[Spinal Fusion / Lumbar] L5/S1 plif

[krismmic]

Hello:-) I am just 3 months out from my L5/S1 PLIF and agree that you should definitely have had some kind of imaging by now. My surgeon has already done a CT and lumbar xrays and I'm scheduled to have another CT in 3 months. I think everyone recovers differently and with different timelines. There is a huge range of "normal". I am not really taking any pain medication at all anymore except for an occasional Ultram and while I am still having difficulty sitting for long periods of time, for the most part I feel pretty good! I exercise quite a bit (with the help of a great PT person) including work with weights, 4.5 miles a day on a bike and tons of core strengthening and have found this is really helping me a lot. Hang in there, but listen to your body, and definitely insist on imaging or get a new surgeon. That just doesn't sound right to me.

[Cindylou]

Any new news Matt? Been thinking about you. Cindylou

[Matt]

Hello:-) I am just 3 months out from my L5/S1 PLIF and agree that you should definitely have had some kind of imaging by now. My surgeon has already done a CT and lumbar xrays and I'm scheduled to have another CT in 3 months. I think everyone recovers differently and with different timelines. There is a huge range of "normal". I am not really taking any pain medication at all anymore except for an occasional Ultram and while I am still having difficulty sitting for long periods of time, for the most part I feel pretty good! I exercise quite a bit (with the help of a great PT person) including work with weights, 4.5 miles a day on a bike and tons of core strengthening and have found this is really helping me a lot. Hang in there, but listen to your body, and definitely insist on imaging or get a new surgeon. That just doesn't sound right to me.

Krismmic,
I agree it is a little odd. I spoke with my primary care physician (pcp) about it last week, and he didn't seem alarmed. I think if I insisted, the doctor would not hesitate, but would question my reasoning. My recovery has been mixed and slow at times. The scabs from my incision did not come off until about 3 months. In his defense, he did not force me to go back to work, it was entirely my decision. The man is absolutely brilliant and after posting here, I re-read his resume and was blown away by his accomplishments. Maybe it is a case of him letting me lead my recovery? I did ask my pcp if he thought any of my symptoms would raise concern regarding non-union. He didn't think so and told me I would know it if that happened.

I am still trying to find the time to get into PT - my surgeon mailed me a script without any hesitation. Can you feel the hardware whenever you move? I think part of my problem is that my range of motion is limited and I keep trying to move the same way I have for the past 38 years.

I am so grateful to have found this board - people here seem very genuine, concerned and helpful. Thank you for your reply - if the PT doesn't help, I will definitely ask them to reimage my back. On another note, my in home PT guy said he really didn't think I needed regular PT. Odd - I didn't follow his advice, I just didn't have the funds at the time - the surgery hit my budget a lot harder than I planned, but 2011 is a new year

[Matt]

Any new news Matt? Been thinking about you. Cindylou

Cindylou,
Thank you! That is so kind I need to set some time aside to find a good PT person, and soon! I ran a 5k (on a treadmill) in 27 minutes on Monday - yes I has some pain later, but the muscles in my legs hurt more than by back and by noon the next day, I felt better - I guess that's good! At my best, I was running 5K in 24 minutes, so I am not too far off. I have been working with free weights and some core strengthening my core and, based on the suggestion of Hooch, have been working on strengthening my multifidus muscle.

I would love to find a lap pool and start swimming - somehow I think that would be better than running.. With the running, I think I have my metabolism in the right direction now - not seeing huge weight loss, but am getting it down about 1.5-2lbs a week (I put on 20lbs after the surgery).

I am still in pain when I am in certain positions, but am trying to manage it with cool packs and tylenol when needed. NSAIDS really mess me up..

I definitely feel much better than before the surgery. I am a physical type of person that likes to do things myself rather than pay people - it is so satisfying I just get frustrated with the recovery time and before I found this board, felt very much on my own.

[Hooch]

Gday Matt, you are really motivated to work on your body and I think that's awesome. Sometimes I have really been surprised by chronically injured people I've met in person who don't bother with physio or rehab, simply because it's too much effort to try.

I dunno what program you're using for that multifidus, but I hope you're aware that it's not a muscle to strengthen, it's an endurance stabiliser for everyday movements. If you look on the web you can see all sorts of exercises, like supermans, which don't help with the endurance aspects of the multifidus and are poor way of training the extensors, and a good way of breaking your back down.

If you want to train yourself to strengthen your back and not break it down, but don't want to flip dollars to some uni graduate I'd recommend

Amazon.com: Spinal Stabilization: The New Science of Back Pain, 2nd Edition (9780968871515): Rick Jemmett: Books

A very good, cheap book which will bring you up to date. You can use it to strengthen yourself from the inside out. But be aware TA activation can be difficult to grasp without coaching. You can bench press 400pound and still have no core activation and endurance and plenty of back pain. Different muscles for different purposes.

If you want to read more about training yourself once you've got your TA and multifidus sweet, best book is Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance by Stuart McGill.

BackFitPro.com

He's a professor of biomechanics, it's a very useful book, but is a little more exxy.

Have fun with the weights and running, if I can get there myself in 4-6 months I will have to go and give thanks to something

[Matt]

**Update**
I have been in PT since 1/31 and can feel a difference. It is amazing what tightening your stomach muscles will do to stabilize your back.. A good start. Apparently, I do not have much abdominal strength right now.

I was informed that the script for my PT was open ended meaning there was not a number of sessions indicated - I guess I look at that as a good thing.

[Hooch]

[Cindylou]

**Update**
I have been in PT since 1/31 and can feel a difference. It is amazing what tightening your stomach muscles will do to stabilize your back.. A good start. Apparently, I do not have much abdominal strength right now.

I was informed that the script for my PT was open ended meaning there was not a number of sessions indicated - I guess I look at that as a good thing.

Matt, that is great! And good for you that your hard work with your core is already making a difference. I'm glad you opted for more pt. And as long as you keep doing your exercises you should see continued marked improvement. Glad the weight is coming off too.....that's gotta feel good. Good to hear from you. Regards, CL

[Justin]

**Update**
I have been in PT since 1/31 and can feel a difference. It is amazing what tightening your stomach muscles will do to stabilize your back.. A good start. Apparently, I do not have much abdominal strength right now.

I was informed that the script for my PT was open ended meaning there was not a number of sessions indicated - I guess I look at that as a good thing.

Hey Matt,

This is great news! It really is amazing what a stable, strong core will do for your back. The open-ended script is awesome--take advantage of it!