Back Surgery Likely

[Saltheart]

Good luck Bob. I had a big issue with my sacroilliac joints a few years ago. They don't operate on that. The best option was what they called trigger point injections of a steroid called kenalog (?sp). You can only get 3 I think either a year or in 6 months (might grow and extra nut if you overdo it , or worse , lose one of the two you got ) but anyway , it wa s amiracle cure. First one did just a little but I was still really bent and in pain. Second one a month or so later didn't have any immediate feeling of relief but after about two weeks , the dammned joint let out a crack like a branch breaking and suddenly everything was good! I guess it takes a while to let the steroids relieve the inflamation which restores some of the normal flex in the joint. it then just settled in closer to where it was supposed to be. Anyway , ask about "Trigger Point Injections".

lastly , get a good doctor and trust him. What worked for one may not work for another as the degree and type of damage can be different amongst people. If ist really nailing the nerve , he will know and best to fix it before permanent damage is done.

I never had back surgery but I have had 11 knee opperations and one hip replaces starting with the first knee surgury in 69. Now a days they get you right up and going again so usually the recovery period is remarkably fast. Be sure to ask specifically about golf too. It may be that with your specific problem golf is OK or not.

Again , good luck!

[Slipknot]

Good luck Bob, which disk is it?

I ruptured L-5 / S-1 in 1997, carried a vanity up the stairs by myself with too much weight out in front of me disk popped. I had back troubles for a few years and had gotten by with massage so i thought the leg sciatica pain I had was due to muscular as that's what the doctors told me. I kept working and it got worse as i was also building my own addition on my house. I framed the whole thing wih the ruptured disk
It got so bad I went to someone who knew it was not muscular and suggested I get an MRI

I got a neurosurgeon to operate in a week. A lumbar lamenectomy they called it. Recovery took a couple months of therapy and my wife kept us above water somehow, then I got back to work slowly easing into shopwork while continuing to strengthen the back. I'm glad I was young.

I bet you'll do fine but every case is different.

Like was mentioned, the longer you wait , the more nerve damage can occur.

Find the right guy for you and get well soon.

I feel bad for the nurses

[Rappin Mikey]

Speedy recovery to you!

[striperman36]

My doc actually steered my away from the knife, PT and exercise, worked through the issues. I did have several herniated disks, but not collapsed disks. Each situation is different. Those that have been through the surgery can tell you. However, I spent several YEARS, doing PT to get past it. skeletal muscle PT sucks. I would do it again though, if I had to.