Back Problems - Treating With Advil

[TromboneAl]

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Alright Al, why is there a hole in it?

Knew someone would point that out. Looks bad, doesn't it? The hole was just there for the last project that that piece of wood was used for.

[HFWR]

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Originally Posted by TromboneAl Knew someone would point that out. Looks bad, doesn't it? The hole was just there for the last project that that piece of wood was used for.

Butt plug Yeah, that's what I thought...

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Whew. I was hoping it wasnt to prevent suction.

Wood putty?

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

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Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny Whew. I was hoping it wasnt to prevent suction.

Speaking of butts and suction...

You people bring out the worst in me, but several decades ago there was an infamous case of a poor woman on a cruise ship. She was morbidly obese and at the time the heads on a ship worked on a vacuum system which sucked the water from the head into the holding tank when flushed. It was not vented other than the toilet seat opening itself.

Said large person settled down on the toilet, did her duty, reached back and flushed. Problem was, her obese bottom apparently formed an air tight seal over the top of the toilet. The resulting force of the vacuum was massive, and literally sucked her colon out of her body through the natural opening, and turned that part of her anatomy inside out.

She was airlifted to the closest hospital and I don't know what happened from there. I do recall doubting the story back when I heard it in the 1970s, then actually locating it in JAMA.

There you have it. Never let it be said that I didn't generously share my extensive medical background on this board.

[megacorp-firee]

uh Thanks for sharing Rich ... I think Now I'm never going to be able to use the a pressurized 'john' without having this uh 'interesting' picture in my head.

T-Al, ... one modification that you may want to make is to cut a u shaped opening where your tailbone would be. Otherwise you may irritate it. Check out the picture again.
btw, you may want to pad it with some foam ... otherwise the hard wood could cause other problems. ... but you probably know that already.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

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Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa You people bring out the worst in me

Mission Accomplished.

[Nords]

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Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa Speaking of butts and suction...

Hey, I think I have a picture!

Oh, wait, that was butts and pressure...

[M Paquette]

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Originally Posted by Nords Hey, I think I have a picture! Oh, wait, that was butts and pressure...

Bwahaha... "Venting Sanitaries Inboard!"

[Urchina]

You might also try Yoga. I herniated a disc with my second pregnancy and my physical therapist had me do the "cobra" position as often as I could --worked wonders.

Our local Y has "yoga for pain relief" and "yoga for a healthy back" -- both designed to address chronic pain or back pain.

Works miraculously for me, probably because it stretches and tones those muscles without putting alot of strain on them.

Good luck!

[DallasGuy]

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Originally Posted by Urchina You might also try Yoga. I herniated a disc with my second pregnancy and my physical therapist had me do the "cobra" position as often as I could --worked wonders. Our local Y has "yoga for pain relief" and "yoga for a healthy back" -- both designed to address chronic pain or back pain. Works miraculously for me, probably because it stretches and tones those muscles without putting alot of strain on them. Good luck!

I was having back aches the last couple of months and started doing yoga again 2 weeks ago (2 times a week) and my back aches are almost gone. It really does help alot. My only advice is to do it at your own pace and don't let the instructor or other class members make you feel like you have to do all of the poses to the max. Most teachers will show alternative poses for inflexible people (like me) which helps a lot. I take the "free" yoga classes at my health club (they're included in my membership fee).

[simple girl]

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Originally Posted by Urchina You might also try Yoga. I herniated a disc with my second pregnancy and my physical therapist had me do the "cobra" position as often as I could --worked wonders. Our local Y has "yoga for pain relief" and "yoga for a healthy back" -- both designed to address chronic pain or back pain. Works miraculously for me, probably because it stretches and tones those muscles without putting alot of strain on them. Good luck!

Yoga is awesome. It has helped me significantly. However, a word of caution. Some poses may be contraindicated depending on your diagnosis. For example, repeated forward bends may very well aggravate a disc herniation. Just an FYI to discuss this with your physical therapist first.

[SteveR]

Sorry to see you are having some back problems. It sucks! I have had to have back surgery 4 times; three on the same disc. Long story short. I don't take Tylenol or any other product like it. I found that ibuprofen works better for me. I also take other medication daily to help with the pain and spasms. Speaking of spasams. The best think for that seems to be alternating ice and heat...20 mintues on...30 minutes off then switch hot for cold or cold for hot; repeat.

DW has two damaged nerver in her spine that go down her leg. Her pain is unbelievable. She is a walking drug store and HAS to have a deep massage weekly to keep moving.

Exercise to stregthen the core (trunk) muscles seem to be the best. Abs and lower back muscles; upper chest and upper back. Stretch out the hamstrings. Tight hamstrings will kill you back. (Got em and it does).

I have not had a day without pain in over 20 years. Now I have narrowing in my neck which is causing more pain and stiffness. Someday I will have to have it fixed or suffocate. Nice.

That said I still shovel snow, carry heavy boxes, swing hammers, lift furniture etc. I just use my legs and arms and not my back now.

