Back Problems

[Peter]

Pigletwillie, have you tried orthotic insoles available from Boots or a podiatrist?
Regards, Peter.

[pigletwillie]

I wear them Peter and they help a little, need to get refered really to the orthotics dept for ones made for me.

[andrewo]

Andrewo. In my last post I forgot to say that I didn't vote due to the fact none of the options fitted. Sorry. You seem to want to find very specific answers, as the options are very tight. A poll that wishes to research information needs to be more open.
I'm sorry if this sounds picky, as it is not intended to be that way. I worked in market research for a number of years, so would advise that questions be as open to respondents answers as possible.
To get a larger response to your poll I would have added.
"I sometimes have back pain but none of the above match my experience." This would act as a catch all option to keep 100% of respondents who participate able to cast a vote.
Jax

Are we able to do this? That would be great, I just wanted a thread were we could talk about back pain and the remedies that we use. Some of it may of use to those who have never suffered from it or how to prevent it. For instance, when my disc first went I was diagnosed with sciatica (sure there are similarities, shooting pains down the leg, however, sciatica does not take away all the strength in your leg nor does it push your spine from neutral) and was told to rest. Anyone with disc problems will tell you this is wrong, you have to rest and keep the body moving for me this has meant rigorous low impact exercises, which take the form of the alexander technique, walking, stretching and swimming (now this can take two forms, I actually swim slowly doing the back crawl or I walk, the water resists my body and builds up my muscles). There is the stomach exercises that anyone can do and feel many don't, you can do them behind the car wheel (probably one of the most important places not to slouch), at the bus stop, watching the TV (I do mine whenever the ads come on). All you is tense the muscles in your stomach (you will know if you're doing them right if you are still breathing and by putting your fingers just above the pelvis, you will feel the muscles pull) and rest and tense and rest. You will get a six pack instead of the one keg.

[SueA]

Breaststroke is, according to my physiotherapist, the worst possible swimming stroke for anyone with back problems due to the leg action.

I'll tell my O.H. that Peter-not that he'll take any notice. He finds it comfortable & it's the only stroke he has learnt to do properly.

[JennieAtkinson]

I just find a day of physical exercise, like digging and knocking in fence posts, means I can't walk the next day! and the day after that ..... Just stiff allover really.

Anyone know of any good aromatherapy fusion that would be good to soak in after a day of manual exercise ?

[andrewo]

Rosemary oil is supposed to be good but if stiff, hot bath, tiger balm and make yourself walk the next day, gentle exercise in the morning, stretches etc but don't let it seize up or that's when the trouble starts. Also, you can also use cold packs, it promotes the flow of blood to that area, the more blood you can get flowing towards a damaged part of the body, the more it will repair it. It has become apparent recently that prolapsed discs can regenerate if pressure is taken off them, new gizmos have been trialed in Manchester. I await the news....

[Geordie]

Can we expand this to cover old war wound stories??

[wolf320f]

garden tools to help minimise the pain.

i suffer with Fibromyalgia which means i have pain all the time. ive bought the new style wilkinson sword spade and fork with the bends, oval tube section and large double handed orange grip currently stocked by B&Q at about £20 each.

i have managed to do more digging and toil with less pain than i ever have and as a result my old tools are now redundant. i would recommend these new ones to anyone who suffers give them a try. likewise try the new shape ergonomical rakes that come in many styles now

plus get raised beds thats a great one for saving your back

[fruit&vegvirgin]

maybe this is a drastic answer .... but in response to those with serious disc problems, I had a discectomy (partial removal of the disc) 5 years ago, and after about 20 years of episodes of severe pain, I have not had 1 episode since. the odd twinge yes, but serious pain - NO.

I had to have the discectomy as an emergency, coz the disc burst and put pressure on the spinal nerve (worst case result is paralysis from the disc down). However, the only reason the GP took it seriously enough to tell me to go to hospital was coz I couldnt go to the loo (sorry, TMI!). even then, I had to phone her back to ask for an ambulance as there was no way I could move an inch, let alone sit in a Fiat Punto for half an hour...

the pain went instantly (lovely morphine drip for a week may have had something to do with it!), I had hydrotherapy and some physio afterwards. took it gently for about 6 months, and after a year I would say I was 100%, in fact better than before. I do much more physical work in the garden now than I ever could before.

during the previous 20 years, I had tried physio, acupuncture, osteo, etc etc, all with minor, temporary effect. Pilates I would say is very good, I started it after the discectomy, but cant find anywhere to do it at the moment.

so if anyone suggests considering a discectomy, I would go for it!!
sorry, cant answer the poll coz I dont fit any of the options...
sorry, what a long post!

[WiZeR]

I suffer almost constant back pain. It is my own fault, years of terrible posture and laziness. Even now I am too lazy to exercise, just joined the gym again tho, so fingers crossed!

[fruit&vegvirgin]

ooh no, the gym is the devil's work! you know you can do really easy back exercises at home? the main aim is to increase flexibility and strengthen abdominal muscles (ha ha, I've had 2 kids, my abs have disappeared!!).

[Birdie Wife]

I use a long handle American spade (some know it as a long handle shovel), which has a 4' handle and a smallish shovel-style head. It's brilliant for moving earth around. The long hadle means you get great leverage and the head is suberb for it's purpose. Also, because the head isn't as big as a normal spade, you aren't encouraged to lift more earth than you might be able to manage, consequently it might take a bit longer to shift the same amount of ground but you can keep going for much longer because there's less overall strain. I would thouroughly recommend it!

[JennieAtkinson]

I use a border spade and fork as they are slightly smaller in both height and size of head (being somewhat vertically challenged!). Like you BW it takes longer to shift or dig an area, but at least I don't lift up huge clumps that I can't handle.

[Peter]

How do you garden differently because of ...

Back problems?

Birdie Wife totally agree about the American spade.

Wish someone would do an equivalent fork.

Chillington hoe's would be nice if they had a much longer handle.

Powered digging is a must for me with 20rod, with 1/4 getting spaded-USA each year.

Never-mind no-dig gardening, I try for no-bend no-lift no-heave gardening!

[nick the grief]

I'll tell my O.H. that Peter-not that he'll take any notice. He finds it comfortable & it's the only stroke he has learnt to do properly.

I was just going to write "it depends on the breasts" when I read this Sue, so thought better of it