What do you guys do for back problems?
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Jaybolishes
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I have been out of work since April 18. I too have had chronic lower back issues but three days of clearing trees and lifting bucked firewood into my dump trailer made my back so bad I couldn't bend or even lean forward. Long story short I went to the ER because I became paralyzed in spasm in my sleep. Sleeping on a firm mattress now is key. X-rays showed degeneration in my lower disc. I had over a month of little progress but I bought an inversion table and the sciatic pain disappeared immediately. I was doing everything, massage, physical therapy, acupuncture, cupping, strength training rehab, and the table is what made a huge difference. I couldn't get out of truck seat without serious struggle and pain and this inversion table quickly fixed that. I can't say enough about how this table helped me. The lower back is a difficult area to get blood flow and fluid in there, so the table helps open up the vertebral segments and even can help regenerate the disc. Amazon has one for $95 by Innova and it's cheap but works well. Go slow, only tilt at 30 degrees or less for only 2 minutes to start, you can be very sore after the first 3-6 times, then over time work up to 90 degrees for 10 minutes. I do it now 2-3 times a day and I'm almost ready to work again. Glucosamine is also a very helpful over the counter supplement which helps with knees, shoulders and back. But it has some side effects for people with high blood pressure or high colesterol I think so you may want to read about it first, but it definitely helps. Working on strengthening the core is key also as others mentioned. Yoga helps a lot if you can do it. Best of luck, back pain is the worst!
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Edward A Reno III said:
Hi Edward
I a bad fall when I was 22 years old and it took 3 weeks before I could stand and walk. Nothing was diagnosed then but 15 years later I started getting problems and detailed investigations revealed that I had broken my back in that fall. Over the years the problems became worse and now 45 years since the accident I feel that I am an expert in my condition.
The first thing that I learnt is that exercises that strengthen the back muscles is vital. Some of the exercises are not obvious for the back. I will not describe the ones that I do as it may vary from one condition to another.
When I have a bad spell I am almost immobile and the pain can be very bad. The pain is mainly from the muscle spasm and it is important to calm those muscles down as soon as possible. This can be tackled in three ways:
- reduce the stress by resting in the most comfortable position
- use pain killers to interrupt the pain/spasm cycle
- use a heated pad on the areas of pain
I will go into a bit more detail on the three areas above.
I have spent a shed load of money on a very comfortable chair that allows me to recline in a really satisfactory way when in a period of pain. The chair is German and sold (in the UK) under the "Zero Stress" name. After several years of indecision we have also bought a Tempur mattress. We have the original (firm) version. Tempur use memory foam which moulds to the shape of the body. I am touching wood right now - since we bought the mattress in January of this year I have had no period of immobility at all - I used to have about one week in five where I could not walk more than a few steps.
For pain relief I tried Paracetamol (not sure what it is called outside the UK) and Ibuprofen. However, Paracetamol was mostly useless and Ibuprofen upset my tummy too much. About 8 years ago I moved on to oral Morphine which is (for me) the very best way to help break the pain/spasm cycle. I usually can manage with just two doses but it does lead to constipation which is a risk that people need to be aware of.
All of the medical experts that have contributed to my ability to live with this have told me to use heat to relieve the muscle spasm. I still hear (non medical) people swear by the application of cold packs which I do not recommend. I have a bag full of beads (cherry stones will do) that you put in the microwave for 3 minutes and then apply to the area of pain.
My spinal consultant did offer to operate but I have put this off for now. About 12 years ago things were so bad that I could do nothing other than shuffle around the house. This went on for nearly 5 months. The consultant then recommended a series of injections into the spine which I agreed to. They worked brilliantly and I was walking upright again within 10 days. I was told at the time that these injections sometimes do not work but mine were great. I am getting to the stage of having the injections again although the step change improvement from the Tempur mattress may mean this is not required.
The bottom line is - apply heat, find an effective pain relief that suits you and get a Tempur mattress.
