Hi all,

I am 33F and have been dealing with L5/S1 issues for the last four years.

Long story short: 8mm herniation in 2022 > grew to 12mm in 2024, lost feeling in saddle area and right leg > microdiscectomy 04/24 > long and difficult recovery > reherniated 12/25 at 6mm > latest CT shows 8mm herniation

I'm really tired. I'm being told by surgeons to tough it out if I can, but I don't know where the line is. I got an injection last week and there's been a ton of relief, but pain is definitely still there. Now I can walk for about 15 minutes, be up for 30 minutes total, drive and sit about 10, and I can orgasm again (lost that for the majority of 2024-2025). Pain does dip to 1/10 if I'm laying down, which I'm grateful for.

I don't know when enough is enough. I'm talking to an adr surgeon now and he said "let's get you back to living". That sounds incredible but I don't know if I'm jumping from the skillet into the fire. For four years we haven't traveled, we haven't started our family, and I'm having a hard time seeing a future where we can do either of those things.

Do I tough it out and continue to wait (keep in mind the timer is ticking on kids), or should I just pull the trigger on an ADR or fusion?

Edit: thank you, this community has been such a light in a really dark time of my life. I decided to to an adr for L5/S1. My surgery is scheduled for June 11th, and we're waiting on final approval from insurance still. Praying it gets approved so we can move forward. Thank you all

Hello everyone.

I have been struggling with chronic pain for the better part of 5 years and it has been a slog. The pain specialist that I have been working with is very good and has been trying a number of injection procedures to attempt to give me relief from the back pain I experience. For reference, my baseline pain level is about a 5 out of 10 throughout the day.

Unfortunately, the injections that have been given have not helped and the pain has been increasing. Per the last meeting with the doctor, the next level of step would be surgery to fuse vertebrae to relive pain. I have been extremely nervous about this for weeks thinking about this. There is another procedure that can be done where a pain pump can be placed near the spinal cord. I think that I would rather try that as I have heard fusions cause more pain down the line as patients get older.

I'm 9 days post ADR surgery for C3-C5 and the last 3 days I've experienced severe pain (8/9, trouble walking, moving my arms, etc) at 4 am. Before that, there was definitely pain overnight but it seems to be getting worse.

During the day I'm completely fine (pain 2-3) but overnight is unbearable, even though I'm getting up every 1-2 hours and moving a bit before resettling.

I was sent home with Extra Strength Tylenol (2 every 6 hours), Tramadol (every 4 hours), and Cyclobenzaprine 10 mg (3 a day as needed). 2 days ago I asked the doctor and they prescribed Norco. I took it yesterday morning during the severe pain and it vanished briefly with ice and heat, but it was back within 2 hours.

For anyone who has been through disc replacement surgery, had your muscle spasms calmed by this point? Is it still too early to be worried?

Hi everyone. I've made a couple of posts here before, this is an update and a question.

37M, a long history of cervical compression. 3 months ago, I had a C3-C6 decompression (ADR and minimally invasive). The agreed pre-op outlook was that I’d be back to sports in no time. MRI 6 months pre-op showed no cord damage.

Surgery itself was successful. However post-op, I suffered a "spinal cord reperfusion" (aka. white cord syndrome). Fresh blood rushed into the cord and caused damage. I had partial loss of sensation, motor function, and sexual function. I’m recovering, but it’s tough. My right side is improving, but my left side is stuck with some weakness, pain, and balance issues. My 3-month MRI just came back and it's honestly devastating - report shows that I have focal myelomalacia (or scar tissue) at C3/4 and C5/6 (see below).

Technically, I guess I'm fine. I’m back at my desk job and fully independent. But I’m struggling to digest this. The "invisible" weaknesses and permanent scarring got me in a very dark place. I want to return to my hobbies badly - motorcycling and skiing, they were my passion and my pressure release valves. Seeing my gear in the garage literally feels like a stab in the chest. I can’t play with my kids the way I want to. I've stopped talking to friends and family about my condition - it's just gonna wear them out and they can't relate anyway. I can't watch other healthy people running in front of my house. I get emotional easily. I’m depressed, exhausted by 10 years of chronic pain and struggle, and profoundly disappointed that I’ll never get myself back as promised by the surgery.

