Back Pain Blog

I have completely overdone things today and yesterday - just by way of a change. I'd noticed the Debenhams 25% sale and I'm not one to miss a bargain so my other half and I trotted of to town yesterday to get some bargains and some Christmas presents. Well you know what us women are like once we get into a department store with lots of goodies to buy ............
the rest is history. But, instead of being very sensible and going straight to bed when I got home I was on such a roll with my endorphines well and truly kicked in, that I decided to finish making my Christmas cards.

Big mistake ! - my neck went into such spasm that I just couldn't look in any direction and it felt like someone was sticking a knife in my neck. My other half was a bit cross with me but got me lay down with a heat pad on my neck and took my laptop from me and anything else I could reach and made me rest. It eventually went as it always does but it did do me in a bit and I needed the pain to go away for today as I had a coffee morning planned at my house for the ladies group with some stall holders selling Christmas goodies ( yes, more - I'm nearly done now).

Anyway, I woke up feeling the usual (rough) but once the medications kicked in I was ready for the mad house which it certainly was. The last person left at 2ish and by the time I'd tidied up it was three and I nearly ran upstairs to bed and slept until my husband (who I'd sent out to look for my xmas prezzy) brought me a cuppa up to bed at 5ish.

I know I've said it before but it is just such a bind that bells ring when its too late and to have a brain and mind that want to do everything at full throttle. As my husband always says to me "you just NEVER learn, do you"? I think I just have a mental block of how bad the pain can be - either that or I've lost the plot lol ! I think its that really.

I'm now watching the fantastic Children in Need concert at the Royal Albert Hall on the box, which is enough to put a smile on anyone's face - I think it's absolutely brilliant and have always supported such a worthy charity.

Until next time friends, I will try and not be toooooooooooooo naughty tomorrow (but I can't promise you) lol.

Nearly every week in the Mail Health Pages there is another article on a spinal operation to cure all back pain but everyone that I read seems to be only suitable for people with new spinal injury's and not for people like myself who have had surgery after surgery and back pain for the last 20 + years.

The one in the Mail today was about how a prosthetic neck joint called Prestige ( a surgical wedge) was placed in the spine to replace the bulging disc which in this case was in the patients neck ( same as mine) and although the surgery was still quite big in that they have to cut under your chin to move the windpipe to one side. The devise has undergone rigorous testing in America ( just by way of a change) and it has shown that people are in far less pain after this type of surgery. The surgeon was a Professor Steven Gill at Bristol's Frenchay Hospital.

I'm not frightened of having surgery, I just won't go through with it until I find the right one for me and I know that could take years but its amazing how fast things are advancing in that type of surgery. Deciding which area of my spine to tackle first will be the biggest problem for me as my bulges are in my cervical, thoracic and lumber and some eighteen years ago a top spinal specialist said that he thought the only option would be fusion from top to bottom but my movement would be very limited !!

Of course, the trouble with leaving these sort of decisions can mean that you have other problems to deal with, for instance haemorrhoids, which I'm sure I will not be alone in suffering from this because of the side effect of the pain and other medications you take.

I've already had surgery once for this problem but it was so painful that I said I would never go through that again. But again in the health section of the Mail an article was written a couple of weeks ago on the latest surgery for this type of problem which leaves you with NO pain after surgery - amazing or what.

So, I guess I just have to be a bit more patient and see if they come up with a spinal surgery that is pretty painless as well. You never know miracles do happen.

I feel shattered today after a long day in the car. My back is now playing up something awful but I had to go to see my dentist who is my cousin and he lives in Lancashire which is about 2 hrs from us. I know your thinking I'm mad but he has looked after my teeth for I guess you could say forever, and knows all about my back and neck and what medication I'm on and is so careful with me. But after a long time in the chair then another 2 hour journey home its obvious I would be feeling a bit rough now.

To be honest with you it really took it out of me last week in London and I spent most of Friday and Saturday resting in bed then the sunny weather on Sunday prompted me to go for a long walk so my husband and I went to the woods with out dog. It was truly gorgeous and I managed 45 mins which I was really chuffed with and collapsed in bed when I got home but woke up feeling a lot better.

I've been busy taking my mind off the pain by making my own Christmas cards - the mess everywhere when I make them is always awful as I just drop everything and deal with it at the end but I'm chuffed with the ones I've made. I might have a go at making some mug cozies tonight for a bit of a fun as a present for the kids and their partners for Xmas, but I will wait until the medication has kicked in.

