The saga of a Bad Back

[WellsWood]

... Sometimes I wonder if people just think I'm lazy or worse still, a drug addict. .

Actually I always thought it was a bit of both, sprinkled lierally with a generous helping of hypochondria and self pity of course. :wink:

Seriously though, I know what you mean. Chronic back pain in particular has a certain stigma attached to it due to having being used for years by scammers claiming benefits rather than getting jobs. I learnt this the hard way when in your predicament 30 years ago I was "examined" by some bods from the DHSS. This consisted of me being asked to bend over and touch my toes, which was frankly laughable - I couldn't touch my knees, let alone my toes, but had no effect on the verdict: "Nothing wrong with you that I can see" the man said, and promptly stopped my money . :roll: :evil:

I think you need to stop trying to get by with painkillers though mate, not only are they almost certainly bad for to take long term, they're also masking the symptoms well enough to take the edge off your incentive to get a proper fix. Bite that bullet and go get the surgery if it's an option, I did and never regretted it for a second. Every day you put it off is another day without pain you're passing on and one less day you can spend running round the garden with Lola - believe me when I say these days with your daughter before she discovers mobile phones and MSN are very very short, make the most of them.

 

[newt]

If the pain is unbearable and you feel like dying, surgery becomes a delightful option, honest.

 

[wizer]

Self Pity....Moi??

Yes, I agree. Surgery it is. That is, if they don't shove me in a hospital bed for a week while they loose my MRI scans and then treat 'real sick people'....again.....

Here's hoping.

Mark, I'll be round to flash you my Corset when they fit it

 

[Fecn]

I'm in the back pain club too. I actually blame my IT-based sitting-in-an-office-chair-all-day-and-night job for weakening my back, but it was around 4 years ago whilst moving furniture when I put it out. I was unable to walk for 3 or 4 days as every time I tried to put pressure on my left leg, there was a shooting pain which made me crumple up again. Doctor gave me tamazipan, NHS gave me an X-Ray, but couldn't see anything wrong, and just gave me pain killers which got progressively stronger and stronger over the next couple of years.

I figured the dozen-a-day pain killer tablets couldn't be doing me any long-term good, so I've been seeing a chiro for about 18 months now. He reckons that my pelvis is twisted out of shape and as such, my legs don't reach the floor at the same time, which means my back is twisted out of shape to compensate. The chiro sessions have certainly been helping things out, and largely got me off the pain killers except for the really bad days.

About 12 months ago, having not ridden a bike for nearly 10 years, I was given an electric bike by a friend and discovered that cycling around on it really seemed to help my back. Whenever I cycled a few miles, it made all the muscles in my back tense up and ache like hell, but it was a lot better than the bone-on-bone grinding I was used to. A few months later, I bought a few better e-bike and I've been cycling progressively more and more over the past year and doing longer and longer rides, and as such, the muscles in my bum, legs and back have been getting stronger and stronger. A mile seemed like such a long way when I first got the bike, but these days, 10 miles is just a lunchtime jaunt.

A couple of weekends ago, I did a massive 62.2 mile ride with a friend, all the way down to Brighton. Two nights after that ride, I was woken up in the middle of the night by the most almighty creak/grind/crack/click from my pelvis. My left hip, and the muscles in my bum and down the right hand side of my back ached like hell for about a week afterwards, but.... as far as I can tell, my legs both seem to be the same length now. Although my back hasn't been totally pain free, it feels more like muscular pain than bone grinding now.

I am very hopeful that I've now managed to un-click the original furniture-moving-put-my-back-out event which happened in 2005. I've got a 75 mile bike ride to Eastbourne planned for the coming Sunday, which I'm hoping will further strengthen all the muscles, stretch some tendons/ligaments and cement my back/pelvis into it's new position. I haven't seen the chiro since my Brighton ride, but I'll be seeing him next week after the Eastbourne run, and am hoping he'll be able to see the change too. I just hope that 4 years of bone-on-bone grinding hasn't done too much permanent damage.

Incidentally, it is all of that cycling which has been keeping me out of the workshop for the last year or so, and hence far quieter on this forum.... (although I did learn to mig-weld last weekend with my new Aldi welder)

Edit - 5 mins after that post: The welds I did on my office chair just broke... bugger... my welding is not as good as I thought... More practice required.

