Bulging discs. Back pain.

[Grammy123]

I had an MRI last week . The results roughly were:

5 bulging discs, most with disc desiccation.

Two of them are constricting the thecal sac and almost completely effacing the CSF column around the lumbar nerve roots.

I have multilevel facet arthropathy from L2/3 down to L5/S1.

I have been on morphine for a number of years for back and neck pain.

The doctor prescribed Lyrica for me to try, 75mg twice a day, and complete best rest.

My usual doctor was away and not back until next week .

I have an appointment October 15th at the hospital to see the neuronal department.

Has anyone else had this problem, obviously they must hav 3, but can anyone give me any idea what to expect.

Christine.

[Boozybird]

Hi Christine,

Sorry to hear about your back. It's very distressing to be in pain for a long time not knowing why exactly and then read a MRI report which sounds even more frightening! No one is a doctor on this site but I'm sure most people would tell you that pain varies from hour to hour, day to day which suggests to me that we can't base our understanding of back pain on what a MRI shows. I have specific nerve root compression on MRI but never had leg pain which according to MRI I really should have! My understanding is that discs dry out over time and become stiff. Facets start to complain about that. Only the outer few millimetres of the disc have a nerve supply so if a disc finally breaks down chemicals start to irritate these nerves causing pain. At the moment science can't reverse this and doesn't even know why the breakdown occurs more quickly in some people than others. 'Bad' posture can certainly play a role forcing weight to be transferred onto discs when it should be more evenly spread. But who knows. My point is that not to worry about the MRI too much. It pretty much sounds 'normal' for back pain. Have you tried physio and massage to try to keep movement going in your spine? Use pain killers to get going - think broken arm getting going again after a break. Easy movement is the goal. Easier said than done but try to stay hopeful. A good physio can try to mobilise your lower spinal segments (and neck!) give you stuff to do at home (nothing too much!) and start you going. Best wishes

[Court]

Your back trouble sounds very similar to mine. It appears that I am not a suitable candidate for surgery and my pain will have to be managed with meds. One word of caution. Lyrica was fine at a low dose, but when GP increased it I suffered a very bad reaction. I completely lost the plot. Kept falling asleep and was confused, sounding drunk. He stopped the Lyrica and put me on Celebrex.

[johnsmith]

What to expect can be anything because how the muscles behave is an important factor. Muscle behaviour despite its importance has been virtually ignored by the medical profession.

Postural balance is going to make a difference to the amount of pain you are in and how fast the problem worsens.

This is an area where things like Alexander Technique and Mindfulness will help. They are unlikely to cure but they will help with pain control.

Hope this helps

[elsiek]

You seem to know what your talking about as regards to what is causing your pain and getting somewhere with your doctor that in itself is great

hope everything works out for you

[Heorte]

Similar here, but told no op suitable, conservative measures e.g physio and meds. That was five years ago "and if I'd known then...." Please be pushy - doesn't have to involve op - but the time wasted between one appt and next can give rise to more probs/ less options. Take someone with you so you dont get bamboozled

On a positive, it can be very liberating knowing exactly what the problems are, can't it!