Back Injuries Suck

[Zodiac45]

Gary sorry to hear this......Hope it works out for ya......Try to skip surgery if at all possible........

Agree with Ultra, if at all possible avoid it. Allot of unneccesary surgery goes on and most people I know that have had back surgeries are no better and some worse off than before. I guess the disc deals are the worse? I've tweaked my back a couple times (muscles) moving stones for a wall and that was bad enough. Hard to get outta bed and wipin the old :taped: was a tough job for a spell. That was just muscle tweaks! Hope your's is not disc Gary and get well soon Bro.

 

[andrethegiant70]

Hard to get outta bed and wipin the old :taped: was a tough job for a spell. .

Yup, some serious thinkin' was involved in getting that done...that's a baaaad motion for someone having L5 and L4 trouble.

 

[jra1100]

Bummer

Sorry to hear of your pain. Unlike most others here I have never had any real back problems, with one notable exception. I was going to Portland to visit Susan before she moved to Iowa. I had constructed my own bed, one of it's features was that instead of an innerspring I had a box with drawers on one site and the other half folded up for storage. I kept travel bags under there and when I reached in and grabbed an EMPTY bag I pulled a muscle in my back. I walked in the airports and on the plane and made it to OR ok but the next day was practically immobile. Went to a chiropractor who said I needed some electrothearapy. He hooks me up to this machine and says "when you start to feel it let me know" he kept turning it up and I feel nothing. He keeps turning it up and ...nothing. Finally I say "are you sure those connections are tight?" He wiggles the connection and WHAM I get hit with a jolt meant for an electric chair. Major apologies and I didn't have to pay for the session, plus it helped BIG time. Not sure if it was the jolt or what. He gave me some exercises and never had any more problems.

I can't make the pain go away for ya Gary, but if you will PM me you address I bet I can put a small smile on your face. JR

 

[RDT]

Get well Gary , relax , and drink more beer.

 

[mattinky]

Agree with Ultra, if at all possible avoid it. Allot of unneccesary surgery goes on and most people I know that have had back surgeries are no better and some worse off than before. I guess the disc deals are the worse? I've tweaked my back a couple times (muscles) moving stones for a wall and that was bad enough. Hard to get outta bed and wipin the old :taped: was a tough job for a spell. That was just muscle tweaks! Hope your's is not disc Gary and get well soon Bro.

Yep, my doctor told me that surgery was a 50/50 gamble - that's why I passed and am just living with my back problems

 

[forestryworks]

our backs are the easiest thing to hurt... and it's also the most important part of your body...

hang in there gary, get well soon!

 

[yungman]

Wow... Thanks you all...

I typed this out this morning and then come home to all of your posts... I know I'm not the only one with a bad back. But cripes this hurts like a b1tch sometimes...

I also recently found out that I have Sciatica... It's well along too... My toes go numb at times in my right foot... not good. My injury was actually minor... but it brought forth a lot of stuff that had been around in my body for years... just needed the right injury to show themselves.

Anyways... I just wanted to remind you all to take care of yourselves as far as your backs go... especially you 20 somethings on here... I am paying the price dearly right now for stupidity when i was young.

I will only be at a few shows in WA this year... Sequim, Deming, and Buckley. If we have a PNW get together, I will try to make it to that one as well...

Anyways... I'll keep on postin'! You guys too!

Gary

Don't get too worry about sciatica, you might feel a lot even if you have minor back injury. I had feeling of hot and cold and tingling all the way down to my toe back in the 80s, like many sharp pins touching my skin. I just stay with the weight training and exercise for the past 20 years and never see a doctor anymore, and I am in much better shape than most fifty something people. I am still doing sparing with my grandson who is a brown belt in Tai Kwan Do. Don't give up hope.

Answer the oil questions in more detail, it will get your blood pressure up and have better circulation.:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[RCR 3 EVER]

Sorry to hear of your back problems. Take it from someone who has gone through 2 surgeries. Avoid the surgeries except as a last LAST resort. Once the surgeries start, the surgery affects the disk above the problem and then that needs fixing and then so on and on.

First surgery worked for herniated disk, but got reinjured. tried numerous therapy sessions,Chiroquackers, injections to no avail. Got to point of crawling before 2nd surgery which was a failure since he did not go high enough to fix all the damaged disks.
Quack:censored: DR also gave me massive infection which delayed therapy after surgery which further complicated matters.

Bottom line to all those who have strained backs take care of your back it is disabling.
Those with disk problems avoid surgery try the therapy route. Narcotic Pills are effective but tend to make you louppy Good luck and take care rest does help heal also.

 

[Kogafortwo]

Gary, what about that new girlfriend you were talking about? Can you get her to massage your back for you? Or whatever else hurts...

 

[GASoline71]

Gary, what about that new girlfriend you were talking about? Can you get her to massage your back for you? Or whatever else hurts...

She has been helpin' with that...

