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Works fine for me. Try a different browser, expand your radius, etc?
None of the nearly 20 physiatrists with pain med or sports med specialization I have within 25 miles fits your description above. They’re all pain med or rehab people with private practice or associated with the small, regional hospital systems. Oh, I guess there’s one at Yale.
How are my fellow spineys doing?
I am in some aggravating pain. I lightly picked two stalls this morning and that was a huge mistake. PT touched my spine about mid-back and shooting white hot threads ran up and down from either side. Then we did core work and I’m just hurting in my back (my abs are fine).
I also couldn’t lift my left leg while sitting on a yoga ball, which is interesting because the majority of the muscle knotting is on the right. Now my sacrum hurts on the left side in addition to the white hot needles that keep zapping me.
She wants to do some dry needling, does anyone have any experience with that?
I’m concerned that the spinal mobility and loosening the muscles is encouraging the disc to be more compressed. My theory awhile ago is that my body was freezing up to keep from more damage and this feels…wrong.
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I loooooove dry needling. My fav. It’s like getting a knuckle in just the right spot in that awful muscle knot … but more.
Are you using any back support when you’re doing things that might aggravate your back? I find it really helpful.
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I expanded the radius and a few in the bordering state. Thanks.
Awesome on the dry needling. I think I’ll try it.
Well, no, I didn’t try any back support - because I didn’t really anticipate that lightly picking two stalls was going to send me into spasm. I know - I’m being ridiculous, I SHOULD anticipate that but come on, I’m used to picking 20 stalls and deeply gutting them, so lightly picking the poop out of two…just doesn’t seem like it should have done it. grumble grumble grumble LOL
I’ll pick up a brace, I don’t have one. Anything you recommend?
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I know, I know! It sucks. 
I just use a pretty basic velcro thingy from Amazon. Lemme get a link, let’s see…
I’ve got this one:
Sparthos Back Support Belt - Immediate Relief from Back Pain, Sciatica, Herniated Disc - Breathable Brace With Lumbar Pad - Lower Backbrace For Home & Lifting At Work - For Men & Women - (Small)
It definitely does make a difference. At least while you’re working through everything now (and I agree, there’s definitely sort of an upset the apple cart period of getting better) it might be a good tool to have in the box?
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I’ve been reading this thread with interest – I have many of the same issues, and also use a brace similar to the one above 
It really does help support and stabilize your low back, particularly when you’re doing things like bending and lifting – it’s a godsend!
I remember I was teaching dog classes one night several years ago and had forgotten the brace at home – by the end I was in agony!
I have a very strong core and have been prioritizing core strengthening exercises for the past 10 or 15 years; it makes a huge difference to our “tribe” of low back pain sufferers. Don’t use the brace all the time! I use it only when I am doing barnwork, grooming, stretching, and doing bodywork on my horse, setting jumps and lifting poles, riding, or teaching dog classes – sometimes I’ll use it when I’m doing agility with my dog because she is so freaking fast that I have to twist and turn. It’s now just part of my basic equipment!
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Well…I made it to the surgeon’s office and saw his nurse practioner. Nice guy that informed me that at my age, tendon repair would probably not be successful…and they don’t do stuff outside the joint (that parting out thing). Great. His recommendation and I agreed…I do have hip arthritis. Thus far not as bad as the right hip that is already done. He wants me to get a steroid injection in that hip joint to see if we can tell what part is causing the pain. Replacement surgery is scheduled for November (just to get on the schedule this year and allow the waiting period after injection). If the injection doesn’t work…cancel the replacement. If the injection works…one option is keep getting injections until they don’t work anymore…and cancel the surgery (for now). I am a caregiver for my Mother and that may be good option as long as I am functional and can exercise.
I have found some easy exercises I have been doing for the last week and they have helped…both issues as far as I can tell. I am also staring on a trial of meloxicam instead of as needed ibuprofen. The first dose helped quite a bit. I will see how far I get before the stomach says no.
Getting old is so much fun.
Susan
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Made it to the spinal doc today. He said that he thinks (as I suspected) that I have facet joint syndrome - the human version of kissing spine! lol
And I’m only laughing because that’s the second ailment that I learned about from horses first that I have had. The first one was a dermoid cyst (I had one on an ovary) that I remember reading about in an old Equus as “the horse with the tooth in it’s ear” and now kissing spines.
