To think once you develop back pain it never goes away?

[FairTurtle]

I've had this now for 6 weeks, out of NOWHERE. It's constant. I've seen a chiro and an osteo and it's still no better. GP isn't concerned. NO HISTORY of back problems whatsoever. I'm 28 and healthy besides this. Wtf??????? Yoga poses and core strength exercises aren't helping.

@QueenOfToast Thank you for this advice! I know you said you hadn't RTFT, but just so you know, I updated it explaining that I also have Long COVID/ME, which makes exercising very difficult. I'm doing what I can but simply am not able to commit to it in the same way that others can, and my limit tbh is a few gentle walks, a few mins of strength training every day (i.e. Pilates) and maybe some gentle yoga poses.

In your experience as a pilates teacher, have you taught anyone with conditions ME/CFS or Long COVID? I'm trying to find ways to solve this issue but also not crash myself from fatigue in the process. I am trying to pace, and pause and do breathing exercises between the physical exercise, but just wondered if you had any experience of this.

Four years ago I had:

• chronic hip pain (just one hip)
• tension headaches and chronic shoulder pain
• recurring middle back pain, basically every time I did something strenuous I would be in pain for the next two weeks

Right now I have none of these symptoms. The hip pain sometimes comes back because I have a tendency to stand slightly twisted and I’m not doing this consciously so it’s difficult to correct myself, but the pain is nothing compared to what it was and resolves itself without any pain killers.
What I did to fix the problem:

1. lean BMI (18-22, especially my hip issues magically disappeared as I dropped two BMI points)
2. strong core and back muscles. What I mean by this is visibly toned muscles and being able to do 15 pushups correctly without any discomfort. I don’t look like a bodybuilder but I have visible muscle definition on my back and my last tension headache was three years ago.
3. regular exercise - functional strength training and active recovery on the days I don’t exercise - 30-45 minutes of yoga or stretching.
4. walking as much as I can, trying to get at least 8K steps a day, usually I do between 10-25K steps (the last figure is on my running days)
5. following structured classes for exercise. If I did them myself I would be “cheating” because I’m incredibly lazy so I need a tempo guide and someone yelling at me. I have a subscription to Les Mills but there are plenty of free YouTube ones.
6. quality shoes. I only wear Birkenstocks or Scholl or clogs. Need to either exercise (clogs) or support my foot arches.
7. work desk with adjustable height. I alternate sitting and standing.
8. getting up and moving around once per hour while working. If I have a meeting I will jump out of the office immediately after the meeting and do at least a couple of steps or go up or down a flight of stairs.
9. getting massages and physio several times a year, regularly using a foam roller and a massage ball at home.
10. being mindful of the fact that the body is asymmetric and making sure that I exercise both sides separately to keep the posture and muscles as aligned as possible.

It seems like a lot but it was easy to start with small steps and changes. I don’t spend ages every day exercising either. I also run twice a week but I don’t think running helped my to fix my back issues, quite the opposite, I think if I started running before I fixed my hip I would have definitely injured myself.

ive had back ache for 12 weeks, what have i done to make it go away.

Bought a new mattress for my bed, bought a new computer chair, new desk, new pc screen, for better posture. Ive had massages and touch wood its gone for me it was defiantly posture, working from home all the time not at my desk but on the sofa or on my bed etc.

Helllooo lovely Mumsnet back pain hive mind. Any suggestions of a good office chair I can buy online? Preferably something under £350? I loved the look of the kneeling one someone shared, but a bit out of budget!

You've only had it for 6 weeks! Yes, back pain often goes away.

Yes, I've taught clients with ME, FM and EDS. It can be difficult to manage in the first couple of sessions (often because the clients themselves aren't aware of how much they should be doing when it's a new exercise regime) but as I get to know the client it's easier to target it at the right level.

Obviously flare ups (and life!) happen outside the studio, so sometimes we just do a very gentle session - getting to the studio counts as their big effort exercise on difficult days.

All the teachers at the 2 studios I've posted details of will have experience in managing a variety of health conditions. Look for a teacher who offers clinical Pilates and go and try a session. If you don't like what they offer, then try someone else. There are also some really good teachers online. I like Jeannie Di Bon who specialises in movement with chronic pain and hyper mobility. She has a back pain course moovlite.com/

Try REALLY hard not to wear yourself out at your first session. It's incredibly hard not to "do your best" and push too far; especially if you're enjoying it.