Gary

 

[Erick]

So Gary, what oil is she using???

 

[Jacob J.]

The surgery option depends highly on what exactly the problem is in your back. My grandma started having trouble in the late 70's with her back, and horror stories deterred her from getting surgery until 1998. After surgery her back was instantly better and she was completely pain-free and had mobility similar to when she was in her early 30's. The doctor told her that if she'd had the surgery right away instead of waiting 20 years it would have been less invasive and she would have been spared 20 years of agony.

 

[Gologit]

The surgery option depends highly on what exactly the problem is in your back. My grandma started having trouble in the late 70's with her back, and horror stories deterred her from getting surgery until 1998. After surgery her back was instantly better and she was completely pain-free and had mobility similar to when she was in her early 30's. The doctor told her that if she'd had the surgery right away instead of waiting 20 years it would have been less invasive and she would have been spared 20 years of agony.

Totally agree...sometimes surgery is the best. I hurt mine in a plane crash and tried to tough it out with meds and therapy. That lasted almost a year.
I got to the point where I was losing the feeling in both legs before I finally gave up. The surgeon said that if I'd continued on the way I was going I would have eventually lost all the use of my legs...not a pleasant thought.
My back is good, now. At least for a sixty one year old anyway.
I don't preach surgery...it's not the answer for everyone. But be aware of how progressive the damage can be. And how debilitating.

 

[joatmon]

She has been helpin' with that...

Gary

Gary, best of luck in eliminating or relieving this back pain.

No oil or mix comments because this is serious.

Now, I've had a fair amount of back pain for years. I started sleeping on a latex matress several years ago, and I don't believe it solved the problem, but I do awake to less pain than I did before. Again, not a miracle cure, I don't sell them, but it has lessened my pain for a number of years.

Godspeed,

joat

 

[bama]

Sorry to hear about your back, Gary.

I heard that there was some kind of surgery overseas that was supposed to be much better than what is done here. It was on 20/20 or something like that several months ago. Must be some information on the internet about it. Might be worth checking out if it gets worse.

12 years ago, my wife was pregnant with my oldest boy(about 6 months along) and we were remodeling the home we just bought(new linoleum), so she helped me put the linoleum in the house from the pickup. Not a hard lift or very heavy, but since her back was weakened by the pregnancy, she slipped a disc.

She is in pain every day(especially the past 7 years) but she says she is used to it and the doc said surgery is 50/50. So, she does lots of exercises and has drugs for if it gets bad. I don't let her lift anything around the house. I sure do feel guilty about having her lift the linoleum, but it certainly was not the first time we did stuff like that together. She was pretty strong. Wish I could take the whole thing back.

It is not even very comfortable for her when we..............Well, you know.....

Back pain really sucks!

 

[ak4195]

Stop your makin me all misty eyed....

Buck up girls I cant take the whinin no more,as Clint Eastwood said unfamously ,"Improvise,Adapt,Overcome."
Learn how your body works,take care of yourself.One day at a time and realize you just aint bullet proof,no matter how much _____ (insert beverage or drug of choice) you partake.

ak

 

[Kogafortwo]

Forgot to add: good luck and get well !

 

[Saw Bones]

How's your back injury?

Hope you're feeling better.

:greenchainsaw:

 

[ciscoguy01]

Dang!!!

I'm super sorry to hear about that dude. Hope you have a VERY speedy recovery man. Nothing worse than a back problem...

eh?

On a side note, what position was she in when it happened??? I just wanna know so I dont' hurt my back when I'm gettin' busy in those funky positions...:jester:

 

[excess650]

Well fellas, and ladies...

I sustained a non saw/wood/work related back injury last year in October. Needless to say, my back is a mess... with tha being said...

Later!

Gary

Gary,
I can sympathize with your situation. Just shy of 3 years ago, my wife and I were returning from a leisurely, morning motorcycle ride and were hit head-on by a minivan.:censored: I spent 22 days in the regional trauma center, and wasn't allowed to walk for 12 weeks because of the reconstruction of my left hip. Both shoulders were dislocated, left required surgery in 2 places to repair, numerous other, more minor injuries....lots of percocet, vicodin, physical therapy, and more vicodin...my wife faired better than I did, and is pretty much back to normal. We're both lucky to have survived.

I just turned 49, and if any of you have read my posts, you will notice that I am an advocate of smallish, lightweight chainsaws. The accident took quite a bit of fire out of me, but I still do what I can, and often overdo it. With my strength and stamina lacking comapred to what it was, I have to be a bit more careful of what I do. The small saws allow me to get out and cut longer without being so whipped. When it becomes obvious, I switch to a larger saw, but put it back down when the bigger work is finished. BTW, I did just buy a Stihl 066 Magnum:greenchainsaw: , and ran it for the first time last weekend...<CAD>

The best advice that I can offer is to keep positive attitude and avoid the meds as much as possible. Be well!