Back Pain

[some_cs_student]

What kind of back pain? There are several types, there is the chronic back pain / inflammation, a co-worker disappears for months where he cannot do anything, hardly even gets out of bed without a lot of pain.

Then there is the bad posture/seating position back pain, I have the latter and not stretching / bad seating positions are often the cause, also I go to the gym a lot so that can make it worse.

There is a good physio called "Muscle needs massage" he may be able to help, his prices are reasonable too.

[Daz]

Maybe you can try doing weights to strengthen your lower back? I know a mate that had pretty bad back pains and now his fine..... Just make sure you lift the correct way otherwise you will really fck your back up

[some_cs_student]

There are many ways to build core/lower back and upper back but if he's got serious problems with inflammation he may need to sort that out first...

[arep3]

is it your actual back thats the problem and not something else connected to it? like maybe a problem with an organ and the pain is amplified to your back?

[chuckie]

Back Pain, does any one get it. Well these days it seems everyone gets some sort of back pain.

But i'm talking about chronic back pain, everyday, that stops you doing daily tasks.

The reason i ask this is i've had chronic lower back and neck pain since i was 14 (now 21),

and the doc's have not been able to tellme whats wrong, seem's the back is a very touch and go topic.

I've seem so many doc's, specialists, had xrays, mri's etc, and all come up with nothing much.

Slight bit of (excuse the spelling) shiremens, and locking of joints, but nothing that should be giving the

pain i get. i'm talking like stomach aches from the pain to the point i throw up, spend days in bed etc.

its cost me two jobs already and looking like another one.

Does anyone know another specialist or helpfull suggestions, or is in the same boat

Discuss.

Hi sorry to hear your PAIN,i have a disease called ANKLOSING SPONDYLITIS,this is a NIGHT MARE ,as may think they can KNOW what PAIN your in & i would say no body can ever say they KNOWN what your going through,in was told in 1995 & have tryed many different thing`s across the medical front,i will tell you if your not happy with your doctor & what he/she say`s then try another as they are all very different, look at many thing`s don`t close your eye`s to thing`s try it if it dosen`t work it`s ok try something else,i have had treatment`s which made me very ill & toke me 18 month`s to get over,so it`s a rollercoaster ride,no fun there .FEW THING`S TO CHECK have they done blood test`s,HAIR FOLICAL TEST,1 thing i have found that is a help is a magnetic underlay ,i find this a help,it still take`s me a hour+ to get going in morning & some day`s it a JUST STAY IN BED DAY ,but that`s not the best place to be for me .so if you need to talk send PM & i will try to see if i can give you any help i can .cheer`s chuckie.

[Wyseman]

My partner had pain like you describe. They sent her to all kinds of places, acupuncture, physio etc.

In the end, we went to the GP and demanded a referral to an orthopedic surgeon.

At the appointment, he said all she'd been doing with the other doctors / physios etc was causing more damage. She had a slipped disc and only surgery would fix it.

So that was at least 7 other "health professionals" that had recommended treatment that made things worse.

Surgery a week later and she's been fine ever since (4+ years ago now).

[d_33vl_1]

Thanks for all the help so far guys. question, Whats an osteopath? what do they do to you?

And the comment about something else in the body, i.e organ, really got me thinking as i've had so many

scans on the lower back and blood tests etc all come up inconclusive maybe i need to be looking in other areas.

And YES tremedol gives u some messed up dreams.

Last night i dreamt i was walking down the street w/ my g'f. on each side of the street there was musicians. like

full on orchestra. Then all of a sudden they all stood up and started killing each other a trying to attack us. Very bizzare haha. Its almost fun going to bed not knowing what weird scary sh*t your going to dream

[arep3]

lol yea they're the kinda dreams i had. weird stuff. i woke up 1 night when i was in hospital pissing myself laughing at the top of my lungs. i woke everyone in the room up i was laughing so loud. i didnt have a clue what i was laughing at. i just stared at everyone then went back to sleep. even the nurses down the corridor heard me and came to check things out.

i had knives chase me. my dog eating himself inside out. all kinds of weird stuff... i refuse to take them now.

an osteopath is a bone specialist.

