Lower back pain

[pdedse]

That's quite the story mtneers...hope your stretching keeps the pain at bay. I wouldn't call mine "severe", just disruptive. But I just want to get a good start with things, maybe doing so will avoid making anything worse, like the surgury thing ferrett brought up.

In both the fall of 2021 and 2022, I experienced severe back pain. I was initially diagnosed with acute sciatica in that I could not fully stand erect and required a cane to walk. In 2021, I went thru multiple PT sessions before I could stand upright. I spent 40+ nights on the couch sleeping curled on my side because I could not lay flat on a mattress. The pain eventually subsided through a prescription of 300 mg of gabapentin. It took a week to wean off that drug…100 mg of gabapentin.
I thought it was under control until the fall of 2022 rolled around. The pain resurged and I then became under the care of a chiropractor ( never believed in them until then). His initial diagnosis when I “walked” into his office was…”you’re a hot mess”. After multiple chiropractic sessions coupled with multiple PT sessions again, it was only incrementally getting any better. The next treatment, after an MRI, was a diagnosis of spinal stenosis. This was followed by two steroid epidural injections. Not fun. I now seem to have it somewhat under control, but it is an L-4 L-5 vertebrae issue putting pressure on my spinal cord.
During 2021, the physical therapist told me if I didn’t stretch daily, I would be back. I didn’t and I was. Now, I go through about 8-10 different stretches two times daily….religiously. I haven’t taken a multiple day overnight trip on a bike for a couple years. The rallys have been my only cycle travel in the last two years. The last multiple day overnight trip, I believe, was a 2022 trip in early summer to Maine with A-man and KiowaEagle.
I now wear a back support when I ride or attempt any yard work. The worst is using a weedeater or hand tool, such as with a shovel or a rake. So, I limit my exposure to those as much as possible. Ironically, and thanks to you know who, and, as hard as it is to comprehend, it doesn’t seem to bother my tennis play as long as I remember my age and space days between play. The chiropractor told me the amount of riding I did in the past (last 3 touring bikes 40k+ miles each, all lower 48 states, 6 trips across the Mississippi) probably attributed to my back issue.
I’ve been riding since I was 8 years old. I’m not ready to quit by no means.
Hopefully, 2025 will allow me to once again to take a multiple day cycle trip.


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[Charlie Bravo_imp]

Strained my back pouring diesel fuel from a jerry can into the boat fuel tank. Hurt like a b!tch! Went to a chiropractor and all he did was make it worse. Went to another one, he did the adjustments completely different, much more effective. Pretty much pain-free now, but it will flair up sometimes if I'm not careful. I use an electric thumper to massage it, and all my other ailments, too.

[Gone in 60]

I’m doing the final clean out of our office. Lugging desks out, breaking down cubicles and hauling them away, etc. Mrs. G is paranoid that I’ll hurt my back. It’s tender no doubt.

But of all the stupid things I think I bruised a rib today. Hurts when I inhale. Went to open the doors to our dumpster this morning. Everyone in the area has been watching me fill it with stuff that isn’t just regular trash , and if I don’t lock it, the tweakers will dig into it and toss what they don’t want all over the place.

This morning, I could see that someone had gone to town trying to bust the lock to get into the dumpster. It had been pounded on, drilled and had a broken off screw driver in the keyhole. That’s the sign of a true tweaker… spend an inordinate amount of time on the lock, when he could have just hopped over the gate that the lock secures and get into the dumpster anyway.

Anywho, borrowed a large bolt cutter from the neighbors to cut the lock off. As I’ve done in the past, I braced one of the long handles of the cutter against my chest and pulled hard on the other handle. Well, worked when I had several extra pounds of padding in my chest… pulled hard and quickly realized this was now a mistake and that my ribs aren’t the best brace for a bolt cutter.

[Cormanus]

Ouch!

[Charlie Bravo_imp]

The day before yesterday, I was sitting in my fave chair, having a cocktail and watching the tube, when I decided to get up and get something, I don't remember what. I dug my left elbow into the arm chair and pushed on on it to get into launch position, and zzzzt! Something in the front of my upper left rib cage complained. Didn't think a whole lot about it, but the next morning, I woke up with a terrible pain along the clavicle. I hate getting old, but all in all, can't complain.

[pdedse]

The day before yesterday, I was sitting in my fave chair, having a cocktail and watching the tube, when I decided to get up and get something, I don't remember what. I dug my left elbow into the arm chair and pushed on on it to get into launch position, and zzzzt! Something in the front of my upper left rib cage complained. Didn't think a whole lot about it, but the next morning, I woke up with a terrible pain along the clavicle. I hate getting old, but all in all, can't complain.

Hope the pain is short-lived!

Got back x-ray results for lower back.

Good news is that they don't show anything that should be causing pain. Doc says some mild arthritis changes in the SI (sacroiliac) joints, but no fracture or traumatic malalignment and soft tissues are unremarkable.

So now we do MRI.

It's rained everyday for the last 2 weeks, so I'm not missing much mc riding, although I do miss riding! Next 10 day forecast is pretty much the same so at least my timing is good.

[Cormanus]

Fingers crossed pdedse.

[Gone in 60]

Good luck, Pdedse! Hope the outcome is very good!

I’m still nursing a hurt rib from a week ago. Might have done more than just bruise it. But, good news is I’m done emptying out my office and can take a break from heavy lifting for a while.

[peterbaron]

Pdedse, keep fit and in shape before you visiting Canada next year!!!

[Smaerwoo_imp]

Sounds like you're doing all the right things with stretching and seeing a doc. I had a similar issue a while back, and for me, it turned out to be a combo of posture and a weak core. Strengthening my core muscles really helped stabilize my back.