Scarlet Angel's blog: "~ Things Goin On ~"

So, I wake up last Thursday, and guess what? PPAAIINN!!!! My back hurt so bad, I could hardly walk. So, like it's happened before, and after a day or two, I'm back to normal...

Well, then comes along Monday. Guess what? After laying in bed all weekend, the pain is not only still there, but WORSE!! So, I make a doctors appointment and he doesn't do much other than ask questions and test my reflexes. He then orders an x-ray and prescribes me some anti-inflammatory medicine and muscle relaxers. So, I get home, and it's too late to make the appointment for the x-ray, so I wait until Tuesday to do that.

Well, they tell me they can't fit me in for a week and half. Ummm? I'm thinking... WTF??? Okay, so I tell my boss and he gives me the name of his chiropractor, along with an excellent reference. Okay, so I call them Wednesday morning. They say they can take me in two hours. What? Two hours? Holy crap!!! And, they have an x-ray machine ON-SITE!!!

So, then I make my 1-1/2 hour trek to the chiropractors office. After filling out the new patient stuff, they took me right in. That was nice for a change (not having to wait forever).

So, he asks questions, does a few flexibility tests (but way more than my primary doc). Checked for things like numbness, or leg pain, and anything that would cause my back to hurt. Soooo, then he decides to take x-rays... OMFG that hurt like HELL!!!! I would have preferred a root canal!!! (or maybe not, but still)

So, he develops the x-rays and lordy gee wiz... Houston! We have a problem!!!

So, he proceeds to tell me I have what they call Spondylolisthesis. In a nutshell, it's a slipped vertebrae.

Yippee!!!! NOT!!!

Spondylolisthesis is a condition in which a bone (vertebra) in the lower part of the spine slips forward and onto a bone below it.

It can be caused from a few things, such as a birth defect where that part of the spine never develops properly, a stress fracture (such as common with gymnasts), or degenerative disease. So, in my case, I'm stuck with either a stress fracture or birth defect, since I don't have degenerative disease.

Now, I was in gymnastics for a little bit, and also in a couple car accidents... However, but examining the surrounding area's, the doctor is fairly certain that, in my case, it's caused by a birth defect where my spine never fully developed.

Ugggghhhh... So, this brings me to the present time, where I now have to go to therapy a few times to see if it gets better. The problem being that where the vertebra is slipped, there is inflammation. In order to get the pain to go away, the inflammation needs to disappear, and I should be back to normal.

I was also told, that in the future, if this continues to happen, each time it does, it's 3 days bed rest, anti-inflammatory medication, and ice packs to my lumbar region. To avoid it??? Don't lift heavy things!!!! OMFG.. I have three kids, how do I avoid lifting heavy things?

And, to make things worse? If mine was due to a birth defect, it's highly possible that it could be hereditary. (No wonder mom's side of the family has always had back problems...) And, I thought it was the boobs!!! LMAO. But, seriously... If it is hereditary, my kids might have it too, and we wouldn't know until they were fully developed (around 20 years of age).

Blah!!!!

So, now ya know!!!

Oh, by the way, the picture below shows the spine... My slipped vertebra is on the last one (bottom of the lumbar region).