Back Pain and Internet Shopping. Thread Number 5.

[PavlovtheCat]

Those who have long term back problems know that the best way to help manage back pain is to internet shop for shoes, bags, and back support devices. Those who are new to back pain, these are important lessons to learn.

And here within this thread is where you will learn those lessons.

You will also find other helpful advice on pain management, different treatment options from hydrotherapy and physio to surgery, experiences of others navigating the big and scary medical world, both private and NHS (and abroad from the UK) too, as well as issues around work, being a parent while managing pain and disability, and the impact on the relationships around us.

Between us all, we have a huge wealth of knowledge and experience, and more than the practical advice, the jargon and information, we know what back pain is like, how much is affects everything around us, and sometimes, all we need is to have people listen who Get It.

We talk painkillers regularly, have hot water bottles and wheat bags galore, and hold hands a lot. It's potentially all very Unmumsnetty as we do actually show some lovin' from time to time, although we Never Ever call each other hun.

If you have advice, need advice, need a hand to hold, want to do some shopping, then come in. We are friendly. We talk a lot. Come in, have a and say hello

You will see just how much we do talk if you read our previous threads (where you may glean lots of answers about pain relief, surgery etc, best winter boots etc):
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/2049637-Back-Again-Back-Pain-Support-Thread
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

Not up to date with the thread but I really LOVE the gorilla analogy - thanks, matilda!

Good luck with the furniture assembly I'm useless with names of things and mix up similar sounding words. Well done at getting letters after your name!
Loon how are you?

Thanks Matilda the gorilla analogy made me laugh .. all so true! After reading some of the stories on here I think mine might be just a chimp or sometimes one of those small cute monkeys that I can't remember a name for

Alexander lesson no 3 - not so sore afterwards this time (and still in odd places) and nerve pain in legs not so bad this week. Maybe I am taming that gorilla! Still optimistic.

Matilda, that is a brilliant way of looking at things, the gorilla
How is everyone doing today.

Thing is about the gorilla...you loathe and fear the gorilla when it arrives but you kind of get used to it and begin to wonder whether this gorilla isn't better than the class full of chimps I'll have to face at work! (or is it just me?)
Dh's lift to work didn't turn up this morning (his car was being fixed) and he had to take mine. I walked DD to school. Then I spent a few hours planning and prepping for the supply teacher and did it sitting up as I think I need to be trying to be more normal. Anyway it all hurts now.
Am expecting to go back to school next week because pain is minimal. But I feel sick when I go out and I've very little strength or stamina after a month of lying on the sofa eating biscuits
Feeling rather anxious about it all.
What have you decided Pink?

I definitely feel as though the gorilla and his eccentricities have become my new 'comfort zone' as in I at least know roughly what I can and can't manage before he plays up. Trouble is that he often doesn't play fair and catches me out with something he previously put up with . I recently read about a girl who was raised with a chimp and tbh I don't think I really want one of those in the house either!

Berrie good luck with your return. Have you done a risk assessment in your classroom? For example, I know sitting on tiny little chairs is terrible for your back.

pink good luck with your return, too. Hope you get management to see sense. Otherwise remember the best mumsnet saying of all:No is a complete sentence. Nobody can force you to do work that is going to injure you and your GP has backed that up.

Hate been up in London and now collapsed on my bed but not as bad as I feared. Strange world we occupy where the things we took for granted have become huge and daunting obstacles and only very, very few people around us even begin to get it.

I never sit on piddly chairs!oh OK then now and again
I need not to lean down to tables/children and get them to pass their books up to me. I have a trolley for piles of books. DD always worries about me if it is a P.E. day but she needn't - I've never been the kind of teacher who demonstrates a forward roll!
Trouble is - I was doing all these things already.
Diet starts tomorrow....soon!
I have a physio appointment tomorrow. She might have different ideas about whether I am going back next week. She's great and has been spot on about everything so far.

Did you do anything nice in London Matilda
Have you seen the poppies?

Physio's opinion sounds a good idea. I imagine that classrooms are full of hazards for the back, similarly a healthcare environment. I had to accept eventually that there simply wasn't a solution which would work safely for me.

