I finally got the courage to get the guided block done last thursday. There is so little information out there that i wanted to post my experience with as much detail as possible for the people who are afraid like i was.
I will first start with- It was barely painful at all.
You get undressed
They lay you on your stomach on a table, and position a CT machine right over your buttocks
They rub some iodine on you which feels a little cold
Then they insert the numbing needle about in the center of your cheek, a litle closer to your crack(sorry don't know the scientific word for crack lol). Very small, and personally i barely felt even a pinch.
After that they wait about a minute or so for it to kick in. It worked very fast on me.
They then insert the needle with the medication. I personally did not even know she inserted the needle, i had to ask her and was in disbelief when she said yes.
She continued to guide the needle, and i honestly felt nothing at first.
It wasn't until she got a little deeper into the tissue that i felt pain. Even then it was not bad pain, it was just uncomfortable.
And everytime i did feel that sensation, she added more numbing medicine and the feeling went away.
It came back a couple of times because she was trying to find the correct site. But each time i said something she added more medicine.
SPEAK UP, i can't stress this enough. My doctor is one of the nicest people i met and she was so cautious on making sure i was okay. This is so important.
After the procedure, she pulled the needles out, again i didn't feel that. I waited for the medicine to kick in.
My leg was numb, as well as my whole saddle area, and even my genitals. Good sign because that means she hit the nerve with the medicine, otherwise my genitals wouldn't be numb.
I definitely had less nerve pain sitting, but unfrotunately where they insert the needle leaves a bit of a charlie horse, so it was hard for me to tell where the pain was coming from.
I am 4 days in, and i definitely had a flare up. Which they said was normal. I am hoping to get some relief at some point soon
i am praying to be better, even just a little.Hope this helps for anyone who is frightened by the procedure. Just make sure you have a caring doctor and make sure it's guided.
I was TERRIFIED, i cancelled it twice. But this was nowhere near as bad as i thought it would be.
Be well everyone