The sad irony of my back pain....

[MonkeyFunk]

A month ago, I seem to have popped a disk in my lower back. It was excruciating for the first week, but has slowly gotten a little better.

I discovered that over-the-counter pain meds did little to help, and even vicodin didn't help the pain. But I did discover a combination that did: Aleve and coffee. Yes, if I keep the aleve going all day, and drink a few cups of coffee, I feel MUCH better.

The problem though is that I can't sleep because of the pain. So I have to drink coffee to alleviate the pain, which means I can't sleep. Plus, even if I do manage to fall asleep through the coffee buzz, I have to pee in two hours! I haven't had more than 3 hours sleep in one sitting in a month now :(

Damn you lower back!

[lightningandsnow]

1. That really, really sucks.

:hug:

[ThomCat]

2. I am very, very, very sorry.

:(

:hug:
There aren't any words that describe exactly how much back pain sucks.

Have you seen a competent pain doctor?

[MonkeyFunk]

6. No

I went to urgent care when it was REALLY bad, and he gave me 4 days worth of vicodin which seemed to have no effect.

The last time I hurt my back, a few years ago, I went to an orthopedist a few times, and she was no help. Gave me a few shots in the spine with naproxen and steroids, but I never felt any better. She didn't give me any pain meds.

[ThomCat]

13. Damn.

As common as back pain is, you would think some doctors would have a clue how to evaluate it and treat it. x(

Physical Therapy might help your type of back pain a lot. It would be nice if you could get to a doctor to evaluate you and send you to a PT place that specializes in back pain.

[MonkeyFunk]

15. Yeah, it would be

but I'm unemployed and without insurance for the time-being.

I had a job interview yesterday - I gained some sympathy by walking through the office all hunched over. I told each person interviewing me "I gotta tell you up front, I've hurt my back really badly, so if I yell out swearwords during the interview, it's probably not because of you."

[PeaceNikki]

3. Decaf doesn't net the same effect? How about half-caff?

Worth a shot... hope it feels better AND you get some sleep!

[MonkeyFunk]

5. I'm wondering about that

cuz I tried taking no-doz pills, thinking it would be easier on my stomach - and it didn't have the same effect. So maybe it's something in the coffee, not just the caffene? :shrug:

[asthmaticeog]

4. Have you tried it with half-regular-half-decaf after lunchtime?

Might that be enough of a buzz-easement to let you get some real rest? Or will it not work without full-test coffee?

And I'm sure damn sorry to hear you're in such pain, MF. I hope that gets taken care of if it doesn't get better. :hug:

[flvegan]

7. Completely unsurprising.

Many studies have been done on the "amplification" of certain types of pain killers via caffeine.

Seriously. I read one not two weeks ago. Wish I had kept the reference. I don't recall if any of them involved back pain, but I do recall one of the downsides being the coming off of caffeine working against the pain-killer (withdrawal type stuff).

Maybe if you could get your caffeine in another format, you at least wouldn't need to pee every couple hours.

Sorry about your lower back. Go see a doc, dammit!

[MonkeyFunk]

9. Yes, I googled it myself

and found some info it. I thought I had made a great new discovery - it really was serendipitous, but then I found that it was already known. Sigh... there goes my Nobel.

[Haole Girl]

8. Try chocolate and Aleve...

That is, frozen chocolate yogurt ...or Yoplait Whips
... w/Ibuprofen


It helps me, a little, anyway.

[Lethe]

10. tried weed?

get an indica medical strain. It will kill the pain and put you to sleep.

[SoxFan]

11. Interesting

About 5 years ago, I had a vicious attack of shingles, a virus that attacks nerves. I had it strike my right optic nerve and the nerves in my ear, and it was excruciating.

The best OTC relief was a combination of Ibuprofen and coffee. The prescription stuff knocked me out cold, but the caffeine + motrin combo really did help.

[MonkeyFunk]

12. I sympathize

I had shingles last summer - got into my left eye. Ugh.

[SoxFan]

17. Check with the eye doctor

You might want to have yuor eye doctor take a look at the affected eye. I had sime scarring on the nerve, but it wasn't serious.

[MonkeyFunk]

19. oh, I did

I had a few visits with the ophthalmalogist. I was given anti-virals and eye drops. They took it very seriously.

[Robeson]

14. I had a couple of ruptured discs in my lower back, and lived on...

...18 aspirin a day for about a year-and-a-half. Eventually, I knew what had to be done. Back surgery was the best thing that ever happened to me. I wouldn't kid, though, the surgery was hell to go through.

Hope you get better...:hug:

[midnight armadillo]

16. My sympathies

I have a compressed disk in my lower back that causes me some trouble from time to time. Ibuprofen and side sleeping helps.

