Unfortunately i'm back to square one. The disc higher up than the one i got operated on before has ruptered very badly. Sick of the pain and consultant telling me it will take time. So got another mri with dye injected last week and sent him results this week. Hes booked up til october but squeezed me in for an emergency appointment monday morning. Hes some dope! Still off work. Will be having words. I know my own body. Not getting fobbed off! Wonder what he will have to say for himself.....
He must have x ray specs to see what is going on in my body! I decided on the mri myself. Thank god i did because these fools just take e200 every time they see you for 5 mins. What is up with that? Still off work and broke and back to the start with a severe prolapsed disc. Like you don't have to be a rocket science to suggest a follow up scan. So ****ing mad. No better woman than me to rip into him on monday. Its allright for him treating us as statistics but we are people who need to pay our mortgage and bills and put food on the table.
Hes a bit scared of me anyway as i had a few rows with him already. Hate this god complex. I think he appreciates it when you bring him back to earth.
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| 18-08-2012, 15:38 | #47 |
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OMG apache.......I am speechless, as you know my OH's experience was great with her neurosurgeon. I was just telling her about your post and she is totally shocked by the care you are receiving or not is probably more appropriate ! We cannot believe that a follow up MRI was not done and you certainly are justified in giving him an earful on Monday. All we can say is good luck on Monday and let us know how you get on.
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| 18-08-2012, 22:38 | #48 | |
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| 22-08-2012, 13:46 | #49 | |
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 monday morning i went for my appointment. before he looked at my latest mri he said he was very worried at the results he had gotten from the radiographer (the written report as i still had the cd rom and he hadn't viewed it). i gave out about not having a follow up mri or proper physio. he dosen't do it. end of story. some do - some don't. i got so annoyed with him. i then calmed down because theres no point and i started to feel a bit guilty because i know i can go off on one. he put the cd rom into his laptop. it broke his laptop. lol the inside of his laptop disc broke! so off he went to secretarys office to view it while she huffed and puffed  he called me in. he said the radiographers report was wrong and showed me the scans up close. i don't have another slipped disc. he is writing a complaint to the clinic who done my mri. he says its my spine that is pressing on the nerve - the bone not the disc? he says i need a spinal fusion so in 2 weeks time i have an appointment with his colleague who specialises in that so i will have to wait and see what he says.so i don't have another slipped disc. i walk with a limp and have pain all down my left buttocks and leg BUT i don't have any back pain in the past few weeks. he says a spinal fusion will sort me? dunno he said himself he just deals with slipped discs so will see what happens at my next appointment. oh and its a mr o'brien i am seeing next. can't remember his first name. oh off to google him now. just did - david o'brien consultant neurosurgeon. so the same as danny rawluk (my last one) just different speciality? Last edited by apache; 22-08-2012 at 14:23. |
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| 22-08-2012, 13:49 | #50 | |
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theres not that many pages in this thread - prob page 2 or something. Last edited by apache; 22-08-2012 at 13:51. |
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| 22-08-2012, 15:24 | #51 |
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Your not having much luck apache! Hopefully you are actually getting a resolution to this - I feel for you. What levels are they likely to fuse? I think I read in one of your earlier posts that you smoke - I guess you already know that that is the prime reason for bone graft fusions not taking. My consultant wont do a fusion if you smoke am please I gave it up years ago now.
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| 22-08-2012, 15:39 | #52 |
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thanks jdee.
i am a smoker  you are right though aren't you? i did a bit of research and found out that in 90% of cases the bone graft fails to fuse due to smoking. lack of oxygen etc etc. i was horrified! i only found that out yesterday. theres no two ways around it - i have to give them up. i will find out more next friday at appointment but after today i am going to try and kick it. |
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| 22-08-2012, 20:02 | #53 |
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Wow apache, that was some consultation !!! but as the saying goes "Doctors differ and patients die"........the two of us here have read you last posting, and one thing that my OH says.......regarding your MRI's.....you obviously had one before the surgery and then the one you organised yourself recently, which at a rough guess are 3 months apart (?).....are you/he saying that the problem that is now visible on the recent MRI, was not present on the original MRI ?....I'd be interested in comparing the two MRI's side by side, it just seems a bit odd......
Anyway, good luck with seeing his colleague in two weeks. OH says she knows its expensive in the likes of the Hermitage, but it just might also be worth getting a second opinion from a consultant in another hospital and bring the two MRI cd's with you. Will keep the fingers crossed for you. |
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| 22-08-2012, 20:42 | #54 |
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/77502450@N08/7839742238/ link to my fusion. Smoking is THE biggest cause of failed fusions and if you wan that then your are going to have to stop if you can. The x-rays are post op 12 months and you can just about make out the start of the fusion - consultant reckons I need to take it easy for another twelve months LOL. IF he knew I was rotating 3 months post op and digging a poly tunnel in 4 months post op he would go ballistic!
