Back spasms
I’ve had a bad back for over 30 years.
Bad backs run in my family, and despite general athleticism (or maybe because of it?) three out of the four members of my family had serious and chronic disc problems and nerve problems starting in early adulthood and lasting for the rest of our entire lives (so far, anyway).
I’ve grown accustomed to mine, and have a bunch of ways to deal with it and to protect my back. I sit a certain way, I stand to work at my computer, and I’m mega-careful in the ways I move and try to always use good ergonomics and posture. So although the first ten to fifteen years of my back issues were horrendous and involved major pain just about every day of my life, the past fifteen years haven’t been so bad.
In the last few months there’s been a little bit of exacerbation, although nothing all that terrible. But three days ago, I used my usual method (a kind of modified deep knee bend) to pick something up off the floor, and when I stood up straight I felt as though someone had shot me in the butt. The right butt, to be exact.
I couldn’t walk without involuntarily shrieking. I could barely manage to get to my bed, arrange some pillows to support my legs, and lie down and not move. That short journey had taken extraordinary effort and been extremely stressful, so much so that I shook almost uncontrollably for about ten minutes afterwards. My entire body felt under siege in fighting the pain.
I thought I was in major trouble and would be for a long time. I took some Tylenol and NSAIDs, which was all I had with me, and waited with trepidation.
The next day I felt about 80% better. This was a tremendous relief. But the question remains: why did it happen, and why was it so very bad, and will it happen again? I had developed a false sense of security and thought I knew how to prevent such a thing. But obviously, I was wrong.
I decided ex post facto that it had been a back spasm, a violent muscle contraction that can be excruciating while it lasts but doesn’t tend to last so very long. My previous back pain had been much more of the chronic nerve variety; I don’t think I’ve ever had anything happen like this before.
I bet some of you have, though. Am I right?
Yep, I’ve had back spasms a couple of times which isn’t that many when one considers all the basketball and HS football I played and especially the thousands and thousands of golf swings I’ve made.
I remember the first time it happened so clearly it was Labor Day and I was in my mid twenties and I was sitting in a chair and I stood up like I had done countless times and bam sharp pain in my lower back. Spent the next few days fighting through it rolling out of bed and bracing myself to get upright through the pain. Gradually got better and after about a week it was as if nothing happened. It’s happened a few times since but never that severe and long lasting.
And every time it has been some routine movement I’ve done a million times that brought it on.
I get back problems whenever I stop doing sit-ups with my ab-roller thing. The ab-roller is a fantastic way to strengthen my FRONT abdominal muscles which somehow prevents my BACK muscles from causing problems.
Once, about 30 years ago. In bed for three days while flat on my back. Aspirin only. Have had no significant back problems since other than the usual initial age related stiffness when first starting to move after I reached 72 five years ago. Walking a lot, working out on a rowing machine 3 days a week, and lifting light weights seems to work for me.
Back yes. Gut muscles too, enough to have passed out a couple of times
Had that happen more than a few times. Ow. Once it was so bad I had an MRI. Ominously they said it was both bulging and slipped discs. Operation, suggested the doc. eeks..
So since heating pads and hot baths helped, I tried one of those stick on activated heating pads. Wore it all day. At some point, I think it was twisting to look out the rear windshield backing up the car, and pop, pop, pop, my back cracked into place. Ahh.
Check out sciatica symptoms and treatments – there are lots of sites that will give advice.
I got sciatica pain from sitting on a plane for a couple hours. The most pain was in the rear end. I worked through it the first time. The next time it hit, it was a cold, snowy day and I opted to stay in bed and reorganize my quilting stash. Really. Sitting in the bed, legs stretched out (in a v stance), slowly bending forward to spread the fabric and then fold it, then slowly coming back up for a couple of days proved to be very therapeutic. But, it was a very snowy weekend, so the entire stash got reorganized!
When I feel the same pain, I just start doing slow stretches – bending forward and back. It works. BUT – go to a physical therapist for the best exercises to do at home. Every “BODY” is different.
I just had stem cell therapy for my bad knees and I am in PT. I learned two things. When the doctor checked my knees with an ultrasound to make sure they were a “candidate” for any therapy, he found a cyst which he drained. That knee felt so much better after that procedure. All other doctors were saying to go directly to replacement. If the cyst reoccurs, he is willing to keep draining it until the issue is resolved.
Then, the physical therapist found out that a specific knee pain was the result of some nerve placement issues – a bit of massage, moving the knee to a different angle and a few new exercises is making the pain go away. Now, I just have to keep up those exercises.
