Back Problems

[andrewo]

I just wanted to start a thread, as many of you know I have a prolapsed disc which effects my strength in my back and left hand side (also dulling all my nerves below my waist - I've heard all the jokes ). It happened again at the weekend and I have inflamed it, in pain etc (don't worry, I'm used to it and know what to do - it was my own silly fault, I tried to pick up a couple of bricks). What I want to know, as this is quite common, how many of us suffer from back pain on this site, and what we do to remedy it from old wives tales to handy balms etc. Just would like to know, as anything we can do to help each other would be great. I've also included a poll, just to see how common back pain is now.

[Peter]

Times two.

Andrew, I have two prolapsed discs, lower 4 & 5.
The worst prolapse was achieved picking a tent peg up from where it was lying on a lawn. It then burst completely that night when lowering myself into the bath, took forty minutes to get out of the bath and drag mayself the ten foot into the bedroom and another hour plus a couple of injections to be able to pull myself onto the bed using a walking stick as a hook & pull device. I was off work for months.

I have had "Facet block" injections once when my mobility really started to suffer and this had a physiotherapy follow-up. It was designed to kill pain so physio could loosen up and improve the joints and surrounding muscle. If you have this be prepared for embarassment, the pain killer kills bladder control temporarily .

Currently I do a maintenance regime of fifteen to twenty minutes of physiotherapist "designed" exercises every morning after getting out of bed.

My office based job makes my back get worse during the day, when at home or pottering about, provided I am sensible about lifting or pushing etc, I am much better. Work provided me with a �500 chair made by Grahl which is very goodm, the back looks like a diagram of a pair of lungs, each of which pivots freely in all directions.

Chemically I take a right cocktail;
Celebrex, anti-inflamatory, twice daily.
Solpadol, pain killer, up to four by two per day, varies.
Glucosamine, joint improver, twice daily.
Cod-liver oil capsules, joint improver, one a day.

Beer can be much better, as can whisky, but I do not want to rely on either!

[Birdie Wife]

Prevention is better than cure, sounds like its a bit late for you two though! Fortunately I haven't had any major problems yet. I'm going to take your stories as warnig of what could happen though. I do try to lift properly but sometimes lapse into bad habits, and the limited experience I have of back pain means I certainly wouldn't want to take any chances! When I was chopping trees down for a living I learnt how to use proper technique to take the strain out of the work, and likewise with lifting heavy things. Take regular breaks and let your back muscles relax back into position. And I would also say, don't bite off more than you can reasonably chew, it's not a competition. In many work parties I've been involved in, the lads all try and lift the biggest logs over their shoulders. No-one's going to be impressed when you're on a stretcher!

[Shortie]

Wasn't quite sure how to poll on this one, as I do get back pain but following a motorway accident I was in back at the end of last year. I have the odd physio session when my spine needs 'cracking' back into alignment but fingers crossed since the warmer weather my back has become much better. I expect that's due to working/building the muscles again by working in the garden and bar initally being really tired and hurting a heck of a lot, I can now be relatively pain free in the garden.

I agree with Peter though that if you are prone to back problems, sitting at a computer most of the day does aggrovate the condition a lot. I have also been told that I have hyper-extensive (Or something like that) which means I'm not quite double jointed, but have much greater flexibilty than most, Good you'd think except that if you're in an accident, your joints are strained more than the average and healing time for me takes longer than the average also

If I'm honest, since the accident, it left me really thinking about my work life and what I really want. At the time of the accident I was the only person who was in within my area in as it was near christmas. No-one in work told me I had to be in, I just did it out of some misguided sense of guilt or whatever it was. I could hardly move for the week after the smash and recon I did myself no favours what so ever, and what did I do it for, really? Of all the what if's that follow something like that, I realised some weeks later that I was bl**dy luck not to have been hospitalised as we were hit at 60 mph when we were stationary - would I have forced myself to go in then if I was in hospital? Of course not, so why did I do it that week....?

Perfect timing for me to have recieved '52 Brilliant Ideas...' book eh?

