Decisions, decisions
 

Not new, but haven't posted in a long while.
Long time sufferer of low back pain.
Just got home from my consultation in NYC with Dr's Thomas Bierstedt and Bernd Illerhaus
I was told both L4-L5 and L5-S1 are a 4 on a degenerative scale of 1-5(5 being worst)
Bulge at L3-L4
3 level adr M-6 recommended
They said they were certain my symptoms were because of the discs and not facets or scarring from my 2 previous discectomies.
They seemed so confident that i'd be back to normal in no time without a hitch.
While my pain is not debilitating, it is chronic and they said it will most likely get worse.
I tend to agree and believe its only a matter of time before L3-L4 herniates and the lower levels collapse.
I think i need to do this, big,big decision.
It's either do it now or wait till things get progressively worse.
Would love some feedback on any 3 levelers out there.
Thanks guys.

Hi,

A 3 leveler lumbar M6's here done by Dr. Bierstedt ask away.

Thanks SB
Looks like you're a year out from a 3 level and i've read through a lot of your posts.
Before your surgery-----
-On a scale of 1-10 can you remember what your back pain only was?
-was it constant?
-did you have much leg pain?

After surgery-----
-were there any complications?
-was your back pain instantly gone?
-did you experience any increased nerve pain?
-any distraction pain?
-how strenuous was the rehab period?
-did you get to leave Germany on the date you were told?
-would you go through the experience again?

Also did you request a certain doctor- Bierstedt or Illerhaus?
And the most important question....
How are you feeling presently?---doing well i hope
Sorry for so many questions and i appreciate your time....
Hopefully i'm in the position in the future to be able to help another fellow sufferer

My back pain was a 7 or up since the last flair up in 2011.
It was constant,
Leg pain was not that bad, left side when it did happen.
After surgery ...
No complications
My back pain was pretty much gone compared to my stomach pain.
I had big time nerve and distraction pain starting about 6 weeks after surgery
I still consider myself in rehab.
We left Germany on schedule.
Where I am know compared to where I was before surgery I would go through it again.
Dr. Illerhaus was not an option when I went.
I'm doing well, post op over one year now, still giving myself time to completely heal.

Wow, i just realized you had an injury when you were 10...
OMG you've dealt with this crap a lot longer than me.
Are you back to work full time if you don't mind me asking?
You can PM me if you want if you don't want it public...

Thats basically where im at now.
Back hurts all the time but not quite at a 7.
I'm always careful not to bend or twist or lift anything for the fear of a reinjury and that sciatic shock coming back.
Every family member i talk to is telling me to do this.
My wife is so on board and wants the old me back.

One more question
On your xrays/MRI were you bone on bone at any levels?

I was 10 when I had my first back incident, I've had many years of no or low back pain since then prior to my surgery. I was recovering quite nicely after the prolotherapy sessions I had when in 2011 something just happened to my lower back. It literally took me months to figure out that this pain was different. Instead of taking off work a day or 2 to deal with it I started taking a week or 2. Getting out of bed was hard, as was standing and showering next to impossible when it flared up as it did often. I stopped going to work in August of 2011 because I couldn't get out of the house. So things were getting desperate.
I started back to work in May 2013, fulltime in September 2013.
My family was amazed the first time they saw me after my surgery, they couldn't believe it.
My wife was onboard too, she had to do all the heavy lifting on this.
The radiologist report on my 2012 lying down xray stated near bone on bone L4-L5.

I didn't find another forum to discuss these questions, so i'll just keep this thread going.

One thing that concerns me deeply is if i decide to postpone the ADR surgery.
Even though my condition is chronic and is always there, i wonder how much worse will it get if i don't do ADR.
Some days it's so so and some days it hurts but i think my mind and body has accepted and adjusted to the pain. The Cymbalta has probably contributed to this also or i would've weened off of it.
There seem to be a lot more people worse off than me and since having a 3 level ADR is a major surgery i'm still scared to death.
Do i live with the devil i know or don't know?
If i wait, of course my DDD will only progress, but will the pain?
It's like i'm at the point if i do the ADR's it's more of a proactive move in my current mind.
Do i wait till my discs collapse or facets get worse. Seems like a no brainer but still a major, major decision not knowing the outcome.
just an example is my L3-L4 has a bulge with disc desiccation.
It's been like this since first confirmed on an MRI in 2000.
It hasn't herniated and disc height hasn't changed much.
When i had my consultation with Bierstadt, Malte told me i should get it replaced as i was already considering ADR at L4-S1 and my last surgery should be my last. Almost makes me feel like a throw in if you know what i mean.

Pete, you sound a lot like me as far as your back is concerned. I've had daily pain in my back for over 20 years. It never goes away, but I've always been able to cope with it. I raced motorcycles for 10 years and up until last summer had been racing mountain bikes. There were days I wanted to blow my brains out, and days where I was in heaven because the pain was tolerable. But I was always able to get through my day without too much drama, and the good days gave me hope. But those days started to crumble.

I looked into ADR about 6 years ago, but decided I'd wait until I could no longer wait. Then last summer I injured my back (again) and I've been unable to function normally since. I finally reached the point where my life is pretty much no longer my own, and surgery is a last resort. I've done a ton of research and exercised every possible non surgical option. And I'm at peace with my decision to undergo ADR and can't wait to land in Germany in a few weeks

What I'm saying is, I know exactly what you're dealing with. I'm scared out of my mind. But if I don't take this chance my life is pretty much done as it is. It's a big decision to undergo back surgery, and one that should be made only after you've done your due diligence.

Happiness for me comes down to quality of life. If your quality of life is permanently compromised, then ADR might be a consideration.

Good luck

Thanks Ian, i know exactly.
I wish you nothing but luck and hope you get that quality of life back.

On another note it seems as if Dr. Biersdedt just burst on to the scene.
How did people start to find out about him?
I know a partial history of Malte Peterson.

Pete,

I you use the advanced search options on this site search for Dr. Bierstedt and sort chronologically you will get a answer to your question.