But, before anyone goes under the knife to fix something, consider the new stem cell therapy options. It may not be covered by insurance, but it is far cheaper than having surgery. I hope I have delayed surgery for many years.
I’m going to agree with Liz’ suggestion to look for al alternative when surgery appears to be the best option. My wife and I have both had several major surgeries in the past 5 years — three for me and two for her — and and all but two have made things worse. Significantly worse in my wife’s case. I don’t know anything ab out stem cell therapy, but I’m prepared to consider anything other than surgery from now on.
Almost 30 years ago now, I guess, an elderly friend of mine had very bad sciatica. He was the kind of person who would stick with medical orthodoxy, but nothing helped.
Finally he was persuaded to try acupuncture. His wife told me that that succeeded, hallelujah. I don’t know if the pain disappeared altogether, but I gathered the treatments were a godsend. I do think he went every so often, but I’m not sure.
.
I suddenly developed what I think is a pinched nerve in my right shoulder. OUCH. I’m supposed to see the GP next Friday, but unless he’s got a better idea I’m going to look into acupuncture myself.
In any case, I’m very sorry, Neo and everyone else. I hope that all of you are able to find some sort of really helpful remedy.
.
Oh–maybe I should add. Over the last 4-5 years I’ve had occasional bouts of myalgia, sometimes only in arms or legs, but once I was in very bad pain all over my body to the point that I couldn’t move and just lay there. I was in a nursing home at the time and that night they were dealing with some horrible emergency, so I couldn’t get anything, not even ibu, for the pain. It lasted about 14 hours, until they finally could free up someone to bring me ibu+Tylenol. That kicked in, helped a lot. After another 12 hours or so I was fine again. One or two more bouts (this was almost exactly 3 years ago), one kinda bad, the other not so, but neither anywhere near that one horrible experience.
Apparently nobody knows what brings those on. I hope I never have another!
At a certain age, mileage may vary, your check engine light comes on. IE: Various pieces and parts start to hurt due to collisions and age. Lots of bang ups, dislocations of limbs and cancer and such in my case over the years and I avoid pain killers of any type, maybe a half dozen Advil a year because I am only working on part of one kidney, it’s a trade off dealing with pain.
In 2013 I stepped out of a Jeep I was driving on a hill, thought there was road under by there wasn’t at that particular spot. When I felt myself falling I used my left hand to grab the mirror and stopped my fall and thus ensued a five month battle with what turned out to be a stretched nerve but diagnosed as a bad spinal injury by a bunch of quacks in Dallas who my ortho guy referred me to. They wanted to do some big time spinal surgery on my neck so I slowed things down, got some acupuncture and strange stuff, got some 2nd opinion from the head ortho doc at SW Medical School in Dallas and things healed up. I was kind of grinning a couple of years later when the Spine doctors and the Nurse Practitioner in Dallas were arrested on charges of fraud, they wanted to cut up anyone who came their way.
In my case per the 2nd opinion my shoulder and arm with time recovered completely full range of motion and strength so my experieince going into my 75th year and competing in a shooting completion this morning is to go slow trying to fix things and learn to live and be thankful you are alive to have the pains and dings that come with age. Do most anything, including witch doctors to keep the knives away.
I HAD the problem…
but i fixed it.. they originally gave flexeral.
instead… i examined my chairs, removed some.
and my wife and i do a regimen of what athletes would all light exercise
20-30 squats… and so on
with long walking as well
what i discovered is that the more you do that, the more your body uses that to tune it… took 4 years… but it also took almost that time to get into the issue!
and once in, its hard to stop because of something the brain likes to do, which is over focus on pain.. ie. you become hypervigilant and you may not even notice other pain
the exercises are not all that much..
and before you say i must have a better back..
dad had it really bad
my uncle got out of his car to look at something, it was ok, went back to his car
when he sat down, three of his vertibra shattered and he was paralysed temporarily on the side of the road completely helpless to anyone that could stop by..
me? i dont like swimming (as exercise) but love swimming otherwise
walking is what we were made to do, and what we do too little of
we are hunter gatherers in farmer lifestyles..
meaning we are made to walk and walk a lot…
we didnt get to sit and get all kinds of problem till after farming
including fats and such as starch plants are the farming stables
maize (upper south america), potatoe (the chilean areas),
rice (china), wheat (fertile crescent)..