Let u know how you get on apache and I wish you well with it all |
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| 23-08-2012, 13:26 | #55 | |
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he said i have 2 problems. 1 - degenerative disc disease and 2- spondylolisthesis. my understanding is my prior slipped disc which i got operated on 3 months ago was a side effect of having these conditions. it was always there but the slipped disc has made it a lot worse? Spondylolisthesis is a condition in which a bone (vertebra) in the lower part of the spine slips out of the proper position onto the bone below it. so a mistake was made on the mri? it was not a bulging disc but a bone? i'm not really sure but i just have to wait til next friday to find out. i'm going to beaumont private and i have my 2 mri scan cds (before and after) to bring with me. thanks for the support. your oh is lucky to have someone like you who shows such an interest in her condition because it can get grating. tell her i said that 
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| 23-08-2012, 13:36 | #56 | |
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i know i should wait til next friday before worrying but i seriously cannot afford to be out of work much longer. i am 3 months on a very basic sick salary and go down to half pay in another 3 months. i'm not allowed anyway back to work even if i wanted to because of the dr reports sent to the civil service chief medical officer. i am a prison officer so i could get injured which is very likely. anyway i'm no use at the moment this afternoon (just getting ready to go now) i have appointments with my bank and credit union to see if i can in anyway reduce my mortgage and loan. i bought 5 years ago when i was on big money. now even its hard to get by on a normal wage let alone a basic wage. how do you survive moneywise after 12 months? and you say you are digging poly tunnels 4 months post op? i've heard its very painful. is it very bad? how long were you in hospital? |
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| 23-08-2012, 16:28 | #57 |
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@apache funny enough it isnt so bad -- I had a number of previous operations done on my back one of which was an experimental job back in the early 90's called a Graf stabilisation - they basically used 8 screws and wrapped artificial ligaments around the screw heads to try and keep it all in place. Sadly it didnt work and what you see is the end result after the last op. Consultant wanted to screw into each vertebrae but because one lot of old screw holes was close to the edge of the bone he couldnt reuse those holes hence the cross member. To be honest I was not on any pain medication post op (high pain threshold) and I felt ready to come home next day - glad I didnt as the wound split open and it was touch and go as to whether they would have to operate again. They normally would have kept me in hospital for five days but it ended up being ten in total (this was done in the UK).
Pain wise I noticed an instant improvement although I still get sciatica down my right leg but thats been normal for the past 35 years now (first hurt my back in 17 and am now 54). You wont be able to pick up anything heavy (or so I was told) then a small bag of spuds (5lb) for at least a 6 months and it could be up to two years before they know whether the fusion has taken or not. None of this is good news or anything that you want to hear - it certainly isnt a quick fix and if they do it I will be surprised if your back at work within the next six months. As a matter of interest can the prison service not assign you to a desk job away from any potential trouble - at least post op when the doc has cleared you to go back to work. That way you can be earning again. I took early medical retirement two years ago because of my back (and neck due to have that fused later this year hopefully) so I get a basic pension and have to make do on that - not easy but I will never be able to go back to work again. THings to do before you have your surgery is to walk as much as you can - and post op - smoking you know about. I dont know how many levels your likely to have done but with three on my back there is a lot of things i cant do know - wipe my @£$e being one of them LOL I have to time my ablutions so that i can shower straight away (to much information and I apologise to the squeamish). I travelled from Shropshire in the UK back to Mayo the day they let me out of hospital (car and ferry wasnt allowed to fly) and that was tough going but other then that and taking things easy the pain has been manageable - easy for me to say now but you have to try and beat the bloody thing its so easy to get down over it. 6 weeks post op I was walking 3 miles at a time and fairly active but you have to give the fusion a chance to take - I relied on the screws and rods which probably wasn't the best thing to do - if fact it was stupid the things I did. Poly tunnel being one of them - I just felt so good that I thought I could do anything maybe I shouldnt have as I paid the price afterwards. If there is anything else I can help you with just ask - if you want to talk pm me your number and I will happily chat to you. I wish you well with the finance side of things - I know its not easy. |
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| 24-08-2012, 12:02 | #58 |
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ok...so, the bottom line seems to be that from day one you had both problems.....still seems a shame that he didnt tell you before your first surgery that a simple disectomy might not totally fix your problem, in which case then you may have gone for the fusion & disectomy and therefore not be in the awful predicament that you find yourself in now. Is there anyone that can go with you for the next appointment ? just someone who can sit there and listen to the consultation ? we know that when you are in with Consultants its so easy to forget to ask things or not quite pick up all the things that they are saying. Please let us know how you get on.
BTW told the OH how lucky she is to have me !!! Last edited by Spook_ie; 24-08-2012 at 14:35. |
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| 24-08-2012, 23:37 | #59 |
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Tension Myositis Syndrome, Dr Sarno
My 2 pence.
I hope readers of this tread would be open-minded to this. I have been through long term (years) back problem (herniated / bulging disks) until I read this book. Mind you it wasn’t an instant miracle, I still had to do a lot work on myself, but it was certainly the trigger to full recovery. Just entertain the idea of reading this book, It can’t do any harm, can it. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Healing-Back...5846351&sr=1-1 |
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| 27-08-2012, 19:10 | #60 |
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jesus jaydee you have been through the mill. thanks for sharing - some not so nice parts
 (but keeping it real).thanks for information and may take up your kind offer pending outcome on friday. unfortunately with the croke park agreement and upheaval with civil service there are not many desk jobs available as outside agencies are coming in to take them. but yes the cmo did say i could go back to a desk job. but every day they are moving more people off them so dunno what will happen by the time i'm ready to go back.  i'm in talks with the bank at the moment -an added pressure i don't need- and if they do not offer me a realistic solution (it IS only a temperory measure touch wood) i will just have to cancel the direct debit for my mortgage and pay them what i can afford each month. at least i'm in talks so it looks good on paper that i am trying to find a solution. christ in a lot of pain these days. hope to find a solution. i think though once they start messing with your back you are ****ed @spook ya i have a lot of questions i need answered. bit confused about a few things. @asark - i might download that book for my kindle. it can't do any harm as you say. a lot of it probably has to do with positive thoughts and energy but bit sceptical when surgery is really the only answer. |
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