Back Surgery

About 17 years ago as I was finishing a 10K run I ruptured a disc in my lower back.  I think this injury was the result of 55 years of my back enduring an imbalance due to a 3/4” leg length discrepancy with no shoe lift compensation.  (I should have listened to my mother).  At any rate, I was in a great deal of pain at the time and was ready to schedule surgery until I learned I would not be able to work for six weeks.  I had a new job and that was not a good option.  So I began physical therapy.  Conventional wisdom is that in most cases one is just as well off in 3 or 4 years with physical therapy as with surgery.  I was fortunate to have found an excellent therapist and have managed my pain over the years with exercise, stretching, naproxen and an occasional visit to my therapist for some adjustment.  I did try a couple of chiropractors over the years with absolutely zero success.

This past hunting season I was out on average of at least twice a week in very rough and steep terrain.  Although my back pain didn’t get more intense it did get more frequent.  However, it was still bearable and they are reluctant to operate unless it becomes pretty much unbearable.

As I retired from my tax work this year I undertook some volunteer work to fill my time.  One of these tasks was to drive a van for the Food Bank twice a week making pick ups from grocery and convenience stores.  This involved loading food products and beverages into 16 cubic foot bins and then unloading and weighing the food at the Food Bank.  Total weight was often between ¼ and ½ ton per load.

It was shortly after this endeavor that I noticed a big difference in my back.  Rather than the usual pain roaming around my lower back I was having a great deal of pain standing and walking but no problem sitting or riding my bicycle or motorcycle.  Very soon it got to the point where often I couldn’t walk half a block and had a great deal of pain even retrieving the paper from the box at the end of the driveway.

After two weeks of therapy my long time therapist and friend agreed that I should get an MRI and look at other options.  My final therapy session was Friday morning, March 7^th.  Next I had to get a doctor appointment in order to get cleared for the MRI.  This is not always easy because after calling you invariably have to wait for them to return your call to schedule the appointment which could also be some time in the future.  After making the call after my therapy session I decided to go to the clinic and see if I could talk to someone in person.   I arrived at the clinic about 1:00 p.m. and made my request.  It just so happened that my doctor had an opening at 1:30 so after the usual wait I saw him.  He said it was much more difficult to schedule an MRI now due to insurance changes but after he examined me and since I had already tried physical therapy he asked if I would patiently wait a while and he would see what he could arrange.  After a 15 or 20 minute wait he returned and said he had an MRI appointment for me Monday morning.  I couldn’t believe it.

After getting the MRI Monday I got a call from the doctor’s office Wednesday morning saying I would be receiving a call from the orthopedic surgeon’s office soon.   That same afternoon while out on a bike ride a call came from the surgeon’s office and Kathy scheduled an appointment for me the next morning.  This surgeon is renowned as being one of the top back surgeons in the Northwest and has patients that come as far as Alaska for his services.  He’s the Perry Mason of back surgeons.  After discussing the situation and agreeing that surgery was the best option he checked with his nurse to see if he could schedule me the next morning for a microdiscetomy, and that’s what we did.  I got pre-admitted at the hospital that afternoon and returned at 5:45 the next (Friday) morning.  The surgeon repaired the disc by pushing the ruptured part back in place and removing some bone fragments that were impinging upon a nerve.

Immediately after surgery I could walk with no pain and was on my motorcycle and driving Saturday.  Of course, after the anesthesia completely wore off my back has been sore at the incision site.  It’s Sunday as I write this and I have been taking hikes and icing my back alternatively.  I’m supposed to wear a back brace for six weeks, not for the support but to restrict my movement and I’m encouraged to take several daily walks gradually increasing the distance.  I have great hopes of being free of back pain altogether.  It’s like a new lease on life.  In this day and time it’s absolutely incredible that I was able to get this procedure done so quickly.   M/W