[blind_elk]

I had a protruding disc a few years ago. But took about 2 years to work out what the problem was. Tried xrays, physio, chiro, acupuncture. Nothing, not even pain killers, worked. I would often come home from work and curl up in the foetal position on the lounge floor for about 2 hours.

Bloody chiro nearly broke one of my ribs making an "adjustment" to my back.

Didn't find out until a surgeon sent me for a mri - showed disc protruding from L3 L4 vertebra and jutting right into the junction of the sciatic nerve (runs down the leg) and the spinal cord. Much better after having the disc trimmed.

Most back / neck pain seems to be caused by nerve damage. Usually a pinched nerve in the neck.

My surgeon was Michael Johnson. He's in Richmond, just behind Epworth.

[d_33vl_1]

My surgeon was Michael Johnson. He's in Richmond, just behind Epworth.

cheers. did you have a phone number by any chance.

i thought it might have been a pinched nerve like 4 yrs ago, but all these years and still this pain

[Jackie]

I just want to say i really feel for you!

My mum hurt her back a few years ago at work and her's can't be fixed. She is in pain all day every day and is on morphine patches 24/7 plus other pain relief. She has tried everything too. Chiro's, physio's, surgeons, pain management courses, rehab and there is nothing that can be done for her. They are talking about injecting some stuff into her back to try minimise the pain though. But it doesnt sound good.

Anyways i just wanted to say hang in there you will know more after an MRI and good luck!!!

[RBPOWA-(TJ)]

my right knee is stuffed from high school, fell vertically, and a ledge about 1inch sticking out of the wall caught my knee for a split second damage was done, knee brace one and no pain or strain.

now im my job Earthmoving driving a dumpy Volvo A25d, for better understanding.

my lower back causes pain, (only a seat belt goes around the waist). shoulders are constantly pinching nerves, and neck well its just stiffens up alot. and i get headaches alot

i take 2 nurofen plus when the headaches come, not ment to take any while Operating heavy machinery, but they take no effect at all, head ache is still there, saw a gp, said it could have somthing to do with my lower back and neck. and to get a massage when the pain comes. being my industry there Tax Deductable, but end of the day just wanna get home and relax.

only when in hotels i take advantage of room service.

[d_33vl_1]

lol at room service..

i've been offered quarterzone (spelling<!<!) shots into the spine to relieve pain. but at $1000 a pop

and they reccomend it monthly ... it'd be really good with other options.. otherwise.. i'm taking the shots..

i just cant stand it anymore

[blind_elk]

...i've been offered quarterzone (spelling<!<!) shots ...

CORTISONE

[blind_elk]

cheers. did you have a phone number by any chance.

i thought it might have been a pinched nerve like 4 yrs ago, but all these years and still this pain

25 Erin St

9428 4751

He's listed as "Orthopedic Surgeon", so he might not be your answer. Still, no harm in trying.

[FLYREX]

Back Pain, does any one get it. Well these days it seems everyone gets some sort of back pain.

But i'm talking about chronic back pain, everyday, that stops you doing daily tasks.

The reason i ask this is i've had chronic lower back and neck pain since i was 14 (now 21),

and the doc's have not been able to tellme whats wrong, seem's the back is a very touch and go topic.

I've seem so many doc's, specialists, had xrays, mri's etc, and all come up with nothing much.

Slight bit of (excuse the spelling) shiremens, and locking of joints, but nothing that should be giving the

pain i get. i'm talking like stomach aches from the pain to the point i throw up, spend days in bed etc.

its cost me two jobs already and looking like another one.

Does anyone know another specialist or helpfull suggestions, or is in the same boat

Discuss.

hey mate i was in a similar boat with my back. Some days could not even walk or get out of bed.

