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Spinal injections - not epidural.
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MRSTITTLEMOUSE wrote: »I think you have to give them a chance.It's worth trying anything is'nt it.
I found out years later the reason my injections did'nt work was because I had developed arachnoiditis due to the problems with the myelogram,hence the nerves don't respond as they should to anything.
I take sodium valproate(an epilepsy drug) for the muscle spasms and amitriptyline(an antidepressant I think) for the nerve pain as it does'nt respond to anything else I've tried.
I hope you find something to help,nerve pain is horrendous.
Good luck with your injections.
Thanks again MrsT.
I'm taking amitriptyline and gabapentin [another epilepsy drug] for the nerve pain and it does respond for a while but then needs stronger stuff. It's possible they could change the gabapentin for another and see how that goes, but the medicine change is so frustrating.
I agree the nerve pain is horrendous and yes, it is worth trying anything to get that relief. The nerve pain is actually worse than the back pain, which is under control with the medication [tramadol s/r and diclofenic s/r]
I don't know if all the problems I'm experiencing with the nerve pain are as a result of the myelogram, but that is very interesting. Everything has been put down to the problems I had following my car accident years ago. They can't repair some of the nerve damage, so I have to now look at controlling the pain
I have muscle spasms, joint pain, constant itching and other problems due to the nerve damage, but one of the biggest problems is a drop foot, which causes me to fall and lose my balance. I can't walk without aids, but I'm hoping that with some relief, it may be possible. Fingers crossed there
Your posts have been helpful, so thank you for that.
Best wishesThere is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
I actually was in hospital yesterday having lower spine injectios for nerve and disc problems
Dont know exactly what they injected, it was a lumbar nerve root block??
I had spine surgery 5 yrs ago for chronic pain in back and esp the left leg, the op worked well, but the pain has now returned and is worse than before, with the leg being the most affected.
really dont want surgery again.
was seen at the pain clinic last week and the consulktant got me in quickley for this nerve block.
Like i say i had it yesterday, the actual procedure is nothing to worry about, slight discomfort but lasts seconds and i had 4 injections, believe me i am the biggest numpty when it come to anyone inflicting pain on me, but i would happily have it again if it works!!
thats where the prob is at the moment i am in bed in severe pain in leg and back, slightly worse than before the injections, but i understand this is not uncommon and that sometimes it gets worse before it eases, but i wish it would hurry up as its agony!!!
dont know what the next step is if it doesnt work, i have to ring the consultant if pain not helped in 2 weeks or see him in clinic in 8 weeks,
will keep u posted
:eek:0 -
I actually was in hospital yesterday having lower spine injectios for nerve and disc problems
Dont know exactly what they injected, it was a lumbar nerve root block??
I had spine surgery 5 yrs ago for chronic pain in back and esp the left leg, the op worked well, but the pain has now returned and is worse than before, with the leg being the most affected.
really dont want surgery again.
was seen at the pain clinic last week and the consulktant got me in quickley for this nerve block.
Like i say i had it yesterday, the actual procedure is nothing to worry about, slight discomfort but lasts seconds and i had 4 injections, believe me i am the biggest numpty when it come to anyone inflicting pain on me, but i would happily have it again if it works!!
thats where the prob is at the moment i am in bed in severe pain in leg and back, slightly worse than before the injections, but i understand this is not uncommon and that sometimes it gets worse before it eases, but i wish it would hurry up as its agony!!!
dont know what the next step is if it doesnt work, i have to ring the consultant if pain not helped in 2 weeks or see him in clinic in 8 weeks,
will keep u posted
:eek:
Snap!Only I had mine done on Thursday. I don't know if it's exactly the same as I was in theatre for about 45 minutes, with X-ray guidance and it included bi-lateral facet joint injections and a transforaminal epidural. Unfortunately a bit complicated as I have a bony growth on my spine, so no disc space at the epidural point - but clever specialist went in through one of the holes in the pelvis itself then fed the needle as far up as he could :T. He put some dye in first so they could see where it was spreading to.
It's the third time I've had this, although last time it didn't work at all.
