OT - Bad Back

gmac

So I have a pretty screwed up back. I threw it out a couple weeks ago and it's getting progressively worse. Right now it looks like I'm leaning about 15 degrees to the right.

I had an MRI done a year or so ago and apparently there is nothing wrong with me except my advanced age (43) and general wear and tear.  I've been told to go to physio, massage therapy, chiropractor, acupuncture etc depending on who I ask.  Since I figure some of them are a scam (I won't say which ones), do any of you have suggestions for someone with chronic back issues?  #1 on the list should be "Lose weight you fat f*&k" but after that what worked for you?

Lowflyer

I'm 43 as well, had a discectomy and laminectomy over a year ago. Couldn't hardly walk until the surgery. Ate pain pills like candy w no resolve. Life is good now. Get a surgeon to look at ur MRI and go from there. Get a 2nd opinion.

MJG

43 here as well. Physical therapy really helped. 6'4 233 lbs....so I know I need to lose weight. Core strength is where it's at. Swimming and Yoga helped.

SaltySam

An inversion table, and exercise. I used to have knee and back pain. I started running (slowly) and it ended up correcting a muscle imbalance. Same thing with my lower back...just stretched, did some core exercises, and that pain went away too. It wasn't immediate. It took a couple months, but one day I just noticed my knees mo longer hurt.

Activity tends to keep inflammation down, as well, if that seems to be part of the problem. So, even if running doesn't appeal to you, walking, elliptical, treadmill, etc all helps. The inversion table helps speed things along by relieving some of the pressure though. It takes a bit of getting used to, but I love it

Eggcelsior

Lose weight: Yes.

Your abdominal girth pulls your center of gravity and lumbar spine forward, which associated with weakened core musculature, can lead to radiculopathy and parathesias.

Yes to acupuncture and physical therapy. Massage therapy is helpful for pain but only relieves symptoms, not causes.

Personally, I won't trust a chiropractor further than I could throw them, but that is because subluxation means something totally different to me than them.

gmac

I'm only 178 cm (sorry, couldn't help it - 5'10").  In grade nine, I wrestled at 209.  In my last year of varsity wrestling in University I was at 282 and stayed around there ever since.  I dropped 40 lbs this past year but I've got a long way to go.  Plus that 282 twenty years ago was a substantially higher percentage of muscle.  

I agree that core strength would help a lot but right now, today, I can barely get off the couch due to the pain so I need to get moving again before I can even start to work on the core.

Normally I have pretty good movement etc, this is an acute flareup that seems to happen every couple years.  I agree with @MJG but right now I'm looking for some relief so I can move again.  Heroin perhaps....

SoCal_Griller

I'm 56 and have recurring back problems, a horse accident. I have had episodes where it took me a week to get to the point where I could get in a car, as a passenger. Chiropractic has helped immensely as we'll as , should I admit it here? Yoga. I surf a couple of times a week and I truly believe in the chiropractic/yoga combo.

Bayarad

I found eggselent low back program online at the Nichols Institute for Sports Medicine and Trauma that are a combination of Stretching and mild Yoga and they have helped me quite a bit and you can do most of them in bed. Google NISMAT low back program exercises and the first link gives you a printable description. Good luck to you I've been there done that many times. I will be fifty in August and have a disk that herniates every now and then at L5-S1. Hope these help!

Foghorn

Some back pain is surgical, but most is not.  Some combination of exercise/physical therapy/yoga is the answer for the majority.  My father worked as a postal clerk who stood on concrete all day sorting mail and developed back pain in his mid 40s.  Once he got over the acute pain he was given a sheet of exercises to do that involved stretching on the floor, etc.  He did them regularly for the next 30 years until he retired and only needed an occasional tylenol or motrin.  Go with the non-surgical plan if you can and work at it.  The problem with the surgical care is that the recurrence rate is high when you follow the patients long enough.

Griffin

I'm only 37 and had bad back pains a few years ago (degenerative disc disease). Was scarfing pills like a madman, about 8 months of my life is a blur. Going to the chiropractor every day and was about to get a new disc and a fuse on another one. Woke up one morning and said screw this. Weaned myself off the pills, quit going to the chiropractor, really amped up my core excercies and started walking and losing weight. Today, I have almost no issues unless I do something dumb like over working myself or lifting too much heavy stuff. I have to pay attention and be careful what I do, but all is well.

Looking back, was I addicted to pills? Hell yeah. I was going through oxy like pez. Was my body dependent on it? Yeah. That was tough getting off it as my body would scream in pain from the addiction.

Did the chiropracter help? NO. I think they made it worse. I barely had any pain when I started going and it got steadily worse. When I quit, it started getting better.

