Medical Endeavors w/ my Herniated and Degenerative Lumbar Disc

Sometimes I stare into the wall, drift off, and think to myself, how would I have done things differently? Don't get me wrong, I'm completely happy with my Spinal Kinetics M6-L Lumbar Artificial Disc. I'm referring to all the things that happened prior to me getting my first symptom. All those days lifting weights, riding motorcycles, never really caring about my back, thinking of myself as invincible. Ok maybe I didn't think of myself as invincible, but I definitely didn't give a shit about my spine. In light of this, here's a few pointers for those barely starting out with symptoms: Get yourself an inversion table.  Even if you don't have any back pain, this works wonders! Decompresses the spine and helps the discs breath life (blood flow). Get yourself some chamomile tea.  Drink 2 cups a day, more if you can. Helps with inflammation. General tips: Avoid heavy lifting that involves the lower back, especially squats with heavy weights. I ca...

I'll make this short: I'm 100% able to do this exercise without any repercussions. I drink chamomile tea twice a day every day. This keeps my lower back muscles in check. No need to anti-inflammatories.  No alien feeling in my body. No running and no soccer. This upsets my lower back. I haven't done any x-rays or check ups as I don't feel the need to do them. I'm doing great. As for the people that have emailed me, thank you for taking the time to do so. It brightens my day to read that thank me for writing about this ordeal. I am more than willing to help you guys through this, so don't be shy. Email me at mike.spineblog@gmail.com 

Greetings everyone. It's nice to still see people reading the blog. I've seen many comments pop up and they are all people in similar situations looking for a door to open. First, i'll update you on my surgery: there are no updates. The disc is intact, same position, same height, same everything. Second, i'll update you on my facets: plenty to talk about here. The disc has permitted motion beyond what the facets usually had, and these have had a level of inflammation that depend on my level of activity. Before surgery, I used to have leg pain. That is gone. Now I have lower back pain directly related to the facets. This inflammation causes my lower back muscles to contract and stay stiff, particularly in the mornings. Regular motion will loosen them up. Massages are a must. I've managed to control it with naproxen (aleve) and chamomile tea every day. Impact sports are a big NO NO. I've had terrible episodes where soccer led me to the hospital to get steroid ...

To those wondering, yes i'm still alive. And i'm doing absolutely great! I've started an ab routine a few months ago and i've toned up incredibly. I also get weekly massages focused on my lower back. Massages are a Godsend with the girl that does my lower back. Strong arms and hands are a must. With this i've managed to not even remember I have an operation. No pain, nothing! All I needed was muscle support and a chill job. Below is a pic of my progress. I have no problems at the gym, I avoid squats and anything that puts pressure on my lower back. But given my new strenght, I can lift more without feeling lower back pain. This includes 50lb dumbbells on each arm for biceps, etc. I'm still being very very careful though. The other day I had to stop doing shoulders as I felt it was too much for my back. Cheers everyone!

Greetings Everyone. Just a quick update. I've been attending the gym without a hitch. Pain is minimal. Body is very well sculptured. I believed abs has helped TONS. My abs are strong as hell and very defined. Do this people, it helps! I also get massages on my lower back every 3 days. Works wonders! I talked to someone over at Dr. Pimenta's office in Brazil. Very nice people! I asked about the Glyder and they said they don't do this anymore due to it being a trial in Germany. But they had very good results given the right indications. They asked about my condition and specifically asked in steroid injections helped aleviate 100% of the pain. I said they did for 3 weeks. They said PERFECT, we highly recommend the Zyga Glyder as it is minimally invasive and has had good results. They told me to get in contact with them but couldn't do anything further. I told them about my M6 and he said very good, this should work very well with the M6. Cheers everyone!

It's been over 2 years since my surgery. Disc itself is intact, surgery was a success. I changed jobs now, work at a neat office as manager, so my physical stress levels have diminished. My facets are doing better, but still need work. I'm looking to contact Dr. Pimenta for the Zyga Glyder facet resurfacing but haven't been successful so far. Any help would do wonders!

Alrighty guys. It's been a while, 1.63 years since my L4/5 M6 surgery with Nicholas Boeree, may his soul rest in peace. So it seems the issue with tightness in my back has been my facets all along. I opted for a Facet Block a few months ago. That stopped working after 2 weeks. I then got another one, which, again, lasted only 2 weeks. A month ago I opted for a facet denervation. I thought this would do the job, but again, only worked for 2 weeks. I'll be getting a booster denervation next month, but i'm already looking at surgical options here. It's getting unbearable. I wake up with my facets flared up, EVERY MORNING. My lower back muscles are constantly tight and I was forced to buy a Precor Stretch Trainer, which I now have at home and use constantly. I asked Dr. Jose Joy, an orthopedic surgeon that fused my mom's back 6 weeks ago. He said i'm looking at a fusion in the future. But then again, I REFUSE TO FUSE. I'm looking at alternatives, of wh...