I got sent to a guy in carlton (he has a clinic in hampton also) if your interested give him a call. Name is steven 9387 4061 Carlton North Family Chiropractic. 914 Lygon St. Done wonders for me and knows his stuff well.

[BeEnAr]

Hey d_33vl_1,

I did 2 discs in my back in the 4th year of my apprenticeship (work cover). Ended up doing a rehab program at Cedar Court on Burke Rd & Toorak. It was really good but only helped me in learning the correct way to manage my injury and strengthen it to prevent re-injury.

I ended up seeing Myron Rogers at Cabrini who is a Neuro Surgeon and he wanted to take teh discs out and fuse my back. I said no to that and my Chiropractor (very good and worth the 3hr round trip for me to see him) gave me a reference to another surgeon at Epworth, his name is David De La Harpe, he is without doubt THE BEST orthapedic surgeon in the country. Went to see him and he told me they don't fuse backs anymore unless you can't walk or have gone down other avenues first. I had a micro discectomy on L4/L5 and L5/S1 (right down near bottom of spine). Surgery was 1 hour long and I was up and walking within 4 hours. I went home from Hospital the day after surgery.

I highly recommend him as do most of Austrlias Elite athletes (footy olympian etc) Michael Klim had his surgery on his back done by him too. You will need private health insurance though, or be on Work Cover or rich as hell as it's not cheap!

To this day I still have back pain if I stand up too long or sit in one spot for ages but it is manageable mostly, I jsut have to be careful. I have been on all the meds too, Tramal, Voltaren etc and the only one which really worked well was the Morphine in hospital, or K hehehehe!!!

Good luck mate, and I can honestly say I know what you are going through and it's not fun by any means!

[Phatboy]

80% of back pain gets better by itself, and a lot of pain may be from the paravertebral muscles (muscles around the spinal cord) spasming.

Make sure you have something that can be operated on first eg., demonstrated disc protrusion/nerve root impingement on MRI. Spinal surgery is not without its risks - paraplegia being the most serious one, although extremely rare. There is about 15-20% recurrence of disc protrusion. If you have private health insurance that helps a lot.

In the end, it really doesn't matter whether you go with a neurosurgeon or orthopaedic surgeon, as long as they are reputable. The best spinal surgeon in Melbourne is probably Peter Turner.

David de la Harpe is good also, as someone mentioned. Both are orthopaedic surgeons.

If you have nothing that can be fixed with conventional surgery, Professor Peter Teddy is the way to go. He is a neurosurgeon who specialises in chronic back pain. He can trial you on nerve stimulators eg., little devices on the skin, which help a lot of people with intractable, otherwise inoperable pain. If these work well, he can implant a permanent electrode into your spinal nerves to decrease the pain. You will need private health insurance to access these.

You can find all three surgeons by googling.

[some_cs_student]

Out of curiosity does anyone use supplements to help reduce inflammation or pain?

Omega 3 can help, as does green tea, and I'm referring to 4 tablets a day or more for Omega 3 to do anything, this can help reduce inflammation

I also use Glucosamine & Chondroitin (combined), can be bought cheaply from vitaminme.com.au looks for the "Thompsons" brand. This helps with any joint pain, its mostly eliminated the issues I had with knee pain, its said to help rebuild cartilage.

[R32_GODZILLA]

I feel your pain mate. I really need to get my back checked out - The past year I've injured my lower back once and my middle back twice where i get a massive sharp pain when i bend over resulting in collapsing on the floor and limited movement. The surrounding muscles just tighten up and it's all over for the next 20-30 minutes until i can get myself up and the pain lasts for a couple of weeks.

I'm unsure whether it has something to do with my ligaments or a muscle sprain, but i do more stretches now and try to lie down flat more often than sitting on chairs and it tends to help but definitely has not made it go away. I'm 21 BTW, and it sucks.