And with no terrible sleeping kids under age 5, I routinely get up 2-5 times a night. Somehow I wonder how I function...zzzz

[MonkeyFunk]

24. I'm getting used to not sleeping, somehow

alas, I can't sleep on my side, which is my usual position. I have to lay flat on my back, with my legs bent off to the side somewhat. And after two hours or so, it starts to hurt like hell and I have to get up.

[SPKrazy]

18. I have 3 discs in my neck that herniated anteriorally

and there is little or no disc fluid left in the discs there. I've found that traction, NSAIDs like Aleve, and Neurontin helped my pain. If I've got a terrible headache from it (which happens about once every 1.5-2 weeks) I will take a Darvocet and I've also found that Excedrin Migraine helps it too (50 mg caffeine per tablet)

One thing to be aware of is that Aleve an NSAID and coffee can bother your stomach after some time so be careful too.

Sorry you are hurting.

Traction is painful but it helps pull the vertebrae apart so that there is less compression on a nerve which is what causes the pain usually.

Neurontin is a medication for seizures and also used for nerve pain that can help sometimes although I wouldn't say it does a hell of a lot for me. It does keep my hands from going numb as much.

[MonkeyFunk]

20. ugh

sorry to hear that.

Boy, back pain is some special kind of pain, isn't it? A few days after it happened, I got myself stuck on the couch, slouched down. I couldn't move. I rolled over onto the floor, thinking I'd be able to lift myself up - no go. I was stuck there for 20 minutes, calling for my bf, who was asleep on the other side of the house.

[tammywammy]

21. I have a bulging disk

L5 S1

You have my sympathy. :hug:

I take darvocet for it when needed. Vicodin makes me feel all weird.

Have you had any steroid injections? When I go in for them, it takes until the second shot for me to feel some relief.

Oh and I love traction. The Rack is the best! :loveya:

[MonkeyFunk]

22. yeah, I suspect that's what I have

dunno which vertebrae it's between, though. But the pain started in my lower back, and now is concentrated in my hip and down my leg, so SOMETHING'S pressing on my sciatic nerve.

I keep thinking traction would feel great.

[tammywammy]

23. It's heaven

I was actually nervous the first time, since they kept laughing and calling it The Rack. But it's really great.

Also, one of the best little things I ever started doing, was sleeping with a pillow either between my knees if I'm on my side or under them if I'm on my back. It really makes a difference for me.

I bought one of these type of pillows. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=14256954&RN=35

[Tektonik]

25. ouch 80 bucks, nonetheless I want a tempur-pedic body pillow

and that's 149.99 :crazy:, thus I'm never getting one 'til I win the lotto :P.

[terrya]

26. You're a better man than I, sir.

A MONTH of lower back pain? I would have been begging someone to just kill me after 2 weeks.

The Aleve and coffee sounds like it helps...but that's just dealing with the pain. I hope that the pain is abated so that you don't have to keep taking the Aleve.

And so you can get a good night's sleep again.

I hope you do feel better...permanently...very soon.

:hug:

[siligut]

27. Try Benadryl for sleep. Sorry about your back pain.

I have to tell you, watch your kidney function. NSAIDS can damage the kidneys. Make sure to drink 8 8oz glasses of water a day. Caffeine is a diuretic; you have to be sure your kidneys have enough water to do their work.

[MonkeyFunk]

30. I don't know if that will help

last week I accidentally took some tylenol PM in the evening - grabbed the wrong bottle.

A couple hours later, I was awake and in pain, but tremendously tired and groggy and I just wanted to sleep so bad, but couldn't. It was awful. So I'm afraid to try any sleep aids, because they won't let me sleep through the pain - they just make me really really sleepy while I"m in pain.

[EstimatedProphet]

28. Have you seen anyone yet?

Back problems are nothing to fool around with...

[MonkeyFunk]

31. I went to urgent care at first - it was a Sunday and I was in agony.

he just gave me a couple days worth of vicodin and flexeril which didn't seem to do much.

[Midlodemocrat]

29. How much Aleve are you taking?

And, be sure to take it with food or milk because it will upset your stomach.

The OTC Aleve is obviously weaker than Naprosyn, so you might be able to up your dose and eliminate a little of the coffee.

And, I'm sorry you're in pain. I have chronic pain from a disease process as well as a whiplash injury 25 years ago, so I completely empathize.

[graywarrior]

32. I have the same issue, but I use a calcium/magnesium supplement

and that relieves the pain. Whole Foods also has electrolyte enhanced drinking water which has calcium, magnesium and potassium in it and that also helps. Go figure.

[MonkeyFunk]

33. really? That's interesting

I'll check that out.

[graywarrior]

34. I think the magnesium helps with the inflammation and relaxes the muscles

around the bone.

[applegrove]

35. Hang in there. I'm sure it will improve.