Broken Back! (Part I of II)

Several years ago, my back started to hurt. At first, it was a mild pain, mostly stiffness which I attributed to getting older or overdoing it on the treadmill. However, over time, the pain grew more and more intense. Sitting in a car for more than 30 minutes felt like my lower back was on fire. Bending over the sink to wash my face required one hand on the counter to support myself or risk falling on the ground from a blinding surge of pain through the torso. Realizing something was wrong, I went to my physician, who recommended some stretching and exercise. I was skeptical, as I was in good physical condition and already following a regimen of stretching and strength training. The newly recommended program did not provide relief, and my pain grew more intense. Having health insurance that allows me to see specialists without a referral, I went to a pain management physician. He sent me to the hospital to have some x-rays taken of my back. The next time I saw him, he pulled out the films and, as his eyes focused on them, his face immediately betrayed a look of mild horror. I asked to see the film and immediately saw what was concerning him -- one of my vertebrae was considerably out of line with the others. I had a condition, which took over year just to learn the pronunciation of it, called Spondylolisthesis. I needed to find a surgeon to correct this "gross instability" by having a spinal fusion. Like most people, I was concerned about back surgery, having heard and read many negative stories about it. I asked several physicians and surgeons who the best surgeon for this type of surgery was in my area. After seeing several potential surgeons, I decided to work with Dr. Henstorf in Fremont, California. Dr. Henstorf initially had me try a more rigorous and specialized regimen of strength training with a physical therapist. The goal was to strengthen my core muscles and the musculature attached to my spine. Hopefully it would stabilize my spine and provide pain relief. The program worked well to increase my strength, but it did not reduce my pain. After ten weeks, Dr. Henstorf and I agreed the therapy was not improving my condition and it was likely my condition would deteriorate further over time. It was time to consider surgery.