Anybody here dealing with low back pain?

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zammyd

zammyd

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I've had chronic lower back pain for about a year now. It's muscle related for sure, and every morning I wake up I have a tight back and tight hamstrings. Pain subsides with good sleep or after exercise, but really flares up when I'm low on sleep or bending too much. I'm 25 btw.

My dream is to go in to surgery and I really hope my back pain doesn't interfere with my ambitions.

Has anyone dealt with chronic back pain? Anyone know any surgeons who deal with it?
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zammyd said:
Already saw one, confirmed as muscle related
Click to expand...

I don't think this should stop you from pursuing your dream man! You're only as strong as you think you are. I read an article of a surgeon who was paralyzed from the waist down who continued to work!!! He had to be wheeled on an apparatus that kept him upright. Truly was an inspiring read.


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567WingsO'Heaven said:
I don't think this should stop you from pursuing your dream man! You're only as strong as you think you are. I read an article of a surgeon who was paralyzed from the waist down who continued to work!!! He had to be wheeled on an apparatus that kept him upright. Truly was an inspiring read.


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Click to expand...

Thanks for the motivation 🙂
 
I've periodically dealt with back pain and hamstring issues as well. I'm 26.

Honestly, any job that pushes you to sit for long periods of time without proper ergonomics will cause lumbago and hamstring tightness. I worked a desk job before med school and felt like I could feel my hamstrings progressively tighten over the course of a day. There's a myriad of studies and anecdotes on what to do about it but anything that results in you standing should alleviate it. Of course, this is isolated to M1/M2 when you're not running around on the wards.

If anything, try to stand up, move, stretch, etc. at least once and hour. I bought a stand/sit desk and haven't looked back.
 
Yea I've dealt with it really since a year before before M1 year. Over the last year it's also progressed to an upper back issue as well.

I've seen 2 different guys, both of whom just recommended physical therapy. I've never been able to complete the course because I don't have time. No surgeon is going to operate on you so young for something that sounds so classically like muscle tightness or imbalance.

I'm hoping that when I'm not as stressed about school for the last few months of 4th year that I'll be able to hit it hard with rehabbing. If your schedule is ever light, consider going to a couple PT sessions and ask them to give you a bunch of things for you to do at home. Most of the stuff helps and most people will feel significantly better if you do it daily or for a majority of the week. Most people don't though, including myself... because who has time to spend 30-45 min every day doing stretches and back strengthening movements after you've been in the hospital for 12 hours
 
After incorporating more abdominal exercises and Superman's (see image below) into my workouts, I found it to help my lower back pain. This was over a few months though...definitely not instantaneous.

Superman.jpg
 
tymont12 said:
After incorporating more abdominal exercises and Superman's (see image below) into my workouts, I found it to help my lower back pain. This was over a few months though...definitely not instantaneous.

Superman.jpg
Click to expand...

Definitely strengthen your core and see if that helps. It's frustrating and takes effort but in someone young you'll get get huge benefits. Do some yoga too for lumbar flexibility.


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Second the core strengthening advice. Also, try 30 sec of kettlebell swings for each hour that you sit. Works great for me!
 
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MedicaMagus said:
Second the core strengthening advice. Also, try 30 sec of kettlebell swings for each hour that you sit. Works great for me!
Click to expand...
Third the core strengthening advice. My back pain's been completely gone for over a year now. Just good old crunches do it for me.
 
Core strength! I agree with everyone who already said this. I had a lot of trouble standing during med school rotations (endless hours of internal medicine rounds were physically painful), but I really picked up my exercise routine during intern year and it's such a huge difference.
 
Carlin said:
Core strength! I agree with everyone who already said this. I had a lot of trouble standing during med school rotations (endless hours of internal medicine rounds were physically painful), but I really picked up my exercise routine during intern year and it's such a huge difference.
Click to expand...
Do you have any specific advice for exercises that helped your lower back pain? I have a similar issue to what you mentioned in that if I'm standing for a prolonged period of time, my lower back absolutely kills. I would like to try to get this issue under control well before I start my clinical rotations in 2 years or so.
 
zammyd said:
I've had chronic lower back pain for about a year now. It's muscle related for sure, and every morning I wake up I have a tight back and tight hamstrings. Pain subsides with good sleep or after exercise, but really flares up when I'm low on sleep or bending too much. I'm 25 btw.

My dream is to go in to surgery and I really hope my back pain doesn't interfere with my ambitions.

Has anyone dealt with chronic back pain? Anyone know any surgeons who deal with it?
Click to expand...

OMM might help.
 
Pastamahn said:
Do you have any specific advice for exercises that helped your lower back pain? I have a similar issue to what you mentioned in that if I'm standing for a prolonged period of time, my lower back absolutely kills. I would like to try to get this issue under control well before I start my clinical rotations in 2 years or so.
Click to expand...

I don't do anything particularly fancy. Various ab exercises, planks, push-ups, lunges with a medicine ball and twisting upper body, kettle bell swings, lat pull downs... You could probably search you-tube for core exercises for ideas and techniques.
 
I have a low back pain as well and shoulder pain. I've had xrays done on my shoulder and low back and I've been to a couple of doctors and chiropractors. What I would suggest is to look into Airrosti. Go to their website and see if they have a pratitioner in your area. It's expensive if not covered by your insurance but its well worth it. They do myofascial release which basically gets rid of muscle knots that you've accumulated through the years. My shoulder pain went away after 3 visits which made me a believer. Give them a try.

