Back pain after surgery + pain meds

ArchTB

Hello everyone,

It's been 4 weeks since Tom's surgery, and all in all I would say he is doing ok. He got all the tubes removed and is able to eat very small meals. I am, however, concerned about two things: his back pain and his dependence on pain meds.

1. Back pain
He has been having this back pain since surgery. I do not think there is any trend in when he is experiencing this pain - it could be after sleep, after walk, after meal, or completely out of the blue. He said it is pretty much sitting inside of him all the time, raising in the volume from time to time.

The x-rays showed no fluids in lungs. Everything seem to be ok. We were told that it might be due to stiffness caused by this new to Tom sleeping position. We tried hotwater bottle and hot shower to ease muscle pain, but it does not seem to be helping.

I did search the discussion board history, but got even more scared when I found mumphy's posts about Al's back pain that later turned out to be mets to his lumbar spine. Has anyone else experienced back pain after surgery, for how long and how did you deal with it?

2. Pain killers
Tom has been reducing the dosages of oxicodine to 1/4 of the does, but he is not able to switch to tylenol completely. Plus his back pain is causing him to sometimes jump up to 1/2 of the dose. How long after the surgery have you been taking strong pain medicine?

I hope this post finds everyone ok, enjoying the summer weather.

Olya

ArchTB

Censorship?
I don't know why "hot water" got censored out. I really really really did not mean anything inappropriate by it!

BMGky

Back pain
Bill had extensive back pain following his Ivor Lewis. Since he was hospitalized for 30 days following his surgery, he had little control over his pain medication. When we got home, we attempted to reduce pain medication and ultimately were quite successful. It had its ebbs and flows. We also had prescription pain patches that really helped his back area. Again, we used them sparingly. So, his surgery type was different as I believe you all had an MIE. His lungs were quite painful. He could barely walk from one part of the house to the other. Every ache or pain or stomach trouble or breathing problem had an undercurrent of fear of what is it. I guess that never goes away. So, I can't tell you about the pain Tom is experiencing specifically, but hopefully, you can see that someone else did experience a lot of pain and unknown distress events. He is now 15 months post op and is on no pain medication and works full time and plays twice as hard. Hope this information is of help.

DanaM

I don't think its unusual..
My husband has had previous back surgery and was hospitalized for about 30 days after the MIE... but has complained alot, more than usual about back pain. I think after such an extensive surgery, it seems to take a while to just "get comfortable" period. With inactivity and resting more than usual, these things seem to aggravate the back. It takes several months to feel yourself again and regain your previous level of activity. Reduction of pain meds is the positive thing you've said, not an increase-which would suggest a normal progression. I believe it's very normal even after four weeks and as his activity level increases, he should experience some relief with just moving around more. It does take some time, in some folks cases to come off of the pain medication completely without discomfort. As long as you're moving in the direction of "reducing" and an occasional off day, where you might need to increase-I wouldn't worry. Some people need a slow wean, especially if they've taken pain medication previously and have developed a tolerance. It can create a phemonenom known as rebound pain which is real but created by an absence of the medication and is often mistaken for physical pain. If you're on the road to "reducing" I don't think you should worry. Setting a target date helps as well. It sort of mentally prepares you for stopping altogether and gets you calculating on getting exactly at your target. I am very familiar with the effects of pain medications and its dangers. If you have any other questions about it, plse email me. There are also some "in-between" alternatives, such as Tramadol, which is non-narcotic, but a very effective pain reliever and muscle relaxers can sometimes be used (non-narcotic) if the back is in spasm. You might want to ask your doc if any of these apply or are appropriate for your situation if if continues to be a concern for you. Hope this helps. God Bless.

Joel C

DanaM said:

I don't think its unusual..
My husband has had previous back surgery and was hospitalized for about 30 days after the MIE... but has complained alot, more than usual about back pain. I think after such an extensive surgery, it seems to take a while to just "get comfortable" period. With inactivity and resting more than usual, these things seem to aggravate the back. It takes several months to feel yourself again and regain your previous level of activity. Reduction of pain meds is the positive thing you've said, not an increase-which would suggest a normal progression. I believe it's very normal even after four weeks and as his activity level increases, he should experience some relief with just moving around more. It does take some time, in some folks cases to come off of the pain medication completely without discomfort. As long as you're moving in the direction of "reducing" and an occasional off day, where you might need to increase-I wouldn't worry. Some people need a slow wean, especially if they've taken pain medication previously and have developed a tolerance. It can create a phemonenom known as rebound pain which is real but created by an absence of the medication and is often mistaken for physical pain. If you're on the road to "reducing" I don't think you should worry. Setting a target date helps as well. It sort of mentally prepares you for stopping altogether and gets you calculating on getting exactly at your target. I am very familiar with the effects of pain medications and its dangers. If you have any other questions about it, plse email me. There are also some "in-between" alternatives, such as Tramadol, which is non-narcotic, but a very effective pain reliever and muscle relaxers can sometimes be used (non-narcotic) if the back is in spasm. You might want to ask your doc if any of these apply or are appropriate for your situation if if continues to be a concern for you. Hope this helps. God Bless.

It takes time
Hi Olya,
Four weeks out from surgery is a very short time to recover. At four weeks I still had plenty of back pain from my MIE and was taking oxicodine as needed. I’m now seven months out and no longer take pain meds but still have more back and muscle pain in my stomach than I would like. When I told my surgeon about the pain he said it could take up to a year to really feel better. He also said it my never totally go away. It’s like everything else with this disease, one day at a time.
Joel

sandy1943

I had the ivor Lewis surgery
I had the ivor Lewis surgery and did experience back pain for quite a while. I believe this is common for Ec surgery. Mine would start hurting no matter what I did. Fortunately after my 13 days in the hospital I could dull the pain with motran, so I didn't take prescription pain med. I was very blessed, because I can't stand the pain meds. because they make me very sick at my stomach.
It takes a long time to recover from this major surgery. Every day should start being better. Praying for him,
Sandra