I have an update, but it's not as good as I was hoping for. Although, if I wrote this a couple weeks ago it would have been better.
I wrote earlier this week about my business/vacation trip I took recently. Right before the trip, I got my diagnosis from the orthopedic doctor. He prescribed me a steroid pack, which contained 21 pills to be taken over the course of six days. Since I can't take NSAIDs due to the gastric bypass, this was the next best option.
I debated back and forth as to whether I should start the pack right away, which would mean I would finish the pack while I was away, or wait to start it when I got back from CA. The reason I couldn't make up my mind was that the drug information pamphlet that came with the prescription stated that it could lower my immune system, which meant I could get sick while I was away. Since I'd be trapped on a plane with 150+ people for 6+ hours, I figured it would be likely I'd get sick. But then I started thinking about how much pain I was in and how much more pain I'd be in after that long plane ride, sitting in a conference room for several days, and then taking another plane ride home. That made up my mind: I started the pack that Thursday before my trip.
I have to say, the steroids really made a big difference in my pain levels. The pain wasn't completely gone, but I no longer was waking up at 2 am already in pain. I also used my back brace for the plane rides, as well as long site-seeing drives and the business conference. I didn't need any of the Percocet that was prescribed "just in case." I managed with some occasional Tylenol.
When I got back to work after my trip, my standing desk had been installed in my office. It's pretty neat. My monitors are attached to the platform and it has a shelf for my mouse and keyboard. I can raise it so I can stand up whenever I need to without any fuss. Lowering it is just as easy. My boss said it looks like it belongs on the Star Trek Enterprise. It definitely helps alleviate some of the back pain.
My workouts are pretty limited at the moment. I'm the queen of lunges and body weight squats. I'm not supposed to twist; lift weights above my head; do anything that's high impact, like running or jumping; and no floor exercises. The physical therapist says I can try some of the exercises I stopped, like kettle bell swings, but said to listen to my body and don't do anything that causes pain. I have to say, although it's very limited right now, I'm not sad that I can't do burpees, jump squats or flutter kicks.
Anyway, now that I'm home and back to work, my pain is back. It's not quite as bad as before I took the steroid pack, but it's still not good. Part of the problem is having to go out of town last weekend and then having to sit through several three-hour training sessions this week. Even though I'm using the standing desk and I'm still using my back brace when I'm sitting at work, I find it's just not enough. I bought myself a knee pillow for bed, which I just started using this past weekend. It's meant to put the back into alignment when sleeping on my side and take the pressure off the hips and lower back. I've also started physical therapy, so I'll see how that goes.
Hopefully someday I will be pain free like most other people. I can't remember what it's like to not feel some sort of pain on a daily basis.
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