Bad blummen back

[Walks with dogs]

Me and missus WWD were looking forwards to a good hill walk , Lakes or N.Wales, on Sunday coming, but when I tried to get out of bed today my blummen back has gone. I could barely stand for the first hour . Using a trekking pole I managed to hobble round the fields for a bit so the dogs got walked but unless things improve we will not be going up any hills .

Second time in a month this has happened now!

I've got an appointment booked Friday with a Chiropracter. I've had physio before but obviously that hasn't done the trick.

So who's best Chiropracters or Physiotherapists- there may be only one way to find out..

 

[Tadpole]

Me and missus WWD were looking forwards to a good hill walk , Lakes or N.Wales, on Sunday coming, but when I tried to get out of bed today my blummen back has gone. I could barely stand for the first hour . Using a trekking pole I managed to hobble round the fields for a bit so the dogs got walked but unless things improve we will not be going up any hills .

Second time in a month this has happened now!

I've got an appointment booked Friday with a Chiropracter. I've had physio before but obviously that hasn't done the trick.

So who's best Chiropracters or Physiotherapists- there may be only one way to find out..

Physiotherapists every time, Chiropracters are at best unscientific and at worse they cause much more harm than good. Their 'faith based' practices smack of the cult.

 

[Shambling Shaman]

So who's best Chiropracters or Physiotherapists- there may be only one way to find out..

I cant help as I've no experience, But I do hope you get sorted soon

 

[locum76]

my dad, who is 60, atheist and about as spiritual as a damp squib has in the past benefited from chiropacty and acupuncture which have cured back pain so bad he couldn't walk across a room.

it doesn't have to be scientifically proven to be effective.

if you asked him, he'd say chiropracter every time.

 

[CAL]

My Dad sought treatment off a sports Chiropractor and it really helped - his goes a lot (old motorbike injury) and it was the best treatment he's had. The chiropractor used small electrical shocks to stimulate the muscles and nerves and got him walking again within a few sessions.

The two best things he was told to do to help his back was to swim (at the time he could barely walk but swimming was much easier) and to wear a corsette (not sure if that the right word, it was a large metal supporting plate shaped for his lower back and a very tight belt). Both really helped and he was back to normal within about a month. Now when it goes he just puts the corsette back on for a week or so and carries on. He can even work and since he's a delivery driver he needs his back quite a bit.

I thought that Chiropractors approaches were scientific and medically based, but I could be wrong. I'm not sure it matters though, some people swear science, other by alternative therapies. Either way just find one that works for you. Personally I'm a science man but there's a lot of alternative stuff that does seem to work.

 

[jojo]

So who's best Chiropracters or Physiotherapists- there may be only one way to find out..

From my experience of both: categorically the physiotherapist. I had, probably still have although not causing me much problems at the moment, a trapped nerve in my neck, apart from being very painfulI lost feelings in the tip of a couple of fingers, my arm and grip was actually quite weak for weeks afterward. The chiropractor I went to sort of twisted and "cracked" the vertebrae in my neck, and made matters worse.
Also it depends on your age, the older you are, the less you should use a chiropractor because of the damages the vigorous manipulations can cause. I went to a physio after wards. I was on home traction twice a day for weeks.

The chiropractors are rather vigorous in the manipulations. There is no way I would go back to one.

 

[gregorach]

The proper scientific equivalent of chiropracty is osteopathy. I believe there is some evidence that chiropracty can be effective for some cases of lower back pain, but in general, chiropracty is not scientific. There are numerous cases of chiropractors causing serious harm.

 

[andybysea]

Ive had back problems since my school years(now 41) ive been to nhs physio's ,private physio's,also had accupunture,and that electronic muscle stimulator,they all help relieve the pain temporarily but none of them cure, do you know what your problem is?eg, disc?muscle? ligament etc? ive just learnt what i can and cant now do,and most of the time i can get on with most things i want to, i cant do sudden movements etc,depending on what your problem is there are exercises that can help, and if it was muscular a hot water bottle on the area will help relax the muscles which may have gone into a spasm,also your right to get out gentle slow walking etc (if possible) may help

i would not wear any back support (corset,belt,etc) for to long as it weakens the muscles in the back as they come to rely on it, strenghening your core muscles (ask a physio for exercises) and stomach muscles can help with back problems, but once you have a bad back it does tend to re occur from time to time, sorry to be a party pooper.

