Jackie
For all of you wondering if you should have a fusion surgery or not, please let me tell you my story. I have suffered for two years with low back pain and it has definately gotten in the way of living normally and being able to work consistently. I have tried everything possible to help eliminate the pain of a degenerated and bulging disk. Way to many injections as well as PT too. Nothing has worked for the long haul and I think that if your disk is degenerated, then it is not going to get better without surgery. Five days ago I had a lumbar fusion surgery at Level 4-5 and from the minute I woke up, the previous pain I had in the low back seemed gone. While I am definately in pain and I cannot yet bend, it is a different kind of pain .......a pain from surgery and NOT a degenerated disk. I can only continue to hope that each day I will heal and soon I will be myself again. I can now sit in a chair and not feel that terrible painful pressure I used to feel and my surgery was only five days ago. Get a surgeon like mine who knows exactly what he's doing, and don't suffer as long as I did hoping the pain will go away because I don't believe degeneration will ever go away. I'm glad I did it even though I was very scared. I did not have any leg symptoms before surgery, and I do not have any after either. Anyone who's interested in talking to me further, please feel free to e-mail me anytime. I would like to help someone else like me and I'm only 39. You can be yourself again and get your life back. I intend to work hard stabilizing my back and building up the muscles around my spine. Finally there is some hope in my future!