rough night because of back pain, need advice

Sami

ND13 wrote: »

Morphine DUDE!!!! Morphine!!;)

I'll take some if you have any extra.

It amazes me though how easily one can get a RX for milder opiates than morphine (oxy- and hydrocodone, even methadone) in this country. No wonder there is a huge problem of opiate addiction.

Danger Boy, it's not a high you get from oxy, its a low. Opiates are downers.

ND13 wrote: »

Steer clear of Tylenol, it'll **** your liver up badly.

Agree. Note that oxycodone and hydrocone pills also contain tylenol (acetaminophen/paracetamol). Codeine pills as well.

Face

Hopefully your doctor refers you to a Orthopedist.

Unless something is terribly wrong, a X-ray won't show anything. MRI's are the only way to correctly diagnose any damage such as a herniation or budging disk.

Other great advice here, take anti-inflammatory meds such as Advil and apply heat. Muscle relaxers will help you sleep, but be careful if you have to drive anywhere.

As for chiropractors, I will never go to one again, it's a form of witchcraft. The last time I visited one, he re-aggravated my injury and IMO set me back about 3 months. This was no crackpot either, he is the official back snapper of the local PBA and was well recommended. IMO, physical therapy is the only way to treat a back injury.

Something else that worked very well for me was capsaicin ointment, but be careful if you have sensitive skin. It warms up the affected area and does a excellent job relaxing the muscles.

Dennis Gardner

The last 2 times my MDs wanted to cut, I got second opinions and with the right treatment, I have still never been cut on.

My chiropractor was exceptional. He has the best/latest traction machine in my state within 150 miles, even the local MDs send people his way. Traction, ice packs, and stimulation treatments and 1 week of daily treatments and I was back to work, in 3 weeks I was completely out of pain. Haven't been back to him since in over 4 years as I've never been good about prevention, but it sure beat surgery.......

joeparaski

I used to have serious back pains for many years and I've seen chiropractors and doctors. Took plenty of pills, had physio-therapy, the electric shock thingy therapy, and even tried acupuncture. The time came when the doctors said they wanted to open up my back and operate, I declined, preferring to live with the pain rather than take a chance and be in a wheel chair.

Then one day at work, a customer (a retired old chiropractor) saw me in pain and asked if he could help. He told me to hold my right arm straight out and hold it there, he pushed down on the arm while I resisted the down force. Then he applied pressure somewhere on my side and my arm went straight down when he applied pressure. And then he asked me a strange question "do you drink a lot of milk?" I said yes, I drink plenty of milk. He told me to quit the milk and I'll be alright in a couple of months.

I swear this is true!! Figuring I had nothing to lose, and these old-timers know a few things anyway, I quit milk just for the hell of it to see what would happen. Yep, a couple of months later, the pain was gone.

On a few occasions I've talked to people and sometimes the subject of back pain comes up. Quite often these folks also drink a lot of milk. They find my story unbelievable, but at least 2 tried it and had the same results I did. Ultimately it has something to do with the calcium intake. What pisses me off is how none of the "specialists" that saw me during those years of pain ever asked me anything about my food intake. It could have saved me a few years of pain.


Joe

danger boy

george daniel wrote: »

does the pain go down the front or back of your leg,, if so how far down.

no pain up or down my legs..

I did get a heating pad.. one that you zap in the microwave for 90 seconds then place on your sore spot. it's a wet type of heat.. not dry... feels great though.

danger boy

Willow wrote: »

Coming from someone who had two back surgeries and has been off work for the past year... What you need is an anti-inflamatory, ie advil or aleve, if nothing RXed for you. For pain, you'll need to take the strongest stuff you had.
I went to a chiro once, and because I was in so much pain when he asked me to relax I couldn't as I was affraid it may hurt.
Ice it 10mins on ten mins off.
I even had 7 epidurals of anti-inflamatories and direct pain killers right in my herniated disk.
If you are having muscle spasms you will need something to relax you, I found robax stuff just crap ! but that's me and my situation.
If you want more info or clarification let me know.

all good info.. yeah it's tough to relax.. thinking if I do.. it'll hurt like an SOB afterwards.

i am using my stomach muscles to compensate for the back pain.. now my tummy muscles are sore too.

I am taking Ibuprofen for inflammation. It helps knock down the pain too. but I can't be on that forever. Doctor said two weeks at the longest. damn, it's almost been two weeks already.

I also have a few Oxycodoe pills left over from earlier this year.. they are ok if you want to get a (slight) buzz going.

shawn474

joe,
Wow, just wow. A ringing endorsement for the medical community. I am in no way discounting your claim and have no reason to not believe that what you say actually happened. In as unsarcastic a tone as possible, do you really think that stopping the ingestion of milk caused your back pain to go away? Could there have been some other factor, ANY factor in your recovery? I have my theory that the couple months of rest actually solved the problem, but am interested if this guy give you an explanation of why milk was the culprit?

