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Back pain......just venting.......

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Posted 9/6/2010 2:33 AM (GMT 0)
Anyone else have a (chronic?) back problem? My L4 and L5 are sacralized to my sacrum and I have known this for years. Once every year or so, I end up with such severe back pain that I am completely disabled for days. This time around, I saw two different doctors in the ER on the same day (I work at a hospital and had to work a full shift that day) and the second doctor I saw looked at all of my xrays and ct reports over the last few years. He said that my back is getting significantly worse very quickly for someone my age and he wants to know why. I was in so much pain that I barely listened to him. Now I wish that I had........He prescribed Oxycocet to get me through the worst of the pain and I am taking this along with Naproxen and Robaxin. This is BARELY taking the edge off of the pain. He has asked me to go for another ct scan to see if it has gotten worse over the last year and he is also sending me out for a bone density scan because of my prednisone use. Not too concerned about bone density since I do lift weights at least twice a week. I am just wondering if my back problem is in some way related to UC..........

Feeling pretty sorry for myself these days and it sucks. Not like me to lay around moping. And, to top it all off, I am now constipated from the Oxy! LOL. I am getting up every hour and making myself walk and do some stretching even though at times I feel like I am going to black out from the pain because I know that being immobile is not good for backs........
Posted 9/6/2010 2:40 AM (GMT 0)
Wait, I thought we could not take Naproxen with UC. That it would increase chance of a flare.

YES, I have had the lower back issues for years now too. The only improvement I've noticed is an aggressive PT program (MedX) that focuses on strengthening the entire spine. Another thing that has really helped is taking Amitriptyline - seems to lessen the pain overall. Not just lower back, but SI joint pain too.
Posted 9/6/2010 2:45 AM (GMT 0)
Yes, Naproxen can increase the chance of a flare but I need an anti inflammatory pretty badly right now. And I am taking it with food. This is short term use just to get me through the worst of it.

What is worrisome to me is that I do work out quite faithfully and have a core program designed specifically for my back and I still end up with these "flares". I can go for over a year with no problems and then all of a sudden "Whamo"! Nothing specific that I can think of to set it off.
Posted 9/6/2010 2:49 AM (GMT 0)
I have awful upper back pain. It's probably not as bad as yours because I've managed to live without painkillers. I would like to see someone about it but I don't really want to take any more drugs so I don't bother. Have you tried working with a chiropracter? I've never been to one. I am curious but I've heard good and bad feedback and I don't particularly like being touched by strangers.
Posted 9/6/2010 3:54 AM (GMT 0)
I found the most amazing chiropractor! He does NOT manipulate my back at all. He helps me with exercises when the pain is so bad that I can't get the muscles to engage. I love him. Unfortunately, he only comes to town once a week on Thursdays. This happened on Friday morning. I have tried everything in the past from physiotherapy, acupunture, massage, pilates (NOT GOOD), swimming, heat, ice, you name, it, I've done it. I've even been to Sports Medicine Specialists. I try not to take pain killers as a rule but when it's this bad, I have no choice. The pain is so bad at times that I can barely breathe and my husband has to help me move and remind me to breathe.

I know that the sacaralization used to be just on one side but now it is bilateral. I just don't know why it is getting worse.........
Posted 9/6/2010 7:52 AM (GMT 0)
Hi...
Have you been to a pain clinic?

Just to let you know that the Aza can cause nerve pain...has it gotten worse for you since taking it?

I feel for you, because when my back has been bad..it's difficult to even wipe myself.

Can wearing a back support help somewhat?

q
Posted 9/6/2010 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
No I haven't been to a pain clinic but I have thought about it at times. I am in some amount of pain every day but I have learned to live with it. It's this excruciating pain that I can't handle. I am trying everything that has worked in the past and nothing is helping. Unfortunately, a back support doesn't help.

I can relate to the "can't even wipe myself" because that is where I am every time my back goes. Thank goodness for wet wipes. Although, I have been constipated for two days now so that isn't an issue lately........

This is the first time since Feb 09 that my back has been this bad. It is definitely worse this time around but I don't know that it is the Aza......

I am so screwed........I go back to work tomorrow and I can barely function..........
Posted 9/7/2010 3:32 AM (GMT 0)
OMG...to be going back to work with the pain you're in would be excruciating.

Have you been to a spine clinic if there is one in your local hospital? We have one in Winnipeg at the Health Sciences Centre. Is there a possibility that surgery will help?

Have you had an MRI done? If your back is getting worse, then maybe fusion of the ones above would be good to stablise that area?

I use Robaxacet every morning and see a chiropractor... I've had back problems since I was a kid. My problems are basically osteo.

Have you had a myelogram done? If there's nerve impingement because of muscles or something like that, maybe it can be helped. The other options are nerve blocks?

You still should look into the imuran as a possibility...I have a friend who basically couldn't walk because of the pain....and yes, she has back problems, but the imuran created a worse problem.

