Anyone have an epidural for spinal pain?

[vhoffman]

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[crazykids]

I've been dealing w/ a bad back for about 12 years, during that time I have had a total of 5 epidurals. The most recent was this past January. Sometimes they work well, sometimes they don't work at all. You will never know if you don't give it a shot. With the last one, my pain went away completely for a few weeks & slowly started coming back. Even though the pain came back, it's not as bad as it was before the epidual, so it was worth it for me. One epidural is not going to damage anything, so I say if you are sick of being in pain & nothing seems to be working, then give it a shot.

 

[vhoffman]

I've been dealing w/ a bad back for about 12 years, during that time I have had a total of 5 epidurals. The most recent was this past January. Sometimes they work well, sometimes they don't work at all. You will never know if you don't give it a shot. With the last one, my pain went away completely for a few weeks & slowly started coming back. Even though the pain came back, it's not as bad as it was before the epidual, so it was worth it for me. One epidural is not going to damage anything, so I say if you are sick of being in pain & nothing seems to be working, then give it a shot.

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[vhoffman]

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[crazykids]

It's done w/ sedation, but you will be awake. You will feel very relaxed & really have no cares in the world. There is a revolving x ray machine that will take pictures. I think the whole thing only takes about 15 minutes - it's really no big deal at all! You'll be in recovery for about an hour & then you go home. They tell you to relax for the rest of the day & not to really do anything until the next day. You really aren't in any pain from getting the shot. I got it done in a local outpatient surgical center here in Souther NJ.

 

[Starr W.]

I had another orthopedic surgeon recommend that glucosamine chondritin. I've been taking it, too soon to see if it works, says at least 2-3 months. But its worth a try.

I wouldn't scoff at vitamin/nutritional supplements. I had a terrible problem with menopausal symptoms, terrible swesting and hot flashes. I mean, I had to change my clothes 2-3 times a day, take 2 showers day, even carry a change of clothes. My kidssaid I was "drippy" the sweat would literally drip off me. They kept recommending a hysterectomy, but I declined. Then a doctor recommended a supplement, black cohosh. It took about 2 months, but worked. So nice not to wake up bathed in your own sweat.

But this is so severe--maybe I'll see about scheduling an epidural, if it gives me even short-term relief I really need it, especially now, we might be moving in the next few months, need something to get me through a difficult time.

My mom had that epidural treatment done twice, I believed it helped her(this was about 5 yrs ago and a little foggy on remembering all the details).

 

[SueM in MN]

I'm going to move this to our disABILITIES Community Board, which is more for non-Disney related questions.

 

[eddieras]

I’ve had both cervical and lumbar injections - I agree with the previous poster that it is certainly worth a try. I don't know about driving 3-4 hours. You may find that difficult. I just reread your post and see that its lumbar. obviously the benefits vary greatly, both person to person, and as a result of the diagnosis itself. when researching the specialist, i would certainly ask how many injections they have done. Also, you may want them to clarify the knee vs lumbar injections. you don't want to be confused even tho they are both injections. obviously there are different types of treatment for different maladies- not always as efficacious - even tho their use may be similar. hopefully they can explain the difference so you're not turned off by the less than positive results from the knee injections.

lastly, I too had a lumbar fusion (back in 89) for the same reason = spondylolethesis. It was explained to me then (by my surgeon) that the fusion was first used on cases of spondylolethesis and the outcomes are still the best for those with this diagnosis. This is something else to discuss with the specialist.

Good luck – keep a positive attitude!

 

[leanan]

My mom had this done repeatively. It works for mild to moderate pain to some extent. My mother however had more damage than is appropriate for this treatment so therefor it only took the edge off.

My dad is a paincare specialist. Most of his patients pretty much scoff at this treatment. Some of them say it works for a few hours. Some of them say it did not work at all. Only a handful say that this changed their life. They are still with him looking for better treatment though so clearly it did not change their lives much.

If you are waiting for surgery to stabilize slipped or ruptured disks this will help you through the worst but mostly it was a big waste of time by his patients accounts. The consensus here is the same as above mild to moderate pain. This is not a long term answer. If you have something not correctable by surgery you would be better off looking for a pain care specialist who can discuss ALL of your options.