Bulging disc

Things just keep getting better! (sarcasm) I went to my back doctor today and from my symptoms and x-rays, he is pretty certain that I have a bulging disc again (maybe herniated). I had this problem back in 2004 and had surgery to remove half of a herniated disc. How did it happen back then? I merely leaned over to put something into a clothes hamper. This time it was cleaning the basement and picking up a bag of trash. X-rays also show degeneration of some of the vertebrae and scar tissue from the old surgery. What fun.

So, am going to start physical therapy on Monday at a new place, and will be going THREE times a week, instead of the two I was doing at the other place. If no better in two weeks, I have to go have an MRI and then meet with him again to go over the results and other options, which he is pretty sure will be surgery again to repair or remove the herniated disc. So, I hope that therapy can help this time. The pain is only down into my butt cheek and upper thigh this time, whereas last time it shot all the way down my leg into my foot. BUT he says the Prednisone may be masking the seriousness of the problem, and since I will be weaning off of that before I am finished with therapy, we will see how it goes.

I hope that the year 2008 is better than 2007 has been!