Dealing With Back Pain?

[Cletus Van Damme]

I have had minor problems with my back for years. However on Saturday my back was twinging slightly but I still went out for a cycle ride of round 24 miles as I have just started trying to rehabilitate after further knee surgery. My back was bothering me slightly during the ride, but foolishly I decided to clean the chain on my bike. I do not have a work stand and I normally do this just bending down over the crossbar and it always causes me discomfort in my lower back. Then in the evening I went round to see my brother to watch the football and sat in one these low back sofa's all night that are useless for your posture. On Sunday I was walking around stooped and in quite a bit of pain. Stupidly I went to a pub for a bar meal in the beer garden as the weather was good, I was just walking back to the table when I got a massive pain spasm in my lower back and just had to collapse in-front of everyone and the only relief from the pain was lying on a bench on my back. I managed to get home in the car and decided to rest in bed. Again stupidly I got up and somehow got downstairs only to collapse again with another spasm. This happened about 4 more times when I stood up trying to get upstairs to bed. In the end I admitted defeat and just lay in the hall, and my wife phoned a doctor whom came round at around 1am. He gave me an injection of a strong anti-inflammatory. He said that I should be able to walk around after 10 minutes and it was important to walk around to help repair my back. Anyway it did ease the pain a little but I still could not stand as I was getting pain spasms. I managed to crawl upstairs to bed. He also gave me some codeine tablets to take. I am still laid up now and I am only getting up very carefully to go to the toilet as I can still feel pain in my back. I have a feeling that I need to rest to this for 2 or 3 days. The doctor said to leave the bike for a week.

I am already having physio for my knee so when I can get out of bed I am going to go to see her about this problem.

I was just wondering how do people deal with this as it has scared me a little from doing physical exercise a little. Are there any exercises that can be done to help try to prevent it happening again in the future.

I am obviously going to buy a bike maintenance stand now for one thing as I need the bike up at a decent height for cleaning, and repairs etc.

 

[black'n'yellow]

I'm no doctor, but it sounds like a partial disc prolapse to me. Presumably your doctor would have told you the approximate location (ie L4/T3/C2, etc).

I had something similar a few years ago - rest, physio and anti-inflammatories are probably the only remedies in the short term. Reading your post, you seem to have ignored an awful lot of warning signs to get yourself into this state.

Do yourself a big favour though - stay off the codeine if poss. They will bung you up to the point where the discomfort in your bowels is probably worse than the back pain itself. The pain is only a result of the inflammation anyway, so assuming you are on a decent anti-inflammatory like Naproxen or Diclofenac, they should be enough.

Like I said though - I have no medical quals...

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Thanks for the reply black'n'yellow some great advice there. The doctor never looked at my back so obviously did not give me a location. I have arranged another doctor to phone me up as what the first doctor has said is just not happening. I have had diclofenac before after a knee operation and it made my stomach feel dodgy so I stopped taking it. Still I think I am maybe on the wrong medication as you mention. You are correct I have ignored the signs as I never expected this much pain from a back, I feel like a bit of an idiot to be honest

 

[Andrew_Culture]

I know all about the collapsing thing; I've had a shoot back since falling out of fast moving car when I was a teenager. My chiropractor is my saviour, and cycling has made my back a lot stronger.

You have my full sympathy

I would recommend seeing a chiropractor though.

 

[Hont]

I recommend reading "Treat your own back" by Robin Mckenzie. It's very good for posture-related back problems (if that's all you have) and the exercises he recommends to extend your back are a good counter to time spent on the bike with your back flexed.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Treat-Your-...0408/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1337614931&sr=8-2

 

[black'n'yellow]

Thanks for the reply black'n'yellow some great advice there. The doctor never looked at my back so obviously did not give me a location. I have arranged another doctor to phone me up as what the first doctor has said is just not happening. I have had diclofenac before after a knee operation and it made my stomach feel dodgy so I stopped taking it. Still I think I am maybe on the wrong medication as you mention. You are correct I have ignored the signs as I never expected this much pain from a back, I feel like a bit of an idiot to be honest

Hi mate - I'm suprised that the doc never looked at your back, especially as that is the reason he got dragged out of bed at 1am..?? Did he actually say what his diagnosis was? Back pain like that would not just kick off without an underlying reason.

As for diclofenac - as far as I can tell, that seems to be a bit 'out of favour' these days, with naproxen being the preferred choice. I still get plenty of twinges from mine, but I've only ever had the one 'major' episode. Assuming you had what I had, you will be back on your feet as normal within a few days, but it would still be worth the physio taking a look. Mostly, I just listen to my back a lot more now than I used to - it warns me when I'm being stupid..

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

I know all about the collapsing thing; I've had a shoot back since falling out of fast moving car when I was a teenager. My chiropractor is my saviour, and cycling has made my back a lot stronger.

You have my full sympathy

I would recommend seeing a chiropractor though.

