[Closed] Back pain help.

Sciatica?

Sounds very like a herniated disc at the base of your spine, they can herniate 'directionally' and in this instance it must have herniated to the left. This in turn would cause the sciatica that you're feeling in the legs (although technically I think doctors just call it referred pain as actual sciatica is something more severe).

I had this recently and managed to get over it relatively quickly (however 'relative' means 4-6 weeks rather than 2-3 months!).

First, time off work is helpful if you are forced to sit a lot at work, sitting is a killer as it increases the pressure at the base of your spine, preventing the disc recovering. I took two days off but it should really have been 3 or 4, and only returned once I had installed a 'sit-stand' desk that I bought at IKEA for £200, which work eventually re-reimbursed me for. Sitting is bad but general immobility is also bad, standing all day is no good if you are static, you need to mix it up a bit.

Walking helps, most of the pain you are feeling at the moment is probably muscular spasm as the muscles contract to protect the area of the disc. They need to loosen off and the best thing for this is lots of gentle motion. The downside is too much walking starts to act like a bit of a jackhammer on the base of your spine, so keep it down to short walks to begin with, preferrably in soft shoes etc (i.e. not pacing the pavements for hours in your dress shoes). Heat usually helps with the spasm also, and muscle relaxants although I never got prescribed those.

There's lots of mobilisation exercises you can do, I worked up to doing McKenzie exercises (basically a reverse sit up, i.e. lying on your front and pushing up with your arms to curl at the base of your spine). Helps to visit a physio and get them to walk you through it first.

I think paracetemol and ibuprofen are also useful just to reduce the pain a bit and help you mobilise the spasmed muscles a bit more.

Lying on your side with your thighs sticking out at 90deg to your body and your knees bent at 90 degrees to your thighs (basically the foetal position) with a cushion or something between your knees is supposed to be the best position to lie in, I certainly found it helped.

Longer term you'll probably get a million recommendations for pilates etc. Personally I found it to be a pain in the ass as I could never find a class that didn't demand payment for 8-10 sessions up front at times I always found difficult to attend. Instead I just started a short and simple routine that I try to do every morning, simple pilates manouvres or just plank exercises etc. Basically you need to tighten up your core to stop the discs popping out again!

ALL OF THE ABOVE should be taken with a pinch of salt, I'm a building services engineer, not a doctor, I've just been through a couple of herniated discs already 😕

13thfloormonk speaks a lot of sense, BUT...

I would say that, if you try walking to alleviate pressure, you do so cautiously. I went for a walk when I was experiencing what you have described, and exacerbated the symptoms so badly, I had to go to hospital.

At this early stage, you are in a funny position insofar as the injury is fresh. In light of this, you might try icing the lower lumbar area; at the same time, in order to calm the muscles down, you might also try heat. I find that laying down on a heating pad for a cycle of heat helps, as long as I then get up and get mobile again right afterward.

Finally, I would [b]strongly suggest[/b] buying a set of crutches from Boots or somewhere.

I did that, and they have allowed me to stand without putting a lot of pressure on my lower spine, and also kept me straight when moving about, as opposed to allowing the sore muscles to force me into stooping in unhelpful ways.

EDIT: My only authority for saying any of this is having suffered similarly, and quite extensively, over the last 7 years. And while I am a doctor, I am NOT the sort that knows anything at all about medicine! 😉

Go and see your doctor, could be many things. Take ibuprofen.

Respect the pain and take it seriously, do not expect it to just go away. If it does go away be suspicious that it will come back and do physio / excesses to strengthen / flex back muscles.

I have had a bad-ish back (tennis injury and bad posture) for 20 years, manage with excersizes, ibuprofen and I don't ride every day when in the Alps 😐 (given I ride less than once a week in the UK trying to do so all day on holiday is too much)

Welcome to getting older.

Thank you to you both, for typing all that up. I've had a Google and a herniated disk would fit my symptoms. I'll be heart broken if I'm not fit for my holiday so I am grateful for any advice.

Aye, that's fair, to be honest I found it hard to walk anything *BUT* cautiously for the first few days!

Crutches is interesting, once I'd healed up the last couple of times I was able to get back into backpacking and hillwalking quite quickly as a top loaded (i.e. weight high) rucsac forces you into a less slumped posture, I could return from a long weekend in the hills feeling better than when I'd left.

