Back Pain! Anyone had problems?

A few years ago, I had a back that just kept getting worse. Saw a chiropractor, which seemed to make it worse. In the end I saw the GP, he referred me to a spinal surgeon (Damian Fahy) and it was the best thing I could have done. So I would agree with MLC, go and see a doctor. Turned out I had ruptured a disc.

Don’t waste your money on anything other than an established / recommended Osteopath.
Chiropractors are basically no better than witch doctors & will rinse you for as long as they can.
trust me I should know having had issues with my back & neck for years the Neurosurgeon who inserted the implant in my neck told me that any of the above that didn’t fix the initial pain issue after 2 sessions would be a waste of money however the better option is definitely the Osteopath.

I have Spinal Muscular Atrophy type 3. I have specialist physio at the NMC https://www.nmcentre.com/physiotherapy-at-nmc and they have just done an acupuncture session which certainly helped. Previously I have had chiro sessions but the root cause is osteoarthritis in the spine diagnosed by x ray in 2012.

I have what I believe is a trapped nerve. Had it for around 35 years.
When it goes I simply drop to the floor, can not put any weight on my legs. Happens every few years.
Also a milder version which lasts a few days.
Both go as quickly as they come.
Most annoying.
Doctors just suggest pain killers....

Try this, best lower back relief I’ve found (from my boxing coach)

Legs 2ft apart, hang your arms down to the floor.

You will feel your lower back take the stretch

Relax, let the weight of your upper body hang from your lower back

Swing your arms slowly fore and aft and then left and right.

Amazing stretch.

conaero said:

Try this, best lower back relief I’ve found (from my boxing coach)

Legs 2ft apart, hang your arms down to the floor.

You will feel your lower back take the stretch

Relax, let the weight of your upper body hang from your lower back

Swing your arms slowly fore and aft and then left and right.

Amazing stretch.

Click to expand...

Do the funky gibbon?
Eb

conaero said:

Try this, best lower back relief I’ve found (from my boxing coach)

Legs 2ft apart, hang your arms down to the floor.

You will feel your lower back take the stretch

Relax, let the weight of your upper body hang from your lower back

Swing your arms slowly fore and aft and then left and right.

Amazing stretch.

Click to expand...

I do that one in yoga and yes it is very good. Just make sure you keep your back straight and pivot from the hips.

Ebenezer said:

Do the funky gibbon?
Eb

Click to expand...

All of us of a certain age know that tune!

I've had two bouts of spinal surgery (including fusion). Initial point of call was the doctor who referred me - if no improvement with physio/chiropracteur/etc after 3 sessions - move on. You can self refer to the NHS physio via the internet and there are some NHS approved stretches/exercises on their site. The NHS site also describes some red flag scenarios to look out for. I now do pilates run by physios - but did have continual leg pain for some time and now take magnesium and its gone

Ebenezer said:

Do the funky gibbon?
Eb

Click to expand...

That literally made me laugh out loud

RoaryRati said:

I've had two bouts of spinal surgery (including fusion). Initial point of call was the doctor who referred me - if no improvement with physio/chiropracteur/etc after 3 sessions - move on. You can self refer to the NHS physio via the internet and there are some NHS approved stretches/exercises on their site. The NHS site also describes some red flag scenarios to look out for. I now do pilates run by physios - but did have continual leg pain for some time and now take magnesium and its gone

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Ms French has been doing Pilates for years and has her own reformer she's also a fan of magnesium too.

philw696 said:

Ms French has been doing Pilates for years and has her own reformer she's also a fan of magnesium too.

Click to expand...

Does she go all incendiary if you rub her up the wrong way Phil, lol

lozcb said:

Does she go all incendiary if you rub her up the wrong way Phil, lol

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Third time Lucky for me Loz and 9 years together no issues

Ebenezer said:

Do the funky gibbon?
Eb

Click to expand...

Lean & dab:

dem maser said:

Hi All
Yes I know it’s with age….been downhill since i turned 40…..I also know my weight does not help and being first of the month I’m onto it….