 

[duncanh]

I guess it could be argued that all pain is in the head as that's where the pain receptors are - in the brain.
This isn't the same as saying that pain is all in the mind and imagined, or that you necessarily have control over it.

Knowing that there are pain pathways between the sites of pain and the receptors leads to various types of treatment - some target the receptors, some target the site where the pain appears to be and some target the pathways.

Tom - have you tried TENS treatment? It's the application of small electric currents and is used to disrupt the pathways and can be effective for some people. You place 2 electric pads at various places on the body and then control the type of electric current and it's strength using a small control box. It's sometimes used in childbirth as an alternative to drugs. It hasn't helped my headache/migraine symptoms but it has helped some people that I know.

Do you know if there's a specialised pain management unit (some NHS hospitals have them, maybe all do) in your area? If so then try to get referred. My local one has 2 specialist doctors for the treatment of chronic pain (both trained anesthetists), several psychologists and physiotherapists and has helped me tremendously. I attended a course 1 day a week for 8 weeks or so and it covered a wide range of topics including general discussion of chronic pain, pain gate theory, drug options, electronic means of pain control, acupuncture, physio, positive thinking, relaxation techniques and pacing. If nothing else it showed me that I wasn't the only one suffering chronic pain that wasn't helped by the medication I'd been proscribed and it gave me a chance to meet and talk with other chronic pain sufferers. There were a wide range of people on the course ranging from 20years (ish) up to 60+. There were less than 20 on the course and it was very informal. Luckily I live in an area that has a good pain unit, and I know that not all are lucky.

The most useful thing which I took away from the course was the concept of pacing - applying this technique I am now able to do a 2 or 3 of hours of turning at day (if I want to) spread over several small sessions. Previously I was attempting to do longer sessions and setting back my health, meaning that I actually did less overall. It's also helped with my computer use - I now limit myself to 30 minutes or less even when doing tasks that need longer.

None of this may actually help you in the long run, but it might be worth looking in to

Duncan

 

[wizer]

Thanks Duncan. I'll need to read up on that pacing technique. At the moment it's hard to see how it will fit into my life. I can't see my employers being happy with it. But do see the ethos behind it.

In a way I've been working towards this in my free time. My daily routine is up early, workshop til noon, lay down for a couple of hours, then either back in the workshop or some other household duty.

 

[WellsWood]

Self Pity....Moi??

Yes, I agree. Surgery it is. That is, if they don't shove me in a hospital bed for a week while they loose my MRI scans and then treat 'real sick people'....again.....

Here's hoping.

Mark, I'll be round to flash you my Corset when they fit it

Careful on those high heels then.. :shock:

 

[duncanh]

Thanks Duncan. I'll need to read up on that pacing technique. At the moment it's hard to see how it will fit into my life. I can't see my employers being happy with it. But do see the ethos behind it.

If you can develop a system that works for you and can show your employers that it will lead to less time off (assuming you've taken time off) and you being more productive then it would be in their interest.
One bloke on the course described the process and thinking behind pacing and his manager actively instructed him to take breaks every hour or so. If your employer refuses to listen to you and make allowances for your condition then this may come under workplace disability discrimination laws. Of course, not every type of work can be flexible.

In a way I've been working towards this in my free time. My daily routine is up early, workshop til noon, lay down for a couple of hours, then either back in the workshop or some other household duty.

One of the hardest things to get your head round with pacing is that you don't continue working until you can't do any more and need to lay down. Stop before you reach that point. You might find that you can cope with working for 1 hour, resting for 30 minutes (you could need less rest after working for less time) and repeating allows you to do more - eg. work for 2 hours, rest for 2 gives you 2 hours work in every 4, but work for 1, rest for 30 mins gives you 3 hours work in every 4. This can help you be productive every day rather than every other or even every 3.
When I first started to apply it I limited myself to 30 minutes turning at a time followed by a rest of at least 30 minutes - I even went as far as to set a timer. Gradually I was able to increase this and now tend to do an hour and then a break of 30 minutes. It's still increbily frustrating, but I know that it helps me in the long run.
I still have problems with computers and can rarely do 30 minutes at a time - I started this reply this morning!