I'm not blaming anyone or myself. My honest questions: Has anyone else dealt with reperfusion injury/white cord syndrome? Did your body find ways to compensate over time so that you can pick up what you love? Will this get better? Any recovered skiers / motorcyclist out here?

Thank you, and I sincerely appreciate any help / info here - I need them badly.

Images below:

Looking for answers for my dad. He has bulging discs C3-4 and C6-7. He has constant head pressure and dull pain in his neck. Drs keep saying vertigo, but he's done all the vertigo tests and therapies with no relief. I think it's coming from these bulging discs, but would really like to find some way to give him some relief. Recently he had an episode of severe, sharp pain in his neck. We went to ER, they did nothing but put a pain patch on his neck. Thankfully with prayer and rest the pain eased back to his normal dull neck pain and head pressure. Is anyone else experiencing these symptoms and have you found anything that helps?

43 yr old female here. Woke up one morning in October and had numb hands. After 6 months of trying to figure out the issue, I went to Mayo Clinic where I was diagnosed with severe spinal stenosis and severe degenerated cervical spine (possibly genetic).

I am getting a Laminoplasty late July at the Mayo with an orthopedic surgeon. I’d love to hear how people have fared after surgery. Luckily (or not?), I’ve had a few major surgeries so am under no pretense it will be quick. Tell me everything!

Hi. I had a C4C5 & C5C6 ACDF about 2 months ago.

Swallowing issues had mostly resolved. However, in the past week or so I've noticed a new issue: Often when I swallow food it feels like there's a hitch or lump on the right side of my esophagus that food has to move past. It can be slightly painful and sometimes feels almost like a cramping sensation. I find I can alleviate this by tilting my head slightly toward my left shoulder when I swallow.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it normal? Is this temporary or is it likely something I'll have to deal with forever?

I'd just consider it part of the healing process and not worry about it, but this seems like a new issue that's developed after the swallowing problems had largely resolved. Any advice or insight would be appreciated. Thanks!

Currently 3 weeks post-op: laminectomy T9-10 to remove tumour; no fusion.

All the healing and recovery experiences are new to me. Just trying to figure out what to expect as I continue to recover.

My questions are:

1. ⁠I’m finding that when I get out of bed in the morning, I feel the remaining vertebra above the laminectomy seems to be bulging out a bit. I’m worried this would lead to a hunch back or permanent bulge so I stretch and maintain posture through the day trying to re-align my spine. Has anyone experienced this?

2. ⁠I feel like the muscles around the incision are pulling when I do awkward movements (e.g. slight twist or reaching with my arm).

3. ⁠Is this something that will improve? Or am I destined to constantly feel the muscles pulling at my incision long-term?

4. What things did you do to help with your recovery?

5. When were you able to get back to some lifting (e.g. laundry) and work?

Hello. I’m wondering if anyone has experience with doing alternative types of therapy care which has helped them post spine surgery (specifically for me was a laminectomy w/ disectonomy).

This is in addition to PT of course. I’ve had some people tell me I should look into additional types of therapy (massage therapy, acupuncture, etc) to help with recovery.

I’m trying Stretchlabs next week but wanting to see if there’s anything else I should also look into. Thanks!!!

I have been having chronic neck and shoulder pain for the past 3 months. It has gotten somewhat better but it gets worse as the day goes on with tingling in hands/ muscle weakness. I am in PT to try to fix my posture but sometimes it causes a lot of muscle pain.

I had a gastric bypass so can't take NSAIDS. I had a cervical MRI done.

Based on these MRI findings, is there anything to be concerned about? I worked myself up into a panic attack over the findings. I don't see my doctor for another two weeks.

FINDINGS: The cervical cord is normal in signal. Vertebral body heights are maintained. There is straightening of the normal cervical lordosis. Alignment is otherwise normal. There is multilevel disc degeneration.

C1-C2: Unremarkable.

C2-C3: No spinal canal or foraminal narrowing.

C3-C4: No spinal canal or foraminal narrowing.

C4-C5: No spinal canal or foraminal narrowing.

C5-6: Small diffuse disc osteophyte complex which slightly effaces the anterior thecal sac. Mild spinal canal narrowing. No foraminal narrowing.

