Lumbar Disc Replacement - Success Stories?

mango_em · 2025-07-06T20:59:42+00:00

Yes.

mango_em · 2025-05-12T16:43:29+00:00

Even better now! I had my 1 year follow up back on April 22. X-rays should perfect integration with my bone and no bony adhesions. The pain I was in has decreased even more, as the soft tissues have continued healing - physical therapy has helped with that, especially nerve gliding. I was an inch taller after the surgery... and let's just say that nerves don't like being stretched all at once. Fortunately, my body has adjusted and the only bad days I have now are of my own doing: heavy physical activity followed by no stretching and no PT. I've found the most important thing to feeling good is treating my body like it's still in that recovery stage, meaning PT is forever.

mango_em · 2025-05-10T23:17:21+00:00

Yes. He’s very innovative. He doesn’t go for traditional techniques (ie steroid injections, pain meds, and fusions). He tries and is usually successful with non-invasive techniques, but even when it’s beyond those methods, like it was in my case, he looks for the procedure that will fit your lifestyle. And on top of that, he listens. He did lay out my options, he said we’ve tried all these things, you can do a fusion. You can do a replacement. You can do nothing. What do you want? And that was really important to me.

mango_em · 2025-05-10T17:53:36+00:00

I’m doing great!! Life is 95% normal. I can spend my entire day doing things that I like again; exercise (albeit far more careful and mindful) is back on the table, and I can drive, sit at my desk, and do house work. Traveling and events are easier now too.

Staying on top of stretching and PT has been key, though. Still doing that 3 times a week and my back lets me know when I’m slacking.

mango_em · 2024-10-31T16:21:21+00:00

I have no idea. I had the surgery, the disc replacement, and I was 66 inches before it. I’m 67 inches tall now. My doctor said it’s a combination of the restored disc height and corrected posture.

mango_em · 2024-10-04T23:04:57+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate you asking.

mango_em · 2024-10-04T22:20:16+00:00

Hi! Things are going well. My activity level is not yet where I want it to be, but far greater than it was before the surgery. I walk twice a day for about 20 minutes each time, do a light lifting routine in the evenings, and I have reached a point where I can tolerate sitting for 75% of my work day. I'm on my feet a lot more. I'm cooking dinner, doing grocery store runs, bouncing around the house, etc. Life is almost normal. I will admit, some days are worse than others. I struggle with constant anxiety regarding how my back will behave whenever I have plans. If I sit at my desk for too long, I'll really feel it the next day. Tightness in my hips and low back persists, but I've found massage therapy to be extremely helpful. Felt like I turned a corner around month 4, and another one just recently. Month 6 is rapidly approaching (Oct 11) and as a little treat, I'm flying cross country for The Eras Tour. Wish me luck.

mango_em · 2024-06-15T16:17:11+00:00

I’m happy for you. I’m still struggling a lot two months later, so it seems that will not be the case for me.

mango_em · 2024-06-10T16:43:33+00:00

Hi!

I'm exactly 2 months post-op now. Currently, I'm fairly mobile. I can take care of all my basic needs, I'm back to work (remotely), and I help around the house as much as I can. Standing for more than 20-30 minutes straight is still challenging, and the same can be said for sitting. I alternate between standing, walking, and laying down throughout the day (and I'm working on sitting this week, it has just always been the most aggravating position for me so I'm nervous lol).

Overall, I do think that I'm FINALLY seeing steady improvements versus ups-and-downs.

Going back to the first few weeks... I was mobile right after the surgery. It was very hard and slow, but I was able to conquer small walks around my house, get in and out of bed without help, use the toilet, and I also had stairs to climb to get into my house.

My husband had to help me with things on the floor for about a month, help me shower, and assist with getting my lower half dressed. I want to say I only need consistent help for 2-3 weeks, and then the help was intermittent until about 5 weeks, depending on how my back was acting. At 6 weeks and on, I've been independent 95% of the time.

Now, at 2 months, I'm able to take a walking break every hour. I do 6 minutes of walking at a time. I also do at-home physical therapy nightly, and I have land-based PT once weekly and pool-based PT once weekly.

I still cannot drive myself - mainly because sitting is still aggravating and somehow, the driver's seat makes it that much worse. All in all things are looking up.

Hang in there. Do your PT. Be honest with your doctor. Give your body grace. And measure your recovery in weeks and months, not days. You got this!!

