Back Again! Back Pain Support Thread

[PavlovtheCat]

Only right I start the new one seeing as I was responsible for the last one ending so abruptly !

This is a support thread for people with back pain (that does not even cover the description of hell that back pain causes). It's for all types of back pain, for long term posters with chronic pain (including those on the upwards journey to recover), short term advice through tough acute episodes and all the in betweens.

We moan, winge, share successes, guide each other and hand hold through the maize of a million medical routes and options, treatments, investigations. We internet shop as a form of pain relief, drink wine, take strong painkillers, eat cake and we go through lots of heat packs!

We don't always have the answers but we do have a lot to say about it all

Here are the links to our previous threads:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/1871592-The-Back-Story
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/1992406-The-Back-Story-Continues
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/2023274-More-Terrible-Back-Stories

Thanks MNHQ for rearranging the opening post

pavlov that song recovery is perfect for us! Even the druggie side of it kind of fits with all our various meds. One line is something like I woke up in the morning in so much pain. So that is definitely our theme song for this thread.

Not taking cocodomol though gp gave me 30mg codeine when I fell down the stairs

Ah, mami that's really interesting. To hugely boost the effect of your codeine take two paracetamol, too. That's what cocodamol 30/500 is. Paracetamol enhances all opiates. Obviously within the normal doses but might make a big difference. Night night.

losty i listened to it in the car coming back from the hospital with tears rolling down my face, feeling sort of cathartic and sad all at the same time. As with Losing Days. I feel so sad that this album appears to be an album that will always be tinged with defining my shit years.

[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKqr71fsQUU And I've been waking in the morning just like every other day
And just like every boring blues song I get swallowed by the pain…
...So I've been pounding on the floor and I've been crawling up the walls
And I've been dipping in my darkness for serotonin boosters,
Cider and some kind of smelling salts]]

It's a long road up to recovery from here, a long way back to the light.
A long road up to recovery from here, a long way to making it right…
...broken people can get better if they really want to, at least that's what I am telling myself if I am hoping to survive'. You are so right!!

Seeing as you are a fan which he performed just after a shit ton of steroid injections (well, the max I would think) and having cancelled his european tour due to his disc problem. He is wearing a back brace, and he is not playing the guitar, which is his entire life. Movement is hugely restricted, well for him, as I can't even do that on my good days! You can see movements he is struggling with, keeps putting his leg up on the speakers and he looks shattered.

He appeared to be on the road to recovery when I saw him in Feb though.

OK enough of my teenage crush

I am struggling. My back has been seizing up for a year. I have been going to pilates, yoga and swimming and all was healing until 2 months ago. Now i cant bend down, am in a lot of pain and mostly am really down as i did all the right things and i feel it is worse. I went to doctor this week as my left leg and hand went numb. Am 38 and been fit and able and really struggling

My GP told me something interesting which I had forgotten about.

A London hospital is pioneering a surgical procedure where they are removing damaged discs and replacing them with some sort (possibly metal?) implants. He said it was only in its infancy now and I said"oh good, it might be good timing for me in a few years when it's up and running and I'm ready for that op."

It went out of my head as I was focussed on getting the drugs. Wonder if my old consultant in London, Mr Mendoza, is involved. Has anyone heard anything about this? I had absolute confidence in him when I was under his care but had to cancel my op as it wasn't the right time, glad I did now even though the problem has returned. Not sure they are as cutting edge up here in Yorkshire.

I'm at the National Hosp for Neurology and Neurosurgery, might be there? Metal disc sounds odd, thought the whole point was the cushioning. I'm sure you'd travel if you needed surgery, though hope you won't need to.

me, have you seen your GP? Heat, drugs and rest are what you need IME but best see GP.

Have seen gp and got painkillers i cant take as you cant drive. Been referred to nhs physio which last time was sheets of exercises and to do classes for core strength. Bit disillusioned this time around. Been to chiro who said have torn fascia muscles and have 3 enlarged discs - he advised rest, salt baths, heat packs and volteral. If go back to physio they recommend keeping exercising. Who to believe? In the meantime getting my pants n socks on in the morning is funny or depressing dependant on my frame of mind

downton RD&E are doing this new surgery of replacement discs, artificial joints that move within the disc space. It's quite new as it's apparently really hard to replicate how the disc works (as in they don't really now for sure). I have discussed it with extended scope physio who was quite dismissive, but there is a leading surgeon in RDE who does it, who I am going to ask for referral to for my second opinion. I was going to talk to my surgeon today, but really, there was no point. It looks interesting as an alternative to fusion as it does not remove fusion as an option if not successful.

some info here

and here the story of a woman who struggled with NHS option of medicine and get on with it who paid £20k to get it done! (a few years ago now though). She uses my expression 'you can put a man on the moon, why can't you fix my back?!' maybe I subconsciously read it one time she can't have stolen it from me, I didn't have a back problem then

It's definitely something I will research more.

and i agreed if this is something that you would benefit from, it would be worth travelling for, but the surgeon in the BBC clip, he was based in Leeds, so if he were still there, that could be something to explore if this was the right thing for you.

I'll have to listen the the music tomorrow now Pavlov, it's really hard to explain but I am worn out from listening today with only one working hearing aid, can't wait for clinic tomorrow so I can have them both back again.

All the new people to the thread do listen to the advice about painkillers, particularly the power of paracetamol alongside the more hard core drugs but don't forget the power of resting either. I know we all want to push on and probably have children who need looking after, plus the guilt of being 'lazy' but one of the best things to do is give everything a chance to heal too. Take the pain killers at regular intervals don't wait to need them but also make sure you have some lying down time, don't stiffen up through inaction but rest and keep the stress of your sore backs, sometimes it's the best medicine of all.