AND if that isnt bad enough… we lack knowlege about ourselves
you see, one of the reasons i try to walk and move around and such
is that your spine does not have a good blood supply…
and without moving and walking quite a bit, your denying your spine nutrients, oxygen, and the abillity to carry crap away..
got lucky today, someone threw out one of those really expensive Aeron chairs (herman miller).. nice thing is that they are so loved, that whatever part is old or bad, you can by and repair…
https://www.hermanmiller.com/products/seating/office-chairs/
specifically in my case
https://www.hermanmiller.com/products/seating/office-chairs/aeron-chairs/
While its iconic form has remained largely unchanged, the Aeron Chair has been remastered from the casters up to meet the needs of today’s work. With the help of original co-designer, Don Chadwick, we thoughtfully updated the chair based on the latest research around the science of sitting, and advancements in materials, manufacturing, and technology.
i now have to find a few parts..
new wheels as they make different casters
the wheels on this one are like they were on concrete
my wife siad no… never.. i then said do they have a dog?
she said no… i said… let me guess.. a parrot.. YES!
and the back part i think needs its knob…
but regardless, even without that… its nice
my old office chair is actually a very old office chair
looks like new ones..(will reapolster it)
but its 40 years old and never needed repair
simple secretary chair, no arm rest, some back support and thats it
also… making sure you stand up with the right posture and build a habit of it
my wife is starting to curl and i told her she keeps that up and it will get worse and harder to fix over time
you see.. your bones never stop renewing..
so the channel the nerves go through, gets smaller and smaller over time
and if your posture is not right, well, its a lot easier to pinch that
and i found only walking long distances with regularity, gives the back enough blood, and enough feedback to keep the thing as tuned as you can reasonably.
while my contemporaries cant do what my wife and i do
its not because my wife and i are all that special
its because we do what they dont… and wont..
OldTexan, I’m so glad you’ve pretty much recovered and are able to go back to shooting competitions. (I’m so jealous!)
Of course I am a tender, innocent young thing, a maiden indeed (I have no idea how the Young Miss happened), but even so I’ve got a year on you. Aren’t the rapturous years of youth just wunnerful? 😀
Thanks for making your comment. Very reinforcing. I’ve managed to avoid knives so far, except for occasionally missing the onion and hitting a finger — and then there are always those paper cuts. OUCH. You’re right, and when I was even younger and dewier than I am now I never dreamed old age would take its toll on the machinery in such an unpleasant fashion. Live & learn! –Well, I may not be much good for anything nowadays, but contrary to Dr. Zeke’s opinion, I do still find life meaningful in some sense or other. Thank the Great Frog!
Artful, very interesting. I can’t walk much any more (not in a wheelchair though, thank goodness), but what you say makes sense to me. I hope you and your wife are able to walk well through life for the years to come. :>))
Sure sounds like a muscle spasm. They hit like a hammer and usually for no particular reason. The shrieking agony when you move is enough to keep you still, which is what you need to do – spasms are the way a muscle tells you not to make it do any more work or else!
Ice is the best thing to make the pain bearable. Even if you ordinarily don’t like, or benefit from, ice packs. Make sure it covers every bit of the offended area and leave it on as long and as often as you dare. All these ideas about long-term stretching and strengthening sound good too. But first let yourself recover. That kind of pain really sets you back and at our age we don’t get over it quickly. At least I never do!
Not a back issue, but I pulled a groin muscle horribly just getting off the couch! It was so painful I thought I had ripped muscle, tendons, etc. All I did was get up from the couch! On my butt for two days. Getting older sucks.
Dear Julie,
My suggestion is just do what you can do as often as you can, keep all the parts moving as much as possible. I make old man noises every morning when I get up out of bed, feed the dog, go in and make coffee and empty the dish washer before my lovey bride who is 73 years old wakes up. I cook, she cleans and loads the dishwasher. Lots of discomfort to being old folks and a week ago we ended up doing a week taking care of grand critters in the Detroit area while their folks were out of town, a two who need medical every eight hours and an eight year old who had to get off to school every morning and we really felt our age, and he walks the several blocks to school and back every day like a real kid.
I have so much appreciation for all of the younger people who are raising children, to the best of their abilities and their challenges are so much greater than ours or our parents. Kind of a side path on this age stuff but it is real stuff for parents of young kids trying to do the right thing. Their kids never listen to the news, our daughter wants her kids to grow up in a bubble where the wold is full of trust and love and I love her for that.