Thank you so much! All very helpful and I'll look into this. Reassuring to know that you've helped people with these types of conditions.

@ThreeDimensional Isn't that long given it came out of nowhere?! How long did it take yours to go away, if you've had it?

@mountaingoatsarehairy So my Level 2 Shakti mat arrived earlier, and I tried it out 😀

Wow, that was weird. I could barely manage 5 minutes. The pain was fine, I didn't mind that, but it's almost like....it was inducing such a deep feeling of relaxation it was almost too much to bear? Like, my body was resisting it or something? I also got very giggly and shakey, and still feel this way?! What sorcery is this? I'm gonna try it again for longer later, but MAN, that was odd. Not entirely unpleasant, but I think I'll need to work up to it...

@mountaingoatsarehairy And this was with a t-shirt on...

@mountaingoatsarehairy Wow, now I feel like going to bed.

This may sound odd but as someone who has had 20+ years of back problems id really recommend getting a massage gun. We bought one at the start of lockdown - I've not been to a chiropractor since!! Pilates ( Gentle) helps and daily gunning, honestly its been a total gamechanger and has saved us as a family prob saved us as a family 5k+ in chiropractor fees!!

I was in a car accident and had minor soft tissue damage, it took 6 years before it stopped twingeing if I'd been stood up all day or if the weather was changing. It's been fine for a long time now

@Alltheshoes74 I actually have one of these but it's maybe not that great? Also, did the chiropractor help you? I might try to find one of those gentle "McTominey"? ones. Hope you're mostly pain free now!

Loving the updates ! @FairTurtle

It hurts so much yet you just want to do it more. I skipped yesterday and today my back is more twingey.

I have fallen asleep on mine.

keep doing it !

Sometimes exercise can make it worse, including low impact stuff like yoga

I had chronic back pain for years and when I took a break from exercise it healed up

Now I avoid yoga/weights like I used to do and mainly run and play sports and my backs fine

I've had back issues since my 20's and now 45.....I had spinal surgery in 2022 after losing feeling in my leg, I've had no improvement....I used osteopath since 2015, Ive had physio, hydrotherapy, chiro, been on 18 painkillers a day and morphine.....not had a day pain free....however, my pain does not define me, I'm very much "pain is inevitable but suffering is optional" ...which is what cognitive behaviour therapy for pain management was based on.....I've run half marathons and had 2 children, one is only 2 so I can't give into it...... depending on what the issue is, acceptance may be something you have to find, you need an MRI for a proper diagnosis

The only people I know who solved back pain did it with weights. In each case it was caused by (relative) muscular weakness in their back/hips and strength training with free weights (and a personal trainer to really push them safely and steadily) fixed it.

Not a huge amount of help for those who hurt their back at the gym in the first place, I know!

Have you had your bone density and hormones checked? Bone thinning (osteopenia, the precursor to osteoporosis) can start remarkably early if you’re thin and slight, and can be treated quite effectively with the right medication.

Also, long Covid can be worsened by hormonal issues and the inflammatory issues it causes can make back and joint problems worse.

ETA: personally I have found swimming to be the business when it comes to exercising with a dodgy back. The water supports you, but provides resistance for your muscles to work against, and you can’t go any faster than the water will let you. Other than that, aquafit and hydrotherapy in general is also good.

I had a happy, active life until one day and started with shooting pain up my spine and lower back pain. It got worse over time and my GP wasn't concerned. Paracetamol wasn't touching it so eventually the GP sent me for an x-ray. Turns out I had a spinal deformity, an old fracture from when I fell from my horse years earlier and a bulging disc with fissure. I've struggled on for over 20 years now, had to sell my horse, change my carer and now it's starting to affect my work. I take morphine daily just to move and have now been referred for surgery.
I would ask your GP to investigate further, things don't just start hurting for no reason.

Hey @FairTurtle I thought of you yesterday as fell asleep on the mat.

Probably the tingling sensation you are getting is all the tension being released after the stress of being in pain. Keep going !

I have a really sore spot in the muscle behind my left shoulder blade.

It came out of nowhere about 2 years ago, never been able to pin down what triggered it.
It can be fine for weeks, then have a really painful flare-up for a few days, then be fine again.
I have one of those electric rolling ball back massage things that you lean against in a chair, and that helps. A good hard kneed seems to soothe it.