For what it's worth, I've had 2 surgeries on my lower back. I had one when I was 15 for a simple herniation of the L5, the other at the beginning of June of this year. (i'm now 34) Just a word of advice, (i know it wasn't asked for, but here goes anyway) get a second opinion. Definitely check with a neurosurgeon. I have now found out if I had the second opinion on my first surgery, I probably wouldn't have had to suffer for several years trying to recover from the surgery. The second surgery has been a breeze to recover from so far compared to the first one. The most recent surgery consisted of 3 laminotomies, removal of calcium deposits, moving of the nerve and padding it with fat, but not really any work on the disks. Just resist the hardware installation at all costs. Sometimes it is a last resort, but if it fails, you don't really have anything else to do. Like I said, I know no one asked, just trying to help out a BOTL with something I've been forced to deal with most of my life. If you have any questions, just give me a shout.
Best of luck, Matt