Mean while I try to be thankful for what I have, and blessings for everyone as they pass through their life journeys.
In my mid 20s I started a new full time job with the Texas National Guard. We were repairing old Bradley Fighting Vehicles that had come from the Active Army and were being handed down to the Guard. My first position at that job was removing the bolted on side armor to get at the swim barriers. We had overhead ceiling cranes but it still required some heavy lifting. One evening at the end of second break in the break room I bent over to put one of the light weight metal and plastic chairs on the table per standard procedure for end of day mopping. Pulled something in my back. On another occasion I was at the gym and turned my head sideways during a lat pulldown- what I get for checking out the girl- and ended up with my shoulder and neck messed up where I walked around like the Hump back of Notre Dame for a couple of days. One time it started while brushing my teeth….
Sounds to me like sciatica, although if you recovered 80% in just one day, you are doing good.
I’ve had three attacks over the years. It takes anywhere from 3 days to a week for me to recover. The pain is terrible and I lose significant strength in the affected leg. Problem is, I can hardly stand so driving to the doctor is out of the question. And when I’ve recovered, what’s the point of going.
It’s always something Very minor that brings on the attack. Once, it was a sneeze. Another time it was reaching down to put something in a lower drawer.
Way back when I was in 7th grade, and they were checking us all out for scoliosis, I was told I would have back problems later in life just because my spine naturally curved too much. [Later started in my late 30’s and continues] For the spasms, I find the combination of IBU and a TENS unit helps. As best I understand it, the TENS unit sets up a counterpoint of low electricity that blocks the nerve from sending the message to the brain which reinforces the spasm and keeps locking up the muscles . That and the IBU allows the body a chance to settled down and try and heal. It seems to work for me, but it might not help much with muscle strain or a pinched nerve.
One day, my young neighbor went into a back spasm, trying to wrestle his motorcycle off the trailer, and was stuck on his front lawn for an hour until his wife was finally about to get him into the house and on the living room floor. I took him my TENS unit and it was helpful enough that he promptly bought one for himself.
As for the spine not getting enough blood flow – I try to regularly use both a lower back and a neck posture pump to do gentle traction that allows the blood to better flow in those areas and keep them in better shape. I definitely notice when I get busy and slack off using them.
This is the point I am at now, having done the MRI’s, the steroid injections into the spine and repeated PT, massage therapy and chiropractic adjustments. I tried acupuncture and while I can’t say if it did or did not help, the cupping the acupuncturist did most definitely helped. I had begun to not be able to turn my head without the neck locking up, and nothing was working on that until the cupping.
Not complaining [much] tho’, since my MIL has had genuine scoliosis for 70 years and her spine is like a pretzel and she just keeps going, so I have quite the example to live up to. 🙂
Liz:
I know a ton about back problems with nerve involvement and sciatica. I had that for many years. This is completely different; no sciatic involvement.
Whole lotta back problems here!
I have found the best defense against back issues is maintaining a strong core, with emphasis on doing planks. It works for this over 70 guy.
Sheetrocker, so back talk equals bad juju.
I had on-again, off-again lower back problems for almost forty years, until it got to the point that I could barely get out of bed, walk to the bathroom, drive a car, etc. Terrible sciatica; numbness and tingling in my quadriceps. An MRI revealed that I had stenosis along with a fragmented disc between my L2 and L3 vertebrae. At age 62 I had a type of surgery called a laminoforaminotomy to clean things up and remove the pressure on my spinal nerve. Result was miraculous! Four days in hospital; 3 months medical leave from work. In-patient and out-patient physical therapy (very important to do the PT!). After recovering from that surgery (and subsequently losing 50 lbs on a low carb diet, which is a story in itself) I feel like I’m 20 years younger. Now, I may have been a particularly good candidate for this type of surgery, and my surgeon was very well-regarded, but WOW: heath-wise, it was the best thing I’ve ever done.
I’ll spare you my own back stories, but I will share in the unsolicited advice. I’m a side-sleeper and have been helped greatly by
1) always sleeping with a pillow between my knees
2) always grasping another pillow with my “up” arm, either directly on my side or clutching it to my chest.
This help keeps the back from getting far out of line while I sleep and has made a huge difference in the number of backaches I get.
I once got out of a car and fell over as my hip gave out under me. After several days of no improvement, except when on a hot pad I called the physical therapist. Who is very good and the exercises fixed things, as long as I keep them up. They also loosened my neck so I can turn my head properly again. Now I notice how I walk and watch how I hold myself. She also strongly suggests what Dwaz does, the extra pillows, but I haven’t been pushed to doing them yet.
