February, gone. What happened in February? My plan to ride my bike to heal my back pain was short-lived, maybe a few days into the month until I asked myself what I was doing on a bike when I could hardly walk. Also, when I thought about it, except for the pain and disability, I was sort of enjoying not having to do anything. Part of me looked forward to being able to take the dog for a three-mile walk in the morning again; part of me relished the freedom of zero obligation and exercise. I got three epidurals.
The first epidural was in early February. Yes, an epidural is the same thing they give to women to ease labor pains. What I learned, however, is that "epidural" is any injection in the spinal cord area. Women in labor receive an epidural that goes deeper and contains anesthetic to numb the area for a day or two. The epidural I received was an injection in the center of the herniated disc area and contained no anesthetic, only a steroid or medicine to help relieve the inflammation around the nerve.
Before the appointment for the first epidural, I stopped into a CVS to kill some time--I was very early, very eager to get this done--and while waiting on line (why is there a line at every drugstore anywhere in the city, any time of day?) I had to meditate and breathe to contain the pain. Stopping and standing was not my strong point. I still could not stand upright. Something about taking cash out of my wallet sent a jolt through my back and I jerked when handing the money to the cashier. Had she noticed?
The procedure was fairly simple. You lay face down on the table with your pants hiked down to your hips and the doctor first sprays a mild anesthetic then injects a dye to see the area on the x-ray or fluoroscope, which he uses to guide the needle to the correct area. The first needle is a pinch. The next thing you feel is pressure, which is the medicine being injected once the needle is in proper position, and then it's over. Not too climactic or painful, except for having to lay face down on the table, which my lower back was not happy about. (It prefers laying sideways with a pillow between the knees.) Unlike others who claimed they were able to jump off the table pain-free, I was about the same buttoning my pants back up as I had been hiking them down for the shot. Zero change.
According to my sister, whom I now refer to as Dr. Jill, if the epidural doesn't work instantly, it ain't going to work. According to the pain management doctor performing the injection, it could take one to three days to kick in. I waited one to three days. I think it kicked in, but it was hard to tell the kicking in was so gradual. And I was also on a new muscle relaxant that seemed to be working better. Similar to all of my progress in this ordeal, everything I do seems to be a baby step and it becomes difficult to detect improvement, the degrees are so small and gradual.
Two days after the epidural, I also went to see the expensive osteopath. It was time to go whole hog. The osteopath adjusted my sacrum, my hips, my back, everything. He got my hips to align. It's an experience worth elaborating on, but as I'm still seeing him in March, I'll save it for another entry.
A few days after the epidural and the osteopath, I was able for the first time in six weeks (drumroll) able to stand completely upright. Sure, standing upright required my right hip to jut out and up. Sure, it wasn't comfortable or easy, but I was getting that curve in my back again. Evolution. From Neanderthal to Homo Sapien in six weeks ain't so bad.
A week later, after the epidural and osteopath, I was fairly certain I was making progress. My depression was lifting. Did I mention I could stand upright? Upright! Was it the epidural or the osteopath or the chiropractic visits I had been keeping up with faithfully two times a week? The inversion table my brother had brought from Jersey that now took up half of my office? The drugs? All of the above? None of the above and it was simply a matter of waiting and time?
I had a trip to London and Paris planned for ten days in February. I decided to go on it. Why not suffer abroad if you've got to suffer? It was a good decision. I was slightly better when I returned. Again, small degrees. I took custody of Mister President and was able to take him on long walks to the park and home again. I had to sit when I got to the park. I was in poor shape by the time we got home and ready to collapse. But I could make it to the park.
Oh yes, I had two more epidurals. Two at once. These epidurals were deeper, called nerve blocks because the needle is inserted as close to the nerve as possible and then the medicine is injected. Before the shot they told me it's a 50/50 chance they'll hit the nerve. Before the doctor gave me the nerve blocks, he asked if the first epidurla had helped and how much. Twenty percent, I guessed? He looked surprised. Maybe we won't do another one, he said. I was confused. I was at least fifty percent better, but I couldn't attribute that to the epidural. I simply couldn't remember. He went ahead with the nerve block.
Thankfully, they didn't hit the nerve either time. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have done a thing. The osteopath, on the other hand, adjusted me again yesterday and that was bliss. Today, my right hip is still up, I've still got tingling in my calf and foot, I've still got pain if I walk more than ten minutes straight, but is the hip lower? The pain slightly less? I think so. I think it is, yes.
