Please help - Diazepam/Amitriptyline anyone take for prolapsed disc?

[LizzieJ]

Neither make me drowsy I take both for several prolapsed discs, the amitriptyline is good for nerve pain and the Valium good for muscle spasms.

I have now had three steroid/epidural injections which have worked for a few months, if this last one doesn't work I will have the op! I feel the risk is better than losing several months a year out due to being unable to do anything tbh but I have lost months every year for the last 8

 

[FleabittenT]

Not yet, he has only just had a referral

Sorry to hijack thread OP - Wizoz, have you considered a private MRI?

There is a charity round here (South Wales), called Cheltenham, that have a mobile MRI scanner and do subsidised scans for £240.

My GP referred me last week for an MRI on the NHS, the waiting time is 6-8 weeks, with another 2-3 weeks to get the results. For the private scan, my chiro referred me on Fri, and I have it this coming week. It's worth £240 to me, to save the wait.

Sitting here in absolute agony with suspected prolapsed disc, Tramadol is bearly taking the edge off Really useful to read others experiences of treatment options, OP I hope you find some relief without too many side effects.

 

[soloequestrian]

Sitting here in absolute agony with suspected prolapsed disc, Tramadol is bearly taking the edge off Really useful to read others experiences of treatment options, OP I hope you find some relief without too many side effects.

Whatever you do, don't search the net for info on after the op! I stupidly did, and found various people who said that it was the most painful thing that had ever happened to them. When I had mine, there were three of us in for the same thing. After the op, we were each given two paracetamol and I really don't think I needed them - there was no pain. We were all up and walking by the end of the day of our operations, and all got home the next morning. My muscles were stiff while the incision was healing, and the nerve pain did come back once I started moving about again, but with lots of physio it has improved tremendously.

 

[Birker2020]

They have to give you the downside of the op, I was told I risked paralysis and loss of bladder and bowel control but as far as i was concerned the effect it was having on my life both in being unable to do what i wanted and being in pain, not having the op was not an option. .

If my quality of life was so bad that I couldn't drive/walk/ride then I would have the operation but as it is I am really only in pain a) when it flairs up b) when I jump my horse and c) when I lie down on the sofa/bed for any length of pain.

Thank you all for your kind replies. I will try the diazapam after reading everyones replies as you all sound so positive about it working and being effective.

 

[Birker2020]

I was lucky got to see a great physio who got me into Pilates for sport (thank heavens for the RAF) it's helped strengthen everything which helps the disc no end. It's only if I've slacked off and not done them for a few days I have problems.
QUOTE]

Wow, its so funny you mentioned this. When I saw my consultant this time round he asked me what I'd done to help myself and I said apart from giving up smoking (which is meant to be beneficial for back pain), taking it easy about lifting things, losing weight, I also mentioned I had gone to pilates for 18 months but then gave it up as I lost interest.

He said probably the single best thing i could do to help myself was to rejoin my pilates group, he said pilates really is very good for improving core strength and supporting that bad back. I was really surprised that so much emphasis was put on this. I do believe it helped me at the time, especially when I was shown simple stretching techniques which helped me no end.

I am going to bite the bullet and return to Pilates even if I only go every other week.

 

[BerryT24]

I'm another for the op! I had a discetomy on disc L5 in September 2009 and it has been the best thing I have ever done!

I was bed ridden for a month after jumping through a grid on my horse at the time. After that I was taking a concoction of drugs every day for about 18 months, diazapam was my fav !

If I was sat at my desk, I'd have to get up or move around every 10 minutes or so, even lie on the floor, if I wanted to go shopping I had to sit down every 20 minutes because the pain walking was so intense. Riding was bearable funny enough but I always knew if I had over done it as couldnt sleep that night due to the pain!

But now, its by far the best its ever been and I do maintain it doing pilates and lots of stretches.

I really sympathise with you, back pain is the worst! Good luck x

 

[Polotone]

As the post above really.

I have a prolapsed disc that I did falling off three years ago. Following on from an MRI scan which showed a large prolapse at S1/L5 I saw a consultant and was offered an operation (discectomy) but due to the odds being so poor of ending up paralysed (1 in 500) I didn't take the offer up.

Recently my back has been so bad during the night that I went to see a consultant again in the hope of being able to have offered a steroid epidural but he said it wouldn't be suitable in my case as there was no nerve root to inject into and because the pain no longer radiated down my buttock/leg from sciatica he felt it was all muscular (which it is). He said he was suprised that I wasn't in a worse state since the prolapse was extremely large on the MRI scan (from 3 years back) and that I was lucky and he felt the disc had dehydrated slightly which meant that when I aggravated it by jumping the horse it hurt. The surgeon said that the odds of paralysis was not one in 500 but was in actual fact one in 300 (so I will definetely not have this done).

