Tag Archives: pain relief

My Second Steroidal Epidural Procedure!

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A Patient’s Journey to Pain Relief with OSC Orthopedic Associates

After my initial epidural procedure failed to give me as much pain relief as I was hoping for, Dr Mark McFarland recommended I try a second cortisone procedure before moving to the surgical option to remove the herniated disk.

I head into to see Dr. Raj Sureja for my second cervical epidural – cue dramatic drum rolll please :)

I found this great Youtube video by Dr Sureja explaining the process of injecting cortisone into the spine and why this helps relieve pain:

This time, I am much less anxious about what my experience will be. Knowledge is power, right? I know that I might get dizzy or feel faint, but I also know that the epidural really doesn’t hurt and that it will be over soon.

Dr. Sureja comes in and is his usual gentle and wonderful self.  He decides to do my epidural at a level below the last one, to see if this time, I get some relief from the medication.

I lay down on my stomach on the table and again, during the procedure, I being to feel faint.  I hate the fact that I just get so faint whenever I am scared or feel pain.  Dr. Sureja says it is the Vagus Nerve Reflex that causes this and that it happens to other people as well.  Luckily, this time, I recover from my faintness very quickly and my blood pressure does not drop as low.  After a short waiting period after the procedure, I am released into the care of my long-suffering in-laws, who have again volunteered to pick me up and take me home.

 Pain management specialists Dr Raj Sureja and Dr Jenny Andrus

Dr Raj Sureja with orthopedic colleague, Dr Jenny Andrus of OSC

When I arrive home, I quickly get my ice pack and head for the bed, to lay flat and to ice the injection site.  I pray that I will not get the severe headache that I got last time, so I try to lie still, watch TV and nap.  After a few hours, my husband comes home from work and fixes me dinner.  I am just fine to get up and eat at the table.  Later that evening, I do experience some leg jitters and insomnia. However, these side-effects are nothing compared to those that I experienced after the first epidural.  Hallelujah, no headache, no flushing and no other problems!    The whole experience seemed to go much more smoothly, in large part, because I wasn’t so afraid and I didn’t work myself up before I went to have the injection.  Now, the fun part begins…waiting to see if I feel better.

Next time…..Second Time is a Charm!

Pain Relief Results After a Steroidal Epidural

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A Real-Life OSC Patient Tells of Their Pain Relief Experience

My last post dealt with the yucky after-effects experience with the epidural were over (1 day max), I eagerly began waiting to see if I would feel relief.

When they put the steroid medication into  your epidural space, they use numbing medication.  This numbing medication does provide temporary pain relief, but the real relief that I am seeking can come several days to a week after the injection.

Steroid use for pain relief

Epidural Injection of Steroids for Pain Relief

For the first few days, I really did not feel that much of a difference in my pain.  After about 4 days, I started to notice that my arm did not hurt quite as much.  Then after about a week, I noticed a small improvement in my shoulder and neck pain.  This improvement however, was not the big payoff that I had hoped for or expected from the epidural.

As a matter of fact, I really did not see a huge difference in my pain level from before.  So, being a good patient, I waited for a whole month to see if things would change.  To my chagrin, they did not.  So, I went to talk to Dr. Mark McFarland, one of the spine specialists here at OSC, to tell him the epidural had not given me the relief that I sought.

Dr Mark McFarland OSC orthopedic associate

Dr Mark McFarland examines a patient's spine

Dr. McFarland listened patiently to me as I opined that I would be headed for the surgery table because that silly epidural did not work and there was no hope for me, except to be cut open and have the offending disc herniation removed.  Dr. McFarland surprised me when he suggested that I should head back for yet another epidural.

I guess he saw the surprise on my face and explained to me his rationale.

He told me that many times, the first epidural does not reduce the inflammation around the nerve as well as it might.  So, they do another epidural in a different area or even a level above or below the herniation.  Many times, this second one does the trick and relieves the patient’s pain significantly.

Hmmmm.

I guess I lived through the first one, I guess I can try again and see if it will work this time for me.  I am willing to do anything to feel better, so here goes.

Next time – My second cortisone injection epidural!

Preparing for my Cervical Epidural Steroid Injection

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Interventional Pain Management with OSC’s Dr Raj Sureja

Okay, I think that I have told you in my previous blog posts that I am a BIG CHICKEN and TERRIFIED of needles.  So, it should come as no surprise to you that I was facing the prospect of having an epidural injection into the space surrounding my spinal column with great fear and trepidation.  I could lie to you and tell you I had no fear, because I work for OSC and have faith in the physicians here.  But, no matter how much I trust them and their skill level, I was still scared to death.

A needle, not only in my back, but in my spinal canal???

Am I crazy???

pain relief with epidural
Schematic of Epidural Injection

When the pain becomes so bad, that your life is affected everyday by your plans to manage your pain and how many activities you can complete during the day before your pain gets too bad, and how much time do you have to spend in the tub or lying on the heating pad before your muscles relax enough so that you can get some sleep, you become willing to do things that you never thought you would or could do to get relief.  Hence, I made an appointment with Dr. Raj Sureja, Interventional Pain Management Specialist at OSC, to perform my cervical epidural.

Dr Raj Sureja
Dr Raj Sureja with OSC’s Dr Jenny Andrus

In preparation for the epidural, you are given a sheet of instructions that are easy to read and follow.  Mostly, you are warned against taking anti-inflammatory medications of any kind for several days before your procedure (this includes Advil and Aleve).  They are concerned about the effect that the medications will have on bleeding and any complications that could arise from having the procedure done while on these drugs.  The OSC personnel also asked if I had any known allergies to drugs or if I had ever had a reaction to dye during a radiologic procedure.  They also checked to see if I could possibly be pregnant or have any other condition that might make having an epidural dangerous.

Given the go-ahead, I stopped taking my anti-inflammatory medications, switched to Tylenol and waited for my appointment!  Next time….E-Day!