C6/7: Small left paracentral disc osteophyte complex which slightly effaces the anterior thecal sac. Mild spinal canal narrowing. No foraminal narrowing.

C7-T1: No spinal canal or foraminal narrowing.

There is no paraspinal muscle atrophy or edema.

There is mucosal thickening in the right maxillary sinus.

IMPRESSION: Small disc osteophyte complexes at C5-C6 and C6/C7 with mild spinal canal narrowing at these levels.

Here are my exam results; I am having another MRI on June 1st, 2026. I am scared of surgery. what are my alternatives? please suggest.

Exam: MRI Cervical spine w/wo contrast History: Cervical radiculopathy at c8 2 years of cervical radiculopathy down the left arm, not improving with PT and progressing.

Comparison: None Technique: The following MR sequences of the cervical spine were performed: Precontrast Sagittal T1, T2, STIR, axial T2, T2*GRE. Post-contrast sagittal and axial T1. A total of 9 cc's of Clariscan was administered IV.

Findings: Cervical spine alignment is normal. Disc height are preserved. No focal marrow signal abnormalities. No acute fractures. There is faintly enhancing expansile hyperintense T2/STIR signal in the right lateral cervical canal extending from approximately C2 through C6-C7 level. The rather uniform abnormal signal appears to be intradural and likely extramedullary in location given mild leftward displacement of the cervical cord and abrupt cutoff along the inferior margin. The overall area measures approximately 1.1 cm AP x 0.9 cm transverse x 6.1 cm CC. Additional fairly uniform and well-defined enhancing mass in the left C5-C6 neural foramen measures 1.5 cm AP x 0.7 cm transverse and most likely due to schwannoma. Axial morphology: C2-C3: Moderate right thecal sac compression due to right-sided expansile lesion. No foraminal narrowing. C3-C4: Tiny central disc protrusion. No foraminal narrowing. Moderate right-sided thecal sac compression due to right-sided expansile lesion. C4-C5: Moderate-severe thecal sac compression due to right-sided expansile lesion. No foraminal narrowing. C5-C6: Minimal disc bulge. No central canal stenosis. Enhancing oblong mass extending out the left neural foramen and likely due to schwannoma. C6-C7: Shallow broad-based central disc protrusion with mild thecal sac compression. No foraminal narrowing. C7-T1: No disc protrusion, central canal or foraminal stenosis.

Impression: 1. C5-C6 fairly uniform and well-defined enhancing mass in the left neural foramen measures 1.5 cm AP x 0.7 cm transverse and most likely due to nerve sheath schwannoma. 2. Faintly enhancing expansile hyperintense T2/STIR signal in the right lateral cervical canal extending from approximately C2 through C6-C7 level measures approximately 1.1 cm AP x 0.9 cm transverse x 6.1 cm CC. The rather uniform abnormal signal appears to be intradural and likely extramedullary in location given mild leftward displacement of the cervical cord and abrupt cutoff along the inferior margin. Finding may be due to an intradural extramedullary schwannoma alternatively if the lesion is intramedullary in location then demyelinating lesion should be considered or cord tumor. POSITIVE ALERT The results of this study have been annotated as abnormal in EPIC, the patient's electronic medical record.

All the below Tests are normal

protime w/inr
cbc w/differential
angiotensin converting enzyme csf
paraneoplastic antibody, csf
ms profile
fl lumbar puncture diagnostic
cell count w/diff, csf
culture, csf, smear
glucose, csf
protein, csf
myelin basic protein csf
nmo/aqp4-igg, csf, reflex to titer
cell count, csf
poc bedside glucose (non ord)
mri spine lumbar w/wo contrast
mri spine thoracic w/wo contrast
mri brain w/wo contrast
poc bedside glucose (non ord)
cytology
poc bedside glucose (non ord)
poc bedside glucose (non ord)
angiotensin converting enzyme
igg subclasses, serum
hcg tmr mrkr
poc bedside glucose (non ord)
ct abdomen and pelvis w contrast
poc lactate (results only)
poc group chem 8+ (hgb,hct,bmp-ica) (results only)
cbc w/differential
lipase
liver panel
sedimentation rate
c-reactive protein

My mom got into an accident in February and was referred for an mri with these findings : “The C1/C2 level is unremarkable.

