I’m back to working Corrections in the jail. With the weight of gun belt and ballistic vest...the spinal canal has narrowed between L4 and L5 Lumbar vertebrae, to the point where I have severe shooting pains down both legs...along with the inability to walk. Especially in the morning and night.

MRI showed severe stenosis along with arthritis. A prominent Neuro Surgeon has scheduled me for surgery April 9th, to remove bone matter obstructing spinal cord and nerves in that area.

I’ve tried alternate therapies to no avail. Thought I’d reach out to synthzone friends for advice.

Thanks,
jingleman

Hi J,

Wishing you the best on 4/9. You will feel much better to get that nerve free. Are they doing a fusion? Will they do surgery through the front or back?

I had a C1/C2 procedure in 2009 and another (same) in 2012. Currently, I have a herniated C5/6 disc, but just living with the pain for now.

Expect a recovery time for a few months - delicate area. A neck brace will help and make you feel more secure after surgery.

Best of luck to you...........

BTW, my MRI done this past month to reveal the C5/6 problem, revealed another problem - cyst on Adenoid. Of course, this necessitated another trip to an ENT. Camera up the nose was no fun, but the cyst was just a fluid pocket (thank God), so was good news - nothing required.

Jingleman, hope everything works out well for you, the recovery time is usually a couple months and recurrence is not unusual due to adhesions, though this usually takes several years or even decades to reoccur.

You will not likely have a spinal fusion, but a laminectomy instead of a discectomy. The procedure usually requires one to two days of hospitalization, then a couple months of physical therapy.

Good luck,

Gary

Does this have anything to do with standing while performing?....

in any case good luck and get well very soon!!

Donny, spinal stenosis is primarily attributed to the aging process, but has also been attributed to smoking, which decreases blood flow to vital organs and the spine. Standing for hours on end while playing could eventually cause problems, even when the keyboard is adjusted on the stand to the highest playing position.

The biggest culprit is calcification of the spinal foramen, the openings in the spine where the nerves exit. As these openings begin to close, sometimes due to inflammation, the nerve is compressed, resulting in horrendous pain that often radiates down the affected extremity. In the case of L4/5 L5/S1, this compresses the sciatic nerve. In my case, the compression is so severe that my right leg is partly paralyzed. This is something I just have to live with because of my lung problem. I would not survive the anesthesia.

Hope this helps,

Gary

Gary... Understood

I've had this procedure done a year ago this coming June. Stenosis and bone spurs. I'm living pain free and have resumed my normal activities. I had the best neuro surgeon in the Seattle area do the surgery and he did a wonderful job. I'm sure you will do fine as well. Be careful with follow-up physical therapy. Listen to what "your" body is telling you and don't let the therapist over stress your spine. You know what is best for yourself and trust your good judgement.

Take care.

Jingleman
Had laminectomy/microdiscectomy in'06. As Gary described; recovery was short. It did not work for me however as I needed a fusion in same place (L5/6) within 2 years.Unfortunately the nerve damage was done by the time the mechanics were stabilized and I still suffer with pain.

So my advice to you is don't put it off before too much damage is done. Recovery from fusion is longer.

Jim,
I had c5/6 fused in 2010 also..I'm full of hardware.

The best part of this post is the warning you have given to the rest of us, thank you Jingleman.

Do the exercises that are needed to strengthen the parts that lifting and standing by our keyboards is trying to damage. Last year I began to get a little ting when I lifted my keyboard, I have been going to the gym since with no problems.
Please don’t wait, I can feel the pain of the men that have posted here.

John C.

I'm hoping for the best for you, Jingleman:

Not sure but I may be joining your "club" after seeing a specialist soon.

Gary, (our resident expert) is there any truth to the "Inversion Therapy" claims? I would have to take baby steps to prevent passing out in an upside-down suspension... but if it can decompress any of my lower spine it might get rid of the terrible pain I often feel in my right leg when I try to walk. (That is a condition which seems to come and go but seems to be intensifying lately.)

Dang, sounds like we are all falling apart. Exercise is not an option for me. Turning at the waist, bending, stooping are all painful. Had to give up golf and that alone nearly killed me.

