Back in the Saddle, Again

And, it's been way too long.

After several months of physical therapy to correct the issues described in "Pain in the...", it was obvious that physical therapy alone wasn't going to fix the issue. 

So, I fought with my insurance company to get all the approvals in order, and then went in for surgery in July. My doctor performed a laminotomy and discectomy at L4/L5.

This basically means a cut into the lower back muscle to retract it out of the way, and then cutting out a section of vertebrae to gain better access to the disk. Once the bone was out of the way, a hunk of the disk was removed to get rid of the part that had been bulging and pinching the nerve. 

There was nearly half an inch of disk material protruding into the nerve canal, crushing the left sciatic nerve bundle. 

I was under for about 1.5 hrs. My discharge paperwork was completed later that same afternoon, and I slowly and gingerly walked out of the hospital's front doors to go home. 

Modern medicine is an amazing thing, isn't it?

I had quite a lot of pain at the incision, and some fairly intense muscle spasms due to the muscle cutting /retraction, and from things adjusting. Valium for spasms, Norco and Neurontin, with a side of Zanaflex as a muscle relaxer.... things were very blurry for the first week post op. Standing and lying down were all I was permitted to do. I wasn't allowed to sit for longer than 15 minutes at a time, up to 4 times a day. Driving was not allowed, except to go to physical therapy. 

However, the constant sciatic pain - a sharp, burning, stabbing, misery in my left lower back and left buttock - and the tingling sensation in my left foot and lower leg, were both gone. After 6 more weeks of therapy, my surgeon cleared me to sit again, resume driving, and return to work. 

I've been off all the prescription medication for a while now. I'm eating better, losing more weight, and hitting the gym a few times a week, too. I still have some minor discomfort in my lower back, and always will. At the end of a really long day, or a lot of physical activity, that minor discomfort starts to become a little bit worse, but Advil has been able to manage things thus far.

Being that I haven't really ridden since February, I've been slowly easing back into riding. An hour here, two hours there... it will take time to rebuild my long distance riding endurance. My left leg isn't as strong as it was, either. 

But, I can still hold up my motorcycle.

I have zero problems shifting gears. 

And, I am already starting to prep and plan for my next multi-week trip.