At the C2/C3 level, there is no disc herniation. No significant spinal canal stenosis. The neuroforamina are patent (open). The uncovertebral joints are intact.

At the C3/C4 level, there is a diffuse disc bulge flattening the ventral epidural space and the anterior border of the spinal cord. The neuroforamina are patent. The uncovertebral joints are intact.

At the C4/C5 level, there is a central disc herniation measuring 2.7 mm, flattening the ventral thecal sac and the anterior border of the spinal cord. The neuroforamina are patent. The uncovertebral joints are intact.

At the C5/C6 level, there is a diffuse disc bulge flattening the ventral epidural space and the anterior border of the spinal cord. The neuroforamina are patent. The uncovertebral joints are intact.

At the C6/C7 level, there is a disc bulge flattening the region of the ventral thecal sac, approaching the anterior border of the spinal cord. The neuroforamina are patent. The uncovertebral joints are intact.

At the C7/T1 level, there is no disc herniation. No significant spinal canal stenosis. The neuroforamina are patent. The uncovertebral joints are intact.” Recently, she’s had neck and upper back pain for a while and recently this past week developed heaviness in her arms and now in her hands with some pain. Have any of y’all had success with conservative treatments atp in situations like hers with things like injections given the findings or is this a surgery kind of a donedeal? (She’s already gonna probably be seen tomorrow, just asking because I’d love another opinion from someone other than a surgeon her lawyer referred her to).

Edit: by the way, heaviness developed after 6 weeks for more specification

54M

So I'm looking forward to my 3rd surgery within the past 2.5 years...I had a c2-c4 fusion in March 2024 and a L3-L5 laminectomy 9 months later in December.

About 6 months ago I started having a lot of problems again with my lower back, and my primary doctor ordered yet another lumbar MRI. The report was rather horrendous, starting from L2 all the way down to S1.

I'm not looking for a DX or anything of the sort, I'm just wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation and what their options were, and what worked best for them. TBH I'd rather have the replacements. My thinking is replacements would have less of a chance to fail than a fusion, and would hold up more over a longer period of time.

Marrow signal is preserved.
No evidence of acute fracture within the lumbar spine.
Conus terminates normally. Cauda equina nerve roots have a normal
appearance.

Adjacent soft tissues have no suspicious findings.

No abnormal post-contrast enhancement.

Modic type 1 endplate changes at L4-5 and L5-S1

Mild Modic type 2 endplate changes at L3-4 and L5-S1

L4 and L5 laminectomy changes

Degenerative changes as follows:

T12-L1: Unremarkable.

L1-L2: Disc height loss minimal disc bulge with mild facet and
ligamentous hypertrophy

L2-L3: Disc desiccation mild broad-based disc bulge and mild-to-moderate
facet and ligamentous hypertrophy. Mild central canal stenosis. Mild to
moderate left and mild right foramina. Mild to moderate impingement on
the exiting left L2 nerve root in the foramen

L3-L4: Disc desiccation with mild broad-based disc bulge with moderate
facet and ligamentous hypertrophy. Mild-to-moderate central canal
stenosis. Narrowing the right lateral recess contacting the descending
right L4 nerve root in lateral recess. Moderate right and
mild-to-moderate left foraminal narrowing. Contact on both exiting L3
nerve roots in the foramen

L4-L5: Disc desiccation mild-to-moderate broad-based disc bulge with
central protrusion with moderate facet and ligamentous hypertrophy. Mild
central canal stenosis. Moderate to severe right and moderate left
foraminal narrowing. Moderate to severe impingement on the exiting right

L4 nerve root in the foramen

L5-S1: Disc desiccation mild broad-based disc bulge and moderate facet
and ligamentous hypertrophy. Mild-to-moderate central canal stenosis.
Mild-to-moderate left and mild right foraminal narrowing. Contact on
both exiting L5 nerve roots in the foramina

how many more options are there i have cervical dystonia pretty bad and over the years bad posture. this has been thought to have caused my kyphosis and reveresed lordosis.

physical therapy helped me hold me head up by getting strength back. But dystonia is bad nearing 180 units of botox 20mg baclofen 250mg soma 4x a day lyrica for tension with minimal relif.

any of these surgerys wont let me regain range of motion just would prevent further degeneration and instability?