----Dave

I have not had back surgery, but have had problems over the years. At one point I met a Chiropractor. Even though I had heard good and bad about them, I went to see him.
He adjusted my back and it was better. But then, he gave me a metal bar that fits between a door jam, and told me if I would hang from by my hands I would probably never need to see him again.
He was right. Every time I felt a twinge I would hand on that, or a tree branch or whatever for a few seconds, and it helped a lot. The doctor told me that it was just about the same as the inversion board.
I can't hang on anything now because my weight would probably pull my arms off.
I still grab on to something now and then and let it pull, but without totally lifting me off the ground,.
For those that aren't in real trouble yet, it might be worth doing. Can't hurt.

Dave, inversion therapy is very effective and used by a number of physical therapy centers in my part of the nation. It has the same effect as traction therapy, which was used for many years until inversion therapy came along. Essentially, this is for someone with disc compression and can be somewhat beneficial with disc herniation. The weight of your body pulls the vertebra apart, separating the spaces and relieving the pressure on the discs.

The effect is short term, lasting from a few hours to a few days. Unfortunately, I have one that is brand, spanking new here that I cannot use because when you are inverted, your gut pushes against your diaphragm, which makes breathing somewhat difficult. My lung volume is only 20 percent of normal at this stage of my pulmonary fibrosis, therefore, any decrease in my ability to breathe is brutal. I am giving my inversion table away, but only locally as the shipping cost is nearly $100.

All the best,

Gary

Best wishes for a full recovery!

Guys...thanks for all your thoughts and concern. As Gary stated, the aging process has caused bone spurs and arthritis along with stenosis. I had a great Chiropractor who provides his services without any out of pocket expense.

I’ve tried his electronic table decompression machine. Actually hurt me more than helped.
Unfortunately, the opioid epedemic has doctors afraid to prescribe much pain medication.
The only thing that seems help is 600 mg of ibuprofen.

The problem with that is I have a bad stomach. Gives me stomach ache, bruising and bleeding. Hopefully, the surgery will provide enough relief to get me to retirement.
Thanks again everyone. Getting old is not for the feint of heart!

jingleman

Dang, Gary:

Wish I lived closer to the "People's Republic" so I could hire a kid to drive my old Pickup Truck over and haul that thing away for you. Despite the pain, life is worth living, music is worth writing and recording and I'm so appreciative of all the great folks who "hang out" here and offer great advice, share "war stories" and explain stuff I'd never even find in the manual for my Arranger.

Jingleman... you are facing a situation I'm going to resist as long as humanly possible... but it sounds like one of the few good options for you. My prayers and hopes are with you.

----Dave

Thanks Dave. You guys are a great resource and support network!

jingleman

WOW ... is this because we are all getting old(er) or because we are KB players?!?

I've suffered with Spinal Stenosis and Spondylolisthesis (L4 - L5) off and on (lately more ON than OFF ) for a number of years ... PT and exercise have helped - if only I would be diligent enough to do it ...

Tony: The funny thing is (not funny ha..ha) my back isn’t where the pain is. It’s my legs. I get home from work and can barely walk. The sciatica is terrible. Shooting pains down the back of both legs is killing me.

jingleman

jingleman ... No surprise about the pain in your legs ... shifting discs can put pressure on the nerves shooting that pain down your legs ...

What’s a little embarrassing are the screams I let out involuntarily at work when the shooting pain is severe.

Hang in there! You'll be scream free in a few weeks. I also moan half the night, every night, but I am not going to do another spine surgery.

Thanks Zuki. I’m not excited about having back surgery either. Have just run out of options.

jingleman

zuki, sorry to hear about your back problems, but happy to see you are still lurking around here ...

I honestly don't remember much about my laminectomy. Recovery was not too difficult. Now the fusion I remember everything about..

That gives me some hope...thanks Jim

Hey, at least you have some hope for surgical success and the possibility to be pain free. I no longer have that option, so I just have to resort to booze and drugs, neither of which does a very good job, but it's all I have. After two extensive spinal surgical procedures, the neurosurgeons (3) said surgery was no longer an option, and there's a good chance that even if I were to survive the anesthesia, I could end up paralyzed from the waist down. Been there, done that, and never want to go through that again.

I sincerely hope your surgery produces a good outcome and you are soon pain free. I'm gonna top off my glass of ice cubes with Jim Bean Honey Bourbon and enjoy a low carb dinner of bacon wrapped shrimp.

Good luck,

Gary

Jingleman when is the surgery?