I hope you have some edge of relief tomorrow.

q
Posted 9/7/2010 12:24 PM (GMT 0)
I'm sorry you are in so much pain. I too have always had back/neck issues. I know what it's like to have these painful "flares". I take Celebrex to help me deal with my issues but I have had to stop taking it due to my recent flare. It was increasing my bleeding and boy am I feeling it now! I haven't taken it for 5 days and I can barely move. I can't take any narcotic pain relievers that contain even a trace of codeine so I'm in between a rock and a hard place when it comes to my pain.

I don't know if it's related to Uc but I would tend to think that it might be more mechanical in nature maybe complicated by medications. Have you ever visited a neurologist?
Posted 9/7/2010 5:27 PM (GMT 0)
I'm so sorry, I've had back pain and it stops you in your tracks!

I am way better now but still stiff and I wait until there are many, many things dropped on the floor before I'll go down to pick them up. I also do strength training and think golf actually helps, keeps me loose.

I used all the remedies: chiropractors (the old chinese guys are best, the young jocks are useless), drugs, shots, physical therapy and myofascial release. ICE, not heat!!

I recommend the myofascial release, it works really well and feels good too. Find a massage therapist who has had good training. But I don't know if it will help your particular issue.
I also learned a great move from the physican therapist to "un-jam" my hip, which was causing my back to spasm. It helps a lot when I feel my back trying to spasm.

Again, ICE not heat!!

Good luck
Posted 9/7/2010 9:25 PM (GMT 0)
I messed my back up 5 years before I was diagnosed with UC. Severe sciatica in my left leg and I still don't have detectable reflexes in that leg. I was told to take Oxcodone, robaxin, and 8 naproxen tabs per day. I stopped the Oxcodone after 3 months. It was a life saver. I kept taking Robaxin for a few months more but I don't think it did anthing. I cut back Naproxen but kept taking it for years. Stopped because I started worrying about it's long term effects and used ice and hot packs only. It really wasn't doing anything for me.

I highly suspect that all NSAIDS are bad for UCers. I only take asprin if I think my head is going to burst or I have a fever. Back exercises and knowing when to quit and activity is very important. So is getting your weight down as much as possible.

If Oxycodone(same thing as Oxycocet) isn't working, something is really wrong. That is an extremely strong drug. I could not walk across the room or sleep without it. With it I could walk miles and sleep all night. Going to the bathroom? I stopped eating

There is a reactive/or inflammatory arthritis related to UC. You could also have a badly squashed disc that needs surgery. I don't know about the prednisone. I know a few guys that had a micro-discecotomy and got amazing results. I would be very cautious about fusions or other radical back surgeries.
Posted 9/7/2010 9:27 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you all for your replies. It's nice to know that others can relate.  I am in hour 6 at work today and am coping.  Had to break down and take the Oxy earlier because there was no way that I could have made it through an hour let alone 8+. 

I am doing much better today that's for sure.  I can now almost stand up straight and I can walk without wanting to throw up from the pain.  Yesterday I was able to walk about 500m and I did some of my back exercises.  Laying around isn't good for the muscles that's for sure. 

I alternated heat and ice all weekend and right at this moment, I am sitting with a nice heat pack from the physiotherapist to stop my muscles from going into the "protective mode" and making things worse. 

Unfortunately, Quincy, I live in a remote rural area and the nearest large center with any kind of pain or specialty clinics is a 3.5-4 hour drive away and it takes MONTHS to get in.  I have never had an MRI, only xrays and CT scans.  Was kind of wondering about asking one of the many docs here if I could have an MRI instead as they seem a bit better as far as diagnostics go. 

Red_34 ~ I saw a neurologist years ago when my back problem was in its beginning stages.  There was nothing that they could help me with.  Although, now that it has been progressing, who knows? 

For now, I am just gritting my teeth and mustering through.  Hopefully it won't last much longer. 

Thank goodness I have such a great husband to cook, clean, shop, and even lift me off of the floor when I am stuck.  Will be screwed when he heads back up North for work at the end of the week..........

Posted 9/7/2010 10:31 PM (GMT 0)
Gosh, I'm sorry.... you'll be in my thoughts. As my long-time PCP once said, backs just aren't designed very well.
I've had lower back pain on and off - it seems to flare and go away, like other things in life (!). My first hint at something was when I went for a bone density 2 years ago and the tech looked at my xrays and gasped and said, "WOW!! Does your back hurt a lot?!" (It's never comforting when the tech gasps!! lol) Then when I first went to see an orthopedist about the hip replacement, he looked at my xrays and said, "Well, your spine is no picnic either...."
I know NSAIDS make me flare. I'll take one or two aspirin a year for a horrible headache, but otherwise, it's tylenol, heat, ice, stretches, chiropracter.I've been on percocet on and off and Ryzolt, a 24-hour time-release tramadol, which helps a lot and seems not to affect my UC. But...... it's just tough.
Hang in there!
Posted 9/8/2010 2:38 PM (GMT 0)
I had an MRI and am glad I did, to know exactly what was wrong and what wasn't wrong.
(I had a few slightly bulging discs, it was not too serious but still was causing a chain of problems that resulted in the spasms).

My bone density is good. I know I shouldn't take it, but Aleve works best for me, better than oxycodone which didn't seem to help me at all.
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