The Woes of Back Pain Part 1: my experience

Taken from googleimages

It happened to me March 9, 2011. I was on my motorcycle. I felt a twinge on the right side of my upper back, between the shoulder blades. I thought it was nothing until later that afternoon when I couldn't move! I could barely get up to go to the bathroom without experiencing excruciating pain. It only got worse from there. From test to test and pill to pill, I didn't find relief until the beginning of June! This two-part series aims to help you protect yourself. So read on.



DENIAL

At first I thought it was just a sore muscle so I stretched, continued light exercise and slept with a pillow under my knees. Just like all the advice on the internet suggests. It only made it worse. After stretching I would feel worse!

Going to the doctor was no help because they didn't tell me what I wanted to hear. I stated above that the pain started between the shoulder blades. However, it quickly moved on to my lower back where it remained. I had a right side (lateral), lower back pain for three months.

I, however, did not think it was back pain. 

When I was a student in England I got a kidney infection and had to be hospitalized. The pain I was experiencing in March, and the subsequent months, was very much like that pain. So I was convinced that I had a kidney infection. That was what was causing the back pain, in my opinion.

Medicated

It didn't help that my doctor here in Cordoba is less than content with her job. So she barely looked at me. She didn't ask me any questions and simply sent me for an x-ray of the back. I was fuming! I knew that I didn't have any spinal problems. But what could I do? 

My appointment wasn't until the next week but the pain got so bad that night that I had to be seen sooner. (Funnily, my back would hurt more at bedtime than during the day). My husband used some connections that his father had in the public health system and I was seen that week.

Long story short, nothing on the x-ray. So I was given a prescription for a painkiller (Ibuprofen--600mg) and a muscle relaxant (Myolastan--50mg). I took 1 Ibuprofen and half a Myolastan, in the morning, and 1 Iburprofen and a whole Myolastan, in the evening.

The muscle relaxant made me tripping big time! Good thing I wasn't operating any heavy machinery! It was strong stuff but it worked.

I wasn't satisfied though. I'm a person who doesn't like to take pills. Plus, this was not solving the problem, it was only treating it. Anyway, I was still convinved that I had something really serious.

Fed up!

I went back to the doctor and told her what she gave me, flat out, didn't work and that she needed to find another solution. So she asked me questions and performed some tests and told me it was back pain. 

It couldn't be a kidney infection she said. Not only did I not have any of the other symptoms (pain when you urinate, high temperature, abdominal pain), but also the pain in the back was not the same. It didn't hurt to touch, (which she proved by giving my back a good wack). My back only hurt when I moved. So that was not consistent with a kidney infection.

Whatever. I still didn't believe her but she refused to do anymore tests until I tried these other pills (Diclofenac sodium--100mg). I probably took one or two pills when the pain was just unbearable and I had no other choice. After re-reading the side effects I preferred to deal with the pain.

Lessons Learned

I have been pain free for at least a month or so now. Definitely since I began my hair journey so I'm happy! I have now accepted that what I suffered from was a form of lower back pain.

This wasn't a nagging pain. I would be in so much pain that I couldn't sleep, I couldn't move, it hurt when I breathed...it was serious. 

I think it was the result of a lot of things:

• Stress
• Not stretching properly
• Exercising more than I needed to
• Bad posture
• Sleeping on a horrible pillow
• Not drinking enough water

 

I still haven't solved the pillow problem. I plan to because I think it's incredibly important to sleep on a pillow that aligns your head with your spine. 

Stress affects the body in so many ways. Incorporating yoga into my life, and being aware that I need to relax, has helped me tremendously.

More than ever before I am aware of my body and how it feels. If I need to take it easy I do so. That's the most important lesson I've learned.

Stay tuned for Part 2 where I discuss: 

1. Common causes of back pain
2. How to treat it
3. Back exercises I've incorporated into my exercise regimen.

Daily Fitness Tip: de-stressing

Taken from googleimages

Probably one of the most important things you can do for yourself is to set some time aside to relax. Relaxing can mean any number of things. The importance is to do it and to stick with it. You don't have to schedule it in. You just have to take a moment when you feel like you need to. Your body, your skin, your heart, your blood pressure, your hair, will thank you for it!

Currently I have only used relaxation techniques, outside of my yoga class setting, once. But I'm trying to do better. So make sure to check me on that! Here's a quick run-down of what to do.

PREPARATION

• Go somewhere where there isn't a lot of noise (or use ear plugs) or a lot of light
• Lay  down on a mat (corspe pose)
• Get comfortable
• Avoid any and all interrumptions. Do this only when you won't be disturbed. Like when the kids go to bed if you're a parent, when you're alone in the house...be creative.
• Close your eyes and start to calm yourself

CONSCIOUS RELAXATION IN ZONES

• You begin by consciously thinking of different parts of the body and attempting to stay focused and to not move
• Don't rush this
• Begin with the feet and the legs and start to relax them more and more and more...
• Move onto the stomach and the chest and relax them more and more...
• Relax the back, the arms and the shoulders, then the neck
• Relax the different parts of the face, the lips, the cheeks, the eyelashes, between the eyes
• Each time you exhale you should feel the parts of your body relaxing even more

 

To come out of it slowly. Breathe in and out a few times and start by slowly moving your feet, then your hands, and then the rest of your body.  

For me, the hardest part is not getting distracted. I find that my mind wants to wander. I think about the day, my obligations, what I'm going to eat...When this happens I reconcentrate my attention on relaxing. It has to be a concious thing.

By myself I've tried In-depth Relaxation. 

It sounds intense but all it envolves is relaxing one part of the body at a time.

• In the first session I would just concentrate on relaxing my feet. 
• The following session I would concentrate on the feet and legs 
• Then the bladder and stomach in the next and so on. 

This is useful for people who have a hard time relaxing (like me) and need to go step by step. At first it seemed an impossible feat to relax my entire body. But working with one part at a time is good practice.

I've also tried Relaxation Through Tensing and Releasing. 

Great for very tense people (like myself). It's not recommended for people who practice the asanas. But I tried it because I find it easier to relax a part of the body that is already consciously tense. If that makes sense. 

• Simply tense a part of the body for five seconds and then release. 
• Each session only lasts about 10 minutes. 
• The first session you start by tensing the right leg, release, and then relax for 1-2 minutes. 
• Tense the same leg again then release, then tense and release for the entire 10 minutes. 
• The next session you repeat the same. 
• Not until the third session do you move onto the left leg. It goes on like this until you hit each part of the body for a total of 20 sessions.

 

The good thing about these techniques is that you can do them by yourself. In my opinion, it's best to learn it from a professional at first. However, once you know how to do it, all you need is practice.

Yoga has been proven over and over again to aid in mental health and subsequently physical health. Try to find a yoga class near you, buy a yoga book to read more about it, then try it!

If this helped you leave a comment and let me know how it goes!

I hope you enjoyed your Daily Fitness Tip and will add it to your Recipe for Health