I have been to the Poppies already ( and purchased some), it is awesome, anyone else managed to go? I met my aunt for lunch which was nice in some ways. We met at the Royal Academy as she was going to an exhibition. Nice comfy cafe/ restaurant for anyone who might go. But, she talked at me for two solid hours, on and on about everyone in her family, friends, old neighbours and mostly those I had never even met. Copious eye mopping due to several sad demises and blah, blah. She asked me once how my family are and then interrupted after a couple of minutes to continue her endless monologue. So by the end she still doesn't know if my family are even alive never mind well.. Also no comprehension how hard it is for me to get there at all. Am feeling peeved.

Uh oh, went to docs for retturn to worknote, he has put on it amended duties, reduced hours and no lifting, can't see my boss going for that. I am due bk for a 9 til 1 shift on Thursday but I am now dreading going bk, I am worrying about whether my back will stand up to it.
I am still going to ask if any more news on the reception job.
I was the one who wanted to try work again but now I am getting nervous about it, is that normal, I have been off 20 wks.
I am dreading my back going again as the pain is still at the front of my mind and don't want that again.
Work have already been phoning me again this week asking me if I can cover shifts as they so short staff, technically I am still signed off til Thursday, needless to sayi haven't done them.
I have no leg pain but still get back pain when I have done more than normal, is this normal.
I can't beleive I am getting si workec up about going back to work, but I do feel I need to get it clear in my mind that my job will not be good for myback.

Oh dear..you and me both Pink and I have only been off 4 weeks. I feel really nervous. Can you actually do your job and get someone else to do the lifting bits?
Matilda know just what you mean about relatives being insensitive. My Dad tried to persuade me a couple of weeks ago to go to the poppies with him and DC and it was sooo tempting as I would absolutely have loved to go but I knew I really shouldn't try since I am aiming to get fit enough for work. Thinking about it - why did he even suggest it - it made me feel sad and guilty for DC. I wonder if people think I'm making it up sometimes.

Thing is, Berrie, I think I would have been guilty of this to some extent in my pre back days. Hopping (ha!) onto a short train ride into town then nipping(!) across the city to meet for a pleasant lunch/ sightseeing trip...what's the big deal?? Well, we all know what the big deal is but I think you sort of do need to have walked in our shoes for a little while before understanding. It's very annoying anyway. My DH is good on the whole and gets on with things. He came to collect me though insisted we used the tube because it 'was quicker' which shows he still has some way to go.

Joyful prospect tomorrow of going through an inch thick pile of legal documents. Oh Happy Days .

Berrie, lifting is part of my as care assitant, we have to work in pairs when we hoist. And at the mo, well yesterday there was one care assistant, an agency carer and a work experience studemt nurse. We should have 3 care assistants on duty plus any work experience are an extra. So i am dreading it already.

pink and Berrie I think it is normal to be nervous even if you are feeling 100%! I was a bit nervous, because it's a long time to be away from colleagues and a work environment (although I am lucky that my work have been great so far).

pink Please remember that your boss is not allowed to ignore your sick note - the wording (if it's the same form that I have been given) is very clear - you are only fit for work if they can make those adjustments for you. If they are unhappy with it, then tough - their happiness is not your problem, your health, however, is theirs and they have to adjust to make you comfortable. It's a really good idea to enquire about the reception role - you might be able to get it if you ask if it's available temporarily? It could give you some breathing space and ease you back into work.

My (D!)M keeps giving me stick and saying I will be fired for taking time off - I keep pointing out to her that it is my work's best interests to support me to return fully fit than to harass me to return so quickly that I become ill again and can't work properly - given that they are so short staffed it should be the same with your work. Please keep that in your head and be gentle with yourself :)

Oof, well I am shattered! Such a brilliant day but a watershed moment, my baby boy now has a double bed and grown up desk and chair in his bedroom, looks like a grownups room. Well I suppose he looks like a grown up so it's about time! Had my lovely 'hands' helping me, she normally comes twice a week to help me keep on top of things but last week she took me to hospital and back and this week we have mostly been Ikea-ing. I'm so lucky to have her. There can't be anything more satisfying than building a room full of furniture, even though my joints are burning now, it's a well earned hurt for once .

