Microdiscectomy 2 years on

I was 2 years post surgery in February so I'm a bit late with this.

At 18 months I was still struggling with enough pain to remind me I had a bad back and sciatica.

After the MRI scan a couple of months later I was told there no reason for my pain but a root back was an option.  I finally got the date for the root block 4 months later, at about the 2 years post op mark. I ummmmed and arrrrd about it for a while and then cancelled.

Root block is the worst thing I've ever had and I got little benefit from it first time around, but more importantly by January I was back to comfortably running 5k. I think people going for pain relief ops generally shouldn't be able to do that!

So where am I now? Much better than I was 6 months ago.

I am now able to run 10k! No seriously, my back...it gets sore sometimes in a way that I guess lots if people's backs get sore, and I often had a bad back before the herniation took hold on my life.

I work 4 days a weeks now not 5 and the amount of evening and weekend work I do has dropped massively too. My big improvement has coincided with that.  I think it is related and not just about the extra 6 months.  After all July 2012 I was pain free for a while when we had our week in Paris.

My leg pain and sciatica still hover sometimes. I still have an ice pack in the car but I rarely use it. Usually only after I've been driving for an hour. I get sore if I sit and watch a film on the sofa but I can do it. I have to lie a particular way in bed, I still can't walk hand in hand with HWMBO because it gives me a slight twist and pain starts. So my life is still 'modified' but it's in a way I can cope with.

Interestingly I'm now starting to have problems with my knees. I think it is coming from using the kneeing chairs at home and work. I need to rethink my sitting stance!

So finally I tentatively think I might be declaring this episode closed, I'm a little bit frightened to say that because of Murphy's law.

I have been doing a 2 minute plank every day since the 1st January.  So my 30 day plank challenge is now over a 100.  My core is stronger I think.  I managed to shred a bit of excess weight I was carrying in the new year too, but maintaining my weight is and always will be a challenge.

To try to help my knees I think I'm going to add a squat challenge to my day.  I'm still too scared to go back to circuit training, too scared of sit-ups and weights.  I'm still baby steps.  Mind you I'm happy to pound the pavement all winter and take risks with running with injuries galore.

So slowly, slowly back to a fitness level where I feel good.  I'll let you know how it goes.