Lose weight, start core exercises and slowly build up some type of workout regiment.

fishlessman

my back has been a problem since high school, ill be 50 this year. sciatica problems down my left side mostly, sometimes the right from a pinched nerve usually puts me in crutches for 3 to 9 months when it happens. its happened in the days i ran track and weighed 70 something pounds all the way to 235 pounds and heavey, soft beds, hard beds, water beds, skiing, cutting wood, sneezing, stretching before getting out of bed, reaching for a piece of paper, tying a shoe. done the physical therapy, stretching routines, excersize, weight lifting, walking, bicycling, weight loss, daily regimes of ibuprofen, glucosamine and chondroiten. nine months of ib pills til my stomach hurt, dr orders to take them and tough it out, and i just stopped the last go around about 2 years ago. i can almost sense when its going to go out and start the morning with an ib, seems safer to me than the doctors regime for 9 months of take 3 then 1 evry couple hours all day everday til the pain is gone. everybody tells you what to do like they know
) but who has a set of crutches at the house, at work, at camp, in the truck for just in case and ib bottles everywhere

GreenhawK

I am a Certified Athletic Trainer, and I have rehabbed a lot of backs through the years.  

There are many things that cause back pain because your back is a very complex series of joints that have a lot going on in and around them.  

Although you don't feel this way now, pain in the back is usually better than pain/ numbness down your legs.  Most of the pathology that needs surgical intervention causes numbness down the legs, and usually not pain in the back.

I am not a fan of Chiropractors at all.  They do make some people feel better temporarily, but I have never seen one actually make someone well.  

Rehabilitation/ Physiotherapy is most often the answer for actual pain in the back which is a great thing because you should be able to avoid surgery.  If your back is spasming so much that it affects your posture, you may want to temporarily use some muscle relaxers to get your spasms calmed down.  Just be cautious about driving and work.  Massage can also help you get through the spasms etc. to get you feeling better ASAP.  Then you would need to move on to a ton of stretching.  Most peoples back pain are caused by muscle imbalances due to muscle tightness and weaknesses.  I have always found that people with back pain have terrible hamstring flexibility.  Most people have tight hip flexors as well.  These muscles pull on your pelvis, and that pulling affects how your pelvis and your spine align with each other.  As you start getting your flexibility back, you need to move on into core strengthening.  A series of exercises that get your back and stomach muscles strong again.  This will help keep you from pulling muscles in the future, and also help your muscles stay balanced around your body.

I hope this helps you decide what course of action you need to take.  If you need more explanations or have questions about local advise that you are getting, let me know.

johnkitchens

I will be 45 next month. I have had back trouble for many years. I had several atv accidents as a kid and one serious car wreck when I was 19. I flipped my car four times and was ejected. In total I have broken over 20 bones in my lifetime. 

Concerning my back I have a bulging disc between my shoulder blades. On bad days it feels like someone is twisting a knife back there. I also have a problem with sciatica, and stenosis that affects my lower back. My neurologist told me I have to learn to live with it.  

Earlier this fall I was in terrible pain. Both my lower and upper back hurt constantly. We bought a new mattress and that has helped tremendously. 

I don't know if that would help you are not, but don't discount it. It has made my life a lot better. 

fence0407

I had a herniated disc when I played baseball and my rehab consisted of lots of stretching, ice and core work. Starting off very slowly and progressing when I started to feel better. I did have one epidural steroid shot that helped some. @GreenhawK knows what he's talking about - sounds just like the trainers that I had. The funny thing about our muscles is that a lot of the times the root of the problem is that the complimentary muscles are weak causing the hurting muscles to have to work harder. 

I also have a portable Tens unit, similar to this one http://www.lgmedsupply.com/tenslg3000kit.html?gclid=CLPr4MmQnL0CFVQV7AodiDEARA . I used one all throughout college and professional baseball - mainly using ice at the same time after exercise. Maybe @GreenhawK or others can chime in on the pros and cons of a Tens/Stim unit. I still use it regularly when my back is sore. 

If anything - I'd just make sure to start slow with your rehab and stretch as often as possible. Best of luck. 

GreenhawK

Tens/Stim units are great.  A tens unit can help with the pain while you work through the issues that are causing the pain.  A Stim unit can help with spasms as well as pain.  

Those epidural shots are also great for a bulging disk a lot of the time.  They have kept a lot of people from having to have a decompression surgery.  If that is an option that you are ever looking at, make sure that you use someone that uses x-ray to pin point the location of the injection.  Those Drs seem to have much better results than the ones that don't use x-ray.  They are just guessing where they put the medicine, and they often miss the ideal spot.  