It was quite a shock to me that not everyone (over 15) has back pain all of the time.
I spent most of the day in minor injuries as the wrist I hurt when I fell over a couple of weeks back is misbehaving (even though it looks more the correct colour and shape) and probably (specialist will review Xray at the end of the week)broken. So now I am trying to type with a wrist brace. I feel a bit foolish!
Good luck pink and Berrie. Remember take it easy and if its too much say so! Consider requesting a 'phased' return - ie working restricted hours (on usual pay) till you are fit enough for normal hours. OH should be able to organise this for you - especially if you have been off for a long time.
Matilda, we went to see the poppies a couple of weeks ago- before they were all planted. Dh drove, and we had tea in the sky-lounge of the tall hotel that overlooks the tower and had an episode of Dr Who filmed there (-at least that's what we told Ds who is Dr Who mad). We had a nice long sit down, and because it was chilly and we had to sit outside (on the roof - child not allowed in the bar) we were given blankets! The poppies were amazing, - the numbers quite difficult to comprehend.
I spent all the waiting reading a book on the alexander technique Ally, so may give that a go. Did not learn much of practical use, as it was more about hisotry and basic principals.

Magso sorry to hear about your wrist,what a drag. Hope it clears up soon. I was instructed to read the AT workbook and tbh found it really dull. IMO the salient points could be summed up in a few headings with bullet points (moi too idle to do my homework? Non )

Try looking on YouTube for some clips. Actually, if you do the Constructive rest yon are halfway there. I constantly try to say to myself 'Let your neck be free'. It means, ideally that you don't actually 'do' or force your neck to do anything except lose the tension. I have a big problem (which I have only recently identified) with tension in my neck and jaw. I hold my neck at a very slight upwards angle rather than letting it sit naturally. I also clench my teeth due to pain which is a lot of tension.

If you are able to afford or get referred for a few private sessions it's very helpful and calm even if it's a bit hard to see the point at the beginning.

Rainy start here this morning. Well done to lost for assembling Ikea furniture. My idea of hell. I want various similar projects done but keep avoiding them. Having new kitchen soon so expect some serious whinging.

Oh magso, what a nightmare about your wrist. Hope it heals as quickly as possible. So hard to have extra sources of pain / movement difficulty on top of the back problems - they seem to take up so much energy as it is. How long does a broken wrist take to heal?

I'm okay, thanks for asking. Going to be making myself scarce this morning as our lovely cleaner is coming. Just once every two weeks but it's been so helpful.

Getting some pain in my left leg, too - it's a shadow of the right leg pain I used to get & sometimes still do, but wondering why. Consultant has said that disc appears on MRI to impinge on both nerve roots so he was more surprised that I didn't get any left leg pain to start with.

Wondering if it's a side-effect of pelvis being a bit straighter: the (private) physio has definitely done something there, as I can now stand up straight, with feet straight & evenly spaced, & it feels normal. Have felt twisted & in pain whenever I've tried that over the past year - have had to stand with one foot slightly ahead of the other, & both pointing outwards.

Talking of posture, must try the AT idea of just letting go of tension. I know I try to correct my posture sometimes when walking - often just trying to keep neutral pelvis etc. - but on some level the conscious effort must make me tighten up muscles, as that's often when I get the tightness spreading right up to my neck.

Seeing the consultant next week & just hoping he will have access to the new MRI images by then. I guess it's going to lead to my being discharged, though. Have been noting down when I have pain, & what kind it is, & the fact is that the back pain is at least as problematic as the leg pain now. And it responds less well to co-codamol. Consultant has said that discectomy would give me an 80% chance of at least some improvement with the leg, but any improvement in the back would be a bonus. Don't think those are good enough odds at this stage. OTOH, not sure I'm ready to accept I'm going to be living with a gorilla forever either.

Loon I remember going to see the consultant in agony after my discectomy and asking how long the gorilla would be staying. He told me that the gorilla was with me for life and I thought him the most wicked, horrible man alive to say such a thing to me when I felt so bad. It took a good year after the discectomy but the gorilla did leave! He popped back every now and then over then next four years if I did some digging in the garden but he only stayed for a chat and a banana and left by night time. The consultant was wrong YAAAY I thought!
Turns out the bastard good gentleman was right since gorilla is back with his suitcase but am hoping to send him packing again soon and take some long term gorilla proofing measures now.

Too much gorilla analogy?

Sorry about broken wrist.

Well done with furniture - am impressed - couldn't manage that if I was fit!