Cheers the chiropractor sounds like a good idea.

I recommend reading "Treat your own back" by Robin Mckenzie. It's very good for posture-related back problems (if that's all you have) and the exercises he recommends to extend your back are a good counter to time spent on the bike with your back flexed.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Treat-Your-...0408/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1337614931&sr=8-2

Cheers mate will buy that

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Hi mate - I'm suprised that the doc never looked at your back, especially as that is the reason he got dragged out of bed at 1am..?? Did he actually say what his diagnosis was? Back pain like that would not just kick off without an underlying reason.

As for diclofenac - as far as I can tell, that seems to be a bit 'out of favour' these days, with naproxen being the preferred choice. I still get plenty of twinges from mine, but I've only ever had the one 'major' episode. Assuming you had what I had, you will be back on your feet as normal within a few days, but it would still be worth the physio taking a look. Mostly, I just listen to my back a lot more now than I used to - it warns me when I'm being stupid..

Nah mate he never looked at my back. I will see a Physio as soon as I can get out of bed comfortably as I am already seeing one that is paid for through a works private health scheme for my knee. Another doctor phoned me back and seemed to be encouraged when I said that the pain is just in my actual back and not going down my legs at all. Still he is wanting me to take the pain killers and walk about as much as I can. I am still a bit to much of a puff to try that at the moment, maybe later. I will certainly pay way more attention to what my back tells me now as this has been a real eye opener

 

[doog]

If you start getting sciatic pain (down your buttocks and leg) its a sure sign you have suffered a disc prolapse. The leg pain can come on instantly or a few days afterwards ( edit just seen your post above)
I wouldnt let a chiropractor or physio anywhere near your back at this stage. You need to relax, take it easy and let the anti inflammatory drugs do their work.

As for diclofenac - as far as I can tell, that seems to be a bit 'out of favour' these days, with naproxen being the preferred choice.

This is correct. I suffered 2 disc prolapses at L5/S1 4 years ago and underwent surgery 3 months ago, they took me off diclofenac and put me on Naproxen - its easier on the stomach.

I really hope you havent done a disc - you may be off the bike for some time.

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Thanks for the advice Doog, hopefully mine will clear up with rest. Sounds like you have had a hard time with your back mate.

 

[black'n'yellow]

they took me off diclofenac and put me on Naproxen - its easier on the stomach.

interesting - I never had any stomach problems with it - the doc told me that it was something to do with causing a higher risk of cardiac problems in the 'elderly' - which is probably why they took me off it...

 

[JozeeB]

Hope your pain has eased a bit. I've had a disc out at L4/5. I would say definitely give it time to recover before getting back on the bike. My surgeon and physio both strongly recommended pilates type exercises for dodgy backs and most of my physio recently has been learning pilates exercises. It sounds a bit of a faff but there are some really good, gentle but effective exercises you can do once you are mobile again. The idea is that building your core strength protects the back.
On a positive note, I never thought I'd be able to cycle much at all with my track record of back problems, but I am delighted that after a month of cycling 4-5 times a week my back has improved a lot. I have to concentrate on my posture and try to remember to focus on the core muscles (and avoid potholes and very bumpy surfaces), but on the whole it has been pretty trouble-free.
Hope the physio or chiropractor help.

 

[Becs]

Did they give you any valium for the muscle spasms? That would probably help more than codeine and I think it might have been what they injected you with. Also try combining whichever NSAID you're on (ibuprofen/naproxen/meloxicam/diclofenac) with paracetamol, the 2 together work better than as individuals. They are right about the walking, it will make a huge difference (I was walking like a number 7 after lifting a heavy suitcase last year, it didn't improve until my GP buddy forced me to walk more) as long as you don't have signs of nerve damage (pains down your legs/weakness/numbness). Pilates (once you've healed) is an excellent idea. Be careful with back quacks though - good chiropracters are great, but the bad ones can do a lot of damage and talk a lot of shoot IME. You should be able to get a referral to a good one/physio from your GP.

P.S. I believe diclofenac is becoming less popular because it's no longer FDA approved in the US due it's greater side effect profile than the other NSAIDs.

 

[Falwheeler]

I've been on diclofenac for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis for quite q few years and yes it can cause stomach problems but the latest thinking is that long term use can cause heart problems http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4074398.stm I was taken off and put on Naproxen but this did nothing for me so back on the diclofenac

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Thanks for all the replies again very useful information. My back has improved greatly so I reckon that I am lucky and do not have as bad a problems as some of you guys have had. It is still not perfect though and I am really struggling with sitting and bending, but when I do get pain it is not as horrible as it was a week ago. I have bought the Robin Mckenzie book that was recommended and it has some great information in it so far. I think my problems are caused by lousy posture at home and at work in the office. I might try one of these lumbar rolls to see if that helps at all. I just think that I need to take care of my back more and do exercises and improve my posture as if I carry on he way I am it will only get worse.