It does really work for me focusing on something else when I'm in pain, but I always have the same problem and that is when to stop, as the bell tends to ring when I've overdone it but hey we only have one life so I've just got to make the most of it.

I love the tv programmes at the moment and will settle in front of the tv with a hot bottle and watch I'm a Celebrity and all the X Factor and Dancing programmes until then come out of my ears. lol So, until another day, take care my online friends.

If only the pain would go away then I could help all my family that need me. I know you will all say its my fault for the pain I am in at the moment but when your family needs you, you just go and deal with it.

After a couple of days with my daughter in London who looks after me like a Queen I am still in a mess with terrible lumber pain today but I am soooooo glad I went. She had a very bad night on Sunday with pain and I will be anxious now until her operation in December but with her partner away on business I decided to go down and stay with her for a couple of days.

London is always the same with anyone and everyone in what seems like a rush to get from a to b and although my daughter carries everything for me and sees me onto the tube, I still find it exhausting.

When I got home yesterday afternoon I just collapsed as I felt so tired and didn't phone my Dad until this morning and now I feel really guilty as he was not impressed that I had not phoned him last night but I just didn't have the energy to even talk.

I feel like I'm being torn from pillar to post and just feel that if only the pain would go away I could help both Dad and my daughter at a time when they both need me so much. I've got the social services assessing Dad again today and am awaiting her phone call to me to tell me how things have gone on but really the only way I can look after Dad is if he came to me for some rest bite, but I just can't seem to convince him of it.

My daughter would never ask for help (she's just like me) but I know when she needs it and being closer to home would be just great but you can't help where you all live. A friend has just sent me an email which I just had to put here as so much of it is so true ............

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The
Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to
90 in August, so here is the column once more:"

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and
parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey
is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God
never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is
up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an
answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't
save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness, but you.
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will
this matter?".
26. Always choose life.
27. Forgive everyone, everything.
28. What other people think of you is none of your business.
29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
31. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
32. Believe in miracles.
33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did
or didn't do.
34. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
35. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
36. Your children get only one childhood.
37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd
grab ours back.
40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
41. The best is yet to come.
42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
43. Yield.
44. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
It's estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will,
forward this with the title '7%'. I'm in the 7%. Remember that I will
always share my spoon with you! Friends are the family that we choose for
ourselves.

I am sure you will all agree. Thank you my online friends for the support you have given me since starting this blog.

I had a terrible night with my back last night but also felt as though everything was hurting. My husband knocked me by accident in bed and I could have screamed but I guess its the weather thats irritating my Fibromyalgia at the moment, so it will settle down again.

I got up and felt so lousy but still had my feeling in my foot and took my usual medications with my first cup of tea then after my shower went for my usual walk with my small dog Bess but I had to turn back after just a short time as I knew I couldn't make it.

One minute my other half saw me struggling behind as he walked ahead to the paper shop and then next minute I'd disappeared !!!! lol

Normally I pick up when I get home as the walk seems to help to kick my endorphines in but today the only thing that kicked in was pain so I just went to bed and slept and slept and slept and got up this afternoon feeling a bit better.

I've sat with my grey toy poodle shaking on my knee tonight as she is so frightened of fire works (bless her) but finally she's settled down. This happens every year and the only trouble is she will refuse the walk in the morning as she thinks another noise is about to come and it usually takes me a few weeks of coaching to get her to enjoy her walk which she normally loves. Its such a shame it has to go on for days and days and I'm out tomorrow night so I will have to leave the radio on loud in the kitchen.

Well that's it for today, I'm off to start a new book ................

I woke up this morning with a surprise !! When I put my foot out of the bed, I could feel it !!! I was soooooo pleased I woke my husband up and sang my heart out when I came down to let the dog out. She thought I'd gone potty but she could be right their !!!!!lol

The numbness has come and gone all day but at least its on the move so I've tried to rest most of the day with the heat pads and will keep doing that for the time being. I've also been searching the internet and found a few new ideas on back pain. One being laser treatment on your nerves and a friend is going to find out the name of someone she had heard of that did it.

I can't tell you how much better I feel today knowing that it is going the right way and realize that resting often just has to be a big part of my life and if I need to go and help my Dad again I will just have to fit in a rest sometime in the afternoon.