There are two types of acupuncture, the pre-Mao, aka Five Element Acupuncture, which was preserved by an Englishman named Worsley; and the post-Mao which you find on every street corner, it seems. (at least around here.) For weird, lingering problems we’ve – my family seems to attract weird medicalish problems – found the Five Element variety has helped. A couple times it’s been the first thing (of many tried) that has made a difference. So try it, if you can find a practioner, it’s worth a shot.
Things I didn’t mention in the post—
I do stretches and certain back exercises every single day, and have for decades. I walk fast 3 miles almost every day, and have done so for about 40 years. So the problem isn’t related to that.
Arthritis in SI joints and lower vertebrae. Currently physical therapy 3 days a week. Thinking about laser option to reduce inflammation.
Want to get back to gardening, which I missed last season. Plus, I am a burden to Mrs parker who has taken over my customary chores. Old age is a drag, but watching grand kids grow is a blessing.
@ Dwaz: ditto
Elaine, thanks for the info on acupuncture.
And thanks to you too, OldTexan. Up until maybe a year ago I could do that much too (not the rug-rats business, though — that’s a whole nother deal, as we say up here Near Chicago). Anyhow, I’m glad that you and your wife are able to do as much as you do. And sure, you’re right about trying to keep moving.
In addition to your own personal stretches and poses:
Yoga
It combines relaxation, spinal strengthening, and alignment (cobra and other poses)
There is also less likelihood that you will push yourself too much, since it not perceived as a “workout”.
Also it is conducive to becoming a daily practice.
My other secret weapon (besides yoga):
Chinup bar.
Great to stretch from when the spasm hits. And regular pullups – even if they are partial – strengthen the spine and correct bent-over posture.
The latest “Doc Martin” episode had one person develop back spasms with extreme pain and (among other things) he was advised to sit on a tennis ball! Sure enough, the internet is full of advice about how to use tennis balls to handle severe back pain, although most of the procedures involve using more than one.
hope you and your wife are able to walk well through life for the years to come
THANKS so much
but alas that wont happen…
Lost my job of 15 years for diversity…
no one wants evil from birth like 1933
• If most of these strategies just aren’t working, try doing what Gusto Engineering did and interview only female candidates until you hit your target.
You can add minority candidates to this strategy, too.
This will lead to our divorce… trying to do something about it and have my own business required a bit of pushing.. which also hurt my marraige.. now, it will swing the other way
so no.. i have about as much chance of a paper mache dog catching a steel cat running through hell..
given our “dreamer” status from the war and not being connected in any way
my life has always been the dumping ground for policy
from having to be homeless to go to college (after bronx science), while sis has 6 degrees (after regular high)…
so no..
i was just hoping i would be gone before losing the job
so she would be ok..
all that great artwork… was made for the garbage dump
the jewelry same..
the inventions and designs… the same
the high speed search chip no one is interested in
the software that writes software for you from mostly menus
the special lighting for aquarium tanks (and other things)
A solution to fermats last theorem that fermat could have had
Space time cavitation in quantum tunneling explaining entanglement and spooky action
micro cooling fans for hot electronics
mathematical explanation of how the mechanics of evolution works!!
solution to the french flag problem
Data analysis (information theory) of codon expansion matching archea heat analysis
portraits that would blow your mind in quality and beauty
photography that does the same
building designs for living mechanically drawn
computer generated artwork from the 1980s
business models..
there is a lot more…
the life was pointless
but thanks for the kind words…
i would have loved to show you all some of it
but since i was attacked by the left before i got here
and the requirement i expose myself to do so
and neo’s good and proper rule not to show
means i am sorry none of you got to see any of it…
🙁
its ok… never seen never lost… right?
never made, never benefits…
never did that, so never was a part of anything
never belonged anywhere
given feminism and the schooling all those ideas are not wanted
and i have no credentials to be heard or resources to do
all my partners robbed me or put me off till things were gone
I am the last toy on the island of lost toys no one ever really wanted
and i do know what that feels like and its not an exaggeration
if they could have separated me from those things they would have
and discarded the me…
I have an autoimmune disorder that attacks my peripheral nerves. It is somewhat atypical in that it also involves the small gauge nerve fibers which, in turn, causes muscle spasms. There’s really nothing for it except monthly infusions and medication. However, I have found that hanging on an inversion table helps tremendously.