I haven't jumped my horse for three weeks and my backs been relatively fair to good and then on Wednesday I jumped one jump six times and have spent the next two days in quite a bit of pain at night/early morning. The consultant who I saw on Tuesday said he would recommend Amitriptyline or Diazepam but I am worried that a) you can only take them for 3 months max and b) they have an awful lot of side effects.

Does anyone take these drugs for their back to relieve muscle spasms and do they work please?

Hi I have a very similar thing and now see after years of pain a chiropractor who does NO manipulation just gentle rebuilding stuff which has helpped and I can now get out of bed in the mornings

 

[Lark]

+1 for getting the op.
I got it done about 11/12 years ago, the procedure was carried out by an neurosurgeon which is a good safe bet. I was back driving and working in 3 weeks and have not had a problem since.
Before the surgery when the pain was bad (sciatica) I actually found Neurofen plus to be the best and when it was 'really' bad I was prescribed DF118 (I think) which is morphine. It certainly killed the pain but you would not be able to function normally on it.
It is a horrible condition and I wish you the best of luck getting it sorted.

 

[flyingfeet]

I've taken Amitriptyline when I've had an op and needed to sleep at night

Not addictive and does help you sleep - wouldn't say it was more effective than the chemical sleep aid tablets you can buy

My mother takes it long term for migraines with no side effects, except the sleep you get is not refreshing if that makes sense - more like when you pass out from drinking...

 

[Tinks81]

Whatever you do, don't search the net for info on after the op! I stupidly did, and found various people who said that it was the most painful thing that had ever happened to them. When I had mine, there were three of us in for the same thing. After the op, we were each given two paracetamol and I really don't think I needed them - there was no pain. We were all up and walking by the end of the day of our operations, and all got home the next morning. My muscles were stiff while the incision was healing, and the nerve pain did come back once I started moving about again, but with lots of physio it has improved tremendously.

ha ha you are so right i was amazed at not being in pain after major surgery but to be honest i think i was in sooo much before hand that what i did have then didnt even register !!

Im off back for my 6 month check up soon !!!

 

[Perfect-Piaffe]

I havent had a prolapsed disc but have taken Amitriptyline for years following a serious leg accident! I also take tramadol, codiene, solphadol, diclophenic, pregabalin and the usual paracetamol daily and although to start with I was like a walking zombie you get used to it after a while and now it doesnt really give me much problems. Just be careful taking certain things long term as they can cause other problems! Amitriptyline has been associated with heart problems - saying that its been about 10 years Ive been on it and only occassionally get an irregular heart beat!

Good luck with it all!

 

[brucethegypsycob]

Hi. I worked in neurosurgery (as a nurse - to sister level) for 15 years. No disc surgery that I ever saw resulted in paralysis. If I ever need disc surgery i would always opt for a neurosurgeon rather than an orthopaedic surgeon.
Diazepam and brufen (ie neurofen or other anti-infammatory med) is standard treatment for back pain/muscle spasms ect and is very effective.

 

[Alibear]

I've taken 10 to 20mg of Amitriptyline daily for the last 5 years.
Drug of the gods for me and no side affect other than a dry throat if I'm on the higher dose for more than 3 months. Dreams can be weird as you change dose so it's one to try and stick to a regular amount of and be prepared for a little weirdness as you change dose.
I was pretty zombie fied for a week when I first took it. I have a very low gread heart murmor and Dr's have never mentioned Amitriptyline as being a problem with it.

 

[unbalanced]

I've not got the back problem but I've had diazepam and amitriptyline for other things so I thought I might add on the side effects. I never had any side effects from valium and I've taken up to 40mg at a time for flying - I really am that bad at flying, I think my horse would be better at loading onto a plane than I would be! I never had any side effects and I could walk and talk on that much, but went to sleep quite nicely when I was ready too.
Amitriptyline was another story though. I was prescribed it for migraines and I was on 20mg a day - it was awful. It turned me into a zombie. I teach and I would find myself reading out the same question three times in class while my students looked on, baffled. I would also fall asleep sitting up all the time. For example, I would sit on a barrel to lunge my horse and pass the rope around me. I would doze off. She would keep going and tie me up. It turned me into a dope. I fell asleep out hacking more than once and in lectures for my MA (luckily I had explained this to my teachers and they were understanding about it). Fortunately I am now off the horrid stuff and on to something that actually works, which amitriptyline didn't even really work for me, possibly because I kept stopping taking it for a few weeks when I couldn't take the side effects, then I would get a really bad migraine and start taking it again. I'm just glad to be off it.