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[infopri]

I have had severe back problems (at one point unable to move for 36 hours), and I have found one of these to be very useful. The can be bought from the Back Shop in Palo Alto (who do mail order).
I use it on the office chair, the sofa, it's really made a difference.

Has anyone looked at the PDF link on that page?  I love where it announces, in big capital letters, "IDEAL FOR LADY DRIVERS--where better vision, plus greater comfort promotes [sic] a sense of security."

[bacardiandlime]

LOL - I hadn't actually seen the pdf! But I can vouch for the product being very useful. (Not so sure about the 'security for lady drivers bit... but it's useful for back problems)

[bms2000]

I have the best of both worlds. Lower back pain due to a herniated disk suffered about 10 years ago, that is still a weak point. Upper back, shoulder and neck pain due to endless grading sessions. I've had PT so many times it isn't funny, and I've been on and off Flexeril for years too. Wish I had some great solution, but alas, I just have the aforementioned back pain. Student assignments are hazardous to your health.

[tolerantly]

(bread_pirate, many years ago when I had disabling back problems, I used to run into people who talked like you do.  I was always tempted to invest in a pair of steel-toed boots, and kick such people hard in the shins, then encourage them to let go of their anger, which was the real source of their pain.)

I'm sorry to hear about the misery.  Fractures are a dicey thing -- have you also had a bone density scan? 

Often the pain-o-genesis isn't so much the fracture itself as it is the physiological reaction -- the inflammation and muscle rigidity that follow.  It's possible that if you can keep those down, you'll have less pain.  If bone density isn't an issue, have you been put on a short prednisone dose yet?  You can also go for the general anaesthetic -- low-dose tricyclics.  They do indeed blunt the perception of pain, though I found they also interfered with speed & sharpness word retrieval.  Not enough to matter in most work, but bad news for a writer.  Who knows who this works for, but I also found that doing pilates regularly helped quite a bit.  (As it turned out I didn't have fractures or chips; they were suspected but didn't show up on images.)

I haven't had serious trouble with the back in several years now, but I still write at a stand-up desk and avoid long spells of sitting as a routine thing.  I also found that even a few extra pounds -- literally, like 3 or 4 pounds -- make a big difference in load on the spine & posture.  And I still use a driver's-seat cushion, basically a memory-foam wedge a couple inches thick at the top.  It's comfortable, and it really does help me see better.  Agree completely with the "do what feels good" traction/stretching/pt advice, too.

Other back toys I wound up with, all useful at one time or another: the Sacro Wedgy, the  hooky cane thing with the knobs so you can do your own back massage, heating pads, ice packs...if they feel good, use 'em. 

I also more or less refused to sit in pain and make things worse.  During classes, meetings, work, if my back had had enough, I stood up, lay down on the floor, or did whatever I needed to do to take care of it.  There's a lot to be gained by cultivating a reputation as a benign eccentric.

[veleda]

Chronic back pain is so exhausting, isn't it? Doing the exercises that your PT recommends is absolutely essential. On a daily basis, depending on the exercise. Most people stop exercising when they start to feel better but core exercises are really important in maintaining the benefits of PT,chiropractic adjustments and acupuncture. I have had several clients over the past few years who are almost completely pain free because they're so diligent about their exercises.

Have you tried using a gym ball? There are some good back exercises to do on the ball, but simply lying supine on the ball and moving into a position that feels good on your back can work wonders. It allows you to extend your back with support and counteract the compression caused by all the forward flexion we do throughout the day.

Hope you get some relief.

[infopri]

Chronic back pain is so exhausting, isn't it? Doing the exercises that your PT recommends is absolutely essential. On a daily basis, depending on the exercise. Most people stop exercising when they start to feel better but core exercises are really important in maintaining the benefits of PT,chiropractic adjustments and acupuncture. I have had several clients over the past few years who are almost completely pain free because they're so diligent about their exercises.

Have you tried using a gym ball? There are some good back exercises to do on the ball, but simply lying supine on the ball and moving into a position that feels good on your back can work wonders. It allows you to extend your back with support and counteract the compression caused by all the forward flexion we do throughout the day.

Hope you get some relief.

Today was my final PT appointment.  I think it may actually be helping (unlike prior PT cycles), because I think this therapist, unlike the prior ones, actually understands what's wrong and how to strengthen the necessary muscles.  You're right that it takes real will power to continue doing the exercises on my own (mostly because they take up so much time!), but I'm going to try to keep them up.

I've always thought those big balls looked great, for the very reason you describe.  Maybe I'll get one, one of these days.

[born2late]

I had a pretty bad spout of back pain yesterday. We were going to visit a family member on New Year's day and had rented a car. It was a model I'd never driven before and the seat was kind of odd. We got out to go into a store and one whole side of my lower back just seized up. It was bad enough that I could barely walk. Some heat a a flexiril made it all go away. To think that my back started hurting because I was driving a Kia.

[bread_pirate_naan]

(bread_pirate, many years ago when I had disabling back problems, I used to run into people who talked like you do.  I was always tempted to invest in a pair of steel-toed boots, and kick such people hard in the shins, then encourage them to let go of their anger, which was the real source of their pain.)

I don't suffer from back pain. Never have. 

People like you encourage me to learn more about variances in mental health.

[bread_pirate_naan]

(bread_pirate, many years ago when I had disabling back problems, I used to run into people who talked like you do.  I was always tempted to invest in a pair of steel-toed boots, and kick such people hard in the shins, then encourage them to let go of their anger, which was the real source of their pain.)

I don't suffer from back pain. Never have. 

People like you encourage me to learn more about variances in mental health.

Just to follow up, I'm pretty certain no one ever suggested that all back pain is caused by emotional problems. 

It is pretty easy to see how chronic pain can be contribute to emotional problems.

They are occasionally "co-morbid" conditions. 

Best wishes and a pain minimized new year to everyone, even those prone to violent fantasies.