I could be quite depressed about it all but its not in my nature to give up and it just spurs me on to get myself right again. I hope I can also help others in a similar situation. Life's short enough as it is and with the access to the world wide web you can learn and find out anything you want to know about your condition. The other advantage are the forums and blogs like mine where you meet other lovely people who will support and keep your chin up when your feeling low. Without this I think everything would be much harder to deal with.

So, thanks all of you for your kind words and opinions on my problem which I hope I am getting to the bottom of.

After reading my comments left from online friends I decided to go and see someone this morning as the numbness was no better and I felt pretty rough.

I went to see a Physiotherapist who has a private practice in our village and she immediately said it was L5 and explained that some people get pain others get pins and needles or numbness but its the first time it has effected my left foot as I get pain all the time in my right foot and down my toe but not my left. The funny thing is that its my left leg that is the weakest.

My Physio has advised me to use heat or ice in the hope that it maybe just inflamed and then it might settle again so that's what I have done today but no change yet. I guess I shall just have to wait and see.

I guess I'm a little bit anxious as any sites on spinal problems say any type of numbness is a "red flag" which means go and get it seen to asap but as my Physio didn't say that I'm being a bit cocky and trying to ignore it !!

I'm having a really bad day today. For the last couple of days I have been experiencing numbness in my left foot which now feels quite strange when I stand on it.

I went for my usual Reflexology treatment and mentioned it to my Reflexologist and she had a good massage and dig with it but I couldn't feel much as it is numb but she did touch some points which were extremely painful and she thinks its coming from my neck.

I came back and had a rest straight away but even though I've taken some more meds I feel awful, in lots of pain and very very sickly and I am now wondering if it could be my balance thats making me feel sick.

I don't feel that I am standing different but you must do if half your foot is numb. My sister wants me to go to the Doc if its no better tomorrow but they won't be able to do anything so I'm just hoping it clears up.

I definitely overdid it last week so it took it out of me but my Dad needed me at the end of the day. It just really frustrates me that I have to suffer like this after just helping him. The pain down my arm is a joke !!!!

Feeling a bit sorry for myself I think - will snap out of it soon when the pain subsides !!!

Well I'm back home again now, so exhausted that I don't know what hurts most. My poor Dad has been to hell and back since Monday and was desperate for some tlc which I think I managed to give him. I just wish I was fit enough to do more.

The operation went well but because of his heart condition they decided against a general but gave him a local then at 11pm asked if he would prefer to go home. As the only other person on the ward was a prisoner surrounded by four guards my Dad opted to go home. They organised a taxi and took him down in a wheelchair but the taxi broke down on the way home and he had to walk the last two blocks after a day without anything to eat or drink ( bless him).

I left early and arrived late morning after getting stuck in a traffic jam and gave both Dad and my step Mum (who has Alzheimer’s) lunch which I’d taken with me. My step mum was really, really confused but I think a lot of it was because she had not been fed while Dad was in hospital as her sister who was looking after her is also suffering from Alzheimer’s!!

I then got my Dad to bed and when my step Mums sister arrived I borrowed her keys to avoid waking my Dad up to go and do some shopping for them. Whilst I was walking round the supermarket my Dad phoned me to ask if I had seen my step Mums sisters keys which I explained to him I had taken to get back in without disturbing him. When I got back I found my Dad feeling worse lying on the bed - my step Mums sister sobbing with her head on the table and my step Mum none the wiser at all that was going on - to say it was chaotic is no joke !!!

What had happened was something that you would read in a good book or see on a tv programme, but not in real life. My step Mums sister thought she had left the keys in the main flats entrance door as she had forgotten I had taken them from her, so she went downstairs to search for them and locked herself out and so could not get back into the flats again. She then had to start ringing the bell to get Dad to open the door but Dad was asleep so my step Mum eventually realised that a bell was ringing and managed to shuffle into Dad to wake him up to open the door for her sister as she has no idea how to open it (It’s a button under a counter).

I eventually got dinner sorted and got them both fed and I could see Dads colour coming back in his cheeks and so I thought I ought to make a move home. By that stage it was around 8pm and I was staying with my son and his partner in a new flat they are renting in the Peak District which was about 30 miles away from my Dad. I arrived about an hour later and after a cuppa and a chat I collapsed in bed and took a ton of meds.

I've went back yesterday and cooked meals until Saturday and listed it all for my Dad and had a long chat with the powers that be to organise rest bite for Dad but he's now saying he's not sure he wants to leave my step Mum, so that’s another problem I need to sort out.

