Medical Endeavors w/ my Herniated and Degenerative Lumbar Disc

Long story short: M6 has failed and inner core has likely slipped out. LATEST X-RAY: ORIGINAL POST-OP X-RAY: Loss of height and collapsed. Metal on metal noise when stretching. Tightness in back. Little pain but only because I'm being VERY careful. AND TO MAKE IT WORSE: Osteolysis (lose of bone material) and destabilization. See the missing bone material here, right above the keels: Notice how there's loss of bone in all areas. Turns out M6 has been causing this shit and is now well-documented. Could be infection of debris causing this. M6 material is culprit. Things can get bad quickly as it has destabilized. After plenty of consultations, this is the procedure I'm doing: Lateral removal of M6 (entry from side) Collect sample for possible infection diagnosis Lateral fusion of L4/5 with cage and bone graft  Turn me around and fuse with screws and rods Yeap, removing the disc and fusing! Two doctors had suggested going through front, not lateral. Immediately discarded. Good ...

Hello everyone! It's been quite a journey since my last update, and I am thrilled to share some amazing news about my health. My back is not just doing well—it's doing incredibly well. In fact, I've been hitting record weights on my squats and deadlifts, a testament to the progress I've made and the strategies I've implemented. Let me take you through my recent experiences, the lessons I've learned, and some valuable insights on keeping your spine healthy and strong. My Health Journey: From Pain to Power Early Challenges and Triumphs When I first started this blog, I was grappling with intense back pain due to herniated and degenerative lumbar discs. The journey was tough, filled with physical therapy sessions, consultations with specialists, and a lot of trial and error. But through it all, I remained committed to finding a solution that would allow me to live a pain-free and active life. The Turning Point: M6-L Artificial Disc The real turning point in my jour...

I truly can't believe how wonderful this device has been to me. It's taken work and patience getting through its issues, but it's made me who I am today and i'm very much thankful for that. Here's what I mean: As soon as I started developing a more solid core muscle base and stronger legs, I started working out more aggressively and with higher weights. I deleted all single mode exercises from my regimen. I only do compound exercises. I started squatting and deadlifting at 85% of my 1 rep maximum. My entire body is now much stronger. I haven't felt a single dose of pain from my back. I feel and (I think) I look amazing. Take this message for what it is. It took a ton of fucking work to get to where I am. If you're unwilling or unable to do this, please reconsider artificial disc replacement in general. If you're into fitness and self-improvement, this is the way to go. Here's a picture of my progress. Keep in mind, I eat less of the b...

Hey guys! Thank you all for all the comments and e-mails. I've tried to respond to everyone; I've even had a few skype calls with prospective patients. You may all be wondering how I'm doing, so here's a quick update: I'm doing GREAT . No issues whatsoever. I've managed to control my facet pain by working on core exercises, with the added extra benefit of having a nice 6-pack, so cheers to looking good naked! As always, I stay away from long runs, squats, jumping, and any impact sports. When my back feels stiff, I do a bit of stretching and move on with my day. A word of warning to prospective patients though: despite me being happy with the surgery, some of you might not be as fit as I am. I'd consider this a warning: you might end up with facet issues. Cheers everyone!

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...

I can't believe this. Mr. Boeree was involved in a motorcycle accident and has passed away. I feel honored to have had his wonderful work improve my life. There's just nothing more I can say. I have no words.

Hello my fellow followers. Bow down to your guinea pig! lol There's a few things I want to cover with this post. But first I wanted to apologize for not updating more often. It's been 1 year, 4 months, and 10 days. 496 days with my M6-L at L4/5. I've been in contact with Mr. Boeree every so often, updating him on my status and condition, notifying him of pain episodes and following his recommendations. I started having pain a few months ago. Boeree suspected facet pain. And surely, it was! The facet block 4 months ago got rid of it 100% for a few days. It came back very slightly with muscle tension alongside the two main lower back muscles to the vertical sides of the spine. Bear in mind, it came back VERY SLIGHTLY. And so, I decided i'd go to brazil for carnaval. I'll tell you this, i've NEVER had a more physically strenuous trip in my life. 5 days and I drank 4 liters of alcohol and walked 20km, whilst jumping and screaming and falling and what not. When I...

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!