 

[Walks with dogs]

Heat to the area does relieve it, as does gentle walking. I'm not sure what the actual cause is. The physio believes there is a general lack of mobility in my lumbar region and scar tissue around the one vertebra that does move.

Its a problem I've had for 20 years but getting a full diagnosis is difficult. For the most part I just get on with it and most days it isn't too bad. Then every now and then it flares up sometimes without any apparent cause , like the last couple of weeks. One minute I feel fine, then next there is a shooting pain and my legs give out. Which is embarrassing.

Having read the above Chiropracter link, I'll stick with the physio.

 

[Tadpole]

Heat to the area does relieve it, as does gentle walking. I'm not sure what the actual cause is. The physio believes there is a general lack of mobility in my lumbar region and scar tissue around the one vertebra that does move.

Its a problem I've had for 20 years but getting a full diagnosis is difficult. For the most part I just get on with it and most days it isn't too bad. Then every now and then it flares up sometimes without any apparent cause , like the last couple of weeks. One minute I feel fine, then next there is a shooting pain and my legs give out. Which is embarrassing.

Having read the above Chiropracter link, I'll stick with the physio.

as a bad back sufferer, I know what you mean, and understand the "some days" feeling. I've suffered with a bad back for years also, though less so now.
My cure... Either a new very very very firm mattress, a bed board that sits on top of the current mattress, or sleep on the floor. (the last one works for me) 14 months on and I have very very few bad days with my back. I sleep on a 10mm closed foam mat, with a sheet and two duch army blankets. a couple of pillows and it is more comfortable than a normal bed, it's also has the advantage of stopping me snoring.

 

[VirusKiller]

I have a bad back and have seen numerous chiropractors, some very good and some mediocre. However, none has advocated any non-scientific "hoodoo". I have had acupuncture once and it was very effective.

Having said that, arguably chiropractors have a vested interest in repeat business whereas physios (particularly on the NHS if you can get one) tend to ensure that they don't have to see you again... Have chiropractors done me more harm than good? Maybe.

 

[gregorach]

There's a joke about it:

Q: How many chiropractors does it take to change a lightbulb?

A: Only one, but it takes 40 sessions.

 

[John Fenna]

I love my chiro - he gave me my life back when I was written off by the NHS.
Due to knee damage (misdiagnosed by the NHS an left with a dislocated fib in my right leg for many years) I was losing the use of my right arm as my back twisted out of shape and the nerves to my right arm were being crushed between the first rib and the collar bone.
Painful and debilitating. The NHS said "do less" and gave me pain killers that left me dazed and confused and still in pain. The physio did her bit - including acupunture (on the NHS) and this was good for temporary pain relief of about 2 days in the month...
The chiro dignosed the cause of the pain, realigned me and after only 20 mins I was pain free!
OK it took 2 years of treatment - starting with twice a week and ending on once every 3 moths - to sort the problem completely and unless I follow my excercise program every day I end up with a stiff shoulder still.
But if I ad followed NHS treatment I would be one armed, in pain and unable to do any of the things I do - such as canoeing, bushcraft, driving and writing!
I love my chiro!

 

[fast but dim]

i've had a bad back for 5ish yrs, know how you feel!
until it happens to you you think a bad back is an inconvenience. two yrs ago i was at my lowest ever due to a bad back, in pain 80% of the time, depressed and struggling at work and could see no end to it.

still get ****** off every few months but have managed to work out how not to aggravate it.

imo ignore qualifications and find someone good.
go on recommendation, and try loads till you find someone you feel happy with.
I've seen physio's who are rubbish (book learning?) and the best two people i've met are a chinese bloke with no english ( and no formal quals) and a mate from wrestling who was fed up of wasting time going to useless physios with injuries and so took a few courses.

tbh if you can walk into the surgery you're ok as far as the nhs is concerned.

