Help!! Anyone with Back Problems

[jody01]

Can someone help me my DH was wasing his car when he said he felt a slight twige in his back, he the continued to Walmart with our son, by the time he got home his back was spasming. This happen a week ago he went to his doctor who gave him a shot and some medicine for pain. Now he sleeps all the time but the pain is still there. he said that heat seemed to help, but thye nurse said a cold pack. Anybod got any advice!!! It still seems to hurt him a great deal!

[writerlady]

I wish I had advice for him. I have spasms in my back, and they get so bad I can't walk. I sit on a heating/massage pad and I take muscle relaxers... I sure hope he gets better soon!

[milmomma]

I got to a chiropractor, sorry no help.

[scraptag]

I believe it's suppose to be hot/cold. So heat for a certain amount of time, then a cold pack. Also, it takes a very long time for the back to heal, so even if your husband gets another shot, that's usually just a muscle relaxant. He should be doing back stretches and exercises to strengthen his back to prevent further injury.
Yoga stretches really helped me. It totally got rid of my lower back pain from my lousy mattress. So, good luck. Do some hot/cold for now and tell your husband not to do anything that involves twisting and turning and bending over like he was doing with the car.

[denisescrap]

Ouch! I'm so sorry my DH broke his back 7 yrs ago and still hurts him he just rest it and takes muscle rex. and Vicodin and my DS just broke his back 3weeks ago and the DR gave him the same suff just no lifting and take it easy. sorry he said when he soaked in a bath he felt better.. GOOD LUCK HOPE HE FEELS BETTER !

[bigsmartass]

IBprofin (unless there is a reason not to) until he's feeling a lot better. Keep on it until then because it has an anti infamiltory in it, even if it doesn't feel like it's cutting the pain, it helps the muscles to heal.
Using the muscles (gently), like walking and yoga help too. Don't overdo it but you need to use them. The muscle relaxers make this and general life more comfortable in the meantime. They have different ones that might not make him as sleepy (although they prob don't work as well either).

[1grandma]

Did the xray him? If he is still suffering badly, I would go to another dr or have the one he has do an MRI to make sure that no soft tissue damage has been done. Like nerves. It takes so long to feel better. If he is able to walk, stretch gently, he should. Antiinflamatories are good. Hot packs for 20 minutes are wonderful. But no longer than 20 minutes at a time as your body compensates after that time and actually starts to work against you. Good news is that you can put another hot pack on every hour! I hope he feels better soon. If his pain med is not working, he should tell his dr. If he is sleeping all the time with it, and it still does not relief the pain, then it would be better to not take it. He needs a different med. have you gone online to see what the guidelines are for this problem. I would definitely do that, too. You might find something useful that we have not suggested. I wish you and him well.

[beachlover]

I believe it's suppose to be hot/cold. So heat for a certain amount of time, then a cold pack. Also, it takes a very long time for the back to heal, so even if your husband gets another shot, that's usually just a muscle relaxant. He should be doing back stretches and exercises to strengthen his back to prevent further injury.
Yoga stretches really helped me. It totally got rid of my lower back pain from my lousy mattress. So, good luck. Do some hot/cold for now and tell your husband not to do anything that involves twisting and turning and bending over like he was doing with the car.

that is absolutely right, also maybe find a good chiropractor who can help realign the muscles; My migraines used to go down the back of my neck and totally throw my back out, which then would throw my hip out. I could hardly walk some days. I'd go for adjustments and walk out of there in a cloud because I felt so much better and at ease that I almost wanted to fall asleep, that's how good I felt! At first I had to go 3x a week then after a couple weeks it was 1x a week for a few, then it was as needed. I have not been back in years.

good luck!

[naney1952]

I've had back problems for years and actually had back surgery in 1994. When I have flare ups from things like you describe your huisband had my back surgeon says use cold packs to get the inflammation down accompanied by a regimen of Aleve....2 in the morning when he gets up and then 2 at bedtime. Take the pills even though the pain is subsiding to totally bring down the inflammation around the discs and nerves. By doing this you stay ahead of the pain. So even if he wakes up and the pain is better please have him take the Aleve.....it really works....I was surprised because I had tried many things before and nothing seemed to help. I've told other people about this too and it has worked for them as well. Aleve is not the same thing as Ibuprofen or Motrin. Hope it helps....back pain is horrible!

[Firegems]

When my back goes out I have had to lay flat. Do as little sitting as possible and he needs to walk around once in a while but laying flat is the best to let the muscle relax. While laying he needs to raise his knees and stretch from time to time I hope he is feeling better soon!

[letumom]

I got to a chiropractor, sorry no help.

Same here.

[Art_Teacher]

I did something similar a few years ago, (bending over a student's desk to help with artwork), and it turned out that I had a herniated disk in my lower back! The doctor said I probably did it a month or so ago, and the bending over just caused it to pop out and hit the nerve. Once it was inflamed, I couldn't stand or sit for any length of time, and the pain was so unbearable, my doc had to give me Darvocet. If your husband hasn't felt better after a week, he probably needs an MRI to check for disk herniation. My doc said in most cases they avoid surgery until all other options haven't worked. I got epidural steroid shots (3 of them, spaced 2 weeks apart), and that took the inflammation away and put that disk back where it needed to be. I also did physical therapy to learn how to lift, bend, etc. in my daily life. I was doing everything wrong!

[Grandma Flowers]

I hope he's feeling better soon. Back pain is miserable.

[sdwhru]

take him to a chiropractor....

[blaznpat]

chiropractor, and his treatments helped me alot, and a massage therapist in his office

[JulieM]

Please, please, please take him to a chiropractor right away. Take it from someone that has struggled with back problems. The longer you wait the more adjustments you will need and do NOT expect one treatment to take the pain away. It may take several adjustments to get things back in alignment. It's a matter of getting the back lined up correctly and with a myriad of muscles involved that are also out of whack, they will be "locked up" and getting them to relax to allow the treatment to work can take time. These muscles must be soothed so they can relax and allow the treatments to stay in place.
The problem with muscle relaxers is that it does not fix the problem, the spine out of alignment. Just because the pain may go away or that it feels better does not mean the problem is fixed and can result in serious problems down the road. Chiropractors are much more accepted by mainstream docs now. They do see a need for them and the proof of their effectiveness is there.
Follow your chiropractors orders to the letter too. This is also important for a full and quick recovery. I wish you all luck. Back pain is excruciating pain and I hate to see anyone suffer with it. There really is no need to suffer with it when help for this is available.

[grifscap]

Back problems take time to heal.

[Sandi770]

I guess he has to find out what works for him. I prefer heat - those ones that last 8 hours. Also - LIE ON THE FLOOR to stretch --- and also sometimes I hang my head far over the bed while lying on my back on the bed to stretch.--- But be careful, it will feel good, but it is not easy to get up. Don't do it very long - just a minute or so.