pain after dics surgery

[Tammyin Saipan]

I had ruptured discs at c5, c6, c7 and the surgery was to use an artificial disc at c6 to alleviate pain.
Right after surgery, I felt great, but about 2 years post surgery, started having pain again.
Now, and dealing with severe headaches that start at the base of my skull, and are like tension headaches.
Also, severe muscle spasms in upper back and shoulder areas (both sides) that are not responding to muscle relaxers, exercise, massage, or ultra sound therapy.
Had an MRI and MRA about 3 weeks ago, that show no reason in the brain as to why I am having such bad headaches, there is no rhyme or reason to the episodes either.
They can happen in an instant and can go away quickly or linger for a day or two.
The disc is the Prestige artificial disc, and I am involved in a study group.
The doctor that did the surgery says that the pain I am experiencing is not from the disc itself, so he is no help.
I feel like my shoulder and the sides of my neck are constantly tensed up, and I can crack or pop my neck sometimes and that relieves the pressure, but some days, the pain is so intense, I just want to take something to make it all go away!
I do have an office job, but try to get up and walk around the office often, and I do exercise often, walking, SCUBA diving, light weight lifting.
Any suggestions would be great!
Thanks

[Sidup]

I had a 2 disc replacement at c4-c5 c5-6 and felt good for awhile. Pain started again shortly afterwards. My surgeon warned me that c7 was on the way out and 3 years later I have been having severe pain in my neck, shoulders and back down my right arm. Nerves are continuously twitching in my arm. I take oxycodone ir 10mg times 8 per day. It really does keep my pain level down and I also take 2 ibuprophen at the same time. My pain is becoming worse and I had an mri done in June 2013 that showed compression at c7, I work for the local highways maintenance department where I live and do a variety of duties. My doctor straight up asked me how I think I could manage without my pain meds. Seriously?! My life would be a living hell!! I have given up so many things I enjoy in my life like riding my quad, paddling my pontoon boat and fly fishing all day and a few other things that brought me happiness. This has affected my home life, my social life and my extra caricular activities in life. My quality of life has spiraled downhill ever since I first herniated the 2 first discs and it took 3 years from my first appt with my GP to the time I had surgery. All I can do now is work all week and by the weekend I am so physically and mentally burnt out that I just want to hide in my shell and shut the world out. My poor wife! I am blessed to have such a good supportive wife who has stayed by my side through all of this. I have been fighting serious deppression and sometimes think she would be better off without me but we have talked about it and that is not an option! Period! Even as I am typing this my hand is going numb. My doctor wants to work on reducing my pain medications. Then what? Quit my job, lay in bed all day and shrivel up and just die? At least my pain meds give me enough quality of life to get up everyday and go to work because as with everybody else, I have bills to pay and can not afford to lose my job!! I feel for all of you out there and these so called educated doctors really do not understand the pain and struggles and challenges we face everyday to get what we can in life going through what we do. Yes I feel like a dependant prescription pain user, but I am by no means a druggie! I don't drink, do any other types of drugs including smoking pot, all I do is rely on my pain meds to get me through my day each week to earn a paycheck. Thats it! So at the times when my pain level is higher then normal from working my butt off and I use more pain meds then normal or I have to go into emerg to get a shot of something heavier, why sm I treated like a street junkie? They have all my records and pee tests to prove I don't use or abuse, so it just pisses me off when I need that extra help to get my pain level back down to where I can tolerate it and get it back under control. I work hard and thats it. Is that a crime?

[pofdog]

I am not a doc....just someone thats been through alot as everyone here.
  My opinion is that alot of our doctors go by what they "think, rather than take more tests to find out the truth or "rule out" possibilities. They hear our complaints and ignore them because "we shouldn't be in pain" or the like. So you might want to insist on another MRI etc...
  I say this cause I read some of these problems that I have been through also. I even suffered 8 months one time while I went through all kinds of theripy, exercise ect....till they finally broke down and found a herniated disk w/compression. I just had my 2nd surgery on the same disk....did good for about 2 weeks till I went down hill again. My docs kept saying "you just had surgery, theres nothing wrong", "you shouldn't be in this much pain"...and so on. I finally got mad. They did another MRI and "poof"...hey I have a NEW herniated disk pressing on nerves...AGAIN. They went through 8+ years of school to learn what I have been telling them.
  Guess i'm frustrated....It just urkes me to see people as you in pain going through hell as me trying all these strenghting things and hell before our docs finally order tests that show the root of the problem.
     Good luck! Insist on more tests.

[Tammyin Saipan]

Thanks for your input.
I have a titanium ball and socket type artificial disc, and the other discs they just left alone.
I do feel better when I lay down on a hard surface, like the floor, but certainly cannot do that all the time!~
I do take cyclobenzaprine (spelling?) for muscle spasms, but, they make me so darn tired, even after a long night of sleep, I wake up groggy, and feel like I could sleep another 8 hours! So, I really hate taking them. Massage feels good while it is being done, but after an hour or so, the pains tarts right back up again!
I do take Ultram ever once in awhile too, but they really don't help.
Yesterday and today, have a lot of pain in the shoulder blade area on the right side? I it just the strangest thing! Feels like there is a knot under my shoulder blade.
I pop my neck every once in a while, and it does feel better for a short period of time.
Just not sure what the next step is for me.

[straight talk]

Did you have only one disk replaced and was it fused also?  I have been advised to have a decompresion or two level  disk replacement with fusion but worry that the adjacent disks will eventually need somthing also so I/m trying to deal with it for now and am dealing with TMJ also.

[loiskerr]

Hello had the same thing done 6 months ago. Here is my thought. I get the same feeling, so I lay down for awhile and then my neck pops and it is better. Isn't that noise a weird sound. Like your head is snapping off. I have no idea what to expect down the road and don't care. I just don't want to be paralized. So I didn't have neck pain but my legs wouldn't work and hurt so bad I couldn't walk. Well all that pain is gone in my legs and thats what I concentrate on. I also take a perkacet when the stiffness and spasam are bad. Now one doc said (neurologist not surgeon) I will need to take one pill everyday for ever. I think he was being very honest. I don't want to be a drug addict, he said he has had patients doing that for ten years and never up the dose. He also said a few people up it to six a day and they have a real problem (addict) So it's up to you. I hope this helped. Lois

[kaydiane]

Hi, Is this like a charite disc do you know? If it is my mum is suffering from very severe issues...may just be the charite but the wires broke and the plastic type material has changed shape, she is worse than when she started