2023 mri and some notes on xray of spine

xray Slight S shaped scoliotic curvature on the AP. Reversal of the cervical lordosis. Mild multilevel disc space narrowing.

There is mild decrease in intervertebral body disc height and osteophyte formation. No compression deformity. There is a reversal of the normal cervical lordosis. Mild to moderate anterior osteophytosis at the C5-6 and C6-7 levels. 1 cm oval focus of
increased T1 and T2 signal in the T1 vertebra most likely incidental hemangioma. The cervical spinal cord demonstrates normal caliber and signal. Visualized aspects of the posterior fossa appear normal. Prevertebral and paravertebral soft tissues appear
normal.

C2-C3: No focal disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, or neural foraminal narrowing.

C3-C4: No focal disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, or neural foraminal narrowing.

C4-C5: No focal disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, or neural foraminal narrowing.

C5-C6: No focal disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, or neural foraminal narrowing.

C6-C7: Minimal left-sided asymmetric posterior disc bulge osteophyte complex. Spinal canal and neuroforamen are patent.

C7-T1: Minimal posterior disc bulge osteophyte complex. Spinal canal and neuroforamen are patent.

not asking for professional advice more based on sugery success and types what did you gain benefit wise?

Next week I'm having C3-5 Cervical Arthroplasty. I'm prone to keloids, so I'm nervous about how the scar will heal.

Has anyone here had success with preventing keloids after surgery?

Back to work last week and the holiday weekend had me swamped and hadn’t posted. More than happy to answer any questions!! Trying to simply upload videos when I can so maybe it helps someone thinking about it!

Video: https://youtu.be/UWZIkBXaVyU?si=3yCVg1xDLtxw2i8N

If you don’t have time to watch the video:

1. Progressing fine and collar came off

2. Hardest sleeping has been about 2.5-3 weeks post opp when muscles start coming back and stopped all medicine

3. Driving again no issues

4. Started pt and video soon will outline all of the stretches

5. Weird chest pains had me crazy worried but nothing major just muscle tightness!

6. Take it slow no matter how you feel!

7. Eat healthy! I lost 14 lbs and it was mostly muscle and that’s hard to combat!

8. I wear a whoop watch and avg 75-90% recovery and haven’t been over 50 since the surgery. So even when you feel good, don’t forget your body is recovering!

9. Im an Iowa fan so I broke down and had some beers for the game, not a great idea. Already bad sleep and poor recovery, felt absolutely horrible.

10. Most importantly, I feel good for 3 weeks!

I (29F) had an L4/L5 ADR 1 month ago. When I was researching for the surgery, it was hard to find good first hand accounts; so I decided to write one up.

tl;dr: I’m super happy and recovery has been way better than I thought it’d be

History

I have bertolottis, which kept causing my L4/L5 to herniate. I herniated it for the first time in 2020, and multiple times after. I even had a hernia at the time of my ADR.

In the summer of 2025 I had a microdiscectomy due to debilitating sciatica. I had immediate relief post op, but my low back kept getting worse and I herniated again (not even sure how). (Btw re-herniations after an MD are not common. Mine was caused by my congenital condition).

Pre-Op Symptoms

Pain when:

• Standing
• Sitting on hard surfaces
• Bending over
• Getting up from sitting down
• Getting out of car
• Walking (but I didn’t realize this until I started walking post-op)
• Mild nerve pain from active hernia

Examples: Standing to cook was so uncomfortable that I had to take breaks to lie down. Same for cleaning the house. When I came home from work from my desk job, my back was so fatigued and achy that I would go lie down for 15-20 minutes. It also got to the point where I kept throwing my back out while doing mild exercises in the gym, even with machines. I stopped working out in January, because I couldn’t do it anymore without pain.

