Severe Stenosis - Doc advises surgery

I also may add I had cervical fusion of C3-C5 in 2012. As long as I am standing, walking and moving about I am not in much pain. Sitting is the worse position and lying down all night is also painful. Once I straighten up and walk, I am much happier. Perhaps a word of caution about using CBD or medical marijuana. Research shows it does affect the brain and as for me I do not want to do anything that will hinder my brain's function. I am a Mayo Clinic research subject in Scottsdale, AZ for the past 23 years, testing for dementia (I am in the control group), so I want to keep my brain functioning at optimal levels without any interferences. That is my choice.

Does CBD cayse braun issues? If so how & what part of the brain?

...U mean " brain issues"?

I am an active(or used to be) 89 year old. This spinal stenosis seemed to come on suddenly. It has been diagnosed as severe.
Doing acupuncture and PT. Acupuncture seems to be somewhat helpful.
Want to go to Europe this summer to celebrate my husband’s and my 90 with the family. So I am looking for a quick fix.

Sorry, there are no "quick fixes" with stenosis. However, Medicare will pay for 12 acupuncture treatments for lower back pain and 12 for bladder control. Acupuncture has been around for over 5,000 years and it is effective, rather than any "drug". My best wishes to you. I too need to visit my late husband's family in Italy, however, the risks are too great that I could injure myself traveling (too many variables). So I will just write them in italien with the help of Google translate. My best to you!

Try acupuncture as Medicare will pay for 12 treatments for lower back pain. I've had it, swear by it and wish I could do it all the time! You are not as old as you think and 79 is just another number. If you think you are "old" that will influence your whole being. Keep moving as much as you can. Sitting is the worst thing for a spine. Best wishes!

Thanks! Never even dreamed that medicare would cover acupuncture...thus never even checked it...I will check it out!

We will all be rooting for you!! How wonderful to be able to realize your dream with the woman you love,
Yvie

Ablations will only act as a bandaid which is what happened to me. I went straight over to a spinal surgeon and said do the surgery. He concurred, did it and I have no regrets. Within the last two weeks I had HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) here in Phoenix, AZ. If you have not tried this treatment, I highly recommend it! My body feels so good now with little pain. I also have acupuncture treatments and continue to heal. Also, last week I had my brain SPECT scanned by the Amen Clinic (noted neuropsychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen, M.D.). This is a special brain imagining which looks at the function of the brain. Do your research into the SPECT and HBOT and you will learn some other treatment options. Best of health to all of you!

I had a lumbar laminectomy for severe stenosis 2015, L3-4, L4-5. I was told that if I didn't I could have permanent damage and lose my ability to walk. A few hours after the surgery they wanted me to stand up and my left leg collapsed. I have had pain down my left leg ever since and can't walk more than a few hundred yards at best. After surgery the surgeon said I would have some decompression pain because my spinal cord had been compressed down to 3 millimeters. He also said that I would need surgery again in 5-10 years. It has now been 8 years and I have constant sciatica, numbness, tingling and burning, and feel I need that second surgery. Up until now no surgeon has been willing to take it on, but my pain doctor says I need intervention between L5-S1. I have seen several surgeons throughout these years. Some think the original surgeon nicked a nerve, by mistake. During the last Myelogram they discovered some of it may be coming from the neck which also has stenosis, and on the 12 of July I go in for surgery to get a plate in my neck. My husband had that surgery a few years ago and he is doing fine.
With stenosis and spine compression the only cure is surgery because if the spinal cord gets compressed enough to sever the nerves you could end up in a wheel chair unable to walk. No amount of pain killers or stimulators will fix that. A nurse friend of mine had to have 2 surgeries on her lumbar region and 2 on her neck. Now at 76 she is fit as a fiddle and is very active every day, birdwatching, hiking, camping, gardening, cooking, traveling. Her sisters didn't get surgery and they are now both in wheelchairs. The key is having the best surgeon who does this all the time. Good luck finding surgeons and getting better! I tried Mayo in Jacksonville but the waiting list was 3 yrs. Now my surgeon is at UVA which also has a good reputation.