I’ve had back spasms which match what Neo describes. For reasons unrelated to back pain, I took-up power lifting a few years ago and the incidences of back spasms have gone way down, also I am considerably stronger.
It may seem counter-intuitive, but heavy squats and dead lifts with a bar bell really help a lot.
Neo, sorry to hear about your back…I hope you’re better soon.
I’ve suffered back problems often enough that I think about how I’m bending and sitting and moving all the time.
What happens is that the vertebral bodies (spinal elements) can move out of place. They are just like any other bone and are connected to each other via ligaments. When they’re not exactly where they’re supposed to be they push on the surrounding tissue…muscles and fascia (even nerves) and can cause terrific pain.
I’ve managed to overcome my problems through manual therapy and core strengthening exercises. The therapist first finds which part of my back is misaligned. This is usually done with their hands on my back. My problem is invariably L5 and the sacrum. Using subtle positioning of my body, the therapist uses my own weight and muscles to move the bones back into position. And just like that you’re 90% better! It’s similar to chiropracty but those guys just realign everything they can with brute force and can cause further damage. Avoid them.
The better PTs will give you exercises to strengthen your core and your back. If you keep doing them (planks, bridges, etc) then after a few years you’ll have a very strong core and can use it to hold yourself up while you bend over.
These therapists practice manual PT and the best clinics will give you an individual treatment plan unlike some practices that are very cookie cutter in their approach. Unfortunately, you’ll need a prescription from a doc.
Best of luck!
Yawrate:
I didn’t really go into it in the post, but in the 30 years that I’ve had a bad back I probably have had every form of PT that exists, both conventional and unconventional. I’ve done exercises of all kinds, too, including all sorts of things for my core (which was already quite strong when I first hurt my back, because I had been a dancer), and none of it did any good as far as my back went although some seemed to be generally good in terms of general strength and flexibility. Every day I still do the exercises I found best.
But thanks for the suggestions. I know those exercises have helped a lot of people.
I had an ER visit a long time ago with a severe back spasm. Prescription Flexeril and ibuprophen were very effective.
Something I don’t think some people understand about spasms. It’s not just the activity prior to the spasm that matters. It’s the cumulative activity in the day or two or three before the spasm that matters.
For example: An active ski week followed by a long plane flight or car trip. The muscles are worked and maybe damaged a bit. Then you sit immobilized while the muscles are repairing themselves, without stretching. Even then, the spasm doesn’t occur until the next quasi-extreme back motion. E.g. washing the car.
Yes, the core exercises and stretching are great, but if you think you might be prepped for a spasm, ease into them very gradually, a little bit at a time.
I’ve had my lower back spasm episodes, though not in a while, Thank Grid. When I did, I found the Pete Egoscue exercises somewhat helpful.
“Egoscue – Exercises for low back pain”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqNnmC09eUU
But mostly I just had to ride the spasm out, while avoiding making it worse.
Currently I’m about through some sort of shoulder injury, which went on because it was so easy to re-injure/re-aggravate just by pulling open a stuck door or reaching for something a bit too far away or stretching automatically first thing upon awakening.
Wow. Lots of back troubles here. I hope Neo, and all of you, have a pain-free day tomorrow, and then another, and then another …
25 years ago, my back hurt bad enough for me to be sent to a neurosurgeon, due to numbness in foot, and sciatic pain in my leg. I was unable to stand straight up and the only time I was comfortable was leaning on a grocery cart. After testing, the doc recommended surgery. I hesitated to set a date due to a prearranged surprise birthday party for my husband (paid partially in advance, daughters flying in to surprise Papa). One morning, I awoke to no pain. I don’t have a clue why my back cured itself but the problem never recurred.
I had reoccurring problems with back for over 20 years. It started in my late teens. I had seen doctors and chiropractors off and on about it. After a move I tried a new chiropractor. He took one look at me and told me I was crooked. He said one of my shoulders was lower than the other. He figured out this was caused by one of leg being shorter than the other. I started having a shoe cobbler add a lift to the bottom of all my left shoes and my back problems went away
Unfortunately for me I have a history of very severe lower back spasms (LBS) ; bad enough that it caused me to lose consciousness SEVERAL times and which required an ambulance ride to a hospital and spend the night there, followed by several weeks of slow motion shuffling about. Great fun that was.
More recently LBS and very severe pain literally immobilized me for several days (had to roll out of bed – painfully) and it took about 9 months before my lower back was OK- pain free.. I never went to the doctor for this round of back attacks.