[Jaxom]

As a fellow back pain sufferer I would recommend Pilates as a method of recovery. My local hospital bases most of its physiotherapy on Pilates.
Pilates is all about natural body form and alignment. Pilates will increase your flexibility, tone muscles in the back and correct your posture. This will lead to a reduction in major pain.
Jax

[SueA]

Luckily I only get back pain after I have done something strenuous like over-enthusiastic gardening or scrubbing the bath too hard(!) & just resting for a while sets it back but my OH has had a bad back almost as long as I have known him & had traction, operations, physio, manipulation etc. years ago. He still gets occasional bad days but says that swimming has helped as it strengthens the back muscles without putting too much strain on it. Don't know if it would work for everyone but it seems to help him.(He only does gentle breastroke so not flinging his arms about or twisting too much)

[andrewo]

My back damage is hereditary, my Father has it and I inherited it. My disc is third from the bottom and it leaks like a sieve. I am on co-proxamol and neurological pain suppressor, can't remember the name (because I rarely take the tablet). I do a regime of exercises from physion - and pilates is the reason I ended up with back problems - I joined a gym, started pilates and within a month my disc had gone. So, it's not for everyone

I find swimming to be the best exercise and walking, it keeps the joints moving and I am now conscious of my posture even when sitting ot typing.

[nick the grief]

I'm no where near as bad as you guys, I just loose the feeling in my foot occasionally.
It aches most of the time but not really painfull & so I stopped taking the tablets unless it's really bad then I hit them.
I've got a list of excercises from the Physio but it isn't always possible to do them. I try and go for a walk, even if it's round the block when I'm at work because I'm sitting most of the time. One of my biggest problems is I have a journey by coach of 1.5hrs each way per day & you can't get up & walk around there!!!

[smallblueplanet]

Got a sort of sciatica? doc didn't wanna know bar giving me painkillers! Sometimes I can't put weight on my right leg and get shooting pains...mostly kept at bay by sleeping on a 'hard' bed-base ie a futon

[nick the grief]

I had accupuncture this time last year SBP that worked for me. I went from not being able to walk more than 10 yards (literally!) to fairly normal inside 4 weeks. It took a good while longer to get back to normal but just being able to sleep at night was bliss!

[Alice]

Looks like its pretty common. I have it too. But some days excrutiating and other days no problem. Have to accept if it was all physiological the pain would be constant. It's definately worse when under pressure or emotional upset and physical posture plays a big part. Find tasks which involve bending foward very painful. The answer is exercise to strenghthen the back muscles, relaxation and pain killers only when all else fails. Listen to your body. It's telling you something.

[pigletwillie]

My back problems stem from my feet and ankles. I had bilateral anterior ligament repairs a few years ago in both ankles due to playing too much hockey and rugby. I now also have a deffinate pronation to my feet which in turn causes lower back pain. Excercise and plenty of it keeps the pain to minimal levels but being a bloater now certainly does'nt help much. However, things could be worse.

[plot 11 pam]

nurses back

I have acquired a sore back and sciatica from years of lifting heavy patients in bed and out of bed. sorry to say the proffession really only tackled this poor working practice 15 years or so ago, and as i've been nursing for 30 years i suppose it was inevetable. though when you are young you think it will never happen to you. Now everyone in the nhs is taught to look after their backs and the one big change is that people dont lift patients anymore, ie. we use hoists and lift belts, slide sheets and other techniques to maximise the patients abilities.

[Jaxom]

Andrewo. In my last post I forgot to say that I didn't vote due to the fact none of the options fitted. Sorry. You seem to want to find very specific answers, as the options are very tight. A poll that wishes to research information needs to be more open.
I'm sorry if this sounds picky, as it is not intended to be that way. I worked in market research for a number of years, so would advise that questions be as open to respondents answers as possible.
To get a larger response to your poll I would have added.
"I sometimes have back pain but none of the above match my experience." This would act as a catch all option to keep 100% of respondents who participate able to cast a vote.
Jax

[Peter]

Breaststroke is, according to my physiotherapist, the worst possible swimming stroke for anyone with back problems due to the leg action.