i'm not trolling, i used to weigh about 240. now i'm 180 and in shape. being overweight certainly is related to back pain, its one of the leading causes.

5/10/2011 12:00:40 AM

Weight can be related for sure. I've seen it a couple times... weight can make it difficlt to get a balanced musculature... a guy at work had this problem... it was difficult for him to do any core exercises.

5/10/2011 1:19:42 AM

Might want to get a 2nd opinion or multiple MRIs done. My back was like x100000000000000 in 2008 and BOTH my MRIs didn't show anything hardly. The first one showed a SLIGHT herniation, while the 2nd showed more damage. Turns out I had 2 ruptured disks and 2 pinched nerve roots that I have to get operated on. Sorry you're hurting!

5/10/2011 1:20:54 AM

Yeah, I've got back spasms. pain killers are a bit extreme... They usually issue muscle relaxants for that sort of thing.

Then again, I hear pain killers, and I think of something more severe.

5/10/2011 1:58:38 AM

obese spine surgery patients make my back hurt

cuz i have to scoot them up in bed and turn them from side to side

5/10/2011 2:18:29 AM

Muscle relaxer only get me so far. I have had better success in getting a spasm to release with vicodin.

That's just me, and how things work in my system...

5/10/2011 2:46:50 AM

Quote :

"Being fat has nothing to do with this... not even a little bit"

being out of shape has a lot to do with it. that doesn't always mean fat, but a good amount of the time it does. going for daily walks can go a long way in fixing the problem.

5/10/2011 6:58:21 AM

^I second that, fatness isn't always the cause


I was about 20 pounds underweight for over two years when I royally fucked up my back. This sounds pathetic but I will share anyway: I was cleaning my desk and had put my computer monitor on the ground. When I picked it up--bam-- I Carl Winslow'ed my back, fell over, and couldn't move for over 30 minutes. I went to the ER but they didn't take x-rays. After a 2 months of rehab, 25+ pound weight gain, I did it again, this time while putting my basset hound in the tub. Had to go to the ER again. They took x-rays but didn't find anything. I haven't been able to afford an MRI.


I never recovered. I have to be super careful lifting virtually anything.

5/10/2011 7:28:09 AM

I've had something weird going on lately. Every so often, when I take a deep breath, my back will pop, kind of in-between my shoulder blades. Anyone else have this? I do a lot of rock climbing so I'm sure it's related to that.

[Edited on May 10, 2011 at 8:48 AM. Reason : .]

5/10/2011 8:48:43 AM

sounds like a joint issue

5/10/2011 9:04:21 AM

^^^are MRI's not covered by insurance?

5/10/2011 10:28:10 AM

if their deductible is high...

5/10/2011 12:24:53 PM

Doctors will not generally send you to get an MRI unless pain meds, relaxers, PT, Chiro have been proven to not help.

5/10/2011 1:58:57 PM

i went to the doctor today... they tested my legs and ruled out the need for an MRI... plain old back spasms... gave me muscle relaxants and prescription advil.

5/10/2011 7:10:23 PM

Quote :

"Skelaxin.. meh Flexeril ftw. Skelaxin doesn't really work for me."

5/10/2011 7:51:23 PM

^^that's all i've ever been given

5/11/2011 6:27:52 AM

i slept so good last night.

5/11/2011 8:19:02 AM

I'm actually pretty fit... Not the fittest in the world or nothing comparable to a college athlete or anything, but I train pretty good and I still get back spasms.

I drink water and try to eat right. Someone suggested salt in my diet, so I put salt in my diet and that didn't get me anywhere.

I talked to the doctor about it and she told me that sometimes, your muscles start to spasm.

But the suggested stuff in this thread should help it happen less frequently, stay hydrated (that means water), eat right and exercise and you'll find that there's a lot of ailments you won't get as a result.

5/13/2011 4:26:25 AM

and posture, but exorcise tends to help with that.

5/13/2011 1:02:25 PM

I'm going to a massage therapist to see if it makes a difference with my back tightness/spasms/popping. Will report back

5/13/2011 1:21:08 PM

Where do you guys get spasms? Mostly lower back? Mine usually end up middle back, upward along my spine, and at times into my neck

5/13/2011 3:22:33 PM

Mine is on the right side of my spine, where my back meets my neck.