So, what have I learned?
I am convinced that lower back pain and/or spasms are caused by too tight and strong back muscles and/or too tight and strong hamstring muscles and/or too tight and strong hip flexor muscles; usually a combination of all three.
Hanging leg raises and sit-ups (with heels on the floor) really work your hip flexors and not so much your abs (as I had thought) and as your hip flexors get stronger – and tighter – they literally begin yanking your lower spine out of it’s proper position.
Hip flexors run from the inside or your legs, thru the pelvis and attach to the lower spine.
Best to do crunches or sit ups with legs up in the air or other ab exercises that work the abs, not the hip flexors.
Swimming will really strengthen your back muscles until they are just way to tight. You must work on stretching your back muscles to maintain them flexible. Swimming a mile day is what sent me off to the hospital for back spasms.
And too tight hamstrings can cause the pelvis to tilt backwards, flattening the lower back and causing lower back pain (or spasms).
Lastly, look at guys with huge beer bellies and see the shape of their spine; it’s very arched.
The spine and the muscles that dictate the shape of the spine will assume greater and greater curvature to support the unbalanced load applied by the belly (actually the beer belly applies an excessive “moment” or torque on the spine) .
In response to this, the back muscles become very very strong but also very very tight and will be vulnerable to spasms.
It can be shown , via an engineering analysis, that the most efficient manner for the spine (or really any vertical structural support member) to support a huge belly is by increasing it’s curvature (as the spine attempts to “redirect” the load into a more axial direction along the axis of the spine), and the back muscles, pulling ever tighter on the spine, is the mechanism compelling the spine to increase it’s curvature.
In doing this, the back muscles become very strong – and tight.
Work on flexibility of the hamstrings, hip flexors and back muscles. Also try a “dead man’s hang” from a chin up bar to help extend (axially) the length of your spine.
My recommendation: black coffee in the morning and red wine in the afternoon/evening in approximately equal amounts. Of course, that’s my recommendation for most maladies. Avoid doctors unless you have something obvious like a broken leg.
I like Sven’s approach. 🙂
huxley:
Just as an example of the hundred thousand things I’ve tried over the years, I actually went to Pete Egoscue himself for PT for a while.
Didn’t help.
John Tyler
I sustained nerve injuries in my arms from swimming. So that’s out, as is any kind of weightlifting.
Just as an example of the hundred thousand things I’ve tried over the years, I actually went to Pete Egoscue himself for PT for a while.
neo: Sometimes I read your health posts and want to hide under the bed!
I was acquainted with Pete Egoscue (and talked to him once) because he was big on the Tony Robbins circuit. Tony had an overactive pituitary which is how he ended up so tall and weird-looking. Back problems went with that territory and Egoscue was someone who managed to help Tony. So Tony helped Egoscue.
I didn’t find the Egoscue stuff magic, but just lying on my back with my hips folded and my calves resting on a chair was mucho relief, though I’m sure Egoscue wasn’t the only therapist recommending that position.
I’ve never had back pain.
My back pain comes mostly from sitting up too late reading Neo’s blog…..
In all those studies where “97% found relief” somebody has to be in the 3% that doesn’t.
You’re doing everyone a public service!
(PS that’s a joke — actually, I am sorry you have found so little relief over the years, and hope some of the comments have been helpful; I am keeping this post in my “health” bookmarks)
Lower back pain, probably from years of being a workstation potato — but the pain went away when my wife and I took a cruise, going up and down several flights of stairs between our cabin and the buffet. After we got back home I found that squats done properly are just as effective (not as much fun though).
Neo, self-diagnosis is dangerous.
Had had the same pain, though less intense, first in one buttock, then in both, with eventual gait disturbance. Got an MRI which showed compression of terminal spinal cord and cauda equina by hypertrophied ligaments inside, yes inside, the spinal canal. Minimally invasive surgery was the fix. Immediate.
There is a lot going on in the spine of which lay persons are unaware. Heard of the unco-vertebral joints of Luschka?
It is not all “slipped disks”!
The comments are wonderful. One commenter went to PT, but in most states PTs can take patients only on physician referral.
Cicero:
Believe me, I’m not into self diagnosis.
I’ve been to an extraordinary number of doctors in the last 30 years, although in recent years since my symptoms have been better, I’ve stayed away. I have had countless MRIs (literally; I have lost count) and other tests and interventions.