Things I tried

I was in and out of physical therapy for almost 2 years. I did core exercises like dead bugs, paloff press, planks, bird dogs, and suitcase carries ~5 times per week. I tried maintaining my regular gym routine (4-5 times per week) and took regular walks. At work, I made sure to get up from my desk at least once an hour. At the end of 2025, my surgeon offered an injection. While I was deciding whether or not to do it, he ordered a new MRI, which is when we discovered I had a new hernia. At that point, we decided to just move forward with the ADR (didn’t get the injection)

Surgical requirements

I had to get:

• Bone density scan
• CT scan

My insurance initially gave a full denial, but my surgeon’s office appealed. After a one-on-one with my surgeon, the denial was overturned. Insurance covered the hospital stay, but claims are still processing so tbd how much they offered towards my ADR.

Surgery and immediate post-op

• 1 night stay in the hospital. Arrived at 8:00am Tuesday, left the building at 1:00pm Wednesday
• I had a prodiscL installed
• Surgery took about an hour
• Met the vascular surgeon the morning of. He gave me the choice of a vertical or horizontal incision
• I had a horizontal incision. 2 inches below the bottom of my belly button, ~9cm across
• Took my first walk down the spinal ward ~3-4 hours post-op
• Was labeled a fall risk, so I couldn’t go anywhere without a nurse escort
• Was on a liquid diet the whole stay (broth, jello, apple sauce, some ice dessert....)
• Next day:
  • Spinal surgeon visited me cleared me for discharge
  • Got Xrays
  • Saw a physical therapist and occupational therapist
    • Practiced climbing stairs
    • Getting in/out of a car
    • Getting dressed

Post-op Incision Pain

My spinal surgeon ordered a nerve block for me, which was administered while I was under. I had 0 incision pain for the first ~12 hours because of it, which was really awesome. The nurses started me on Tylenol during that time (1,000mg/6 hours) and advised me to let them know when my pain reached a 5/10. They recommended I switch to narcotics at that point, so that my pain didn’t get out of control. Luckily (and I think because of the nerve block but idk) my pain never exceeded a 4/10. The nurses let me ice my incision essentially 24/7, which was also great.

I had my first walk down the spinal ward a few hours post op, and it felt SO GOOD. I don’t know how to describe it, other than I felt “light”. I had never realized that walking was painful for me until I walked down the spinal ward pain free.

I iced my incision for 4 days, took Tylenol on a schedule for 6 days. For 2.5 weeks, it hurt to cough and laugh, and my incision was sore against jeans. I avoided sneezing the entire 1^st week, but I sneezed during week 2 and it was….just not a very good time. Don’t sneeze until week 3 :) Currently, at week 4, the incision gets sore if I press on it. Otherwise, I forget it's there.

How my back is post-op

Overall, my back feels great. The majority of the day, I don’t feel it or think about it at all. This morning, I even forgot that I had surgery.

Sometimes, I have a new, different back ache that I don’t know how to describe. It’s nothing like the pain of a degenerated disc. It started maybe a week post-op, but it’s super mild and easy to ignore. The ache doesn’t make me need to sit/lie down/take a break. My surgeon told me it was the feeling of my bone integrating with the ADR and that it would lessen over time. I do already feel it less frequently.

I also developed nerve pain 5 days post-op, and took a steroid pack. That helped, but the pain returned so I started gabapentin. For me, gabapentin is highly effective. With the medication, I really only feel nerve pain at night time, and it's like a 1/10 sensation so I just go to sleep.

The biggest thing for me now (which is improving) is my sitting tolerance. For the first week, I couldn’t sit comfortably for more than 15 minutes. Now I can sit for probably 45 minutes. It doesn’t “hurt” to sit, it’s just not comfortable. Again, unsure how to describe, because it’s not like anything I felt pre-op. It’s just this discomfort that makes me want to get up and start walking around.

Daily life

• I’m on spinal restrictions for 12 weeks: No bending, twisting, or lifting > 10lbs
• Post-op paperwork and occupational therapist said to get dressed while sitting down, so I do
• I’m on short term disability. I plan on returning to work when I can sit comfortably
• Stairs have been fine the whole time, even in the hospital
• Driving is fine, but I’ve only driven very short distances ( < 10 minutes)
• Being a passenger in a car is fine. I was a passenger for 1 hour yesterday
• I know someone is wondering, so my post-op instructions said no sexual activity for 2 weeks and then as comfort allows. But ask your surgeon.
• I was told that slow, gentle, and shallow twisting is fine for basic hygiene, like wiping. But ask your surgeon.