Those injections aren't usually a good option for muscle strains and spasms etc. though.

cazzy

fence0407 said:

I had a herniated disc when I played baseball and my rehab consisted of lots of stretching, ice and core work. Starting off very slowly and progressing when I started to feel better. I did have one epidural steroid shot that helped some. @GreenhawK knows what he's talking about - sounds just like the trainers that I had. The funny thing about our muscles is that a lot of the times the root of the problem is that the complimentary muscles are weak causing the hurting muscles to have to work harder. 

I also have a portable Tens unit, similar to this one http://www.lgmedsupply.com/tenslg3000kit.html?gclid=CLPr4MmQnL0CFVQV7AodiDEARA . I used one all throughout college and professional baseball - mainly using ice at the same time after exercise. Maybe @GreenhawK or others can chime in on the pros and cons of a Tens/Stim unit. I still use it regularly when my back is sore. 

If anything - I'd just make sure to start slow with your rehab and stretch as often as possible. Best of luck. 

Ok...I can't help myself cause I love baseball too damn much. Who did you play for?

johnkitchens

@Cazzy his signature says Phillies 2009 Alumni. 

cazzy

johnkitchens said:

@Cazzy his signature says Phillies 2009 Alumni. 

Ahh...I'm in mobile mode so didn't see that...thanks!

MaskedMarvel

42 years old here. 6'2" 210 lbs. my back problems disappeared when I realized I never slept on a bed that fit me. I was always scrunching to not have my head hit the headboard and feet hanging off. I got a nice memory foam California King and back problems are no more.

sumoconnell

12 ounce curls until the pain stops.  You're welcome.

PS - Colorado has a new treatment for this...

PPS - is there an eggfest in Colorado?  Bet the food gets eaten quickly this year, and green lightning shrimp is completely different.

plumbfir01

I am a personal fitness trainer as well and without getting into an in depth discussion I will say that Griffin has taken my thoughts on the matter as well as what greenhawk said. I would suggest more of a muscular imbalance unless its secondary to a traumatic injury. 

fletcherfam

If you can find a reputable chiropractor then I would say go there and implement what the other guys say as well (core and weightloss) chiropractor has helped us immensely (I have scoliosis with a double curve in my back) also has helped my kids. Started going 2 to 3 times a week then moved to 2 times then to one them to once every other week now I go about once every six months. You don't need to go every day for the rest of your life.

fence0407

cazzy said:

@Cazzy his signature says Phillies 2009 Alumni. 

Ahh...I'm in mobile mode so didn't see that...thanks!

That's it! I was drafted by the Phillies in 2009 - 29th round. College baseball was fun, professional baseball was an experience.

cazzy

fence0407 said:

cazzy said:

@Cazzy his signature says Phillies 2009 Alumni. 

Ahh...I'm in mobile mode so didn't see that...thanks!

That's it! I was drafted by the Phillies in 2009 - 29th round. College baseball was fun, professional baseball was an experience.

When are you going to move back to Texas??  

fence0407

cazzy said:

fence0407 said:

cazzy said:

@Cazzy his signature says Phillies 2009 Alumni. 

Ahh...I'm in mobile mode so didn't see that...thanks!

That's it! I was drafted by the Phillies in 2009 - 29th round. College baseball was fun, professional baseball was an experience.

When are you going to move back to Texas??  

When did I live in TX?????  :^o

travisstrick

I had severe back pain for years. Two things fixed it:

King size tempurpedic bed

Seeing a chiropractor.

Little Steven

My back is ok but I was damn close to booking in for a double knee transplant a year or so ago. +! on physio.

makis

After a fall in an elevator shaft 4 years ago i am left with a busted leg and big back issues. I had reached a point where i felt like going to the bathroom every time i tried to lift my self off of the couch or bed.

i am 40 so operation was not an option.After a series of physiotherapy, i started Pilates and for a year now I have no pain issues. I feel great and since not in pain I started riding a bike. I lost weight and keep on loosing and I still eat food from my EGG.

You have to break this vice circle of PAIN-NO EXERCISE- MORE PAIN.

I hope you will make it out soon...

fence0407

Swimming is also a great exercise to add to your routine. Low impact and some of the best resistance training there is.  

Miked125

Could be stress related? Try reading Healing Back Pain: The Mind Body Connection, it worked magic on me.

MaskedMarvel

makis said:

After a fall in an elevator shaft 4 years ago i am left with a busted leg and big back issues. I had reached a point where i felt like going to the bathroom every time i tried to lift my self off of the couch or bed.

i am 40 so operation was not an option.After a series of physiotherapy, i started Pilates and for a year now I have no pain issues. I feel great and since not in pain I started riding a bike. I lost weight and keep on loosing and I still eat food from my EGG.

You have to break this vice circle of PAIN-NO EXERCISE- MORE PAIN.

I hope you will make it out soon...

Yeah - we're going to have to hear the elevator shaft story, bub...

Glad you're feeling better!