: Just to recap with regards to the possible injections with your radiologist.  These would be image guided facet joint injections at L4/5.  I would normally use a combination of local anaesthetic and Depo steroid but I will of course leave the final decision about this with your radiologist.  I think it would be help...

Fellow reader recommended Retlouping . It works wonders people! Except I did it with my legs UP against the wall instead of on the floor. It hurts like hell when you're doing it.. but it increases flexibility instantly. Good way to 'nerve floss'! EDIT: I was laying on my bed with my legs up against the wall. EDIT 2: I went to the gym today and tried it with the legs on the floor. Works equally as well!