Back pain! I blame it on my wife..

[j.w.s.]

My wife and I recently found out we're expecting, and as she's been growing a little more as of late with the late night ice cream and sour patch kid buffets I figured to show my support for her hardships I would let myself grow a little too - sympathy weight I believe they call it. :) Anyway, as I expand I've been finding a direct correlation between my lower back pain and the waistband of my work pants, something I need to remedy at Walmart today, time to finally admit I need a 34 inch waist. Today I took a fall in the shop, tripped over something I had just moved so it'd be out of the way (isn't that always the case) and as the evening has progressed I'm just about at the point where my lower back is hurting so much I can barely stand up. This has been happening sporadically over the past few weeks, I'm getting older and realize I'm not recovering as fast as I used to at 37 as I did at 25 - I'm sure 20 years over the anvil hasn't been all that kind, and the few extra pounds of solidarity I'm holding onto probably don't help either. The other week an older friend of mine recommended the Icy Hot SmartRelief - it's a small TENS unit and a sticky pad. I picked one up right away and all I can say is wow! 30 minutes of this thing on my back and I'm not quite as good as new, but I'm moving a lot more like I should! The whole thing runs off a common watch battery and is reaplicable - I even wear it while I'm working, and barely notice it's there. Just thought I'd share if anyone else has a need. We have about 6 or 7 months until she drops (we'll find out with more certainty on Monday), but I can't wait, this whole pregancy thing is not good on a man's body and we're not even at the worst parts yet! :)

 

J

[Nobody Special]

34.......sigh. I remember size 34. It's not over yet. Short/no sleep, emergency runs to the store. No leaving the house without a kid. Rough on a diet, an exercise program or a hobby.

 

'preceiate the heads up on the treatment. I may just try that the next time I do something stup...I mean, have an accident in the shop. Get better soon, and congratulations on the kid!

[Charles R. Stevens]

Proper fiting pants and suspenders, lol. I know when my back acts up that helps a lot!. My doc said he could "cure" about hald of all back pain with that perscription. When mine goes complratly sideways i use a cane to get up out of chaires and to negotiate stairs.
Theere are some rather sugjestive exersizes that realy help keep the back doctor away as well.

[billyO]

As some of you know, I've been a Physical Therapist for the past 20+years, so here's some free PT for ya: 

 

You probably would be in the same place today if you would have used ice/cold packs for ~ 20-30 minutes, a few times a day on the inflamed soft tissues.

 

Any time you have pain/soreness/ache in soft tissues involved in the musculoskeletal system when that art is not moving or at rest, that pain is telling you something is inflamed or swollen (same thing).  And what do we do for swelling? 

 

R.I.C.E. = Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate.  (sometimes we'll add anti-inflammatories like aspirin (Bayer), ibuprofen (Advil), naproxen (Aleve).  These are NSAIDs = Non-Steroidal Anti Inflammatory Drugs.  (As an aside, when you get a steroid (cortisone) injection for pain relief, this is a steroid, which is a stronger anti-inflammatory). 

 

There's a lot of soft tissue in the low back, and as you've found out, and anyone who's had a back injury will confirm, and the low back muscles/ligaments (what we PTs refer to sometimes as the thoraco/lumbopelvic stabilizers) are actively stabilizing the trunk during ANY movement you do. 

 

Resting the back, should be easy, but for most people not very.

Icing the back is easy.

Compressing the back, quite difficult

Elevating the back, pretty much impossible. 

 

To sum up:  If possible, when you have a back strain, take a few days off and spend a lot of time icing. Stay as mobile as possible, if it hurts, don't do it. 

Most inflammation will last for only 2-3 days if taken care of, and most people will resume normal activities within a few days.  If you continue to push it, muscles that are injured won't work as well, which will force you to move differently, which will put added strain on nearby muscles/ligaments that are now doing double duty, fatiguing them quicker and risking further strains which will exacerbate the cycle until the pain forces you to stop for a much longer time than a few days. 

[LawnJockey]

Look into yoga.  I got out of the trades 25 plus years ago due to constant back issues.  Even though I stopped reinjuring myself so much I was haunted by regular flare ups.  About 8 years ago I started working with a trainer on some health issues and she got me doing yoga.  I still have a couple of flare ups a year but they are less intense and there are exercises that help speed up the healing.  She also has me hiking, running and cycling 1-3 hours everyday.

 

If you decide to take a yoga class position yourself toward the back of the class, the view is better.

[Glenn]

I figured to show my support for her hardships I would let myself grow a little too - sympathy weight I believe they call it.

 

That added weight is difficult to get rid of after the baby is born, for either of you. For her the cravings are for something she needs for the developing baby, (ice cream for dairy etc) or to be sure you support her, or to calm her her anxiety. Good prenatal care, and a constant supply of all the building blocks such as vitamins, minerals, healthy foods, etc will go a long way in making things easier. Each pregnancy is different so the rules change each time. 

 

Treating the symptoms for pain is not a cure for the problem. Treat the problem first, then treat the symptoms. Carrying some extra weight to show symphony is still carrying the extra weight. And at some point you will want to get rid of the extra pounds and will have to work at it. Easiest way to rid your self of the extra pounds is not put them on, or at least limit the amount you add. 

 

Want to prove the point, then put 10 pounds in a back pack and wear it until lunch. After lunch put another 10 pounds (20 total) into the back pack and wear it until supper. Feels good right? After all it is only 10 or at most 20 pounds.  You can treat the soreness and pain and it will help some. Take off the back pack and you have removed the problem.

 

Show your symphony by your continued love, devotion, and support. Take long walks holding hands, or what ever activity gets her to moving. Take a weekend off once a month, (after all it is now only 6-7 weekends) and do what she enjoys.

 

Paint the kids room, fix the leaking faucet, etc. Clean the house cause when the new kid comes, visitors will come also, and she will not feel like cleaning or fixing up at that point.

 

Put a clean garbage bag liner in the trash can beside the bed. Morning sickness does not give notice. (Do not ask how I know these things)

 

Congratulations.  All the best to you and the wife.

[j.w.s.]

Glenn, I didnt really mean it was voluntarily added. lol I'm just using it as the excuse. :) I'm just not sure what changed between my 160lb younger self and my 180lb current self except for my age - so not wanting to admit that the sweat from forging isnt really condensation from the fountain of you I'm going the other route.. :)

[Glenn]

Please disregard the weight references above. What a difference a day makes between what was intended and what got written. The post was intended to be helpful and now, later, could easily be misread. 

 

A better post would have been:

Sometimes Mother Nature changes our gears as we get a little age and mileage under our belt. :)