I know what they see in my back. L 4/5 is a “black” disc, essentially desiccated and more or less gone. The other discs are pretty good. I had radiculopathy for many years but in recent years there is no leg involvement anymore, and this recent incident was fortunately of short duration and did not involve any leg pain. But if the problem persists I will go in for another go-round of medical intervention, the vast bulk of which has been unhelpful, although one particular intervention many years ago helped with the leg pain (pain I don’t have at present): an epidural steroid injection at L 4/5.
Have you tried IMS treatment?
Joe:
Over the years I tried so many treatments both conventional and unconventional that I honestly can’t tell you because I have forgotten many of them. But I had tons of acupuncture, which never helped my back but helped a knee injury I had for a while.
About IMS/Dry needling
http://www.whythingshurt.com/ims-dry-needling-expanded-explanation/
My sister was in a nasty accident where the car flipped and she was left with a debilitatingly painful back injury, which ruined her life for over a year.
But she was in luck that a new treatment, in which a gel is injected into the disc, had become available. She was one of the first to get the treatment in New Mexico.
And it worked. Thank God. Back pain is no joke.
why did it happen, and why was it so very bad, and will it happen again? I had developed a false sense of security and thought I knew how to prevent such a thing. But obviously, I was wrong.
That’s not a back spasm. Your logical sequence of events point more towards a gluteus muscle contraction/charlie horse due to hyper powerful hamstrings and thigh muscles pulling on the glutes, which then pulled on the muscles of the lower back, which may or may not have affected the Iliac crest.
I work on clients with similar issues. It usually doesn’t take me more than an hour to fix.
The climate recently has also gotten crazy cold and then crazy hot as the sun comes up. That may even apply to New England. This is the perfect weather for muscle cramps.
I also see a lot of clients that do work with chiropractors and physical therapists, so I have to work within the “limits” of what they got.
I look at their problems and a lot of the times, they really shouldn’t be doing those stretching and exercise options. That’s because it causes muscles to contract and pull on other soft tissues. Their better bet is to start floating in a pool of warm to hot water, and slowly move the soft tissues around. Most people seem to think stretching is where they try to use the muscles more, and it just causes the inflammation if any to get worse. ANd if you over train certain muscles, like say the leg muscles, it can get so powerful that it pulls your entire soft tissue system out of balance, like a single thread pulling out an entire patch of a clothing.
I have had some really bad back problems that have largely subsided (despite my having hit my 50s) with a lot of core work and hip stretching. That said, everybody talks about this. I think the biggest help can often be just the acknowledgement that back pain is debilitating and can be unpredictable as to when and how it will hit. I’m certainly not a doctor and hope you get paid this without too much pain.
When I felt myself falling I used my left hand to grab the mirror and stopped my fall and thus ensued a five month battle with what turned out to be a stretched nerve but diagnosed as a bad spinal injury by a bunch of quacks in Dallas who my ortho guy referred me to.
That reminds me of a regular client that comes see me regularly. He injured his right achilles up to his back of the knee, causing huge inflammation and balloning of the flesh. Which healed up more or less over months, but the nerve damage and lack of feeling in his toes stayed. His doctors knew it was nerve damage and started talking about 1000 dollars just to get it tested, plus surgeries that would cost a lot more than that.
I took a look, told him what kind of nerve damage it was and where, and after a 6-12 months, the pain of the nerve damage was reduced to nothing now and the sensation is beginning to come fully back. What he should not have been doing was doing the stretches that his physical therapist was telling him to do, because that was just impinging on the nerves more and trying to stretch nerves only damages them further.
That’s because nerve pain is very funny. It’s not like tendon or soft tissue pain, where the location of the damage is pain. Rather the location of nerve damage is both below and above the locus of the pain/dullness.
This is obvious to me, but apparently the standards of licensed physical therapists are… low at the moment. There are many reasons why I believe in my own Holy Spirit and Divine Family’s counsel over the “knowledge of men” in expert white lab coats.
I had some small back pain, it got better with rest.
So after reading this post I went to help my sister-in-law move 960 half-liter bottles of the lowest cost water into her 1 Euro souvenir shop, then home, then huge back pain.
I ignored the warnings, tempted fates, was proud of my ability to help out (did too much) — now am paying a literally painful price. Still hurts too much to drive.
Sorry you’ve been in pain for so many years. Exercise the core lightly might slowly help, when you’re having a good day. My “new” plan. Starting maybe next week, if the pain is gone.
Tom Grey:
Feel better soon!