I'll be heart broken if I'm not fit for my holiday so I am grateful for any advice.

'Emotionally' I dealt with my first herniated disc really badly, thought my active life was over, would never ride or hike again, etc. etc.

I am happy to confirm it's nothing like that bad, spent a year riding the north shore after recovery, then went on to do a lot of great hiking and backpacking etc. etc.

Basically whatever happens with your holiday don't let it get you down, you'll recover fine if you are patient and accept a couple of delays and setbacks.

Also, I'll re-iterate the sit-stand desk, best thing I ever bought for the office.

Welcome to getting older.

You bastard! How very dare you 🙂

'Emotionally' I dealt with my first herniated disc really badly, thought my active life was over, would never ride or hike again, etc. etc.

I am happy to confirm it's nothing like that bad, spent a year riding the north shore after recovery, then went on to do a lot of great hiking and backpacking etc. etc.

Basically whatever happens with your holiday don't let it get you down, you'll recover fine if you are patient and accept a couple of delays and setbacks.

Again, I'm liking what 13thfloormonk is saying. It is very important not to get down. At times, you might think that your active life is over, but I promise you it isn't. I have had a few relapses, but with periodic physio, and constant attention to the weakness you now have in your back, you should be able to get back to everything you love.

You may feel like a holiday you have booked is a write-off. I would say, instead, to treat it as a chance to approach the Alps in a different way.

Don't push yourself, though, or the healing process could be slowed up. And don't despair. Think of yourself as an active person recovering from an injury as opposed to an invalid, and use the time to read that Dostoyevsky novel you've been avoiding.

I've made an appointment to see the Dr this afternoon. I'm desperately hoping he is going to tell me it's a pulled muscle and will be fine in two weeks.

Reading a book is actually quite difficult. I can only sit still for 5 mins before I need to move. Then I stand up for a couple of mins and need to sit down again. I've also noticed I can't stop whinging and complaining.

I wouldn't bother with a GP - find a reputable sports oriented physio nearby and get in. If it's just a tweaked muscle they should have you right in two weeks and (most importantly) give you tips and exercises to stop it happening again. Until you get lazy with the exercises, your back goes again, when you will decide that physios are rubbish.

If it's something that needs a GP, the physio will tell you.

That's bad luck, TW, but don't panic yet! It could just as easily be something relatively minor.

Occasionally I get a similar intense pain in my lower back, off to one side. It's the sacro-iliac joint, apparently.

In my case, muscle spasm causes the pain. Rest, ibuprofen and a hot-water bottle generally sorts it out within 24 hours.

If it perseveres, a 3-day course of diazepam (valium) relaxes the spasm (and me!).

Anyway your GP will diagnose the actual problem.

Don't panic 🙂
If it was me, I'd get to a sports physiotherapist and get a quick opinion and possibly treatment if it turns out that you haven't done anything serious. If you go to your GP first, they may refer you to a physiotherapist anyway. If your GP surgery is anything like mine, you have to wait 2 or 3 weeks for an appointment, unless you say it's urgent.
A physiotherapist would advise you on any exercises that would help (eg, Pilates) for the longer term. They are more likely to be sympathetic to you wanting to get better quick and back on your bike than a GP.

I'm not a physiotherapist but I often consult them, as they've been really helpful, including with problems with my lower back.

Edit

Ooft, another herniated disc sufferer here (with a knackered back/sciatica suffer) I was put on Gabapenatin, I recommend you DO NOT take it, it messes with your head and is pretty manky
I had physio and osteo which kind of worked, but acupuncture sorted me out eventually. I now keep my back as mobile as I can with daily stretches and if I don't do it I can feel the pain come creeping in again.
I found Ibuprufen didn't get anywhere near the pain. the Codeine paracetomol mix worked well though
I do a Pigeon pose (apparently, I just had to google it!) for both legs and then stretch to touch my toes (leg out 1 at a time). I struggle to touch my toes so don't try this until you are better and only when your physio has gone through it with you!
Good luck and hope you heal soon

Thank you STW for your correct diagnosis! My GP agrees with you.

Been prescribed Naproxen to begin with and a telephone consultation in a week to get some physio sorted.