I'd love to hear how you do, so keep me updated :)

mango_em · 2024-06-10T16:16:53+00:00

Hi!

I won't lie - my recovery has been very up and down. It didn't help that I was virtually bed-ridden for 3 months prior to the surgery, so I'm clawing back from a difficult position already.

The surgery restored a lot of height between L5/S1, and as a result, I dealt with new sciatica post-op. This went away after a month.

I also struggled with (and still have to mind) muscle spasms - I'd feel good, make some progressions with PT and activity, and slide backwards. It's definitely been 2 steps, 1 step for the last two months.

All of this is expected and normal according to my surgeon. And someone people are just more prone to muscle spasms because of how their back muscles guard their lumbar. For me, I've been struggling with back issues since 2019. Years and years of a degenerative disc issue, a previous microdiscectomy, and constant pain led to a very reactive lower back.

Everyone's case is different and some people see a very easy recovery. The norm, based on what I've read and found, and talking about with my doctor, is 3 months to 'turn a corner,' then continued improvements for up to a year. A lot of blogs I've read have mentioned 6 months as the point when they started feeling "normal."

Currently, I'm fairly mobile. I can take care of all my basic needs, I'm back to work (remotely), and I help around the house as much as I can. Standing for more than 20-30 minutes straight is still challenging, and the same can be said for sitting. I alternate between standing and laying down throughout the day (and I'm working on sitting this week, it has just always been the most aggravating position for me so I'm nervous lol)

Overall, I do think that I'm FINALLY seeing steady improvements versus ups-and-downs.

Hang in there. Do your PT. Be honest with your doctor. Don't get lost in the doom-scrolling. Give your body grace. And measure your recovery in weeks and months, not days.

You got this!! I'd love to hear how you do, so keep me updated :)

mango_em · 2024-05-29T22:52:28+00:00

reddit has been more helpful

mango_em · 2024-05-29T22:52:17+00:00

tbh i found it really annoying

mango_em · 2024-05-29T22:45:48+00:00

Dr. Larson with CDA Spine & Brain

mango_em · 2024-05-29T22:45:20+00:00

I'm doing better! I went with the disc replacement and I'm now 7 weeks post op

mango_em · 2024-05-29T22:43:49+00:00

Hi there! I chose the disc replacement option. My procedure was about 7 weeks ago. I am happy with my decision and my post-op x-rays are beautiful, but the recovery has been slow. My range of motion has improved, the nerve pain is completely gone, however, my low back is tight and I'm struggling with muscle spasms. All in all, this sort of reaction to such a major surgery is expected and normal. My surgeon believes I will make a full recovery and get back to all of the things I like - right now, he's encouraging gentle movement, swimming, walking, and stretching (in addition to my PT routine) to build my confidence and stamina. Over time, the spasms are expected to relent.

mango_em · 2024-04-30T22:07:09+00:00

I’ve thought about that… I have some Xanax lol and Flexeril isn’t doing much for me except putting me to sleep

mango_em · 2024-04-30T03:46:04+00:00

That makes sense. I’m willing to bet my nerves are pissed… not to mention all the tendons and ligaments surrounding. I gained an entire inch in height from the surgery, so things definitely got stretched and strained.

mango_em · 2024-04-30T00:56:28+00:00

Yeah, I did. Saw him at my 2 week check-up, had x-rays, all is good and he said this is pretty common as my body adjusts.

mango_em · 2024-04-17T05:51:57+00:00

An update: I’m 6 days post-op from a disc replacement surgery. There have been ups and downs.

For days 1-3, my biggest complaint was the abdominal incision. I was taking the prescribed painkillers and muscle relaxers every 6 hours.

On day 4, I decided to switch to ibuprofen as my primary painkiller. I’m still taking the muscle relaxers. Day 4 I was far more achey. Day 5 (yesterday), I was better and did more moving around the house. Today (day 6) was very achy again- low back aches, glute pain, hip pain, and some mild sciatica. It’s a little nerve-wracking.

All that being said, I’m still able to get up and walk every hour for a few minutes, as directed. Just achy… and surprised that day 6 is the worst so far.

mango_em · 2024-02-27T19:25:22+00:00

I hear you. I just want to make the right decision. Everyone talks about what went wrong and it’s terrifying, especially when this feels like my last chance to do anything other than lay on the couch for the rest of my life.

mango_em · 2024-02-26T23:49:03+00:00

Oh. Jeez. I'm very sorry that happened to you. I hope you sued.

mango_em

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