 

[fast but dim]

ps, after waiting over 6mo to see an nhs phsio i was given a photcopied sheet of exercises i'd got from a book months earlier, and that was it!

 

[w00dsmoke]

I was diagnosed with back problems in 1991 which after much deliberation by various docs/surgeons, was eventually MRI scanned and diagnosed with spondelythisis on L5. On 12th Dec 95, during an 11 hour surgical procedure, I received surgical fixation of L3 to L5 with pedicle screws fixed bilalterly and fixed to a Hartshill Rectangle http://www.surgicraft.co.uk/images/hartshill2.jpg secured to the sacrum with steel wires with inter transverse bone grafts. The surgery was a complete success. I still walk today.

So...back pain I know a fair wee bit about it. Regardless of how serious or not the cause of pain, back pain is hell for all of you suffers out there desperate for some respite. I was depressed, suicidal, absolutley crazy mental with risk taking behaviours (drink/drugs/violence the works) when after years of chronic pain and II got told way before the possibility of an op that I would end up in a wheelchair.I hope to the gods that it NEVER gets as desperate for you as it did for me.

But be aware chiropractors CAN unwittingly cause more damage than good, in my case a chiropractor nearly disabled my legs before I was diagnosed with spondylithisis.
I think heat works, TENS are really worth persevering with but physio definatley works and has really made a huge impact on back care over the last few decades as only 1 % of back suferers evry require surgical intervention the rest is managed by the good use of specialists physio. Unfortunatley after being involved in 4 restraints at work and after an assault I had to wait nea.ry 4 months for an appointment however the physio cannot do anything or very much while you are in the very acute phase of pain, they usually wait until you can function a little bit and TBH my physio has been great. Unfortunatley my employers have not and it looks like I will lose my job after a visit to OH who declared my back to be too great a liability for my organisation to risk if they continued to employ me. My doc reminded me yesterday "You are a lucky man to be able to walk...and it was'nt until I looke dat your notes again that I realised that". I may lose my job but I can still walk.

So my advice is your back comes first, learn to love it and your physio and try the many different methods of pain control out there and insist to your Doc that you change it if it doesn't work until you find something that does.Noone should suffer unnessesary pain these days. the NHS is all we have unless we go private and I would be in a wheelchair now if it wasn't for the NHS-sure I had to wait years for the treatment but I DID get it. I got some good advice here from someone more knowledgable than me on pain control and I suggested to my Doctor (an old school doc) a change of meds and it made a HUGE difference, sure I'm still on opiates for pain control but not the serious ones anymore. I still suffer serious pain but I choose to not take serious opiates, however I can mostly manage my pain reasonably well and will not let it stop me from doing the things I really want to in life. I get good days and bad days but every day I walk is really a good day. I still canoe, camp, sleep in hammocks when I can, walk, sure all if it is in pain, but it's more manageable now.

Good luck with whatever you do... and don't let it overtake who you are!

 

[Walks with dogs]

Thanks for the responses all. And for the PM's.

I went to the docs today and he was utterly useless, told me I have a bad back, that I should take ibuprofen, have physio and not aggravate it and come back if it continues. He also gave me a photocopy of the exercises I already do - he tried to give them to me twice before I pointed out I already had them.I pointed out I've had it twenty years so the problem appeared to be fairly continuous and felt that I would really like an investigation into what the actual problem is.

He said the problem is I have a bad back. Its very common apparently.

Sigh.

Still, its a lot better today then yesterday. I'll cancel the chiropracter appointment and get booked in at the physio again.

Cheers all.

 

[Walks with dogs]

Well I went to the physio , and she has done abloody marvelous job. This afternoon I am all but pain free and far far less grumpy .

 

[w00dsmoke]

fantastic!