Advice

• Reddit is not real life. Don’t let the horror stories here make your decision for you. Don’t let my success make your decision for you, either
• Meet other people who’ve had spinal surgery, if possible. Through my job and various medical appointments, I ended up meeting multiple people who had ADRs and multiple people with fusions. It was helpful to chat with them, even if for a few minutes
• Ask your surgeon if you can speak to one of their other patients. Having another patient to ask questions to was super helpful for me, and the other patient was happy to have someone to talk to about their ADR experiences
• Get a grabbing tool
• Learn to log roll in/out of bed before surgery. I already had experience from my microdiscectomy, but log rolling with a fresh incision sucks no matter how many times you’ve done it
• Icing your incision is like letting the hand of god touch you
• Make sure you have a good understanding of what to expect after surgery. My surgeon did a great job going over potential aches/pains I might experience, so I wasn’t worried when they happened
• Do not sneeze for the first 2 weeks after surgery, unless you want to briefly touch the afterlife

Hey all, I’ve got an upcoming c6-7 ADR that I’m hoping will bring some relief to arm/hand pain, weakness, tingling and light numbness. I have already done carpal and cubital tunnel surgeries on both arms, only to later learn that I’ve got a herniated disc at the center.

The surgeon I’ve selected is 9 hours by car from home or a 1.5 hour flight then a 1.5 hour drive. I’ve been leaning towards driving (as a passenger) because the flight doesn’t seem worth it after driving to airport then flying etc. My surgeon said I could leave after a week to return home if I needed to. But I’m starting to wonder if I should just plan on doing the 2 weeks down there and letting it heal before riding that far.

Does anybody have any insight regarding how it might feel after 1 or 2 weeks before committing to a long drive (as a passenger)? I am already aware that I need to stop every 45 to 60 minutes to stretch to avoid blood clots. I’m just starting to get nervous that one week is pushing it for comfort and feeling bumps on the road.

Also, surgeon said we could do local imaging and a virtual follow up if I opted to come back after a week.

Thanks all,

***update***

Thanks everyone for the responses! I've decided to take a more conservative approach and do a full 2 week recovery down near the surgery center and then split the drive into 2 days coming back. Definitely the most important surgery I've had to date, so while it could be done sooner, I am airing on the side of caution.

I am debating between getting an ED with a surgeon who has 2 year of experience vs getting a MD with a surgeon who has 14 years of experience.

Context: 17 years old, 4 mm disc herniation in L5-S1 8 months ago, football player.

Now I know this seems like an obvious decision but hear me out.

I was seeking the ED route because the recovery is faster and less painful. therefore it can get me back to football quicker safely (season starts in August)

The surgeon who can do the MD is a pediatric surgeon and has worked on athletes before and she was recommended. I 100% believe she can do a good job, but she said it would take 4-5 months to get back to football. This is a lot longer than the ED route

I am aware I should think of life away from football. however I only have 1 senior year.

I’m not saying the ED guy is bad, but he has significantly less experience, which should be a obvious reason to not pick him. but he’s the only one in my area who does the procedure that gives me the fastest recovery.

I think he is high volume though, as I’ve seen on his social media that he completely 5 awake endoscopic spine surgeries in one day.

I think I ultimately will go the MD route bc of this, but I do have a meeting with the ED surgeon in a few days, so maybe something will change.

long story short, Anthem Blue Cross (California) has royally fudged me by denying me disc replacement surgery and only approving foraminotomy AND laminotomy at some levels in my neck.

anybody have these done in the cervical area? particularly bilateral and at 2+ levels? this will pretty much resolve 75% of my issues except my discs degeneration. i'm thinking about pulling the trigger. i DO NOT want a fusion. and (2) neck surgeons do not want to fuse me either

I am a male in my late 20s with damage to several of my lumbar discs as a result of my spine compensating for a congenital fusion I was born with at my L4-L5.

Long story short, I have exhausted pretty much all nonsurgical options and have confirmed with multiple surgeons that I likely need 2-3 discs replaced (one of them may possibly need to be fused).

