Back Pain: Realistic Expectations

Ok, so I had a re examination with a patients today, nice man, has had back pain for 8 years and bouts of sciatica. He came to me in severe pain and we took some x-rays that showed he has a bad case of degenerated disc disease, that means the disc cushions have worn thin and the nerves are being irritated. The man is 78 years old by the way. So after the initial exam I told him what I tell every patient that I accept... I believe that this is the very best treatment choice for your condition and I expect your back to repair, in fact I would expect changes in 2 weeks, real changes that you will notice in how you feel and how you move. Ok. So he becomes a patient. I see him everyday for 2 weeks and he is 50% better by his own account. Not bad. We continue care another 6 weeks and I treat him 3 times a week. His pain continues to diminish and we add some exercising on a treadmill while he is breathing oxygen and getting muscle stimulation. He continues to improve. At the end of the program the man (78 years old) shows objective change on his re x-rays, 20% increase in his disc spaces, (yes I can do that, yes VAX-D does work that good) and he reports no pain on his paperwork I am reviewing his chart, thinking that this was a great case to post online, I am very proud. So after everything is done the patient says to me... "Well Doctor I guess this didn't work, I still have pain". Hmmmm. It turns out he still has a little bit of stiffness and pain after he gardens. He gardens NOW, he could NOT garden before the treatment for 10 years. So I said, maybe you need to easy back into it. In truth, maybe he has to change, or at least modify his routine. It takes 18-24 months for a disc to completely heal. Lets all be thankful there is a great non surgical option to actual cure your back pain and lets all understand there is NO MAGIC WAND that is going to turn back the hands of time. One of my mentors once said, "Patients are always in a hurry to get back to doing the stuff that got them sick in the first place." The Vax-D treatment is the best thing that has happen to back pain in the last 100 years, surgery only produces results 30% of the the time but with Vax-D I can repair over 80% of patients with severe pain. These results are show to last for over 5 years. Be thankful for the healing and be a patient, patient... slow and easy wins the race... You cannot force it any faster than your body will allow.