' slipped ' disc by bike and my pain hell

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tonyinhampshire

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Its times like this that I appreciate being able bodied and not having to plan how to get my socks on or how do i use the bathroom. I guess this has been brewing for a while.

i have had similar back problems caused by my cycle over the last 4 years. the usual set up is I cycle for ten miles or so. the next day I feel pain in the lower lurabar area and it normally clears in a week or so.

Back in May I suffered back pain following a cycle ride and it improved but not fully. Two a weeks ago, i cycled and was alright the next day but the following day I could barely move. this improved over the next few days but the mechanical type pain got worse over the next few days. the situation has somewhat improved slightly over the last few days.

My doctor says take pain killers. I saw a chiroprator who did tests including an x ray which showed a slight kink in the lower spine which to him indicated a damaged disc or pinched nerve. I also have occasional pins and needles in the right foot and apparently the large toe on the right is slightly weaker on resistance tests.

I am 45 years old male and generally feel in reaonable health

Can anyone indentify with this, can you reccomend anything. Should I lay flat on my back for days on end. I am going back to work on Tuesday and am concerned. The pain is only felt on sitting upright or moving. laying flat takes the pain away such as at night


many thanks

tony
 
You probably have a bulging or herniated disc. Conservative treatment is always the first way to go with surgery being the last option.

All the common sense stuff, no lifting, no twisting and for now no bike riding. First see your family doctor and get an mri. A herniated disc is not the end of the world and most do heal and shrink with time. But that is the trouble they do take a lot of time to shrink back.

Patience is demanded as the pain can linger for a very long time. Obviously your back is vunerable to these attacks and you should do everything in your power to avoid stressing it. My daughter took months to get beyond the limping painful stage and took a full year till she could walk on her heels again. She still has residue pain but at this stage it is tolerable and she is fully functional. Surgery has no guarantees and often is successful only in the short term, so be careful.

My brother just had a herniated disc and was off work 8 weeks. He now is back working but of course he still has intermittent pain but not disabling. He knows that as backs goes another "back attack" can happen again.
During those 8 weeks he saw a chiropractor and then switched to "the back institute" which had him see a neurologist who ordered physio. He did his exercises faithfully.

You are getting better however slowly. Surgery should only be considered when symptoms are progressively getting worse. Pins and needles ect are par for the course when you have a herniation. Most patients even when back to fully functional persist in having these symptoms.

So first get a MRI so you know what you are dealing with. Then follow the conservative route and see if you keep getting better. It doesn't sound like you need to pursue surgery at this stage. Two weeks is very early in recovery from herniation. Sitting or driving can bring on pain so I think that if your job involves sitting a lot you should do a rethink on going back so soon. If you can take some more time off you might get better relief. Otherwise make sure that you get up and walk around at intervals so that you are not compressing your lurabar spine. Perhaps you could go in half days. Personally I think that if you have a herniation 2 weeks is way to early to be going back to work.

From my own experience which goes back 50 years and I do mean that long!.....lol Rest is what always helped me the most and overdoing on the exercise put me back in bed again.

I hope this helps. Just my opinion. Good luck and remeraber time is the best healer.
 
I would strongly recommend setting the chiropractor aside for now and find a good neuro or orthopedic doctor. Find out precisely what's going on in there other then a "kink." The doctor will offer conservative treatment first and will help you plan good physical therapy for whatever is wrong but, as the previous poster said, you need an MRI or a CT scan to see what's really going on in there. An x-ray will not give sufficient detail, and with lurabar disc issues, a chiropractor can cause more harm then good.

Good luck!
 
Thank you both very much for your kind advice. It has been about 3 to 4 weeks since the severe and crippling pain started and I have spent vast amounts of time laying on my back. I have not returned to work and intend to take the next week too as sick.

I realise that dragging myself into work will not get me a medal. I have to put my health first because without it i can do nothing and risk everything

I saw my doctor again and she will refer me for physio in the next week or two but not before this.

The pain has improved. I can walk and get my socks on but I am very aware and cautious that the slightest overdoing of something will send me back to square one. I fear that this pain will come back to haunt me now the damage is done.

Many thanks

tony
 
Can I ask any guys here if your back problems have lead to sexual or erectile dysfunction.

Since I had the back spine pain, I have noticed that getting and keeping an erection is more difficult than it used to be before the back problem. I thought perhaps it maybe due to lack of mobility as I have spent the last 3 to 4 weeks on my back for many hours in the day. This in itself is really is psychologically destroying.

On a good note the back pain has improved considerably, the urgency to urinate has also returned to normal

thanks again

tony
 
Thanks once again for your thoughts. I find It very supportive on this site, often saying things I could not say to people I know. I am returning to work next week. I took it upon myself to have 3 weeks as sick as I realised that I wouldnt get a medal for making any effort, besides the pain was just so unbearable.



I went to the chiro today and he did some more spine work. I mention the hypersensitivity in the right foot, like it feels very sensitive to touch but it is not nurab or pins and needles. The chiro said that this is a good sign as it indicates that the nerves are being 'restored'. I did not mention the apparent sexual dysfunction nor have I mentioned it to the GP ( nor have I have been in a position to test the function over the last MOnth due to the pain ). The chiro also said that there is still a mild weakness in resistance tests on the right foot



What I find odd is the back pain has improved no end over the last two weeks so that I only get occasional pain on moving. Then the neurologic symptoms appear after the pain has improved. I dont recall having this neurologic dysfunction during the pain period apart from a strong need to void frequently but even this has returned to normal.



I find it quite concerning, the prolapsed disc is the chiro's diagnosis, my GP just labeled it back pain. Sometimes I wonder if there is another process going on such as a tumor but I think well if that is the case, the pain would not ease but possibly get worse. Do you get my drift, the internet is scarey, you end up thinking all sorts of things,



take care
 
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