Peter
My first reply was that i had been to many chiropractors thru the years. The last one was the one who did the most for me. He crunched a cajoled my back for almost 39 years. The last chiropractor i had gone to before Dr. Jim knew i had one leg shorter than the other. (I had told him) Every time i went to him, his first procedure was to yank on my ankle. After a couple of appointments, with starting off with the ankle yank, i asked why he was doing that. "i want to lengthen the leg" I did not think that was the right thing to do. i thought the leg problem was the result of an injury from when I was in Korea. I went along with the idea until I was walking down the street one afternoon and I just fell. I thought my hip had gone out of its socket. A passerby assisted me to stand up and I gingerly tried walking. The hip was sore but I could walk ok. I decided not to go to that chiropractor ever again.
Eventually, my back went out again and I kept working. I finished a block foundation crawling on hands and knees. I finished that job and went to a job digging with my back hoe. About the afternoon of the third day, I discovered I could not move my legs. Somehow, i managed to get off the machine, crawled to my truck and struggled to get my hands to the top of my truck door, chinned my self and just hung onto the door and swung my lower body and legs until I could mange driving home. That is when I looked up my soon to become friend, Dr. Jim. He would not touch me until he took some exrays. No other chiropractor had ever done that. I first went to chiropractors when I was around three years old. I had fallen off of a playground slide and had landed on my head. That probably explains more than my back problems, but I doubt even then there had been any X-rays taken. I don't think they had even been invented. Anyhow, Dr. Jim discussed the problems by first asking the question:"Did you grow up on a farm?" It seems that I had strarted lifting and trying to keep up with the men way too early. Finally, after discussion, i asked the question i had asked of every chiropractor I had visited since my back became my own resposabiltiy: "Are there any exercises I should be doing?"
All others just told me to take time off from work/become an invalid/don't lift/etc/etc/etc. Dr Jim got out a book about the size of a comic book with several exercises on each page. He patiently went thru every page and checked the exercises that ould help me and crossed off he exercises I should never do. Right then i knew he would take good care of me as long as I did the right things >>> and not the wrong exercises. I have learned thru the years about what works and what doesn't work >>> for me. I hesitate to advise what exercises for anybody else. Core and leg exercises do it for me as long as I do the right ones the right way.
BTW: It turns out the fall on my head is not the reason I have back problems. When I was five or six years old, I was playing with fire. I got third degree burn from near the ankle to almost the top of my leg. Dr. Jim and i determined that the burn went deep enough that it affected the growth of my leg. It was not more than 3 or 4 years later that I moved to myy uncle's farm and involved myself in a regimen of heavy lifting before my body was ready for lifting.
My head problems must have not been developed from the fall after all. Must have been somehing I ate no doubt.
Tinker
Eventually, my back went out again and I kept working. I finished a block foundation crawling on hands and knees. I finished that job and went to a job digging with my back hoe. About the afternoon of the third day, I discovered I could not move my legs. Somehow, i managed to get off the machine, crawled to my truck and struggled to get my hands to the top of my truck door, chinned my self and just hung onto the door and swung my lower body and legs until I could mange driving home. That is when I looked up my soon to become friend, Dr. Jim. He would not touch me until he took some exrays. No other chiropractor had ever done that. I first went to chiropractors when I was around three years old. I had fallen off of a playground slide and had landed on my head. That probably explains more than my back problems, but I doubt even then there had been any X-rays taken. I don't think they had even been invented. Anyhow, Dr. Jim discussed the problems by first asking the question:"Did you grow up on a farm?" It seems that I had strarted lifting and trying to keep up with the men way too early. Finally, after discussion, i asked the question i had asked of every chiropractor I had visited since my back became my own resposabiltiy: "Are there any exercises I should be doing?"
All others just told me to take time off from work/become an invalid/don't lift/etc/etc/etc. Dr Jim got out a book about the size of a comic book with several exercises on each page. He patiently went thru every page and checked the exercises that ould help me and crossed off he exercises I should never do. Right then i knew he would take good care of me as long as I did the right things >>> and not the wrong exercises. I have learned thru the years about what works and what doesn't work >>> for me. I hesitate to advise what exercises for anybody else. Core and leg exercises do it for me as long as I do the right ones the right way.