Good luck with yours and may we both be hopping around like spring lambs soon:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:then watch for pigs flying overhead
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Some people hear voices, some see invisible people. Others have no imagination whatsoever
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I do hope it relieves the pain for both of you, novelli and Unity.
Just over two weeks to go before my appointment. I'm feeling quite nervous at the prospect, so it's good to read your experiencesThere is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
I do hope it relieves the pain for both of you, novelli and Unity.
Just over two weeks to go before my appointment. I'm feeling quite nervous at the prospect, so it's good to read your experiences
p;lease do not let the actual procedure worry u, it really is nothing horrible at all, and over pretty quickley anyway.
the olnly thing i worry is it not working as this pain is pretty unbearable and the thought of surgery scarfes the living daylights outta me!!!:eek:0 -
Pipkin71 -I really wouldn't worry about the procedure. According to the pain specialist I see, if it's not done in theatre, under X-ray guidance then it won't be facet joint injections. Tbh I find these mildly unpleasant rather than really painful
. The transforaminal epidural is more painful in my case, because of the overgrowth of bone and since it is to numb my sciatic nerve - it's the location of this that hurts and I get through it by knowing it's not going to last forever
.
Since you mentioned this will be your first 'session', it's possible these may be steroid injections in the general area and I've had these too. Honestly they take no time at all and you'll barely notice anything more than the "sharp scratch" that seems to be the terminology they use these days.
Just keep thinking how much better you'll feel once it is over and the benefits have kicked in and let us know how you get on.
Good luck :hello:Some people hear voices, some see invisible people. Others have no imagination whatsoever
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Pipkin71 -I really wouldn't worry about the procedure. According to the pain specialist I see, if it's not done in theatre, under X-ray guidance then it won't be facet joint injections. Tbh I find these mildly unpleasant rather than really painful
. The transforaminal epidural is more painful in my case, because of the overgrowth of bone and since it is to numb my sciatic nerve - it's the location of this that hurts and I get through it by knowing it's not going to last forever
.
Since you mentioned this will be your first 'session', it's possible these may be steroid injections in the general area and I've had these too. Honestly they take no time at all and you'll barely notice anything more than the "sharp scratch" that seems to be the terminology they use these days.
Just keep thinking how much better you'll feel once it is over and the benefits have kicked in and let us know how you get on.
Good luck :hello:
Thank you for that, Unity.
I've had a difficult few days due to the pain and despite increasing the painkillers again. I am feeling really low today so can only hope that whatever the injections, they will bring some relief.There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
Thank you for that, Unity.
I've had a difficult few days due to the pain and despite increasing the painkillers again. I am feeling really low today so can only hope that whatever the injections, they will bring some relief.
I sympathise - I had to increase my morphine patches up to 100mcg, but that is still a lot less than I was on a few years ago so I'll try and see it as a positive. I'm hoping to reduce them once these injections kick in - but with having fibro on top of everything else, I usually have to cope with a flare after procedures like this first.
I must admit that I've found pain clinics differ tremendously - the one in my home town wouldn't consider me for facet joint injections - said they "Weren't appropriate", but thankfully with 'Choose and Book' I got a referral to another hospital in the area where they have a much more pro-active approach.Some people hear voices, some see invisible people. Others have no imagination whatsoever
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well its now three days since my spinal jabs and its 2am and i am NOT in agony!!! wow!!
cant say its pain free, but it def feels better at the moment, so much so i am going to try and sleep now without any pills!!
fingers crossed this may be a sign of things to come:j0 -
pookienoodle wrote: »That daily mail article was very misleading.
my husband had the plastic artificial discs inserted at the spinal unit of our local teaching hospital......it was not succesful and he has since has spinal fusion....only at one level as it took so long to remove one disc he will have to have 2 further fusion ops.
I think as far as spines are concerned there is no one size fits all miracle cure some people can have fantastic results with procedures that don't work for others.
I agree.
My neighbour has had boh a spinal fusion and the artificial disc replacement and is in worse pain than ever.
He went private and was willing to pay for anything on offer that might help him but has ended up in a terrible state.
They've told him further surgery is out of the question so it's all been a waste of time.0
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