It’s scheduled for April 9th, Donny. Got my fingers crossed.

Gary...sorry your suffering. Sounds like you have a pretty good plan B(eam) though

Good luck I know you will do great!

Man, I don't envy you. I personally am a complete woose when it comes to pain. Old age doesn't help a bit. I have been having prostate problems for some time so at the wife's insistence i went to the doctor. First thing is he wanted to do a scope and look at it from the inside. Was assured that it was not painful. Just a little discomfort. Boy was that a lie! On a scale of 1 to 10 it was a 12! Well, the inside was all infected and they needed to scrape the inside clean. This was to clear up the problem. Again, small discomfort that turned into level 12 pain when I came to. Almost a year later and I still have problems wetting my pants. My wife has had major problems with her back for years. She has had operations on her back and neck. She almost didn't make it after the back operation at Kansas State. After that, she said never again. Well 3 weeks ago she was back in the hospital doing a back operation. Seems the nerves have gotten twisted up around the spinal cord or something and of course she is in constant pain. With the elimination of pain medicine she opted for another operation. When she came out of operation she had lost all use of her lower body. Can't walk. She's been in the hospital for 3 weeks this time and they are planning on sending her home next Tuesday. She's been in therapy and is able to finally use a walker. Has been able to go 50 feet with assistance and still in lots of pain. They say she can go to a NH but she refuses. So we're looking at home health care and therapy when she gets home. I also have back trouble. I can't walk to the mailbox and back without severe pain. Once I sit down I get relief but it means I'm sitting ALL the time. I'm sure some Doc is going to recommend an operation. I will fight it to the end. I would rather have to sit on my butt for the rest of my life than go through what I have seen my wife go through these last few years. Quite frankly I am waiting for the state to get there act together and open up the dispensary's we voted to allow. I have some arthritis or tendanitis in my hands and have found the only thing to help is cbd and I hope that marijuana will help with the back pain when I am able to get it. I tried some a while back but can't handle smoking it so will wait for it to be offered in a pill form of some sort.

I know this post is a total negative take on operations and I don't mean to discourage you. I really do hope you all the best. I know that there have been those that get relief from the operation. I pray that that will be the case for you.

Thanks for sharing your testimony with us all. It reminds me to remain humble considering my relatively minor problem compared to the serious health issues many face on our wonderful forum.

My wife too has suffered from a debilitating form of arthritis known as ankylosing spondylosis. Has been disabled since 2007. She suffers far worse than me and has been treated by so many doctors...I can’t count. She is now trying medical marijuana, and is having some success. After years of opiate based medications (which they treat you like a drug dealer), hopefully medical marijuana will be able to replace opiates.

Thanks again to you all for your thoughts and support. I’m sure I’ll be fine. Already got my little studio setup ready while I’m convalescing. Maybe I’ll be able to dig into the 970 and figure it out as well as most of you guys have accomplished with your keyboards.

Thanks again,
jingleman

Jingleman,
About 5 years ago I started having tingling and numbness in my arms. I eventually had Cervical Spine surgery which included a fusion of 3 vertebrae. Best thing I decided to do. Here is what I learned. ANYTHING related to nerve damaged needs to be fixed ASAP. The reason-once nerves reach a certain point of damage they can NOT be repaired and the symptoms will remain regardless of the surgery. The best they can do is stop the progression of the damage. Because I waited to long today I still have numb finger tips in both hands.

About 3 years ago I started having tingling in my left leg. I had Lumber Spine surgery( a lamenectomy) done and all is great today. This time I knew not to wait and it ended really well.
FYI- both surgeries were required because of spinal stenosis.

Neither of the surgeries were difficult to go through and I would do either again without hesitation.

This has been my real life experience -- hope it helps your thinking about it all.

Deane

Spine surgeries result in fewer complications when done by highly experienced surgeons. Don't hesitate to ask about your surgeon's experience with spinal stenosis surgery. If you have any doubts, get a second opinion.


Regards

Jerryghr

Thanks Deane and Jerry: Deane...I hope to have the success you had. I am looking forward to being able to get out of bed without the help of a cane.

Jerry...I have talked with the two top neuro surgeons in the Fort Myers area. I feel as though I picked the best one for my needs.

Thanks again to all. The support shown on this wonderful forum is nothing short of amazing!

God bless you all,
jingleman