Now why would I name this blog discectomypain.com if I hadn’t endured a micro-discectomy for a herniated disc? Well I have, so hence the name and on with my first-hand account – but first a bit of history for context.
About two months ago, on a random Tuesday morning, I bent forward to tie my shoe laces and never really got back up for the better part of five weeks. I’ve been suffering with sharp, zinging lower back pain for years (related to 2 herniated discs – L4/L5 – L5/S1) but this time the mild Sciatica I had been experiencing on and off for years, turned into an excruciating nerve pain that got worse over the course of 5 days. Luckily, I had an up-to-date MRI so the surgeon quickly diagnosed an L4 protrusion pushing on the Sciatic nerve. My options: 1) wait it out and hope it eventually settles down 2) Discectomy. Notice that there was no option 3 for me. At the time of the diagnosis, I had been on laying on my stomach for 2 weeks – the only position that didn’t aggravate my Sciatica, medication brought no relief, and seeking any type of therapy meant moving, and moving was intolerable.
The miscrodiscectomy took 2 hours and when I woke up the nerve zingers were gone…errr…for the most part. After a few days of recovery I could tell that all was not perfect. As the surgeon explained to me, there may be some permanent or semi permanent nerve damage depending on how hard my Sciatic nerve was pinched. I still feel a duller version of the original sciatic pain radiating down the back of my calf to the ankle…about 1/10 the strength. Other issues I’m experiencing include partial foot numbness (top half) and scar tissue pain from the incision (which is minimal). This article outlines some of the complications that can occur after surgery.
All things considered, I’m glad I went through with the procedure but time will tell if it was a complete success. Here’s my scar and minor swelling 4 weeks post surgery:
And here’s Susan Kaye’s follow up videos after a microdiscectomy at L4/L5. Watching her recover really put my mind at ease pre-surgery.
