General Chat

there is a thread for fibromyalgia and now one for depression. these threads are great support systems and morale boosters. How many of us on here suffer with painful backs, and can anyone offer tips to alleviate the pain, help with doing jobs etc\/

Ann
Glos

My own bad back has worsened over the past four years. I occasionally at work suffered mild back pain and thought once I had retired it would clear. Then had a couple of sessions where I pulled muscles in my back from moving plant tubs, digging etc. about four years ago i was aware that the pain was not going as quickly as it should, when I mentioned it to my then doctor, that my back hurt, he said, you and half the population!!! about 2 years ago I had a new doctor who sent me to a physiotherapist. She was quite good, manipulated my back gave me a few exercises and always wanted to know on a scale of 1 -10 how bad the pain was that day. Of course it varied! Anyway she said that my spine was curving inward and that was why it was painful, do the exercises and it will help. It didn't. A year ago I went to a chiropracter in Milton Keynes, he was very good, manipulated my back, said my hips were fine, said the problem was muscular, the muscles had stopped working. that i can believe, he said the spine had curved because of the muscles not the other way round, more exercises but quite honestly they didn't help much anyway so now I tend to live with it. My problem is that the muscles spasm when I move in bed so that I literally jump with the pain. I also take ages to dress in the morning because my back is so stiff. i have terrible trouble putting on socks or tights and trousers.
When the muscles spasm it is like something locks in my back and then twangs apart the pain is like when you wrench your ankle or when you have a stiff neck and wrench it.
Ann
Glos

Hi Ann, just been talking to you on other thread so you know some of my problems, 2 slipped discs, arthritis in spine, cancer in spine, degeneration in lumbar region. Also started with some awful pain in muscles and sore points in back, well all over really. The thing which helps me is my picker upper, a grasping tool with long handle. A hot bath works wonders for me and plenty of rest in between doing jobs, the biggest help is a good hubby. I have also bought a thing that's supposed to be for carrying washing outside, it has two wheels on, I use it to move things in the house as I can't grip anything to carry it.

Caz

Tina, mine is in the lumbar region too but the pain sometimes travels round into my groin. I try not to take pain killers unless really really necessary, then I take ibrofen.

Ann
glos

I have to say i do have a good OH, he is mostly sympathetic. If I jump in the night with the pain he will hold his hand hard over the spot where it hurts and the heat from his hand helps a lot. Yes I find a hot bath helps too caz, or even a hot shower if it is powerful enough.

Ann
Glos

Ann, I have recently bought a tens machine, and it has been great for my back... although not wonderful for some of my other hurty bits, lol. Hubby has to put it in place for me, as I can't reach around with my painful shoulder. I can't take ibuprufen, or use anything like Deep Heat as am allergic to the ingredients.... I am currently having my body beaten into submission by the sports specialist.

Have you had x-rays and scans to determine what the problem is?

Love

Daff xxx

Daff I asked why they didn't send me for xrays and the physio said "cost"

the tens machine sounds interesting

tina OH always helps make the bed and yes I kneel to tuck in. It is leaning forward that hurts me most. Would you believe I can touch my toes and it doesn't hurt but to lean over or forward is agony?
Going to have a hot bath now, back later.
Ann
Glos

Obviously not as many sufferers as I thought.

Ann
Glos

I HAVE STENOSIS OF THE SPINE a very painfull condition, at the bottom of my spine where it curves mine is straight and is thining, didnt know i had it till i had a exray as always had pain there and thought it was paert of fibro one of the reasons why i use morphine would be intereted to hear from anyone else who has it xx puss x

It is the base of my spine that curves the wrong way Lorraine. seems like most people on here don't suffer with their backs. yours sounds very painful.

Ann
Glos

ann, both me and hubby suffer from back probs, he's got a curviture of the spine had since birth and i've got slipped discs stiffness and at the mo their looking into arthritis...
pain same as you around the groin area, was on diclofenic but when pregnant they gave me parcetamol, now i'm on amitriptyline to help me sleep....
not many people do say they have a prob, even if its mild, hope this thread can tempt them to post..
xx

The strange thing is that after a while the pain becomes normal. I find I am quite surprised when I actually can't feel the pain!! Like something is missing. A lot of the time it is more a stiffness than a pain, then I twist round suddenly and boy does that make me jump when the muscle 'twangs'.

Getting in and out of cars I feel about 90.

ann
Glos

bad backs now heres where keith can talk for ever
15 years ago i had to have op on my back ( wrong move ) iif i knew then what i know now i would have told them to stick it

9 years ago i had more problem with my back
they said i will never work again and told me to stop work

But you didn't right? You are a gardener and ran a landscaping firm. Does your back still trouble you? Was the op for disc trouble? I have heard before that they don't always work.

Ann
Glos

its awful isnt it ann

i suffer with my back,
i assume its part of fibromyalgia,
everything else flippin is,
lol

like you say hot baths help,
i find moving round slowly helps, but its the getting up thats hard in first place,
ave you tried a cream instead of a tablet,
liike voltarol or patches like curaheat,
you can get them in wraps too,

take it easy and dont over stretch,
or bend

3 disc had to be repaired that op was a joke


now they want to do somemore handy work
today i couldnt get out of the chair

the only thing that helps me is diazepam:

I suffer with a lot of pain in my back as I was born with a condition called Scoliosis, I was told that they would eventually operate to straighten my spine but 33 years later I am still waiting, I had it mentioned to me again by my doctor last year about been referred to see someone about having op done but said no as I have lived with this condition this long theres no point in having it done now.
Sometimes the pain in my back is awful and my OH has to help me a lot when I am suffering.

lisa thats what my hubbies got, he says he feels 90 at times...lol
they said to me to have op for slipped discs and the nerve damage but ive heard so many bad reports of it not working or total parallasis i said no....
i was on diazepam, got taken off them....shame worked...only time since is when i had hosp op last year, they gave it instead of diclofenic...weeee was i happy..
theve just stopped my dla as my doc had put down the medication im on and they came back and said due to meds they feeel i'm ok......................???????.. trying to appeal not heard anything yet been 2 months and last payment was beginning of jan... so dont think i'll be getting nothing untill i hear, then iff they say no, i have to reapply and working it all out i'll have 1 months lost payment ....
i was on paroxatine, but after having 1 to 1 with doc they said it was best for me to manage the back pain and the depression was because of it......some days are awefull, and i confess to having a sneaky fag.....changed doc's, not very helpfull, just tells me to get on with it...i suppose he has a point....
my family help alot....and baby keeps me going, but that blinkin pain shoots up when i forget and twist to grab somthing or pick him up...lol
gawd blimey just seen how long this is...lol
xxxx

If I run my hand down my back there is a real dip around my waist band area where the spine curves inwards.

Ann
Glos