I went to A&E on 1st June with severe pain down left arm and back and was tested for heart problems which i knew was not the problem but was in to much pain to argue. It took an older doctor to take over and look at me properly and he administered morphine which made no difference to suspect a trapped nerve and sent me to another hospital with orthopaedic consultants. No matter what i did with my arm it felt as if it was going to explode and my fingers and hand were numb. I was sent away with paracetomal and told to attend for an xray on 9th june. If i thought it would have helped i would have walked in front of a bus. The young consultant at the orthopaedic clinic sent me for two xrays on the 9.6 but could see nothing wrong but as i was in so much pain referred me for an MRI again sent away with paracetamol. i went for reiki sessions, i bought one of these wee electric pain relievers but nothing worked. tried chasing up the scan but was told he had gone on holiday and forgot to fill in the medical form and sign it so it was returned. AT long last i got my MRI on 16th august the pain has subsided and i can now use my left arm but it still has not got the full strength and i still have numbness in fingers and arm, across my shoulders and down the back.
MRI has shown a focal central and left para-central disc prolapse in C6/7 and my file has been referred to edinburgh western general for possible surgery. I would rather go without surgery. What i would like to know does these things get better is there anything i can do as i have two small children who need looking after. I have not seen the consultant since the 9th June and feel totally in the dark as to what this is.
Any advice would be appreciated.
I went to A&E on 1st June with severe pain down left arm and back and was tested for heart problems which i knew was not the problem but was in to much pain to argue. It took an older doctor to take over and look at me properly and he administered morphine which made no difference to suspect a trapped nerve and sent me to another hospital with orthopaedic consultants. No matter what i did with my arm it felt as if it was going to explode and my fingers and hand were numb. I was sent away with paracetomal and told to attend for an xray on 9th june. If i thought it would have helped i would have walked in front of a bus. The young consultant at the orthopaedic clinic sent me for two xrays on the 9.6 but could see nothing wrong but as i was in so much pain referred me for an MRI again sent away with paracetamol. i went for reiki sessions, i bought one of these wee electric pain relievers but nothing worked. tried chasing up the scan but was told he had gone on holiday and forgot to fill in the medical form and sign it so it was returned. AT long last i got my MRI on 16th august the pain has subsided and i can now use my left arm but it still has not got the full strength and i still have numbness in fingers and arm, across my shoulders and down the back.
MRI has shown a focal central and left para-central disc prolapse in C6/7 and my file has been referred to edinburgh western general for possible surgery. I would rather go without surgery. What i would like to know does these things get better is there anything i can do as i have two small children who need looking after. I have not seen the consultant since the 9th June and feel totally in the dark as to what this is.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Hi Sandrai
I'm sorry to hear about your pain and problems with getting diagnosed, seems far too common these days and does not inspire confidence in our main stream medical service.
From my experience I have seen people who recover from prolapsed disc without the need for surgery (2 in my family) but they are mostly pro-active about changing their lifestyles, see alternative practitioners and do activities that help reduce the pressure on the disk and encourage healing and a healthy back. By this I'm suggesting seeing people like an Osteopath/Chiropractor, using something like an Inversion Table and when possible begin an exercise regime that builds functional fitness so you are strong enough to do you daily activities without risk on damage/strain to your back. Small children get heavier to lift all the time and ensuring your muscles are strong enough to support your spine when you lift them is important.
Even if you decide to have surgery, in my opinion unless you look at the causes behind your current prolapse (eg bad posture/ bad lifting technique/ poor muscular condition/ imbalances etc) and do something to correct those it will only be time before another prolapse occurs and more surgery is needed. IMO that is one of the problems with surgery, it only looks at the one damaged disk and not the whole person.
I hope that helps.
Pete
i totally agree,look at all other options before making your descision as surgery imo does not always work and can leave you worse off as in my case but my was l4/l5, i agree that they only look at the one damaged disc ,i went through all that pain and still had another prolapse right under the one i had done. good luck whatever you decide.
Terminology sometimes differs between our two countries. I think you are talking about what is called a herniated disc in my country. I was halfway crippled and in chronic pain for many years because of a lower back injury which caused me a herniated disc. I discovered oil of wild Mediterranean oregano which changed my life for the better.
I use capsules which are 50/50 oil of oregano and olive oil (as pure oil of oregano is caustic). I began my therapy with a double dose so that the herb could build up in my body. I took the double dose, which was six capsules per day--two with each meal three times per day, for one month. Then I went on maintenance therapy of one capsule with breakfast and one after dinner. My back rarely bothers me anymore. Although I cannot do some strenuous activities without fear of exacerbation of the injury, I am quite active and able-bodied.
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I fully understand what you mean by pain. I too had a prolapsed disk (L3/L4) - I'm not a weepy person but I was in tears of pain for 5 days... and off work for 5 weeks.
In the end it was an osteopath who helped the mechanical side of things. But, and this is really important, the pain management part was resolved through a mobile Reflexologist who came to my home. I had weekly or twice-weekly sessions - and was so utterly soul-level exhausted when she left from the release of the tension severe pain causes.
You desperately need to address the pain component... because your pain is exacerbated by the severe emotional and physical toll pain causes. Pain increases tension and stress... which makes the pain worse. I can't stress enough that you need to get your pain management under control. Until this happens I don't feel that the treatments you get from an osteopath or chiropractor or physio or whomever will be as effective.
I also had baths with aromatherapy oils. I can't remember now which ones they were. I also used Rescue Remedy. And drank vast jugs of chamomile tea like it was water. It's horrible being in pain and you need help dealing with that part as much as you do resolving the physical cause of the pain.
I'm not really into EFT, but this might be a time when it would be useful to explore wrt to the pain part i.e. "even though I have this pain...", "even though this pain feels like a red hot poker...". Many people here swear by EFT, so it could prove useful going to the Mind Therapies forum and asking for advice on phrases to use.
Good luck, honey. Trust your body to get through this without the need for surgery.
Ava x
Cervical discs
Hi I'm sorry to here of your pain and trouble. I have had 2 anterior discectomy's in C5/6 and C6/7 3 years apart. Because it took 10 months to diagnose my first, I was left with a damaged spinal cord. I was told that if I had sought treatment from a chiropractor etc it could have resulted in permanent spinal cord damage much greater than what I am now left with. I believe we have no choice but to go ahead with surgery. I know I have been left with weakness down my left side, but things could have been much much worse.