damn, my back is fucking KILLING me
 

so, for the past 6 years or so, my back has gotten slightly sore while sitting and working (on computer) for extended periods of time. normal, and no big deal... and always went away after a break.

until last month. i hurt my arm pretty badly snowboarding, forcing me to sleep directly on my back (instead of on the side, which is how i've always slept). my lower back started getting progressively more sore over the past 4 weeks. my arm is now healed, but my back is the worst it's ever been. i'm fine laying down, or standing up/walking - but sitting for more than 15 minutes at a time = hell. it basically feels like all the muscles in my lower back have gone to jelly, letting my spine do whatever it wants, causing me to use all sorts of different muscles down there to keep everything in line, which then become very sore with the effort. i'm getting kinda worried. should i go see a doctor, or wait and see (i fucking hate going to the doctor, usually just sweat things out)?

this definitely sucks. 31 and my back seems to be fucked (and i didn't do anything to it other than temporarily change my sleeping position!!).


bah, thanks for listening to my rant.

no problem.

massage therapist and back strengthening exercise via a physiotherapy type specialist. going to the doctor for muscle issues probably won't accomplish that much. but it's always better safe than sorry.

I had the same problem November through January. I should have went to the doctor but I'm better now. I'm only a couple of years younger than you so it might go with the territory.

Some kind of sprain in the back. try to stretch your muscles.

i had this problem. my doctor said it's from sitting down too much and my back muscles changing to the shape of my chair.
It got to the point where I couldn't walk down stars and I had trouble breathing.

it just went away on it's own after a month

How strong is your back normally?

If you don't work out your upper and lower back muscles regularily, a few days of bad posture, bad sleeping, or heavy lifting can screw you up for months...

Could be your chair? If you haven't got one I would suggest an Herman Miller Aeron.

Same here Quiet. But its farther down on my back hips. I really have to get out of chairs more often as I get older. Its not so bad when you're young, but once you get past 40 the effects on your back are way more intense if you sit too long.

red flags for lower back pain, are change of sensation, or numbness in the perineum, incontinence (uriinary or faecal), weakness, or lack of sensation in the legs..

If all those are fine you could probably sweat it out, although Dr can provide some better pain relief. An anti-inflammatory like diclofenac can be real helpful.. Even better if injected in yer ass.

Chronic lower back pain is actually surprisingly uncommon, in a lot of countries where sickness benefits were paid for lower back pain, once the benefit was cut, the number of presentations to Dr's fell towards 0.

Nonetheless a Dr is always good for some piece of mind.

:2 cents:

Massage therapy and meditation might do the trick.

Excerise, get messages and be active by walking or something....oh and yes must get laid ....anyways, i know exactly the feeling man.,..in the same boat here....just need to do it! damn it...must excerise daily.

I only gets worse with age :(
I started feeling aches and pains after 30 and they slowly crawled up to me.

In your case, I'd go see a chiropractor or massages to ease the muscles back to place. If you've taken a few falls in the past (maybe not bad ones) they are creeping up on you now. I generally go get my muscles snapped back in place the moment I feel the hint of pain coming on - then I'm good for a few months.

Do not sleep on a spring coil mattress. :2 cents:

get a spine transplant, it's the only solution.

I feel your pain. Im 23 and my back is fucked as well, thanks to a rearending. I find that hot showers help a little, but sometimes I cant even move.

two hits and call me int he morning.
http://www.subconsciousstudios.com/a...blunt-winn.jpg

www.relaxtheback.com <--- check out

Sounds muscular. Try heat on your low back, and stretching, especially your hamstrings. Make sure your chair supports your lower back, and is at a level so your feet are on the floor, with your legs at a 90% angle. A couple of sessions on my inversion table would set you up.

Herniated disc, lower back, sciatic nerve and radiating pain through my legs. Could not drive or sit for more than 20 mins at a time, or pick up my son. Physical therapy and spinal injections did nothing, and the orthopedic surgeon was afraid removing the disc could impair walking. A good chiropractor and an inversion table are the only things that helped the pain, and gave me my life back.

Yeah my chiropractor helped a lot. My back will never be the same though.

just what the Dr. ordered! :thumbsup

quiet - are you working in a proper good office chair at a proper office desk or mobile all the time in couches and lounges and hotel desks?