He also said that he thinks it’s responsible for all of my other issues because my muscles are SO tight even though I stretch regularly - my hamstrings were so tight even on muscle relaxers and twisting was just right out. As I suspected, my body has been trying to protect itself.
So - I’m scheduled for nerve ablation in July.
He’s also going to look at my cervical spine, because my two fingers have gone numb. I’ve known I have stenosis there. I am sure it’s not going to have improved over time.
I didn’t really ask about my riding career but he did suggest that I not fall off anymore. I wanted to say - well it’s not like I ever really WANTED to fall off. But that does put a crimp on what I ride, and the possibility of falling off is always there. I originally trained one of my horses to drive so that I could cope if I could no longer ride, but there’s no way I could sit in a cart like this. I’m painful just sitting in a chair for too long and working.
Trying to not panic about the whole thing, but I’ve been an avid rider and periodiic trainer of green and spicy horses for 35 years…Not sure what this means at all for me.
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Erm…have you had a couple of successful blocks for the facet arthritis? Blocks FIRST. Then ablation. Get an idea that it’ll work before you burn out the nerves. I would be…wary of anyone who wants to go straight to ablation… 
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Yes, the blocks are scheduled first, I should have clarified. They work backward from an ablation date and that’s the way they have to code it all for insurance I guess. They cancel if it doesn’t help.
But he was really certain based on the X-rays and symptoms that it was facet joint syndrome.
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Whew, that’s great! Fingers crossed the blocks make you feel FAB. (Ask for ropivacaine, it lasts the longest! 
)
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Which two fingers have gone numb? If it’s pinky and ring finger, that can be an entrapped nerve in the elbow. I have that, and PT fixes it as long as I keep up with the exercises. My choice was PT or surgery. Of couse I’ll choose the least invasive option first, and it worked. I actually went to a physical terrorist about 20 years ago; she got the feeling back for me the first day, and I keep up on the exercises on my own.
If it’s thumb and first finger, I’m not sure but carpal tunnel comes to mind.
Rebecca
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Pinky and ring. They’ve been numb on and off since I got scorpioned off of a friend’s youngster in ‘06 and they discovered my cervical stenosis. It’s just now that they are more permanently numb.
The doctor just looked at me and shook his head 
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“Physical terrorist”? Was that a typo or a Freudian slip or a joke? 
Going through PT right now myself for a strained adductor – I think this is my fourth rodeo? Definitely agree with Physical terrorist.
Hang in there @Alterration! 
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It was a joke. I’ve always called them that. The good ones are tough, remind me of an old drill sergeant, but they are the ones who get results.
When I lost the feeling in two fingers due to ulnar nerve entrapment, the therapist was this tiny woman, soft spoken, but she could bring me to me knees. I was so thrilled that she got the feeling back with the first session, and the rest was building the strength back.
Rebecca
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So just a little update…
Block #1 worked. I will not say it was super painful nor was it super comfortable (the spine does NOT like to be poked and prodded).
What was really fascinating was how quickly my body loosened up after the pain went away. Every time I walked (before the block wore off) was accompanied by clicks and loosening as things relaxed. My gait became 100% more normal. Which means that the problem really isn’t in my hips primarily (I didn’t think so).
I could put on my pants without issue with the block (turns out, it wasn’t my core strength…I didn’t think so). And I only noticed that because when it wore off, I could no longer balance on one leg well to put my pants on (isn’t that weird???)
One more block to go, and then hopefully the ablation. The pain cycle is pretty amazing. Essentially, it confirmed my suspicion. My back hurt, my body was tensing everything to keep that still, once the pain went away other issues that I have resolved.
Makes me really wonder about horses with KS. If their pain is resolved with something like an ablation, I wonder if that would aid in their healing.
Anyway - it’s good news. I haven’t ridden yet because my horse needs a set of shoes, but I’m encouraged that I might be able to post block #2!
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Fab news! How cool IS that, really, that you might feel SO much better with something as “simple” and minimally invasive as some radioablation?! Hooray!
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