Ow, my back. :(

Last July I noticed that my leg was giving me some pain, but I didn't know why. It hurt a lot getting in and out of the car, and I started to limp. It got bad enough that I asked my sister Missy to help (she's a doctor of Physical Therapy). I feel bad asking her, because she should get paid, but she likes to help. She said it was probably something in my lower back, and she gave me lots of exercises to do. It wasn't getting any better, so I went to the doctor. He sent me to physical therapy, which I went to 3 times a week. They basically had me doing the same exercises that Missy prescribed, but they were also bending my leg back and other stuff that I couldn't do on my own, or shouldn't, because I'm not a licensed professional. I went back to my doctor after a few weeks, and it hadn't gotten any better. He gave me Naproxen to take, and boy oh boy, did I ever love Naproxen. The pain almost totally went way, but only if I stayed on the meds. Otherwise, it still wasn't getting any better.

I ended up at a neurologist, and they gave me an MRI. It turned out that I had a protruding disc at L5, which is your lower spine (even though it sounds like a video game title). It was affecting the nerve that goes to my right leg. He gave me some Neurontin for nerve pain and said to come back in a month to see if I needed surgery. I had to stop going to PT because my work changed their insurance plan, and I was forced to take their insurance as my primary, instead of using Sarah's. So of course, my new insurance no longer covered my PT. My PT Wayne told me to keep doing the exercises and stretches at home that I had been doing, which I did.

I went back to the neurologist, and he said I was not a candidate for surgery, and that most back pain went away after awhile. He told me not to go back to PT, and not to try traction (which Wayne really wanted me to have), because he "didn't believe in it." He said it could make you worse or better, there were no guarantees (my sister agreed with this, so I didn't pursue it).

I was okay to work, because I stand all day, and I am usually moving around (if I stand in one spot for too long, my leg falls asleep). But sitting for long periods of time was a problem. My co-worker also has back problems, and she brought in a spine cushion that she had for me to try. It's basically a seat cushion with a hole cut out for where your spine goes. It kind of looks like a briefcase. I took one look at this thing and had my doubts, but I'll be damned if it didn't work! I started taking it everywhere, and I was surprised at how unselfconscious I was about carrying it around (I'm almost 40, I guess that's when it kicks in).

The holidays came and I got busier and busier at work, and the exercises fell by the wayside. I am still taking the Neurontin though, I would be in a lot of pain if I didn't. I was in a lot of pain one day this week, and I realized later that I forgot my medication 3 times, consecutively. I was fine the next day. I have done the exercises at times, but not regularly. I need to go back to the Y too, I haven't done that in months. I think that I was suffering from some post-holiday/winter depression that I seem to be finally breaking out of. I was able to get some stuff done this week, so I'm hopeful that I can keep it up. I just have to make sure I get enough sleep, because I'm pretty tired today.

All the doctors and PTs asked me what caused my protruding disc, but at the time, I couldn't remember. I think I finally figured it out: I helped a neighbor move a couch sometime in the summer. It was one of those heavy ones with the recliner on each end. I know it was before my leg started hurting, because I wouldn't have been able to help him. It was very, very heavy, and there was only two of us. I believe he is in his late 60s, but he is in better shape than I am.

The moral of the story: if you want to move a couch, hire a mover. :)