Anyone had any issues? Any solutions? Don’t like to go to specialists as I don’t think they even know how the back works, such a complex part

Not got it with my bed but since I’ve come to parents seem to have got worse, mattress needs changing but it is not soft and it’s orthopaedic

Surviving on codeine at the moment and worried as I’m back at work tomorrow

Click to expand...

Depends A LOT on what is going wrong - discs, nerves, muscles, hip joints... So a good physiotherapist or osteopath should be able to look, listen and feel, to figure out where the problem lies, BEFORE trying to fix anything.

If it is not something big or broken, then:

Yes, keeping moving is very important. Most GPs will tell you that the point of the pain meds to to allow you to keep moving, rather than freezing up in one painless position for as long as you can.

Pilates, Yoga, Core Strength exercises are very helpful. You can do it yourself, but a class (some are gentle, some are hard core) is good or a personal trainer to get you started.

Some Physios and Osteos are wizards, but you have to find them. (I can recommend a couple in the Stroud area - and I am interested in taking up Yoga, now, @safrane ) I, too, and dubious about Chiropractors.

The NHS has a self-referral physio service in most districts - weirdly (and this is very NHS), I got an immediate acknowledgement email, then a twelve-week wait for an appointment, and then six excellent weekly sessions. So worth getting the process started, I suppose.

For lower back pain, good lumbar support is key - I had one of those springy mesh things in my X-type, otherwise I could hardly move after a longish journey. A standing desk is highly recommended (with a soft and/or lumpy floor mat); they range from cheapish tings you put on a regular desk, up to expensive fully-electric lifting.

Another two from yoga: Cat cow and child pose. Helps me to prolong the time in between physio therapy. On that note, mine does trigger point therapy and unties my muscles. Few sessions there, cat cow child and I'm good to go for a while.

Oh and prevent stress in general.

James3200GTA said:

Cat cow and child pose

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Two of my favourites

C

I treat back pain for a living (and lots of other injuries and chronic conditions). My background is treatment of elite athletes but I now treat the public in my Henley clinic.

In a general sense movement and gentle stretching are your backs best friend. The caveat to this is if you have underlying spinal instability (termed micromovement) you may suffer from spasms as the body attempts to pull more and more superficial muscle fibres into recruitment to stabilise the disc/vertebrae.

Repeated flexion with load is the most documented activity that delaminates the discs which inevitably results in a bisc bulges and/or disc haemorrhage. Ie heavy manual lifting.
However prolonged sitting is also terrible for the spine, but with appropriate counterbalancing of mobility and strengthening exercise any back pathology can be helped.

A big one for me is thorough assessment. MRI isn’t a good predictor of where your pain may be stemming from as some people have structural defects and never have a days pain in their life, and vice versa. Please avoid surgical intervention at ALL costs unless there is no other option, back surgery is not pretty and IMO is the beginning of more issues later down the line.

I utilise a lot of medical acupuncture to aid in triggering targeted inflammation to proliferate healing along with pain relieving mechanisms that mechanical needling provides. Spinal manipulations can also be very good as is spinal decompression.

Best 4 exercises you can do for any generic back pain is:
Cat + Cow (2x20-30)
Bird dog (5 x 10s) per side
Side plank ( 5 x 10s) per side
Modified curl up ( 5 x 10s) per side
This is off of a body of literature publish by profession McGill who is the god of back injury.

Couple these with walking also.

Obviously this is very generic advice and each case is individual but I hope this information helps.

Feel free to DM if you would like further assistance

My favourite is cowgirl

dem maser said:

Hi All
Yes I know it’s with age….been downhill since i turned 40…..I also know my weight does not help and being first of the month I’m onto it….

Anyone had any issues? Any solutions? Don’t like to go to specialists as I don’t think they even know how the back works, such a complex part

Not got it with my bed but since I’ve come to parents seem to have got worse, mattress needs changing but it is not soft and it’s orthopaedic

Surviving on codeine at the moment and worried as I’m back at work tomorrow

Click to expand...

You need to change the bed either way, doesn’t matter if it’s orthopedic or not if backpains can be associated with the use of anything, then it’s perfectly to sacrifice it if need be.