Matilda - sounds like my Aunt .. doesn't ever ask about me, just hours of her life blah blah ... I don't see her anymore, don't need it and I'm sure she thinks my back is fine and doesn't see why I wouldn't go out of my way to visit her (of course she would never come to me so deadlock)!

pink good luck with the return to work ... please don't overdo things or you will just end up signed off again!

Agree AT seems a bit dull and not seeming to be doing any visible movement but I don't think I could pick it up from the internet or a book .. even though my guy doesn't seem to be doing much I am getting the hang of it and it might be helping though jury still out (and I always feel great immediately after our session). I am paying for this at £35 for each and £55 for the first one (as I have done with physio, chiro and osteo over the years as once you are "fixed" no-one is interested).

Berrie I too thought once I was fixed that was it but that gorilla is a persistent wee bugger and you never know when he is coming to visit. I am less cautious these days but still he catches me out! I guess we are stuck with it and just have to adjust our lives to fit him in best we can!

oh and regarding other people not "getting it" I am so glad you guys are all here as yes others do wonder what all the fuss is about (until they too do something to their back then they are wondrous at how you manage). You guys I don't have to explain why I can't paint my toenails, or struggle to change the bed, etc, etc.

I have found it wise to play it up a bit as it comes in useful for getting out of stuff you don't want to do (like seeing family ewww). My family were not there for me in any way (though my friends were) and now I put myself first and sod the rest.

Oh girls, how much I wish there was a 'like' button on this site. So much truth and wisdom. The Gorilla has clearly struck a chord for many of us. Yes, he loves to hang out and make himself at home .

Just a quick update that Aunt Mememe has just email to say omg I forgot to ask you about the dog. FFS!! you forgot to ask me about either of my sons, my husband, my back or any other fucking thing I can think of. But no, don't fret, the dog is just fine.

Ps All that italics plus bold took a while to achieve

about the dog.

What sort of dog do you have?
Ours is mental. I am supposed to be doing two 10 minute walks on alternate days but have been taking the dog.(shh don't tell DH) I got away with it the first few times as once around the corner I can let him off. Unfortunately there was someone there with their dog the other day and I knew I couldn't deal with any funny business(writhing, snarling on the end of the lead while I try to hold him) so I had to go another way which meant I can't let him off and he writhes and barks and tries to leap at cars. Let us just say I have learned my lesson and bastard dog poor doggy stays at home now.

Goldendoodle. greediest soppiest creature on the planet. But can't walk him because if he pulls I either go over or let go. Neither good. Friends or dogwalker take him. If it's friends I join them towards the end at the coffee hut bacon roll wagon and have a stroll. Richmond Park is beautiful all year round. shame about the bastard deer.

Hello again - I was on one of the earlier threads, but now have an actual diagnosis and a plan of action (such as it is). So really I could do with some practical tips for how to manage day to day life and not make things worse . Also if there is anything I should be asking my GP to do/sort out for me.

So, I have arthritis in my neck, which is probably causing/triggering ulnar nerve compression in my left arm. It's not causing the tingling in my left cheek (which is being left as an unexplained one of those things ). I have bad aching in my neck, shoulders and arms when I wake up in the morning (wouldn't go as far as to call it pain, but it probably is); I take 50mg of pregabalin in the morning which seems to help a bit. I'm also taking paracetamol a couple of times a day (GP tried me on amytriptyline which was woozily fabulous, but not conducive to being able to do anything, so I stopped it).

Physio has sorted out my posture (my left shoulder had dropped down and forward by several inches), and i'm a lot more conscious of sitting properly at the computer/on the sofa in front of the TV).

Action plan from the neurologist is to try anti-inflamatories for 2-4 weeks (assuming this is ibuprofen?) then get a referral to a pain clinic to discuss steroid injections in my neck.

So, what should I be doing diet and exercise wise? Supplements? Heatable wheat bags? I have bookmarked the Constructive Rest website mentioned earlier, but haven't actually read it through. Have also thought about the Alexander Technique (as there is someone locally who does it), so interested in earlier comments about how that's going for people.

Also, should I have had an xray? I've had an MRI, but all my GP has re that is the neurologist's report of the radiologist's report, which is all a bit third/fourth hand really.

I'm in awe of all of you who are coping with much bigger problems and pain levels than I am .