This is the only way I can describe the last 3 weeks. I had been having some tightness in my back for a couple of months now, but it wasn't anything major. Then about 4 weeks ago I started with a very mild sciatica, pain over the buttocks area and an occasional cramp in my calf but I really didn't think too much about it and with all the medication I've been taking for my arm it was helping with the back.
Well on Monday, September 19th I woke up with pains shooting all the way down my left leg by 2 pm I was crying uncontrollably with pain. I couldn't sit, stand or lie down with hurting. My dear husband couldn't take watching me in pain any longer so he call an ambulance to come and get me. I was brought to the hospital where they started giving me morphine for the pain. They did a ct scan of my back and found I had a pinched nerve. I was admitted to the hospital for treatment.
On Tuesday they attempted to have PT work with me to alleviate the pain and pressure but it was unsuccessful. So I spent another day in a pain and a morphine induced coma. On Wednesday I was brought downstairs for an epidural nerve block and steroid injection. During the procedure my O2 dropped too low so I was placed on O2 for the remainder of my stay. I was returned to my room after the epidural where the doctor informed my husband that the epidural didn't work and my only other option was surgery AND he couldn't do that until Friday. So now I'm in excruciating pain and will have to suffer for two more days. My husband decided that we needed to consult with a pain management doctor and ask that one be contacted. The pain management doctor took one look at me and ordered some sort of "cocktail" that put me in a near comatose state. All I know is that I was able to sleep in spite of the pain. On Friday, September 23rd I underwent surgery to relieve the pinched nerve at L5 and S1. I woke from surgery and couldn't move my left leg at all and the pain was almost as severe as before the surgery. The doctor told us that because of the amount of pressure that the nerve was under I was going to have nerve pain for months to come. It took me three days before I was able to move my toes on command. Five days after surgery I was moved to Rehab and spent 5 days there before being released to return home. It has been 17 days since my surgery and I'm still having nerve pain in my foot and calf. Hope it all resolves soon.
