As a Surgical Technician that specializes in backs I can offer you one VERY BIG piece of advise. NO NOT let an Orthopedic Doctor touch you. Do some research and find a good Neuro Doctor. Ortho guys are good with bones (knee & hip replacement) but you're talking about a structure filled with nerves. You will see much better results with the right Doctor.

had the surgery.. was done by a nero surgen....PLEASE make sure it is a neuro that you see to decided if the work is needed.. and he has a good rep for his work......the surgery went great was walking with out pain that night.. had the shots in the back several times.. there ok but not a fix.....had zero problems after the surgery......for years till i got stupid and went horse back riding got tossed... i think u could say i am back at square one

Back Pain Issues : Better Back, Better Body By Joanne Broatch,
A new Slant on an old idea; Try the "Inversion way" to a better back and body.
Check out the Inversion Table by Tetter - Hang -Ups advertised on T V and sold at local exercises stores.
It works for me and my friends are always wanting to use it too.
This works on the principal of natural traction to allow the body fluids to flow into the joints
of your entire body; Neck, Back, Knees, Ankles, etc. They sell for around $300. and beats going to a doctor .
I sure hopes this will help you and your friends .

Have to agree with mozart. Cortizone shots (Depomedral) are a temporary fix but not a solution. The shots will only mask the problem but not repair a damaged nerve or disk.

If an Ortho even offers to do the surgery RUN!!!!!!!

Bigie did hit on something. Inversion tables really do work. I bought one after seeing my doctor after an ATV accident. He had one in the lounge in his office. He was advised to get one by a Neuro after he had back surgery

every prob is different, had to retire early because of lower back/discs.. correct dr is very important. mine told me
" no surgical remedies at this time ". i have inversion table, really helps, got it used for $100.00. iget the occasional lower spine injection, no pain, for me it works maybe 1x a year or so. pretty much limited to shorter rides on the bike. i ain't complainin, could be worse.
best of luck to you....

Have not had back surgery but have another suggestion.
Stop using that KAMA SUTRA book for ideas!!!!!!
Mate I do feel for you. I had surgery by a orphopetic surgeon on my shoulder and he totally stuffed it up. Went to a proper DR and he fixed it the best he could. He told me it will never be any good after the first operation the other Dr did.
Heed the advice of the other brothers/sisters!!!!!!!!!!!

If there is anyway you can avoid it...then avoid it...5yrs ago I chose a life change to back surgery n so far it's working.
I changed my diet,changed my workouts,incorperated a massage thearpist n which in turn taught me the streaches I do every morning n nite to avoid surgery...today I barley use pain meds n I can ride 6 to 700 miles a day again.

The inversion table reejay suggested is a great idea but PLEASE try all the alternavetives first.
RandyJoe...Ride Strong...

Been there, done that, never again.
I had all the shots, traction and everything else the doctor could find.
I have a bad back in three places (l1,t5,c3), and I had surgery in my neck to fix pinched nerve. Felt great. loved it. 3 years later the pain coming back, from the scar tissue from the first surgery!

From experience I found out the bed I was using and that my wife loved was killing me. She slept great, I was in agony every day. I finally decided I had to do something, I was not going to live this way.

We finally got the sleep number bed after trying most of the others (memory foam and such)
Wow! what a difference. I started out at #85 but quickly started dropping and am now at #40 and sleep like a baby and wake up in the morning with no back pain. I used to have to roll off the bed onto the floor and crawl up the wall to get up!
And, if I do something dumb and stress it, I just pump it back up for a day and then lower it and all is well.
I will never go back to a regular mattress again.

The good part is that the wife can set hers wherever she wants and I have mine where I want it.
We have the 2 xl-twin mattresses that are attached together to make a king bed.

I wish I had done it a long time ago. Before the surgery for sure.

Thanks for all the info, folks - EXTREMELY helpful!!!! How long do you stay in the inversion table for? 15-30 min?

Inversion : Start out slowly, With someone with you until you get the hang of it. 3 -5 min. twice a day,
then 5 -10 min. twice a day. I only use the partial inversion, Some people prefer to hang freely.
I hope this will help you !

You sound like your earlier problem was lower back it sounds like it might be higher,neck maybe,that usally affects your arms.Sounds like to me you need a visit with the right neurosurgeon and a new MRI of your lumbar and cervical spine,before you decide to do anything.When my husband had surgery on his neck it did fix the numbness in his arms,but as always pain will always be with you because of scar tissue and the pressure surgery and time puts on your other disc.when I had steriod shots in my lumbar spine they didn't help saw another Dr and he gave me a shot on both sides of my siatical joints and I rarely have problems now.

Inversion tables are usally more helpful with compressed disc, just be careful and do it slowly and make sure someone is there to help you get out of it,because when you're hanging there its hard to get up if your in alot of pain.

Had surgery in '03. No regrets at all. Had a discectomy , fusion and 2 rods placed in. Still some moderate pain but my own fault for not doing exercises reguary. Talk to a neuro for advice.

Thanks, again folks!!! alot of great info here!

there are treatments that do not require surgery in the traditional manor such as laproscopic diseconomy, it take about 15 minutes and the recovery is about 2 weeks as opposed to the 3-6 months for the cutting version. I have had a bulging disc for 20 years told the nero to shove it, he wasn't going to cut me, 5 years ago only 4 doctors (MD) in the US were doing it now it is common practice. Don't ask others what to do,do your homework on the internet so you know what questions to ask, they will want you to get an MRI so as to know exactly where the problems are located they should only fix the worst part first and then see how you feel. Sometimes fixing the worst area will assist the rest to avoid further surgery. Only your trusted doctor can tell you how to proceed. Some people get immediate relief some only a little it depends on "your" situation.
As you can tell I have researched this for over 10 years before I committed to my repairs.