Back pain!

[PR CB7]

As a mechanic i suffer from it a lot, and with so many back pain advertisments out there it's hard to know what actually works without trying
i know most of you will say go to a doctor, but i would like to know what worked for you
from pain pills to inversion to shock treatment

[BurtonRiderT6]

Back pain and knee pain and I only play around with cars.......I feel your pain. I have heard great things about the inversion tables although I haven't tried it. I do plan to purchase one and give it a whirl. Tables aren't all that expensive on Amazon. Range from I think $70 on up.

I wouldn't go very cheap as you don't want to get dropped on your head.

[Leung]

It's really hard to say man. For the longest time i had ankle pains and i thought it was from when i had originally rolled my ankle. I've used cortisone injections which work great for the first couple of weeks but then it wears off. I've tried shoe inserts and just like the injections, they wear out. Anyhow after some blood tests and stuff, it turns out i have gout so now i have to take a pill daily to control my uric acid. I still get the occasional foot pain but that's only if i've been walking around for more than 7 hours. I just take like 3 ibruprofens before bed time and stay off of it and the pain goes away.

But yeah.. the best way to find out what you really have is to just go see a doctor and have an x-ray or MRI done. You might have an underlying condition that could be causing your back pain or it might just the compression of the disks that cushion each bone in your spine.

I want to try one of those inversion tables too, they look fun but that's not the word i want to use.

[mozzandherb]

shock treatment?

[TracieS]

As a part time mechanic I have a lot of back pain to it sucks as most work I do is on lowered cars I try not to bend over alot and bring the car to me. I just take pain pills every morning.

[drew12000]

in 2000 i was studying sports medicine, and going through some of the worst back pain i'd every had to date. stiff and unable to stand up straight. what i learned and did for myself in class helped a lot! my pain was coming from right above the tailbone.

stretch! i'd lay on my back, on the floor. pull one knee toward your chest, with my hands behind the knee. keep your back flat on the ground. hold to the count of ten. then do the next leg. do this a few times a week.

adding heat to the area for a while then immediately going to cold will make your mussels stretch and contract. letting them what i had access to was these electrodes that they would stick to my back. shocking the muscles, making them move rabidly. than jump in the iced tub.

this is all i can remember about the class. besides having to wrap ankles and massage the groins for the damn volleyball girls. mmmmhmm

[h22sparkle]

Get proper rest and perform your daily duties of stretching before you work on the car and when you go to work. Wear comfortable shoes you dont need a backbrace .

If your going to lay on the floor working underneath a car make sure you have some kind of cushion or cardboard underneath you. Laying on concrete floor or jagged rocks are not the way my friend.

[nine_deuce]

I have degenerative disk disease in my lower back and I've found nothing works. I have good days, I have bad days. The bad days get to the point I'm bedridden. With a new baby (not quite 3 months old), I can't be bedridden. It gets to the point where my lower back spasms and my knees buckle, causing me to hit the floor. Although, something I have found that helps is Tramadol. They're supposed to be non narcotic, but, I've found that when taken, I do get high, per se. I don't take them for the buzz, I take them merely to help with the pain, and they seem to work. And unlike regular narcotic pain relievers, they don't leave me groggy or anything the next day. I'd say, talk to your doctor and see if you can get some and give them a try. I've found they also work for arthritis and gout (another more painful form of arthritis). Good luck and let me know what you find out.

[Leung]

I have degenerative disk disease in my lower back and I've found nothing works. I have good days, I have bad days. The bad days get to the point I'm bedridden. With a new baby (not quite 3 months old), I can't be bedridden. It gets to the point where my lower back spasms and my knees buckle, causing me to hit the floor. Although, something I have found that helps is Tramadol. They're supposed to be non narcotic, but, I've found that when taken, I do get high, per se. I don't take them for the buzz, I take them merely to help with the pain, and they seem to work. And unlike regular narcotic pain relievers, they don't leave me groggy or anything the next day. I'd say, talk to your doctor and see if you can get some and give them a try. I've found they also work for arthritis and gout (another more painful form of arthritis). Good luck and let me know what you find out.

I think i was talking with you a while ago about gout. I don't get flare ups as often anymore because of the allopurinol i've been taking daily.

[PR CB7]

reason why i want to try inversion is, when i do pull ups, and hold my self up i feel my spine pop and for 20 mins i feel relief

also i refuse to work without a lift

[nine_deuce]

I think i was talking with you a while ago about gout. I don't get flare ups as often anymore because of the allopurinol i've been taking daily.

Yep, that was me. I've been taking them regularly as well, I was having 2 or more outbreaks a month, figured, screw this! I take the pills regularly, all seems well.

[evil_demon_01]

I used to get back pain all the time, to the point where I couldn't walk.
I found the solution, and now I very rarely get a sore back anymore.
- Don't be a hero at work by lifting everything.

Even if it's only 20 kgs, it is enough to prevent previous injuries from fully healing.
Use a hoist to lift things, and then move them with a jack.

People might call me soft now for not lifting things, but my days off sick are far less, and I never wake up in the morning unable to get out of bed.

[BurtonRiderT6]

reason why i want to try inversion is, when i do pull ups, and hold my self up i feel my spine pop and for 20 mins i feel relief

also i refuse to work without a lift

The concept of inversion is to separate the vertabrae and allow fresh blood to circulate through there. By inverting yourself you are allowing your back to stretch and pull while allowing you to relax your muscles. Hanging during a pull up is similar but not the same. Just be careful with the tables as you have to start off in increments. Too much blood to the head can be damaging if you're not prepared for it.

[deevergote]

Back pain is often one of the things that keeps me from working on my car for very long. That, along with a bad shoulder.
Different pain medicine (just OTC stuff) works differently for different people, so I'd say try everything and see what works. Aleve works best for me, most of the time. Just don't take too much, because most of those things will tear up your stomach or liver... or both.
I've had a professional massage, and it did nothing for me. Regular massage sessions would help, but that gets expensive. Might be a good idea to talk the wife into it!
A Chiropractor may help as well, though I've never been to one myself.

You could look into strengthening your back muscles, and maintaining good posture during daily activities. My back is fairly weak, and I sit with terrible posture both in my car (12+ hours a day, frequently) and in front of my computer (often, the rest of the day!) It doesn't help to have a back that's used to slouching, and that doesn't have strength to support itself.

Get proper rest and perform your daily duties of stretching before you work on the car and when you go to work. Wear comfortable shoes you dont need a backbrace .

If your going to lay on the floor working underneath a car make sure you have some kind of cushion or cardboard underneath you. Laying on concrete floor or jagged rocks are not the way my friend.

This.

[AAPOQ]

I used to have back/knee/foot pains and I finally figured out that it was my shoes.
I have high arches and everyone tells me to use arch supportS. Well that is what started to feed my problems. I bought expensive dr. scholls arch supports.(you know the one where you stand on the machine and it tells you which insert is best for you) I was a 440. 50 bucks later and not feeling any better, I started wearing some etnies my mother-in-law bought for me a few years back and I haven't stopped using them since.(very flat shoes)

I guess my point is you'll definitely have to find what works for YOU. I stopped listening to the doc and my pain went away. Arch support my ass.