Ouch, receding

I haven’t talked much about my herniated disc here in recent weeks. Then again, there hasn’t been all that much to say.

My left leg still hurts, most often when I’ve been sitting for a little while or right after I stand up. I’m considerably better than I was back in late May and early June when the problem first started, and the discomfort is usually pretty easy to manage nowadays. Only rarely do I feel the need to take anything for it. But there is still discomfort. I spend an awful lot of my time standing or lying down to avoid it. The herniated disc has gotten better, but it hasn’t gone away.

I’m in a sort of “let’s wait and see” phase right now. This comes after three steroid injections and several months of physical therapy*. Most people tend to get better, my orthopedist told me last Friday, and most of what he does — from the injections to therapy to surgery — is simply meant to help the process along. Just because I’m sometimes in pain now doesn’t mean that’s how I’ll be for the rest of my life. Which I guess is some comfort.

I’ll continue my stretches, but I’m done with PT and the regular doctor visits. If the pain gets worse, I’ll go back. But for now, I’ll just try to avoid sitting for too long and hope the disc just needs time to fully heal.

* Originally intended, and prescribed, as several weeks. I liked the guy, and I think the PT helped, but I wouldn’t have minded a little more structure to the whole thing.