This is one of the reasons why people should not ask for medical advise on the internet. Too many cooks in the pot spoil the meal (or some **** like that).

mmadden28

george daniel wrote: »

Morphine will make you invisible.:eek:

No that's PCP that'll do that :eek:

mmadden28

Soma never works/ed for me. IIRC Flexeril did though.

I have back pain all the time-but my most recent bouts were different-it was in my lower to mid back and I could barely sit-it radiated into the pit of my stomach-so very very very uncomfortable- no need to go into detail here. Ended up being a Kidney Stone. :eek:

Anything unusual with your Urine?

joeparaski

I changed nothing in my life but stop drinking milk. I didn't change my eating habits, I didn't rest any more than usual. Frankly, I didn't believe him, but I remember saying to myself that the only thing I had to lose was the pleasure of drinking milk for a few months. Plus, the fact that this was an old man, impressed upon me the fact that some of these old guys are wise and if wouldn't hurt to follow his advise.

Additionally, as early as last year, I was starting to feel some lower back pain again, nothing major, but it was there. Once again, chit chatting with another customer, he suggested taking a few Glucosamine tablets per day. I took his advice, and a month or so later, the pain was gone.

I now take 2 Glucosamine and one Omega 3 tablet per day and I feel great.

This past summer I started taking boxing lessons, and the instructor was genuinely surprised at my stamina for a guy of 51 years of age.

Anyway, the milk thing has something to do with calcium...too much of it is not good for the bones.

I must add that back when I had the major back pain, the x-rays of my back clearly showed a curved spine. I even walked slightly tilted to the left. This was 15 years ago, when I was younger and supposedly stronger than today. Other than a slight increase in belly size, I still weigh between 155 and 160 pounds.

Joe

dkg999

Once the Dr (ie a real doctor) examines you, and you insist on the MRI as mentioned several times in this thread, find a good licensed massage therapist with experience with lower back pain. The massage therapy won't necessarily cure it, nor does it replace and treatments your dr recommends, but think of it as a regular preventive measure that is really enjoyable!

shawn474

joe, again I meant no disrespect by my post. I take the glucosamine myself(important to find a good brand) and have taken the omega 3 in the past. A simple case study would be to introduce milk back to your diet and see if the pain returns.

The curvature of the spine that you are referring to was most likely scoliosis (a very common and very treatable condition).

Everyone (not you personally, but the public in general) loves to poo-poo modern medicine. They call the surgeons hacks, cutmen, etc. While true in some instances, surgery has its place. Eastern philosophies are underused here - i work in the field and admit that freely. But, I can honestly say that a lot of the guys that you hear hemming and hawing about how PT doesn't work, etc. is because they don't want to put the time or effort into a proper rehab protocol (exercise, diet, lifestyle modification, you name it). They would much rather sit on a massage table, get accupuncture, etc. because the only effort there is the ride to the clinic. Not pointing fingers at anyone in particular. People want the quick fix with minimal effort. ALL OF THESE PROFESSIONS HAVE THEIR MERIT AND PLACE IN THE TOTAL SPECTRUM. There are no short cuts in my field - I am paid to rehab the injuries, but it takes a total commitment from the athletes that I am treating to get it done properly. They know that from day 1.

So, my advice to danger boy would be to ask his doctor for a PT referral. Why? Because that doctor right now is only concerned about treating his pain. He has recommended medication to make him more comfortable but effectively has not treated the root of the problem. So for 2 weeks he'll change his posture to carry himself in a comforatble manner, change his sleeping position, change everything he does in daily life to be more comfortable. Then you are two weeks behind, your back is locked in spasm and bad posture (even though the pain is gone) and indirectly you have made yourself more susceptible to these types of episodes in the future. At the end of two weeks, what have you really accomplished except take a few pills?

Just my .02.

Dennis Gardner

Joe,

Your DC must have followed the Dr. Twogood path of thinking.

http://www.amazon.com/No-Milk-Revolutionary-Solution-Headaches/dp/0963112503/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230699678&sr=1-1

wingnut4772

I had a car accident 17 years ago and hurt my back pretty good. Once it healed up I started doing some yoga stretches and kept my back and hamstrings pretty flexible. Every now and then I will get a twinge if I slack off on the stretching but generally it stays trouble free. Sit ups help too.

schwarcw

Hang in there Al! Sorry to hear about your back. There's lot's of good advice here, I can't add any medical advice. I will suggest that you don't shovel snow. Pay somebody to do it.

Good luck with the doctor's visit!

disneyjoe7

I hope you feel better Al good luck at the doctors.

A side story here, been married a while now (I leave it at that) got tried of my wifes back and the bed crap. Every year or so I needed to buy another bed, every time going up a level. I started factoring in price to year in us the cost per month / year. So we wanted a new bed, we shopped and we shopped... I went top line either she liked this bed or ? who knowns. Well we both like the bed I hear very little about her back thank GOD and I sleep very well I must add.

Well worth it, and now you know where my Audio $$$ go. http://www.kluftmattress.com/

george daniel

mmadden28 wrote: »

Soma never works/ed for me. IIRC Flexeril did though.

