Hurt Back

Scott Young

i need yalls thoughts and prayers. i have been put on restriction by my dr. i have been stumbling while walking for a couple months. i attributed it to being tired and not picking my feet up. you know like when you walk across a smooth floor and your foot catches something invisible. well it has gotten much worse and infact i have fallen to the ground on more than once. well i have been really hurting all over and i finally went to the dr. my wife had to convince me in ways that only wives know how. i hate going to drs.

long story short he wanted to take some xrays and then a mri. well, it appears that all of my lumbar is shot. i have a vertebrae that is 1/4 inches out of line and is applying pressure to my spinal cord. that is what is causeing me to stumble. i go to a neuro surgeon to see if he can put the vertebrae back in place. i don't know what all that entails. the dr gave me some anti-inflamitory meds. now i am hurting. i called the dr and he told me that the inflamation kept everything from hurting!!?? now that everything is being resolve from being inflamed, it is hurting. now, i don't know but i think i would rather have the inflamation and no hurting.

well, i know that this is a common thing for our field, i will just have to adjust how i do things. i wish i was in my bullet proof twenties again.

karma_carpentry

gosh, Scott. I feel for you, man. Best wishes from here.

AAPaint

Dang Scott....Tough break. I herniated 3 discs in my back when I was 19. My whole lower back dislocates outta place about 2" or so, but it only hurts a little. It's been about 12 years since I herniated it all, but no surgery for me....nuh uh.

Hope it gets a little better. Good luck.

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Debookkeeper

Hope everything works out for you Scott! So sorry to hear that

Richard

geez...good thing for good doctors these days...get 2 or 3 opinions when it comes down to fixin' your problem, then go for it. I wish you a speedy recovery. Do you have disablity coverage? Good luck Scott

...thoughts and prayers comin' from CT

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K2

Yes 2 or 3 opinions i agree. I had back problem all my life and now in my 50's it is all fixed, knock knock. Hopes and prayers to you Scott.

TimNJ

Well misery loves company! I have had chronic back problems since I was 19 (29 years). I have come to the conclusion there is no set cure. Surgery is 50/50, not good odds. Most of the time you will find the pain is caused by muscle spasms. When the muscle tightens up it will pull things out of wack. The trick is to find a way to relax the muscle, which will ease the pain, which will lower the inflammation.
I have facet disorder, disc degeneration, bulging discs, and arthtritis in my lumbar L4-L5, L5-S1.
This summer my back went out and I thought it was facet disorder so they gave me a cortisone shot...nothing. They gave me 3 more three weeks later...nothing. Time for a new Dr. I went in and to make a long story short, he told me that this particular time it was all muscle spasm and gave me a series of "trigger point" injections. I walked out of the office almost like nothing had happened. From the end of June to first week of Sept in three trips to the two different Dr's I had a total of 17 needles in the right side of my back....7 of them were in one visit, 6in another, and 4 another.
My new Dr. specializes in sports medicine and has treated many Olympic ahtletes in his career. He is getting old and I hope he has somebody trained to take his place when he retires.

K2

Tim, that was me. A massage therapist finally fixed me up. Not a "feel good" type of massage but a guy who makes you help work through the the muscles. Took me 4 visits, one month, and I havn't been back to anyone in 6 years. Apparantly I had some muscles locked up for many years. Stretching and h2o is the real key to my troubles.

The good news is the older you get the less likely you are to blow a disk. They become too hard.

We probably had this discussion a year ago but what the hey.

Stretching and water could probably fix a bunch of guys up but not everyone.

recruit4meisner

Find a good physical therapist, they truly can work miracles. I had my back broken in a motorcycle accident 10 years ago, and to cut a long story short, it was a LONG road to recovery. My thoughts and prayers buddy, I've been there.

TimNJ

Rob, I agree. I don't go anywhere without a bottle of water. No caffeine, no soda, no beers.
People who haven't had back problems don't understand. The old saying "The straw that broke the camels back" is absolutely true. For me there are so many "little" things that add up to cause a problem. Tool belt, non power seat in truck, pants too tight, the list goes on. You start eliminating all those little things that aggravate and it spells relief.
Twelve years ago I had a disc on the MRI that was so herniated the Dr. thought it was ready to blow out and wanted me in for surgery. I would have gone in but at the surgeons consult about doing arthroscopic disc surgery they told me I was not a candidate because it was too low in my spine and they needed to come in from the side and my pelvic bone blocked access. They wanted to do conventional cutting and I said "let me think about it". The last MRI showed the same disc had shrunk back. The Dr. told me over time they tend to shrink and will harden (calcify).
I went to Phys. Therapy and it turned out they had me doing generic textbook low back exercises which actually caused the facet pain to get worse. The new Dr. has a P.T. set up right in his office and they have me doing simple stretching exercises.

K2

My truck mechanic recently went in for long overdue back surgery. He came out with a staph infection that has nearly killed him a couple of times plus they had to go in and take out some of the parts they put in because of the staph.

I heard that 20% of people come out of the hospital with infections they didn't go in with.

I guess the trick is to find the right Doc.

Stone Mountain

Have you tried a chiropractor? We used them many times and they've made a big difference.

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747

My advice for anyone suffering from back pain is get your medical records and go ROP.

P construction

Sorry to hear I,m in my mide thirtys Ive been to a chiroprator for 1 year now my back was 3/4 " out of allinment now that I go once a month for my snap crackle & poping i feel like a new person I never beleived in them before but it does work

copusbuilder

I would certainly look into a Chiroprctor. I have used them with great succes and my Father avoided back surgery using them. Just like Doctors though...you have to find a good one!!

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River Rat Dad

Chiropractor.....

I have been numerous times over the last 20 years. They can truly work miracles in many cases, althought not all.

I also have an inversion therapy table where I can hang upside down like a bat... The theory is the same as traction in a hospital. It relieves the pressure on our spines that comes fromm 50 years of standing upright and compressing our spines. I would try either of these before surgery.

Tom R

Plus if you hang like that long enough, - - maybe as you get older you'll get taller instead of shrinkin' . . .

Scott Young

someone else mentioned hanging upside down. they make a contraption that sits in the corner of the room. i told the wife if i tried it she had to. looks like i could have a little fun along with getting my back fixed.

Spectatorz

In My Humble Opinion,

All things considered here, it might be well worthwhile to seek out an Accupuncturist for treament.
Believe it or not, you might be able to find great relief after a few treatments for your back.
I know it sounds ridiculous and most people would never even consider it an option, but in the condition described, isnt it Worth Trying ?



Good Luck

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747

I would see a DO dr of osteopathic medicine before a chiro. Why he can crack you back but can also write scripts. Just make sure you call and ask if the still does osteopathic treatments. Some osteopaths do others don't. Look for a family practice dr who has DO after his name instead of MD or call your local hospital and ask for a primary care physcian who is a DO.