Arthritis of the spine.

[Tha Ulsterscot]

Be sure it's coming from your back, I suffered for years,couldn't stand for any length of time till sciatica would shoot down my leg and if I stood on for a while the leg would go numb. Always blamed my back and was told I had arthritis in my lower spine. I had to take a shooting stick if I was going anywhere I couldn't get a seat. Eventually my hip gave up and I had a replacement in March, now I can walk about or stand about all day if I have to, and haven't had the pain since. Get your hips checked out, they are replaceable your spine isn't.

 

[Oliveau]

Be sure it's coming from your back, I suffered for years,couldn't stand for any length of time till sciatica would shoot down my leg and if I stood on for a while the leg would go numb. Always blamed my back and was told I had arthritis in my lower spine. I had to take a shooting stick if I was going anywhere I couldn't get a seat. Eventually my hip gave up and I had a replacement in March, now I can walk about or stand about all day if I have to, and haven't had the pain since. Get your hips checked out, they are replaceable your spine isn't.

Yes, that happened to me at 71, but OP is 41 so it’s unlikely to be a hip problem.

 

[traineefarmer]

Pretty certain it isn't my hips. The arthritis was confirmed by MRI and even I could see the missing discs and constriction on my nerves. Also for the hour after the injections while the local anaesthetic was still working was a magical period of absolutely no pain. I just hope the steroids will eventually give me some relief.

For now the pain is slightly worse than prior to the the epidural, but I have been told to not expect any real effect for a couple of weeks.

 

[harrow]

I came back from seeing a consultant last night following an MRI a few weeks ago. He has confirmed the the back and leg pain I have been suffering with for a considerable time now is arthritis in 2 or 3 of my lower vertebra.

I'm 41 and farming has literally worn me out.

I now have to find a way of restructuring a 75 year old family business into something that isn't going to put me in a wheelchair in the next decade. I suspect the animals will have to go as will most of the staff and I may have to become more reliant on contractors for arable. I'm not even sure if a 120ha is viable in the coming future. More diversifications will probably have to be devised and I may have to return to my former career in engineering part time/self employed.

The consultant told me frankly that this is not going away, I will face a lifetime of pain management and "safe" exercise to strengthen and protect my back. NO BENDING. NO DIGGING. NO TWISTING. Farmers have a tendency to grin and bear it and power through pain, but doing exactly that for the past through years has put me in this position.

Are any of you guys/gals facing a similar dilemma? Any advise that you can offer me?

This is a normal thing that happens to us, BUT its important to keep moving as much as possible otherwise thing will get worse.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

I came back from seeing a consultant last night following an MRI a few weeks ago. He has confirmed the the back and leg pain I have been suffering with for a considerable time now is arthritis in 2 or 3 of my lower vertebra.

I'm 41 and farming has literally worn me out.

I now have to find a way of restructuring a 75 year old family business into something that isn't going to put me in a wheelchair in the next decade. I suspect the animals will have to go as will most of the staff and I may have to become more reliant on contractors for arable. I'm not even sure if a 120ha is viable in the coming future. More diversifications will probably have to be devised and I may have to return to my former career in engineering part time/self employed.

The consultant told me frankly that this is not going away, I will face a lifetime of pain management and "safe" exercise to strengthen and protect my back. NO BENDING. NO DIGGING. NO TWISTING. Farmers have a tendency to grin and bear it and power through pain, but doing exactly that for the past through years has put me in this position.

Are any of you guys/gals facing a similar dilemma? Any advise that you can offer me?

Please see an Alexander Technique teacher

Home | The Definitive Guide to the Alexander Technique

alexandertechnique.co.uk

F M Alexander was an actor last century, who lost his voice while acting, he found it was the way he "used" his body, while on stage. He created a technique for using the body, that saved his voice, but also is so useful that it can help all sorts of body problems. It is very hard work, involves about 30 lessons one to one and a lot of thinking, but one can re educate your use, to improve a lot of body problems.

I had lessons with a teacher who's husband was a painter (artist), his neck became so bad, he could not lay down and had to sleep in a chair, with lessons and a lot of work, he relearned how to paint without causing his neck problems and got better.

Also read that Aldoux Huxley, had such a bad back, he had to write on his type writer in bed, after lessons his body vastly improved.

There are very good teachers all over the country.

Alexander technique is well known for actors/musicians (as their bodies are their tools for their trade) and is often taught in music/acting schools.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

Everyone has different advice and you need to find what works for you.

I was disabled by back pain aged 35. I couldn't lift my newborn son out if his cot and was heavily drugged up.

Me experience was that chiropractors and osteopaths were happy to take my money week in week out (for about the 5 years prior) but no real long term advice, other than come back next week and give me another £50 please. I dread to think how much I spent.

I finally found a physio who helped me get to a point where I could ditch the cocktail of drugs I needed to get through a day.

He said he had done all he can and I needed to to do regular exercise to strengthen and maintain my core and back muscles.

Long story short, I no longer take any drugs for my back. It stull hurts all the time and there are certain things I shouldnt do (little bales, running, digging holes etc) Thats not to say I never do anything I shouldn't but I pay for it with interest!

I would recommend finding a good PT for 121 sessions to focus on your specific issues and learning how to tailer excercise to your body and its problem. I continue to see one every week and am doing things I honestly never thought I would be able to. Its also good for a change of scenery, someone different to talk to and a mental health boost, so for me its great value.

One thing I was told when I asked about back braces was that they can actually be unhelpful as you dont engage your muscles because you rely on the brace so it can contribute to weakening you in the place you need to build strength......

As said everyone has a different experience and advice and this is what worked for me.

Best of luck, hope you find the best solution for you sooner rather than later!

personally, I think a lot of Chiropractors are nothing more than "quacks", who try probably out of awareness to make their clients into people who need to come back again and again (and pay and pay), rather than helping cure and create autonomous healthy individuals.

 

[Chasingmytail]

Cervical spondylitis with Osteophytes here. Nothing to do with work. Been plagued with lower skull headaches, mini shocks for a while now. MRI concluded but the issue seems to be the osteophytes which are tiny spurs which must be touching the nerves. I have started on Pregabalin so I am spaced out. I tried Amitriptyline but too sedating.

 

[poter]

My mom consult a chiropractor for arthritis and she's pretty much doing well but she still experiences some pain.

 

[traineefarmer]

An update on my progress. The steroid epidural was a bit of a fail. It helped with some buttock pain which made sitting down more comfortable, but did very little to ease day to day movement and activities.

My consultant suggested that I try ryzolosis, which involves destroying the nerves that send pain signals from my arthritic facet joints. This sounds extreme by I was assured it was very low risk.

I had this proceedure a fortnight ago and have finished my resting/recovery period and it seems to have worked. I am more upright and can walk without pain. I still have to be very careful as bending/twisting and carrying too much weight can trigger a sciatica attack which can lay me up for hours.

Hopefully being able to move around better and in less pain will also allow me to lose the excessive weight that I have gained, which will in turn help me further.

Still not sure how to keep farming with the limited mobility though.

 

[ollie989898]

I reckon a lot of farmers would benefit from pilates- very gentle movements that strengthen your core and back, making sure everything is worked gently and properly. The trouble is that a lot of what you guys do day to day will be arms and chest. I probably should be investigating pilates too in all honesty.

Back pain pilates video workout

A pilates home video workout for people with back pain from the NHS Fitness Studio, where you can find a range of workout routines to suit you, whether your aim is to lose weight, improve your overall fitness, or de-stress.

www.nhs.uk