Golf is out as the torqing of my spine was not good. It was a blessing anyway the way I played.

Traction also might help. The inverted swing helps some folks by opening up the disc space and getting them to retract a bit. Hydration is very important too. The spine has a lousy vascular supply so it takes a lot to get pain meds there or even water.

Good luck. I know all too well what price we pay to be upright animals. I hate to fly over a couple of hours unless I can get up and walk around. I would rather drive. In fact I bought the car I have for the seats. It just worked out the rest of the car was also what I wanted. Airlines are cutting way back on pillows and without one I am in major pain the whole flight...so I pack an inflatable one now. It helps a lot but does push me knees forward and that is another story.

[megacorp-firee]

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Originally Posted by SteveR Sorry to see you are having some back problems. It sucks!

Ditto ... and great advice ... adding emphasis so others can benefit from our pain

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Exercise to stregthen the core (trunk) muscles seem to be the best. Abs and lower back muscles; upper chest and upper back. Stretch out the hamstrings. Tight hamstrings will kill you back. (Got em and it does).

AMEN Steve, ... especially the tight hamstrings... I'm working on those.
Anyone with back problems should work on these especially.

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I have not had a day without pain in over 20 years.

I hope I got to it early enough... I have a friend who is a martyr has a high tolerence for pain... and she waited too long... She has suffered for over 15 years and is still working on it. Moral: Don't suffer back pain for a minute... get medical attention ASAP. It will NOT get better, ... it only gets worse... and if bad enough very tough to heal.

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I hate to fly over a couple of hours unless I can get up and walk around. I would rather drive.

Try this for plane trips: 1st Class Sleeper As well as the 'butt wedge'.
I don't get on an airplane without them. I was able to survive a 14 hour trip to Asia with it.

p.s. googled cobra yoga position and am adding that to my exercise routine. Thanks all.

[TromboneAl]

I took my device to a gig last night, and also took three ibuprofen pills.

Still pretty painful, but I think it was a little better than last gig.

It makes me sit up straight if I'm paying attention, but when I concentrate on the music, I still slouch over a bit. That is, even though the surface slants down, I can still sit with my thighs parallel to the ground.

Back.jpg

Still, it might be worth building a bench with an adjustable slant to it.

One gig tomorrow and two next week, but other than that I will do no practicing to give it a chance to heal -- hey, what am I gonna do all day?

[simple girl]

T-Al, here's another possible tip for ya. Get some skin tape (i.e. for putting bandages on, so it doesn't irritate the skin). Sit up with extra good posture, shoulders back. Now have someone else use two strips of tape to make an "X" across your midback (between shoulder blades).

Every time you slouch you'll feel the pull of the tape which will remind you to stop slouching.

[simple girl]

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Originally Posted by megacorp-firee p.s. googled cobra yoga position and am adding that to my exercise routine. Thanks all.

This is a great stretch. However, it is not for everyone. Those with spinal stenosis will often find that this position aggravates their symptoms.

There are multiple causes of back pain, and not all treatments work for everyone, and what helps one person's pain may aggravate someone else's. Just trying to keep anyone reading this from potentially aggravating their symptoms.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I thought I should help the moderators at this juncture by noting that posting of naughty stick figures will not be acceptable, unless of course they're really good ones.

[megacorp-firee]

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Originally Posted by simple girl This is a great stretch. However, it is not for everyone. Those with spinal stenosis will often find that this position aggravates their symptoms. There are multiple causes of back pain, and not all treatments work for everyone, and what helps one person's pain may aggravate someone else's. Just trying to keep anyone reading this from potentially aggravating their symptoms.

I do have spinal stenosis and I tried it... and I find I don't have the mobility to keep my stomach on the ground and get any height when I stretch backwards. My lower back and legs (I think the hamstrings) feel REAL tight. I will gently try this and see if I get any additional mobility.

What about spinal stenosis makes this stretch aggravate the symptoms?
Thanks for the warning.

[megacorp-firee]

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Originally Posted by TromboneAl I took my device to a gig last night, and also took three ibuprofen pills. Still pretty painful, but I think it was a little better than last gig. It makes me sit up straight if I'm paying attention, but when I concentrate on the music, I still slouch over a bit. That is, even though the surface slants down, I can still sit with my thighs parallel to the ground. Attachment 3296 Still, it might be worth building a bench with an adjustable slant to it. One gig tomorrow and two next week, but other than that I will do no practicing to give it a chance to heal -- hey, what am I gonna do all day?

T-Al, seems you may want to get a little more height on your piano bench so that your feet are flat on the ground. This should prevent your thighs from being parallel to the ground. ?

[megacorp-firee]

I just took inventory. I am overseas and am running low on my Advil supply. I also brought some Aleve. Can I safely replace Advil with Aleve, or are there some cautions that I should be aware of?
I could go out and buy some more Ibuprofen here, I guess, but I do have a whole bottle of Aleve with me here.
Thanks.