If airrosti is not available, I suggest doing foam rolling and lacrosse ball to work your hip flexors, glutes, hamstrings, and calves.

Some example to get you started







eventually you'd want to do more research on myofascial release. This is just to point you to right direction.
 
Shame you aren't at a DO school. You could get treated for free multiple times a week. I had many classmates who dealt with low back and upper cervical issues that were helped by OMM during school.
 
Zammyd, you will be fine. If one does not get back pain in life, that is abnormal. Back pain is part of the human experience. Unfortunately, doctors seem to cause problems by medicalization the malady. The most respected spinal surgeon in the world, Dr Gordon Waddell, laments that most back pain patients would have been better off if they had never seen a doctor, especially not a surgeon. Our treatments are useless or harmful. Of course, a good diet, exercise and sleep can only help maintain health, so you have gotten good advice here. Stay active, stay positive, this challenge to your coping skills will pass, and you will be fine. Pursue your goals!
 
This could help...

Lower back pain is one of the most common conditions reported by Americans every year. You could develop this kind of pain simply because you overestimated or underestimated the amount of energy needed to pull or push some object. Lower back pain could also result from more serious conditions such as arthritis. Whatever its cause, this kind of pain can be managed at home using a variety of treatment options. This means that you will not have to suffer and bear the uncomfortable pain that comes with lower back conditions. The following are some of the options that you have at your disposal:
1) Rest
The first weapon in your arsenal for combating lower back pain is the most common panacea for all manner of health conditions: rest. A majority of lower back pain conditions will resolve after extended periods of resting and ceasing all manner of strenuous activity. This will give injured tissue and nerve roots time to heal and regenerate. However, you have to be careful so that you do not spend too much time resting, as this might lead to a general weakening of the muscles, doing more harm than good.
2) Heat and ice pack therapy
Another good home remedy for treating lower back pain is using alternating heat and cold therapies. Many patients will prefer ice packs, but heat therapy will also accomplish the task at hand. In fact, a more popular treatment regimen involves using both heat and cold therapies alternatively.
3) Medication
If the pain does not subside with rest and heat and cold therapies, then the next step is to use medication to combat the pain. The good news is that there are many over the counter pain medication pills available for use. Alternatively, a doctor may also prescribe powerful pain medication depending on the severity of the pain that you are experiencing. It is important to exercise good judgment when using pain medication, so that you do not end up getting addicted to painkillers. If you find the pain persisting, then you may need more intensive and invasive treatment options to deal with your lower back pain.
4) Spinal traction
Spinal traction is an important method of treating lower back pain, and is one of the last steps that you can take before opting for extremely invasive treatment options. Traction simply means stretching the back. A popular tool that is cost effective and efficient is The Detensor Spinal Traction Device and Therapy System. This is a system that can be used by anyone and works by applying gentle traction on the back, and can aid enormously in the treatment of lower back pain.
5) Surgical Intervention
If your lower back pain still persists, then the best course of action to take would be seeking medical intervention, for more invasive and complicated treatment options that might eradicate the lower back pain for good.
 
unidentfied2 said:
Zammyd, you will be fine. If one does not get back pain in life, that is abnormal. Back pain is part of the human experience. Unfortunately, doctors seem to cause problems by medicalization the malady. The most respected spinal surgeon in the world, Dr Gordon Waddell, laments that most back pain patients would have been better off if they had never seen a doctor, especially not a surgeon. Our treatments are useless or harmful. Of course, a good diet, exercise and sleep can only help maintain health, so you have gotten good advice here. Stay active, stay positive, this challenge to your coping skills will pass, and you will be fine. Pursue your goals!
Click to expand...
This.
 
zammyd said:
I've had chronic lower back pain for about a year now. It's muscle related for sure, and every morning I wake up I have a tight back and tight hamstrings. Pain subsides with good sleep or after exercise, but really flares up when I'm low on sleep or bending too much. I'm 25 btw.

My dream is to go in to surgery and I really hope my back pain doesn't interfere with my ambitions.

Has anyone dealt with chronic back pain? Anyone know any surgeons who deal with it?
Click to expand...


While not quite a surgeon, I do spend quite a bit of time on my feet. I've been a bartender for some time now and 12 or 13 hour shifts are a regular occurence for me. For years I dealt with terrible lower back pain that extended from my lower back to my knees. Thus, I feel fairly qualified to lend some advice on this subject. That advice: get the right shoes.

Most people simply aren't wearing the right shoes for them. Go to a running store and get your gait analyzed. Even though I'm not walking a ton behind the bar, my weight sits in certain ways unique to me when I'm on my feet. Have someone analyze your gait and let them recommend a shoe type for you. Then grab yourself some quality insoles. For me, I love the Spenco Total Support Max ones, but I have really high arches so you may be different. It's an expensive setup but the pain in my lower body is 100% gone. I don't feel 80 when I wake up anymore.

Bottom line: invest in your feet.
 
To summarize/agree with what's been said. Long-term treatment and correction should involve:

1. Core strengthening/flexibility
2. Proper posture and ergonomics
3. Proper support (shoes)

I worked with and shadowed orthos for years before med school and I've never seen or heard of back pain that's a purely muscular issue being corrected or greatly alleviated by the above. It's really that simple, but requires long-term consistency to be effective.
 
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