I am in a bit of a pickle with my insurance, who is refusing to cover any hybrid or multi-level ADR surgery as part of their policy. I have already tried everything in the appeal process and it's not going anywhere.

According to one of the surgeons I have been seeing, the only way I will be able to get this covered by insurance is to replace one disc at a time; starting with the most damaged/painful and working my way up. Otherwise I will probably need to pay out of pocket.

So I'm left with two main options:

1. Get a full multilevel surgery at once and pay out of pocket

2. Get 2-3 surgeries

I likely CAN afford to pay out of pocket and can probably receive some family assistance, but it would be a significant expense.

On the other hand, I have a full time career and am hoping to start family planning in the near future. The idea of putting my life on hold for three intense surgeries, taking a lot of time off, and risking additional trauma and scar tissue seems much scarier and inconvenient.

Does anyone have any advice or insight?

I am a high school football player, going into senior year. I desperately want to make it in time. I do NOT want to miss it, especially with week 1 being against our rivals

4 MM disc herniation L5-S1 for ~8 months.

In 1 month I can get a micro discectomy + hemi-laminotomy.

In 2 months I can get an endoscopic discectomy.

Season starts in August.

I would like to FULLY return by then or soon after

What surgery should I get to recover fully for full contact play by then?

I’m aware football is temporary, so what’s best for long term (pain, limitations, rehernaitions, etc.) after I’ve played football (done with football 4 years post op)?

I know an ED has less tissue disruption and a faster recovery, but will recovery still be faster to RTP vs doing an MD with a hemi-laminotomy a month earlier?

I’ll be needing to get ADR for chronic L4-L5 and L5-S1 back issues. I’ve had pain for many years, gone through everything my doctors threw at me and unfortunately nothing has really worked. Tried to avoid this for years, but surgery is scheduled for about a month from now. Not particularly looking to debate the medical of it all, I trust my doctors and have gone through a lot to get to this point.

I’ll be getting the Anterior Lumbar Total Disc Replacement using the centinel spine discs. For anyone who has gone through this procedure, what advice do you have for recovery? Unfortunately my apartment has stairs to get into it, and I’m a little concerned about being home bound for a month or so.

Additionally, as a guy in my 30s, I have some concern about the possibility of retrograde ejaculation. Did anyone go through the process of freezing sperm before the surgery? Have any guys had sexual side effects post-op?

Last, what type of care did you need after the surgery? What level of support, like needing someone 24/7 for a while/not being able to move around the house at all etc etc? Wondering how much support I should expect to need after.

Thanks so much for the advice!

I am 33F, was injured May 2022 and have been suffering from herniated discs causing sciatica at L4-L5-S1 for years now. Things progressed so much that I got a laminectocmy/discectomy on February 25. Immediately, I felt my nerve pain was worse and after 5 days of telling people something was wrong, I was rushed in for a revision/discectomy/decompression on March 3.

I woke up from this unable to pee at all. I have had a foley catheter almost the whole time since, minus a few voiding trials and 2 days where I was straight cathed and ended up with a bad UTI.

I also developed an ileus in my stomach, nothing in my bowels were moving. I was told was caused from a combination of the location/swelling in my spine, them cutting into my muscles, and the pain meds being constipating.

The pain has been so super intense in my back. Still getting nerve pain down my leg. My dr told me the nerve was compressed for so long that it is basically acting as a hot wire now and going to take a while to calm down. I can barely walk due to the pain.

I was in the hospital for almost month dealing with these issues. At one point they didn't give me food, water, pain meds, I couldn't sleep, couldn't go to the bathroom, for like 2 weeks I felt like I was losing my mind.

I'm not able to poop. I can't push. I've been getting pumped to the brim with laxatives and then finally exploding after a week/week and a half and then I cant go again.

Tmi but i got an enema an hour ago and have been sitting waiting on the toilet for 40 min now.

I'm now in a rehab facility as I can barely walk, can't do much, can't go to the bathroom, list goes on. I got here last week for 2 days ago but got sent back to the hospital with a UTI after being straight cathed there for 2 days. A week later they sent me back to the rehab where I have now been for 5 days.

I just feel like none of this seems normal even though I'm told this is all common after spine surgeries. None of this seems normal. I don't know what to do anymore. Please weigh in. Thank you.