Duncan

 

[wizer]

Duncan it really makes sense to me. I'm going to try it tomorrow.

Thanks

 

[BMac]

Me again Wizer,

Listen to Duncan, he is 100% spot on. I have to pace myself - it was hard to learn and can still be hard to stick to. My biggest problem is accepting that I can't just bull into work like I used to - pride is a terrible thing.

It will take some time to find a work/rest balance but when you do you will be amazed at how much work you can get done - the old tortoise and hare theory.

In order to try to ease the frustration of having to stop working when I think I am going well I rotate three or four tasks of varying levels of physical intensity and do a little of each, the easiest being a kind of semi-rest period and I find I can keep going without having to stop completely so often. I don't always get it right but I soon learn and use set-backs as indicators to help manage my time/effort routines.

 

[Digit]

In order to try to ease the frustration of having to stop working when I think I am going well I rotate three or four tasks of varying levels of physical intensity and do a little of each

That's my method as well BMac.

Roy.

 

[wizer]

Right I had a go at this today. By the time we'd done the breakfast thing, I was in the workshop by 9am. Pottered around making the finishing touches to a small but long term project. Worked until midday. Had lunch and then laid on the bed for 2.5hrs. Back in the workshop at 3pm for another couple of hours, turned a box. Came out, did the dinner, bath, bed routine. Missus is out tonight so I went back in the workshop for another 90mins doing some sanding. Back horizontal now.

It went quite well. I think it needs tweaking. But I can see how it's more productive in the long run. I also like the idea of alternating jobs to keep things moving.

I can certainly see how it's going to help. Not sure how to fit it in with work yet. Really, I need to lay down to get the relief I need.

Thanks for the advice,

 

[BMac]

Wizer,

You'll find you will be tweaking all the time because all the jobs involve different levels of effort. The most important thing is to stop while you still feel OK - it is hard to do but after you've got it wrong a few times you'll see the value in stopping before you are in trouble. This is why I need to have a few jobs on the go at once because I will keep at a job unless I know I can switch to something else that is worthwhile.

So, that's the hypocrisy out of the way...today I did very little because I really overdid it in the garden this week. Things were going well, the weather was lovely, so I just kept on going, knowing I would pay for it and today I did. But that's OK, I have had a reminder and I'll be more aware next week of the need to pace.

Good luck,
Brendan

 

[Gower]

Hello Tom, only just read this thread. I had a course of injections to facet joints 7 weeks ago and it has reduced the pain to such an extent that I have been able to reduce the opiate pain killers by 75%. I don't think that this is a long term remedy but I was able to use the workshop all last week (made a garden bench for one of my kids from mixed scrap African hardwood and B&Q 'Hardwood' decking boards). The surgeon suggests another course of injections and then decide whether to spill blood! They seem very reluctant to operate - maybe its bit 'iffy'?
Anyway, best of luck chum.
Cheers,
Jim

 

[wizer]

you were lucky Jim, they did nothing but make me cry like a little girl.

 

[Digit]

If you're retired Jim it's probably 'cos the NHS does not consider it 'cost effective'. That's basically how my GP put it. I'm no longer a contributor to the tax man so sod off!

Roy.

 

[wizer]

To be fair they're not exactly chucking money at me either and I'm 29

 

[Digit]

Same with my daughter, they put off all sorts of procedures till she was in a wheelchair. Doesn't make sense does it?

Roy.

 

[duncanh]

It went quite well. I think it needs tweaking. But I can see how it's more productive in the long run. I also like the idea of alternating jobs to keep things moving.

The first tweak could be to half the amount of time you spend doing stuff to see if it lessons the amount of time you need to spend lying down. It's probably better to start low and work up.

Duncan

 

[wizer]

Makes sense Duncan. Had a little set back today. All i have done is get driven to the docs and then driven to physio where we just did light stretching and I'm aching more now than 2.5hrs in the workshop yesterday. I don't like asking the doc to sign me off, so it's back to work tomorrow. Dreading it.