At around 3.0pm yesterday, I could feel myself slipping down and decided I needed to get home to bed but I felt so ill driving back that I had to stop for a sleep in the car and to take some more meds, buy some chocolate and drink a coke to keep me awake.

Today I've been resting but my mind is full of what I need to sort out for Dad - it’s going to take a while for him to recover from this operation and ideally he could come to me to recover if I could organise nursing care to tend to his wound every day. But, my biggest hurdle is persuading Dad that would be the best option.

I am in such a lot of pain today and feel so exhausted that I know I cannot manage to keep popping over to help him but I can’t really think of any other option if he wont come to me.

I was lying in bed this morning watching GMTV and listening to Dr. Hilary explaining that most people with back pain have it bad because they are not using their muscles and just sit around all day. Well I can tell you now I have hardly sat at all of the past two days, apart from in the car and my back pain is terrible. I think people who have not experienced back pain do not understand that we sit or lie down because the pain is so bad when we stand or walk. You should have heard me shouting at the TV – it did me the power of good.

Anyway, I know I’m certainly not alone with these sort of problems but I must admit it did make me think that I don’t think I want to get old, in fact I think I’d like to just stay in my 50’s for the rest of my life lol

Oh ! Gosh what a day !!Just when I thought things were getting a bit better and enjoying my hugs and vibes from my on line friends, then it all went wrong. I was just about to go upstairs for my rest when my mobile phone went and my step Mum who has Alzheimer's, was on the line trying to tell me that Dad had been taken into Hospital - I don't even know how she found my mobile number let alone phone me as she cannot even answer a phone so I just tried to reassure her I would sort it out and get back as soon as I could.

Talk about finding a needle in a haystack - I live in Nottingham and my Dad in Manchester and my sister in Spain and thats our total family. Our respective kids are in Cheshire, London and Spain so you can appreciate how hard it was to find anything out. I knew Dad had been to the Manchester Royal Infirmary before with his Diabetes and had seen someone last week about his abscesses on his back so I tried there first. About an hour and a half later I found out that he had been taken to A & E for emergency surgery on the abscesses but they couldn't get him to the phone and he wouldn't answer his mobile even if I tried to phone him.

I explained that not only did I have Dad to worry about but that the carers with my step Mum would be leaving her and she cannot be on her own but they couldn't help me much and just said Dad had not gone down to surgery and maybe try in half an hour. In desperation I phoned a friend of the family who said she would go to the Hospital and get Dads keys for the flat and go round to sort my step Mum out and fill me in on how Dad was.

By this time it was 5pm and I had still had no word from Dad so I tried the Hosptial again but they could only tell me that he was waiting to be assessed and that they knew he was a diabetic. I did try to ring my step mum but as usual she did not answer.

I can't tell you how fast my heart was beating as I just didn't know which way to turn. My sister would not let me drive over in the dark because of the medication I'd had today and my husband couldn't take me as we are dog minding this week and although the dog we are looking after is ok in the car, out dog gets car sick so it would have just been another thing to worry about.

I decided to hang fire by the phone until I heard from anyone. At 6.30pm my Dad phoned to say he had been admitted and that he was going down for surgery and was having a general anesthetic within the next hour. He was obviously worried about my step mum but I reassured him we had it all sorted.

The trouble is Dad has Melanoma and after he had massive surgery on his chest last year they said he could not have another general anesthetic as his heart stopped twice during that long surgery. I obviously didn't want to worry Dad so after I spoke to him I rang his Doc straight away who reassured me that they will have all his notes and that it is such a short surgery and that it was nothing to worry about. I then started telling him how bad my step Mum is and he was shocked that she had not yet gone into care as it was quite obviously too much for Dad to deal with.

The trouble is that its half Dads fault as he is frightened he will lose his regular carers that know my step Mum very well but he's worn out which I'm sure will have contributed to his low immune at the moment.

I'm now sitting by the phone and will be phoning A & E at 10ish to find out how things went then I plan to get to bed and try and have a good nights sleep as I am going to go over at the crack of dawn to relieve my friend who will have slept in the chair all night. Then hopefully get my step Mum in care and then get my Dad over to me to recover so I thought I'd just put all this time as I may not be here for a while. I'm just hoping that my bag holds out as I just can't deal with that as well at the moment so keep sending your vibes and hugs my way to get through this.