I go through spurts where I go mobile all over my house and in a couple of days my back gets fucked up so I go back to my good office chair at my office desk and in another few days I'm feeling better again.

aeron chair!

Mine either. I have had pain for years, I know I will have some pain for the rest of my life. It's more quality of life - getting the pain to a tolerable level so you can live as you normally would.

Damn sore backs are one of the worst pains. Im only 20 but had a sore lower back for a good while. It seems to have disappeared now hopefully for a long time! Good luck on recovering :)

woah, so many responses.

re: physio/massage therapy - should i just go to a doctor for a referal?

re: pornwolf - well, that makes me feel a little better. did you do anything different, that might have caused the issue, or did it just present itself?

re: pimplink - have tried stretching a bit. weird thing is: i can bend over and touch my feet, put on my shoes while standing up, etc. no problem. but try sitting, and it's like i said... hell.

re: clickhappy - doesn't sound like you had the same problem (at least on the surface). i have no trouble climbing stairs or breathing knock on wood.

re: fusebox - my back is not huge, but it's usually in good shape. it was in great shape last summer, but i have to admit exercise has gone out the window since october, part of the reason i bought a place in Whistler.

re: chair - i'm in a hotel right now, so chairs aren't much of an option. brisk - did you have back problems and buy that model?

re: KRL, Trixxxia, stephanie m. - misery loves company i guess

overlord: "Sounds muscular. Try heat on your low back, and stretching, especially your hamstrings." - how do you recommend i stretch my hams?

I've had back problems and I finally went to the chiro. He recommended some very good stretches twice a day and to take a hot bath/jacuzzi 3x/week. It's helped ALOT.

Oh..and I'm not sure if you have 'relax the back store' where you are but I got this kick ass office chair..the only one actually approved by the AMA.

get one of these:

http://ewbcams.com/ball.jpg

sit on it instead of a chair and also roll around on it to align your spine.


btw: your balls don't have to be blue. :winkwink:

Joint a day, keep the doctor away.... :thumbsup

nothing but traveling lately. currently in a hotel. i've got a good office chair in Montreal (soon to have one in Whistler), but haven't used it much lately.

lots of people recommending chairs, etc. hmm. must stand up again...

Ben Gay

:glugglug

well, since you're on the road then i'd go find a masseuse.

but get the big ball when you get home. i have an extra vertebrae. sitting for any length of time is painful for me. that ball has done wonders for my pain.

when i use it for a chair and my back starts to hurt, i just roll back on it for a bit and i'm all better.

I'd avoid going to a 'doctor' simply because he'll try to cure it with meds.

If you want a good physio/massage therapist, try to find out who the hockey players or who the sports centers refer you too. A sports therapist (I've been told by sports agents) are more experienced or better equipped in getting you well quicker. Personally I use a 'myotherapist' or someone who's 'gifted' this guy just touches the area and knows what to snap back (at least for me)

do you guys with back problems work out regularly? (im just wondering)

Couple good quick ones for traveling:

1. Stand straight, with your heels and behind against a wall.
2. Cross your right foot over your left, both feet flat on the floor.
3. Slowly bend at the waist, reaching for your toes. Your right leg will hold the left straight, and you should feel the pull in the back of your left leg (only go far enough to feel discomfort in the muscle, not pain). Stretch and hold for 30 seconds.
4. Switch legs and repeat for the right side.


1. Lie flat on the floor, on your stomach, with your hands flat at shoulder level.
2. Lift your head and tosro, as if doing a push-up, but keep your hips/belt line flat agains the floor.
3. Push up, feeling the strech in yout lower back. Stretch and hold for 30 seconds. Do not arch your back, and make sure to keep your hips flat against the floor.

I have others, but they are difficult to describe in chat. :1orglaugh

Hope these help a bit.

I used to get some moderate lower back pain when I spent hours sitting in those crappy chairs you get from Staples etc but that hasn't been an issue since I brought an Aeron few years back..well worth the $$.

I think the newer versions have even better lumbar support. There are couple of office stores in Vancity sell them I believe.

