A&e, doctors or wait it out?

[autienotnoughty]

Off and on back pain for past 15 years. More on in past two years. Symptoms include lower back pain, painful spasms , shooting pains in thighs. Being managed with physio, Pilates, walking and yoga.

Last six weeks pain has got significantly worse. I keep experiencing weakness in my legs, periods of not being able to stand/needing support to walk and get up.

Today my back has locked three times leaving me unable to walk, getting worse each time. I am now laid flat on my back, I can't sit up. Dh had to drag/walk me to the toilet. I can't walk. I can't turn over. I'm applying heat and cold.
I'm also feverish . I have shooting pains/tingling in my legs plus the back pain and spasms.

Do I go a&e?
Ring doctor Monday?
Ride it out?

@Porcuporpoise any brand recommendations?

Nope, any of the ones they sell for the elderly that automatically shut off after 30 min or so. They usually come with a simple temp control, just pick the size you want.

i just bought one of those the other day actually!, I'm planning on putting it between myself and the sofa later to see how effective it is.

it helps. a lot

OP, I'm sure tens are cheap enough to buy nowadays, but I hired one when i was pregnant with my DS many moons ago. It was bloody brilliant (during labour) they had to drag it off me! I'll never forget going into Asda at 2am , having to stop every now and again to crank up the tens machine,I must have looked crazy! Anyways, please give it a try, and if you can hire one to see if you like it before committing, then even better. I've been following your thread from the beginning. Wishing you all the luck in the world x

How are you doing now OP?

Happy new year all. I hope some of you are progressing towards a healthier back.

@autienotnoughty I hope you're in less pain.

@justasking111 @UncertainWife

Thank you for checking in.

So I'm still on the high dose pain killers, but I'm able to move about more and the pain is more manageable. I still can't sit or walk for more than about 15minutes and need to keep laying down. I can't do more than short car journeys and I can't drive. My world is currently very small.

I'm in physio so have daily exercises, I've got an appointment with the consultant in a couple weeks. I've been off work 6 weeks and just been signed off another 6 weeks.

I feel a bit lost to be honest, the gp doesn't have much of a clue and the physio is exercise only, I'm hoping to get a bit more understanding at consultant appointment. How long this might last, how long I'll be on pain relief etc. The only blessing is the pain is more manageable but it's still up and down.

I feel like I'm guessing how much movement I should do and how much to rest, I have no idea if I'm hindering or aiding my recovery. I'm up and down in my mood although I am starting counselling on Monday so that may help.

The heat pad is brilliant thank you !

I've also tried a tens machine but unfortunately it aggravated my muscles so I've had to stop. Maybe when everything is a bit less sensitive

I'm so glad the heat pad is giving you some relief. Now I have a second suggestion for you: if you can afford it, try and find a massage therapist/sports masseuse that does backs. They work alongside the physio to release spasming muscles (you'll have plenty of these just from being immobile, let alone from the original injury). We paid £60 each for 2 sessions 3 weeks apart and they took dh from where you are now to almost back to normal. I can't remember when after his back originally went that he had the first one but it was when he could sit in a car for half an hour. If you live in Derbyshire I can even recommend someone.
Best wishes

@Porcuporpoise thank you. I was thinking of trying an osteopath. I mentioned it to physio who wasn't overly enthusiastic. He said if results were that good NHS would offer it.

I don't feel ready yet tho. My muscles are still pretty reactive. I think it all needs a bit longer to calm down

I can recommend a sports massage, but it can be quite painful.

I agree with your physio about an osteopath. Osteopathy and chiropracty are not scientifically proven, and chiropractors have left patients with paralysis.

Have you had a referral to a pain clinic? And are they going to do anything surgical to your back?

@MyrtleStrumpet I requested pain clinic referral with gp but they said to ask the consultant when I see them in two weeks. Apparently there's a wait list too.

How awful for you! I'm so sorry 😞

Unlikely anything surgical. I've been told it's inflammation and surgery wouldn't help. I have a prolapsed disc but the doctor I saw in hospital seemed to think that wasn't the cause of the pain

Also highly recommend a good massage therapist they can work as light or as deep as needed and are a god send working in tandem with a physio, Get a L5 trained therapist try looking at www.theisrm.com/ for recommendations.

A private consultation with a pain specialist is not that expensive and massively speeds up the process. I was seen in under a week after 6 months waiting for the NHS. I think it was about £200 -look on BUPA for one near you. It’s worth bearing in mind that as horrible as the pain is right now, it is helpful in reminding you not to do too much too soon - it’s still very early days… patience in the face of frustration!

@Cyb3rg4l thank you. I will see how appointment with consultant goes and if I'm still feeling stranded I'll look into it,

Thank you so much everyone I've had some brilliant advice on here. It really does help me feel less alone.

Glad there's been some improvement but sorry to hear you're still struggling.

I relate to how you feel. I've been suffering various msk issues for a few years but it's all got worse in the last four months. The last month has been particularly bad, but I can now only walk for 20 mins max, drive for 10 mins max, can barely do any housework or anything normal. In my case I'm 80% sure it's because my hip needs to be replaced and is now causing my body to go wonky which is giving me lower and upper back issues.

The mental side is tough. I want my old life back so much. It's hard going into 2025 unable to make plans.

Some days (or hours!) I feel hopeful and some days less so. Today I'm feeling hopeful that I won't be like this forever, and I don't think you will be either.

I've found a lot of resources (books, online courses, practitioners etc) on improving back problems. When you're out of the more acute stage @ me on this thread and I can list the things I've heard of. Most are not relevant to me yet as my hip needs dealing with.

i gave up this last week, paid for a private physio appointment with a specialist sports physio.. in the space of an hour he worked out more of what is causing my chronic pain and mobility issues than the nhs have in 26 years.

I don't have much money, but i'm giving him chance to try and help me while i'm waiting on NHS referral to MSK.

Please, whatever you do, don't see an osteopath or chiropractor. The risk is too great. I'm sure they have helped many people with muscular injuries but something this fragile is not worth risking. Don't get sports massages right now, it might help further down the line but not now.

What medication are you on now? They should have you on NSAIDs and potentially something like amitriptyline or notriptyline to ease the nerve pain.

I'm not thinking now, I can't be touched at the moment. I'm currently on Tapentadol (similar to morphine) 8 paracetamol a day and 2 aspirin. I'm not sure why I'm not on ibuprofen but I'm reluctant to change anything as the tapentadol has some crappy side effects that seem to flair if I change anything .

It is working kind of, my pain fluctuates between a 2 and a 6. (With10 being the horrific agonising nerve pain that put me in hospital in the first place) I can move around with this pain and sit /bend etc. I need to lay down pretty regularly but I'm far better than I was. So I'm kind of hanging on until I see the consultant in two weeks. My GP ( I've dealt with 2 or 3 different ones) don't seem to have a clue unfortunately. They have been happy to give me meds until I see consultant.

I've had private physio in the past which hasn't made much difference. But maybe I need someone more specialist.

Thank you, nearest one is 35 minutes from me so not feasible at minute but maybe down the line