Sudden and agonising back pain

[piscofrisco]

I was digging a hole for a plant in the garden yesterday, stood up and something has gone in my back. I literally haven't been able to stand up right since. No pain killers are touching it at all (ibuprofen and naproxen).
What on earth have I done and what can I do about it?
I don't think I could even get myself to an and e at this point. I haven't slept at all and I feel nauseous it hurts so much.
111? Would they be able to help get some stronger painkillers somehow do you think?

You might have a muscle in spasm. Phone 111 for advice.

You could go to a chiropractor then they will straighten you out - sooner the better.
I had this and they did amazing!

Feel for you this was me last week. Tried to get out of bed to get myself to hospital. Couldn’t do it. Ended up calling 999 and the ambulance crew were fantastic and deferment to get me out of bed and not take me to hospital. But couldn’t do it so morphine and trip to hospital. Lots more pain killers. Just about back to normal two weeks later.

Yes I'd call 111. This is the sort of thing it's designed for, IMO. They might sort you an OOH GP appointment.

Have you tried heat and/or cold on your back? Not sure if it would help but I would give it a go if it were me.

Sounds like muscle spasm - back muscles are very painful when they spasm. It’s a protective mechanism for your back gone wrong, essentially.

Gentle movement and wait it out.

Stretching and back strengthening exercises when better.

Poor you op.

I had this happen once and you never believe that you will be able to walk properly again but keep the faith because you will, it will just take some time.

That doesn’t help your immediate situation though. What you ideally need is a doctor to come out and give you an injection so that you can move gingerly from chair to bed to bathroom etc. Movement is good but you may need to rest for three days to allow everything to settle.

Is there a private doctor who could come out and help? Have a look on Doctor Any Time in your area. Do you have any friends or family who could help you to make it to a walk in clinic or to your gp next week?

I hope you find a solution soon.

Assuming you have no shooting pains down your legs past your knee and haven’t lost sensation in your feet and still have bladder control…

I think you have torn a muscle in your back and it is in spasm.

I’ve had it at different times in my life.

incredibly painful and disabling. You can’t stand, or move really.

Hot water bottle, Naproxen, Co-codamol and you might need some diazepam from the doctor. Could a friend take you? I have had it prescribed over the phone before when I couldn’t get to the doctors.

You shouldn’t take ibuprofen and naproxen together, they are both NSAIDS so you’re overdosing on that type of medication (plus it is extremely bad for your stomach, I need omeprazole too).

You can get low dose codeine from the chemist these days but it sounds like you need a higher dose from dr.

That could well be a herniated disc. The pain is hideous. Please speak to a doc asap, you need it scanned if it’s that bad.

I did 111 online and it said 'call gp' which I can't do til tomorrow.
Maybe I call them instead?
I've got a hot water bottle.
Dh has pissed off to take step sons to their football and won't be back til 3 😡😭.
My dd's are both at work.
I'm here on my own stuck in bed with a very young puppy that needs to be let out for a wee. Fuuuuck

This is worse than having a baby!

As other posters have said, it is most likely muscle spasm. Unbelievably painful but ultimately not serious and you will be back to normal soon. Take ibruprofen which will help and then try and move.
A friend of mine was admitted to hospital with extreme back pain. They did tests, found nothing wrong and discharged her. The pain was so bad she needed diazepam for the ambulance home ( I think it is a muscle relaxant). One dose of it and her back completely went back to normal so it was presumably a muscle spasm.

I'm having this problem at the moment and under a chiropractor.

Lay on your back on the floor with your knees up feet flat on the floor.
Also every so often, lie on your side with your knees up and a cushion between your knees.
Ice pack for 10 minutes every hour.
NSAID's will help.
Try and walk for 5 minutes around the house, If and when you can.

I know the above is extremely difficult but it will help.

Thankyou all x I will try all suggestions

How old are you?
I did this the other year, literally couldn’t straighten for days and total agony of the spasms. Did get back to work after about a week though, just took several weeks to feel normal.
Found out the following year whilst being investigated for something else that I had actually fractured that vertebra, a compression fracture due to undiagnosed osteoporosis. Have since had another one so know to get it checked.

You need to go to A and E for a scan.

How’s the pain now OP?

I had this with a muscle spasm. 111 sent an ambulance and I needed gas and air to get me downstairs. Given tramadol and diazepam in A&E which definitely helped, though it took me 2-3 weeks to get back to normal.

Without any of the ‘red flags’, you aren’t going to get an MRI scan on a Sunday night, so id personally hold off going A and E unless you have red flag symptoms, or your pain is so severe that you can’t cope at home with it.
Back pain is horrible, so hope you aren’t suffering too long.

I'm 44. My lovely friend who did a similar thing to her back last year bought me some of the diazepam she had been given for it and had left over. I never normally take things that aren't for me but I was in agony so took it-it has eased it off a bit. Enough that I could hobble rather than crawl to the bathroom. I've got another one which will hopefully get me to the GP tomorrow if I can get an emergency appointment, walk in centre if not.

Thankyou all for the advice. It's crazy how something as innocuous as doing some gardening can end up hurting this much!

Ditto. A chiropractor would be able to sort this. I have had similar.

I did a single thing when I was 24, and trapped my vagal nerve which resulted in me actually going fully blind for about 4 hours. Most terrifying 4 hours of my life! So I've been extra panicky about this. So everyone else's stories if this self of thing and recovering have been so reassuring Thankyou x

*similar

Do anything but this, OP. Never let a chiropractor near your spine.

I feel your pain op. I was at the gym last week and my back went. Could barely walk to my car and it got worse from there. Could barely move at all the first 3 days. The mornings and getting out of bed were absolute torture, crawling to the toilet, trying to get on the toilet and then off. Went to minor injuries for pain killers the following day. Was not touching it so had to phone gp for cocodmol. I couldn’t stand straight or move much. I’ve been laid up all week, finally starting to turn a corner now. Think it is a strained muscle. It’s a slow recovery. Hope you get some pain killers tomorrow.

This was me exactly, including the paramedics trying to get me to stand up so i didn’t have to be admitted (couldn’t and was).
except in four weeks in and just starting to walk beyond the garden, still uncomfortable.

OP call an ambulance if it’s unbearable, gas and air helped as did morphine IV, and I was then prescribed morphine for home.

really sorry, goodness it’s worse than childbirth!

If diazepam is helping, it's a spasm. They are agonising. When it has sorted itself, you need to strengthen your core. I can recommend mat Pilates for this.