I have back pain all the time-but my most recent bouts were different-it was in my lower to mid back and I could barely sit-it radiated into the pit of my stomach-so very very very uncomfortable- no need to go into detail here. Ended up being a Kidney Stone. :eek:

Anything unusual with your Urine?

Ah,, Flexeril,,, just pour me into a container, any container after I take one of those,, now back to our regular scheduled whatever

Jigsawpuzzle

I had some serious back pains a few weeks ago that only went away after i tried a bath in epsom salts.. Worked wonders.. My job requires a lot of heavy lifting all day..

george daniel

So,, what did the MD say/do?

Jigsawpuzzle

i find it interesting that people discuss medicine on an audio forum lol.. i guess it must be difficult to listen to great sounding audio while moaning and groaning.. i've been there done that

Face

Jigsawpuzzle wrote: »

i find it interesting that people discuss medicine on an audio forum lol.. i guess it must be difficult to listen to great sounding audio while moaning and groaning.. i've been there done that

Pink Floyd while on muscle relaxers and pain meds is a interesting experience.

george daniel

just clubhouse banter,, usually non audio related stuff,, anything from back pain to sleep apnea

Jigsawpuzzle

Ah! now we're talking.. try the rugrats theme song turned up

george daniel

Face wrote: »

Pink Floyd while on muscle relaxers and pain meds is a interesting experience.

Eh,, comfortably numb,, in more ways than one;)

Jigsawpuzzle

now thats a great song.. Numb/encore was well remixed:)

George Grand

Al, this radiation around towards your belly button. Does it feel like it is IN your stomach at times? Does it FEEL like maybe you've got something about the size of an orange in there. I'm serious.

I have had these sensations and the best they come up with is arthritis.

devani

no pill will take away your pain...I have done epidural(?) shots, chiropractor, acupuncture, physical therapy, and for my back pain MRI and X-RAY all showed that I had herniated disk...the pain went down all the way to my feet...

doctors don't do anything...I could not walk for 10 minutes because of the pain....now, I can do 12 hours of shopping with wife but it''s alot of work....stretch your back everyday and exercise..

janmike

Hope you get rid of all that pain soon DB. Good luck with the Doc.

joeparaski

shawn474 wrote: »

joe, again I meant no disrespect by my post. I take the glucosamine myself(important to find a good brand) and have taken the omega 3 in the past. A simple case study would be to introduce milk back to your diet and see if the pain returns.

The curvature of the spine that you are referring to was most likely scoliosis (a very common and very treatable condition).

Everyone (not you personally, but the public in general) loves to poo-poo modern medicine. They call the surgeons hacks, cutmen, etc. While true in some instances, surgery has its place. Eastern philosophies are underused here - i work in the field and admit that freely. But, I can honestly say that a lot of the guys that you hear hemming and hawing about how PT doesn't work, etc. is because they don't want to put the time or effort into a proper rehab protocol (exercise, diet, lifestyle modification, you name it). They would much rather sit on a massage table, get accupuncture, etc. because the only effort there is the ride to the clinic. Not pointing fingers at anyone in particular. People want the quick fix with minimal effort. ALL OF THESE PROFESSIONS HAVE THEIR MERIT AND PLACE IN THE TOTAL SPECTRUM. There are no short cuts in my field - I am paid to rehab the injuries, but it takes a total commitment from the athletes that I am treating to get it done properly. They know that from day 1.

So, my advice to danger boy would be to ask his doctor for a PT referral. Why? Because that doctor right now is only concerned about treating his pain. He has recommended medication to make him more comfortable but effectively has not treated the root of the problem. So for 2 weeks he'll change his posture to carry himself in a comforatble manner, change his sleeping position, change everything he does in daily life to be more comfortable. Then you are two weeks behind, your back is locked in spasm and bad posture (even though the pain is gone) and indirectly you have made yourself more susceptible to these types of episodes in the future. At the end of two weeks, what have you really accomplished except take a few pills?

Just my .02.

No disrespect taken. I have nothing against doctors or medecine, I've got a great family doctor, although it's not the same doctor as I had when I was in the "painful years".

I remember being in therapy and seeing all those other people there. You could tell that some of them were there only because they had to be, and weren't looking to get any better, because they were on workman's compensation.

I too was on workman's comp at one time. But when that ran out I used my own money because I was desperate to get rid of the pain. I put in the expense, the time and the effort to try and heal but it just didn't work with "conventional" methods. I wasn't looking for any hocus pocus solutions either, I didn't know anything about it nor did I believe in it. The old man's milk suggestion sounded so silly that I'm surprised I even tried it. Obviously, I'm glad I did. At the time there was no Internet to do any research either.

Joe

joeparaski

Dennis Gardner wrote: »

Joe,

Your DC must have followed the Dr. Twogood path of thinking.

http://www.amazon.com/No-Milk-Revolutionary-Solution-Headaches/dp/0963112503/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230699678&sr=1-1

WOW!! That is absolutely amazing! I didn't think there was a book on the subject (I should have researched it). I am definitely buying that book, there may be a few more things I can do to clear up some back pain flare up I get occasionally (which I attribute to working long hours).

Joe