5/13/2011 3:29:16 PM

bump

1/30/2012 12:31:52 AM

i found out my chronic back pain/back spasms was actually:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001457/

For whatever reason, doctors dont even think about stuff like this. It took them like 6 yrs to figure this shit out

[Edited on January 30, 2012 at 1:37 AM. Reason : and btw it sucks ass]

1/30/2012 1:36:53 AM

My spasms went away, but were replaced by pain in my leg that hurt like nothing I had ever felt before. MRI showed I have a herniated disc.

Now the question is, is physical therapy enough to get by, or is this a surgical matter?

Also, getting out of bed in the morning is so painful it takes over half an hour. Anyone have suggestions to make this better?

1/30/2012 9:48:02 AM

i have to do 30 mins of yoga each morning for my back, otherwise... not such a good day.

i had a compression fracture from a car accident back in 08. my physical therapist tought me that you got to stretch it and move it and work it out in order for it to heal. in my opinion, pt was way better than seeing a chiro, although getting a friend to pop my upper back every few weeks does wonders.

1/30/2012 12:06:47 PM

I don't know if I can handle yoga, I had awful flexibility before this started anyway and I don't think there is any direction I can bend that won't make me want to scream.

Any suggestions of poses to start with in the morning? Anything I can do while still in bed? (I can't even get my feet to the ground before the pain sets in)

1/31/2012 1:49:46 AM

bdmazur,

PM me with any questions.

I am recovering from a herniated disc, reinjured one from 2010.

I do know that while your injury is still acute, any flexion movements may make your injury worse.

Avoid yoga movements right now until you see a PT.

1/31/2012 3:33:20 AM

I couldn't sleep last night so I came to the ER this morning, and they want to keep me here longer. Apparently my disc is huge and they might send me into surgery before the day is over.

1/31/2012 1:43:02 PM

Yep. My friend had that happen to her.

Emergency microdisectomy. They will take the disc out and the body should fill that space with spinal fluid.

Recovery time is 6 to 8 weeks on average for this type of procedure.

1/31/2012 2:28:38 PM

Been in the hospital for over 48 hours now, going into surgery sometime in the next 90 minutes.

2/2/2012 10:38:56 AM

Why did it take so long to get in to surgery? That post was on the 31st.

I bet they gave you lots of morphine while you waited lol

2/2/2012 10:46:40 AM

Because I was on a wait list for a spot to open up. I've gotten morphine every 4 hours, had to take a double dose at 2:30am because I was writhing.

2/2/2012 10:56:23 AM

morphine makes me itch.

2/2/2012 12:25:02 PM

I feel amazing right now, and that's not just the drugs talking. The doctor said it is a good thing we went with surgery now because there was no way this thing was fixing itself. There's still pain from where they cut me open but the sciatica is completely gone.

2/2/2012 6:15:05 PM

Yeah if it's not going to fix itself means you could have had permanent nerve damage.

Did they tell you how much your disc was bulging? Normally when you get drop foot and numbness down the leg it's pretty large, like 80% or more extruded.

I decided to go ahead with an epidural steroid injection tomorrow.

If that doesn't work, maybe a 2nd one will relieve the sciatica.

I don't think I am a candidate for surgery though. My symptoms are not as bad as yours.

2/2/2012 10:26:30 PM

I saw the disc on the MRI, it was huge.

2/2/2012 10:32:48 PM

I'll let you know how mine goes.


Be careful. You definitely have to change your lifestyle a bit after a back injury. Nerve pain is the worst pain ever.

2/2/2012 10:42:50 PM

Today is day 3 of at-home post-op recovery...the incision point feels like a bitch and my leg is super stiff from not having fully used it in months, but I feel like a brand new person.

2/5/2012 8:29:25 AM

How is it going?

Seeing a spine surgeon in 2 weeks. Not to get cut, but for a second opinion.

Do you still have some numbness?

2/11/2012 9:45:05 PM

I've been fully functioning since about the one week point after the surgery. My leg muscles are constantly sore but it is probably because they haven't fully been used in over a month. I still can't lift very well, but that's progressively getting better. Stitches come out Monday morning.

2/12/2012 3:09:56 AM