If you think about it, probably about 90% of your day is spent either sitting or sleeping, so you should really focus on doing both those activities so that your back is in the proper position. I travel a lot, and I've found most hotel room desk chairs really suck for working in for hours and hours. I find it helps to get a pillow or something to put behind my lower back to keep the curve in my back when I'm sitting so that I don't end up hunched over the keyboard.

Put a racquet ball in your suit case. You can set it on the bed or floor, and then lay flat on your back, with your sore spot on top of the ball. Using your weight, you can move your back across the racquet ball, rubbing out tightness and muscle spasms.

Step 1: Call all the dance schools in the different areas you live in and find out their attending chiro's names

Step 2: Go with a couple or three names, set primary visits to talk

Step 3: See if they want to slap you on the table or do they do full physicals, blood workups and xrays

Step 4: Walk out of any office where the above is NOT done before they will touch you

Step 5: Pick the one that you gelt most comfortable with that also does the full battery

Step 6: Go get the tests asap. Usually takes a week or so to get all the results like bloodwork etc

Step 7: Go start getting treated.

I live with the back problem King. He had his back fractured in martial arts in his eaarly 20's and didn't know it. Fell thru a roof in his late 20's and was down in a body cast for a yr. Prognosis wheelchair without a doubt. After they let him out of the cast it took him a month at night to get to where he could walk.

One night just before getting out of the hospital he scared the BeJesus out of the night shift nurse when he walked up to her desk and asked her if she had any snacks. ;-) He was literally starving!!

He still goes to his Doc once in a while for a few weeks in a row . But he had done alot of research and the best chiro's were the ones that handled the dancers. She treated me once for the very thing thats bothering you Quiet. One visit and I was fine. Might need to go again soon but hey, its been 8 yrs. lol

They also have all the correct exercises for YOU to do for what YOUR problem actually is. Massage therapists etc have no clue.

I do, but not as much as before the accident.

make sure you sit up straight. hunching over isnt good.

For me, it's all about the lumbar support. Try wearing shoes without any arch support in them and your feet will hurt, it's the same with your back. If you spend hours sitting in a chair with no lumbar support you're entering a world of back pain. The same is true for sleeping as well IMO.

Check out this stuff

http://www.relaxtheback.com/global/p...&treeID=187 5

Great advice!! I would add two things about chiropractors:

1. Stay away from the ones who think that chiropractic heal everything. Holistic and hippie-like is ok, but not the ones that think a spinal adjustment heals everything from cancer to shingles.

2. If the dance studio idea does not work in for you in your area, the best chiropractors are referred, not advertised. Get recommendations from friends instead of the phone book.

That's a bit of a cheapshot at Dr's :). Meds can provide great symptomatic relief to back pain, but every Dr knows they're not going to fix a bad back, and they are usually more than willing to recommend a physio.

You shouldn't need a referral to go to a physio.

What the hubby found out on dance docs is important... They deal with everything from 6 yr old girls up to adult dancers so their gentleness is a must. And dance studios won't deal with the quacks that think they can do it all.

Our doc does the Columbus Ballet and all the companies that come thru here. She has toe shoes from every top ballet dancer that has been thru here for 20 yrs. ;-) She does think that a back in good shape promotes food health etc but theres the rub...

The holy docs don't GIVE that battery of tests. lol Fast way to find out without being tacky eh?

blood work ?, x-ray? damn waste of resources :)

my back is completely fucked and im only 19, a few years ago my physio told me id be physically incapable of playing basketball by the time i was 24. my back is getting progressively worse.

If i were you i would find a really good physio and get some excercises for your lower back, depending on the severity of the problem this could be anywhere from 15 minutes to 2 hours per day (it is fucking boring, believe me) but it is the only real way to fix it. also try to walk around between sitting, and make sure that you have good shoes, you wouldnt believe how much they can contribute to back problems (this probably wont apply to you as much, as this was injury related)

either way find a good physio and start working on strengthening the muscles again, theres nothing worse than having a fucked up body like this. if i could have one wish it would be that my body isnt as fucked up as it is.

jesus.

so many conflicting views - what the hell should i do? i guess i could just sweat it out and hope for the best, but if that doesn't work i'd like to just head to a single place.

i know they have one of the best physical/sports therapy institutes in the world in Whistler. maybe i should go there (i know it won't be cheap lol)?