Take the shots. They will give you 3 shots, 1 a month for 3 months.The first 2 will probably not work, but the third one very may well take. If that don't fix/get the problem then you don't have any other options. Been there done that and the shots worked for me.

 

The tramadol has been keeping my pain in the 4-5 range but I feel pain more than I did the last time I posted. Has anyone tried a Laser procedure from the Laser Spine Institute? I was trying to delay an L4/L5 fusion & wondered if its worth the expense of a large out of network deductable? Things (the economy/world etc) are way too uneasy and having a full blown fusion at this time makes me more uneasy.

 

navigating that needle in to the.spine by way of x ray machine made me nervous.

 

Been there - done that!
1. My advice is to see a neuro surgeon, not an ortho! they will be working on the spine with lots of delicate nerves all over the place.

2. I had the spinal epidural injections (three of them) and they were a complete waste of time in my case. Can't say they don't work for some, but did not work for me.

3. I had c5/c6 fused with cadavor bone 10 years ago. Tthis past fall, I started having issues again. After seeing six doctors in a six month period, they decided that the fusion I had done 10 years ago did not properly fuse and needs to be re-done. Also, they said I need c/4-c/5 and c/6-c/7 fused as well. They also say I need rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders and Ulnar nerve surgery on both elbows. Sounded to me like I would be recovering from various surgeries for the better part of a year. In desperation, I visited an acupuncturist. (I always thought acupuncture was a bunch of voodoo BS, but WTF - I tried it.) Long story short - the acupuncture was a god-send. Immediate relief from the pain. (Don't get me wrong - I still have neck, shoulder, and elbow problems, and the acupuncture ain't fixing those, but it DOES help me to manage the pain, and I got a whole summer of riding and golfing in without surgery.)

 

after 45+ years of Basketball, Baseball, Tennis, Bowlling, football and kickball my back finally gave out to the point where if felt like electric shocks from the back to the feet. took three shots epidurals straight in the back -- after three - four weeks it was like nothing ever happened; that was 15 months ago. I no longer play sports; I do run/walk 12 - 15 miles per week either on the treadmill or the stationary bike. Today I am still reminded of my back problems with an occasional twinge nothing serious or painful.

 

My doctor told me that the epidural injections would help some people, but not everyone. I have no issues with the treatment. The doctor was honest and up-front and let me know it might not be of much benefit for me. He was right. It did not benefit me at all, but it is still a great thing to try before the more invasive approaches, like surgery. I suggest keeping an open mind - try the least invasive treatments first, including acupuncture. My acupuncture treatments only cost $40.00 each and even if they had not helped, it was a small price to pay compared to all the MRI's, CT scans, X-rays, EMG's I had. I was lucky though and the acupuncture did help for a quite a while. I was able to delay surgery and enjoy my summer.

 

I have had a herniated disc actually2 but am loaded with arthritis, have to have shoulders, thumbs,knees,injected every 3 months or so. Also have si injections to keep pain from pinched nerves in hip area done 4-6 months apart and are on morphine and percocets to function as a carpenter have been in that trade for 28 years. This combo has kept me riding for the last ten years. Meds are not to strong that I cant function if they become so, guess I will have to face the music and possibly give up riding.

 

Oh man, sorry to hear that!
I had two ruptured discs (L4 & L5) and they would not operate, too dangerous and could not guarantee surgery would work. There were times I could not put any pressure on my left leg, the pain was so bad. I could not believe they wouldn't operate. My doctor put me in a brace and for 3 months I couldn't do anything, just rest. What he did was cause the jelly like substance to retract away from my spine and the tears scarred over. He said at the time I was looking at 1 year to completely heal, as long as I didn't re-injure them which I didn't. He was right, roughly a year later my back felt pretty good again.

 

The orthopedic doctor wasn't very helpful, but he did send me to a pain clinic after I explained to him that his recommendation that I take Aleve twice a day wasn't relieving the pain. Even Oxycodone was useless after 1 hour. The injections did work, but I may try the acupuncture route just to see if it's viable alternative to steroids. Good luck with your treatment.

DJK