[Will.L]

Hi everyone,

I probably have the same story most of you have. I had a rock climbing accident about 6 years ago where I fell from a decent height and landed upright. Since then whenever I play soccer, or just run in general, I have experienced extreme discomfort that lasts for days. This discomfort had usually been on the right side of my lower back and my hip.

My son was born two years ago and since his birth my back has gotten noticeably worse. I imagine it has something to do with picking up and holding a child that gets heavier by the day. Last year after chronic pain in my hip had gotten to a point where I felt medical intervention was needed, I got an MRI of my hip as well as my lumbar spine. The MRI showed a torn labrum, an acetabular impingement in my hip, and a bulged disc at my L4/L5. My doctors assumed since I'm young that the pain wasn't coming from my back but was coming from my hip. I then underwent hip surgery to correct the torn labrum and the impingement. I would not recommend it. I have since recovered from that surgery and most of the pain in my hip is gone.

Sadly, my lower back pain has continued and has deteriorated since then. I've had a few times where I have been in such extreme pain that I cannot even get out of bed. These instances have gotten worse each time they happen.

I've been doing physical therapy off and on for the past 4 years or so with little to no help. My last round of physical therapy was after a particularly bad lower back pain incident that left me in bed for a week. This was last fall.

Went back to my doctor, got another MRI, and my disc showed further dehydration and bulging.

A week after I got my MRI, while stupidly lifting a heavy object with my back, I felt a pop in my lower back and felt blinding pain shoot down both of my legs all the way to my ankles. I couldn't get out of bed for 2 and a half weeks.

Got an epidural injection, it did nothing. My doctors then sent in a request to United Healthcare for a disc replacement surgery, which was promptly denied since it's in the lumbar.

Now I've sent my MRI studies and X-rays to Drs. Clavel and Ritter-Lang and I'm waiting to hear back. I'm hoping I can get it done sooner rather than later. Since March my back seems like it's getting worse at a faster rate. Multiple times a day I get shooting pain down my legs and I can't sit or stand for too long without it getting very uncomfortable. I'm tired of treating myself like a fragile person and want to get back to being able to exercise.

Sorry if that was a long winded introduction but that's about that. I look forward to interacting with other that have gone through what I'm going through or are in my boat trying to figure out the next step.

-Will