Bad back

The reason I am writing this and not "out there" on this lovely weekend is that I have got a bad back. Pains stretch from lower back down leg which doctor says is sciatica. She says to take ibuprufen, rest and wait for them to go away.........
It is all I can do to walk upstairs, cannot stand up straight and feel like a hundred. Turning over in bed is absolute agony, I have never been in such pain before (not even childbirth and that was bad enough!)
Anybody have any suggestions about how to alleviate the pain, help?

Hi

Had this 20 years ago and have had it on and off since - my wife sometimes comments that I am limping on my left leg when I do not even know I am doing it.

Not a lot you can do really other than take it very easy and try to avoid getting too stiff by not moving about at all.

Give it a day or two and then start to walk around the house v.gently and then gradually build up to normality.

I'm no expert but the Ibuprofen is basically an anti-inflammatory. Why not check with the pharmacist and see if you can take co-codamol alongside the Iboprofen for some stronger pain relief.

Plus, if you can manouvre into it, a hot bath might help - just make sure that you don't get stuck in it!

Good news is that you will feel a lot better very soon, bad news is that in general once you have it then it seems to re-occur. Sorry.

Good luck

Nick

Hi Jenny

My P2 is a bit confusing - what I meant to say was: try to keep moving even if it is only a little bit otherwise you will stiffen up.

Sorry.

Nick

Go see a chiropractor, doctors are crap at this kind of stuff, they haven't a clue, might as well be throwing bones in the sand. resting the injury and using pain-killers will in the short term reduce the symptoms but the cause will remain to flare up again at a later date.

Hi Jenny had same problemo some years ago as Philip said doctors are crap at sorting backs.out chiropractor fixed me up.

Also now do stretches for lower back each day,you might like to try them.


Lay face down on floor hands under shoulders and push your self up until you feel pain,then stop and tense lower back muscles, gradually as pain subsides.


works for me.

I'd recommend a visit to a chiropractor too - McTimoney chiropractor's don't wrench you around like a regular chiropractor might.

for a guide for cost: the chiropractor I normally go and see (paid for by work) is £40 for the first session and then £30 for any subsequent sessions.

Thanks all. Have made appointment with chiropractitioner later in week. Still suffering............

I've had sciatica and found that the only real cure is time....

Plus:
I was told by some goitre:-
Never sit if you can stand
never stand if you can lie down

However, if I laid down I was stuck there for a long, long time....

It depends on the root cause, loads of potential causes for back pain, some are treatable, some aren't. I had a big problem with back muscles going into spasm, which was sorted with a combination of anti-inflamatories, sports massage and stretching / gym work. Apparently it was down to scar tissue from a bike crash weeks before.

Anyway, sounds like you're doing the right thing.

---

OutdoorsMagic Editor | jon@outdoorsmagic.com 

My problem is not so much bad back as numbness in leg and sometimes foot. I have had scan and told I have lumbar stenosis which is narrowing of spinal canal mainly due to..........aging. I am now waiting to see spinal consultant to find out what happens next. Unfortunately it is beginning to affect my ability to walk very far, which is not good news for somebody like me who likes to spend most of their spare time in the hills.
I have not met anyone else who knows anything about this, anybody out there?

I have also had sciatica a couple of times. Wile Jon is right about general back pain I don't think he is about sciatica.

As has been said the only thing you can do is rest it. But that being said I find that it is best to keep moving and to walk through it. Last time I had it (early this summer) I started walking into the centre of Birmingham rather than catching the bus. Although it was painful it was amazing how much more flexibility long walk gave me. Sitting on a bus means you don't move and you can cease up,

As I understand it sciatica is caused by a disc being damaged. Liquid oozes out and then dries on the nerve which causes pain al of the way down the leg. Over time the stuff flakes away and the nerve recovers.

I have no idea what I did to get develop it the first time, I was climbing a small hill in the city centre. At the bottom I was fine and by the time I got to the top I couldn't move.

I have some kind of episode once a year and can tell when it is developing. I then take more care on how I sit, I move around more and I make sure I walk more. Basically, I keep going and the pain is less than if I don't.

Apparently, the good thing is that as you get older this doesn't happen as your discs being to dry out!

I've developed some interesting new talent. For example, on entering a bar or a restaurant, I can now look at a chair and know that it is going to cause me problems. Usually this is to do with its height I think. Sometimes you can't avoid them, but I make sure that I move about and make a point of getting up and/or stretching.

Just be sensible about the pain, but try and live with it. One final walking story.

A few years ago I was going to Pitlochry to walk with some friends. I took the train, which was standing room only from Birmingham to Glasgow. I was trapped in a window seat. I could feel myself ceasing up. I got to the destination OK but that evening I found that I couldn't even stand up!

The next day I walked around the village and did little bits of stuff. And then for the next few days I hit the hills. After walking I was in no more pain than when I hadn't walked. The walking kept me a loose as possible if not pain free.

Ever since then I've not let it stop me walking. Mind you, it's never been as bad as the first time.

I find that after a couple of weeks the inconvenience goes, but you can feel it for quite a long time afterwards. Even as I type I can feel that there is a nautral weakness there although I'm pain free!

The only thing that I haven't really done yet is to loose some weight. I suspect (even though i'm not massively overweight - that this could help a bit

Sieze-up not cease up!

Apologies!!

I too have a 'bad back' (oh, for a more specific diagnosis than that!) and I find that walking is very good for it. I have a lot of stiffness in my back and nuerological symptoms like numbness and pins and needles. Thankfully, not so much pain and so it seldom stops me doing things. I have found, like others on here, that moving - especially walking - really helps with my particular problem. Also, I have found that physiotherapy and specific strengthening exercises work for me. The trouble is, I think, while many of us can commiserate with each other it is very difficult to offer advice because - as Jon said - there are so many causes of back pain and the best course of action will vary depending on exactly what the problem is. I think that I unjured my back falling asleep on my friend's sofa about 7 years ago. I know this sounds a tad ridiculous but I think it's true. I am finally getting close to a proper diagnosis after all these years and - to be fair to the NHS - the main reason it has taken so long is because I did not push for answers. I went to the doctors when I first had the initial injury and it cleared up (well, OK, it never cleared up but I got to the stage where I could work and exercise and didn't need painkillers very often so I decided I didn't need to go back to the doctors). I decided ages ago that I just had a bad back like so many others and that, whatever the cause was, it didn't stop me doing things so I should just be grateful and get on with things. Consequently, I have put up with pain, stiffnes, numbness, and pins and needles for 7 years. A physio that I started seeing for another problem eventually managed to nag/frighten me into trying to get some proper answers. So, I went to my GP about 2 years ago and am finally getting some answers. So, the point of all this waffle is that my advice is do not ignore a problem like this - push for it to be investigated and don't give up until you get an answer. It may be that I have something that I just have to live with (I can do that, been doing it for years) but it is also possible that I have something that can be treated and I regret not pushing harder for answers years ago.

Sciatica is aften caused by the rolling in or out of the foot which displaces the back muscles/structure, and therefore affects sciatic nerve and causes the associated pain. Hamish is right, a McTimoney Chiropractic will help loads and also helpful is Yoga. If your MC is any good, she/he will suggest some gentle excercises, which will help adjust your posture (no offense, but posture can often be the casue of Sciatica) if this is the cause. If it's an injury of some sort, rest and gentle excercise (again yogo or similar) will get you there over time.

And now you have different advice from all of us, I bet that's a real help!