Yes you are here tough! Ok still not good you need to be but you know what I mean. Is it too early for ?

losty my mil gets too tired from hearing by the evening, we can tell when she is hearing tired as she just nods at us or gets what we say wrong goes to bed. She does sometimes just turn us off though! Especially if kids are being loud!

And losty is so right about rest. Sometimes nothing works like laying down.

Had the most wonderful sleep last night. Best I've had in ages. Note to self- don't take Tramadol in the daytime if that's what it does!

Pavolv interesting about the replacement discs. Will look at your links properly when I feel more awake- bit of residual grogginess this morning.

Feel a bit tearful this morning. Sad. Down. Not sure what it is. I woke a few times in the night playing through the appointment again, and taking aside his arrogance and dismissive attitude, if he had sugar coated it, the outcome would have been the same, and if he had offered fusion with more keenness, with those odds, I would certainly be unlikely to take those odds right now. I said to DH, I have plans regardless, routes to explore regardless of the outcome of today i.e. a) fusion was recommended, I would get a second opinion and proceed with injections b) fusion is not recommended, I would get a second opinion and proceed with injections, so not a huge amount is different, just his attitude.

And a lot of questions were not answered. He was so uninterested it was unreal and when I did ask he sort of sat there looking at me with a bored/annoyed expression so I felt that the questions I wanted to ask would not be answered, so I just gave up. Regret that as I don't know the state of my disc, I didn't ask if there was scarring as he didn't tell me anything about what was going on other than 'there is no prolapse. And only looking back he seems to once again avoid discussing anything more about my disc. He said in his letter that there were some changes that could be causing the pain, but didn't elaborate on this and I didn't check this out. He also said conservative treatment would be the best but couldn't tell me at the appt what that would be (I suggested injections) and he said in his letter to go see him to discuss surgery and he was already clear in his view, so why tell me that? I should have taken the letter in with me and used that as my starting point. Not sure why I didn't. Maybe I can get a telephone conversation with him to get the answers, maybe there is no point.

Anyway. I thought about going to PALS given how long I have waited for appts with him, I am going to wait another 6 months at least to get to see another surgeon. is there any point even? I am not really sure I want fusion so is there any point proceeding with that course of action. I was thinking of going to see my GP to rant a bit, but I am so tired of it all.

And. Typically, yesterday, my back felt quite well in the grand scheme of things at the time of the x-ray. This morning it has grinded several times and the pain deep in my spine (not muscular) has returned when I bend and is catching. Why the fuck can't my back hurt badly when i want it to?! [angy].

downton oh you are a lucky one who doesn't get wired on tramadol! YEY! so glad you got some good sleep. I always hear people say tramadol makes them sleepy, side effects say it's a common one, but never happens to me shame. Did it help with the pain?

Tramadol used to make me SO snoozy but I don't notice it anymore.

Pavlov I know exactly what you mean about the appointment, I think they make us sad after because we wait so long for them, put all our hopes into them, then leave feeling like we just weren't important to the person who had sat in front of us, who doesn't realise that all our hopes of a good low pain life sit in their hands. I think they would do well to have one of those days in a simulation suit showing them what it is like to live day to day with pain and immobility. I'm sending you a big Welsh cwtch because it's just NOT FAIR.

Right, I am off to get plugged in to some new technology, I am getting so excited at the prospect of being able to hear .

Pavlov I think you should forget that mean surgeon and go ahead with your plan. Also if the new surgeon is offering this replacement disc (not sure if they are) you could look into that. But I doubt the first surgeon will tell you much, and might not want to admit there is a problem with his work. Whereas a new surgeon may be more interested. I expect your back is hurting now because it was a long stressful day and you said you had to bend awkwardly for the x-rays.

Ladies, you are all awesome. . losty thank you for the cwtch. i love that word. My computer keeps changing it to 'catch'! You are both right, the delivery was poor, but the information was to be expected and we put our lives in their hands and when there are no answers it's frustrated.

My children are fighting. he called me stupid! she pushed me! well he was in my way! well she was saying something rude to me, well he's a liar! I am not a liar! I am getting these babies out of here. We are going to a park with rides and bouncy castle, pirate ships etc, taking hot chocolate and jam sarnies, might get some brekky on route.

I am going to put this all behind me, take some tramadol as I prefer that to the other stuff given, ignore the pain. and have a Good Day.

I hope you are all doing ok today, not too sore yourselves. Is the sun shining where you are ? it's lovely here so going to make the most of it. Signing off as we are having a 'no computer day' (snuck on!).

losty quickly though, good luck today getting your new technology x

(and another quickly) mami and our other new posters. I am not always so indulgent promise! Hope you are doing ok today.

Have a great time Pavlov, get those kids tired out, but don't tire yourself too much.

pavlov, given the waiting times why not get the referral letter to the Exeter chap then forget about it whilst chasing hard for more injections? And if you get the injections can you rebook for more at the same time?(don't be stupid, Matilda). Have a lovely day in the sun and don't overdo it. All kids fight. They like it .

I think it's actually possible to rest and exercise. After all, core exercises can be done lying down and are very gentle at the lowest level.

Can't remember who can't drive on meds but if you take regularly for a few days the woozy feelings subside although the pain relief continues.

I stupidly took tramadol yesterday evening then slept very badly. I drift, probably due to the amytriptiline but it's very shallow and un restful. Silly me. The sr tramadol taken late morning is ok, though. Funny how we are all so different.

Off to the park for coffe and chats in the sun.x

gp in 20 mins. crap nights sleep and already been all over looking for pesky easter chicks. back hurting a lot. but need to drive so no pain relief this morning yet.

I have to make Easter bonnet and write a psychology essay today. boys are still in school until tomorrow so child free at least

have a good day all