BTW: It turns out the fall on my head is not the reason I have back problems. When I was five or six years old, I was playing with fire. I got third degree burn from near the ankle to almost the top of my leg. Dr. Jim and i determined that the burn went deep enough that it affected the growth of my leg. It was not more than 3 or 4 years later that I moved to myy uncle's farm and involved myself in a regimen of heavy lifting before my body was ready for lifting.
My head problems must have not been developed from the fall after all. Must have been somehing I ate no doubt.
Tinker
Beat it into submission. Exercise, exercise, exercise.
I used to suffer which chronic neck pain and upper back pain, the thought of going to the gym horrified me... in my mind the pain was the reason not to go to the gym, the opposite was true! Strengthen your muscles and the pain will subside.
I used to suffer which chronic neck pain and upper back pain, the thought of going to the gym horrified me... in my mind the pain was the reason not to go to the gym, the opposite was true! Strengthen your muscles and the pain will subside.
demographic
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If you have a bit of time its worth reading This PDF produced by the UK Health and safety Executive. relating to Musculoskeletal problems in bricklayers, carpenters and so on.
I've not read it fully but it does throw up some worrying numbers and risk factors. Should be required reading in technical colleges through the land.
I've not read it fully but it does throw up some worrying numbers and risk factors. Should be required reading in technical colleges through the land.
demographic said:
quote>>>10. A recurring theme was that the commercial pressures on workers force them to work as quickly as possible and therefore they risk compromising safety.>>>> and repeating within seconds. My Dr. Jim would tell me how I should be lifting with my legs. I would explain that I knew all about HOW to lift CORRECTLY, BUT THAT TAKESTOO MUCH TIME. If I took the time to square my body to the load, bend at the knees, pick up using my legs instead of taking all of the load movement with my back, I would lay several hundred fewer bricks in a day. If I figured such loss into my estimates, I would loose every job. Sooooo>>>>> I guess I would "...rather spend the loss by visiting you (meaning Dr. Jim)". He was a good guy so I enjoyed my visits. I have been out of any part of the masonry trades since 1981 and only in the last few years, being out of the repeticious lifting and twisting of loads have I been able to stay away from most back problems. I am still lifting bags of grass sed, lime and fertilizer, but no longer with the constant repetition and twisting. And no longer concerned with quantity to move and pile.
For those who reccommend "exercise, exercise, exercise", it does make a difference what type of exercise and that the exercises are done properly. In my case, as with most in the construction trades, the dialy exercise is probably to excessive levels and certainly not accomplished with proper form. "That just gets expensive" as I always told Dr. Jim.
[member=51145]demographic[/member], that was a very good article you recommended. The first part was apparently aimed directly at my own experiences as you can see from my above reply. Many others in the construction trades are in the same boat.
Tinker
Years ago, in my early thirties, I still thought I was superman. As a result of that faulty thinking, I screwed my back big time hanging 4' x 10' drywall in my stairwell by myself. Went to my doctor, who in turn sent me to physical therapy where they gave me a demonstration of stretches and excersizes, what a joke. My high school sports/interests (not school related...I was a hippy wannabe...way too straight) were gymnastics, judo, and Goshin Jujitsu karate (military brat...13 school districts...three high schools) and could still stand on my hands with my knees locked I talked to various guys I was playing soccer with and the vast majority had cured back problems with core excersizes. I would get up every day and literally do hundreds of various types of crunches. It strengthened my back enough to stay in construction all these years. I now do mostly Crossfit style exercizes and most of my weight training is done while walking and twisting in motion. The stationary excersizes I do are Olympic style lifts that work muscles through the full range of motion. I'll be 65 in December and still hang commercial steel (120 lb+) doors by myself.
NHSP759
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I have some really nice rubber mats on the floor of my shop but 6 years of rescue followed by the last 21 years of wearing a gun belt and vest 40 hours a week has taken a toll on my back in a really bad way. I see a Chiropractor and just received an order of Turmeric with Curcumin and I am hopeful this helps too.
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