On leave to get car and house set up for moving from Italy before putting back to sea one final time…knew better but under-load, made a twist and then heard what sounded like a crumpling aluminum can where my spine joins my butt.

No problem laying flat but mostly unable to walk without looking 105 or stand straight! Think i am heading to the medical professionals tomorrow if no progress. Never heard or felt that sound before…
Fortunately my team is awesome but the timing can’t be worse— Y’all be Safe out there!

Back and leg pain or just back? Waiting to see what your docs say. Diminished mobility really sucks, get well!

quote:

Originally posted by KP93:
...knew better but under-load, made a twist and then heard what sounded like a crumpling aluminum can where my spine joins my butt.

Yikes!

That doesn't sound good I'd be wanting to get that MRI'd sooner, rather than later.

Trip to a good chiropractor.

^^^^^
I think he should be careful NOT to trip.

I was just a young adult when all of a sudden, a sharp searing pain was in my back area. I could not move and had to wait for some moments before the pain went away. Thankfully, that has not happened since; not that I haven't had a sore back from leaning over or such. But that experience made me empathetic to anyone with back pain.

Well…just remember the motto of the V.A:

“Not Service Related”.

Hope you heal well; thank you for serving!

Prayers for you. A messed up back is absolutely no fun and can be extremely painful. Hopefully a chiropractor can help you out. Back surgery didn't really fix my problem. What has helped me the most is exercising and doing yoga type stretches to keep my mobility and things in check.

My back problems started in January 2020 when I woke up fine one afternoon, was a bit sore and stiff an hour later, and ended up confined to my floor by dinner. It wasn't better the next day, so I made my first trip to the chiropractor in extreme pain. I think I went three times that week and it slowly got better. I think I was off a little over a month.

I reinjured it three more times that year; one was a mystery, one was a very benign lift, and the last one was a dumb lift I shouldn't have attempted. It did not get better after the third time. I finally had an MRI done and a "protruding" disc at L5S1 was diagnosed. A spinal injection was recommended. I didn't do it. Back got worse and probably six months later I had the injection. The injection offered minimal relief. By the time I had the injection done I could not stand for more than a few minutes without leaning on something or squatting down and I walked with a limp.

I finally blew it out real good in late 2021. Missed a bunch more work. Chiropractor offered very limited relief. Went and had another MRI and the surgeon described a "huge" herniation at L5S1 and recommended surgery, which I immediately scheduled. Surgery provided virtually instant relief. The week I was supposed to go back to work on light duty, it happened again. No idea how. Far worse than the last time and I was basically confined to my couch and bed. Standing long enough to shower was so painful it left me in tears. Third MRI and now the herniation is "massive." I've seen enough adult film to understand the relative scale of "huge" as compared to "massive." Second surgery about six weeks after the first.

Knock on wood, it's been over a year and although I'm left with arthritis in my lower back, it has not rehertiated. Overall my quality of life is far better post surgery. I still see the chiropractor sometimes and I take NSAIDs and Tylenol as needed for pain.

The moral of my story I guess is that you should probably consult both an orthopedic doctor and a chiropractor. They both have part of the puzzle and neither are going to be 100% effective. I occasionally ponder if having the steroid injection when my disc was merely protruding would have saved me some of this trouble, but we'll never know.

Prior to this all happening I had never had any back trouble despite 17 years (now almost 20) of pushing a patrol car.

I had the same problem and surgery DaBigBr had well over 20 years ago. L4 and L5. Best thing I never did. A chiropractor helped a little as did the steroid injections but at the end of the day, nothing helped me and was as permanent as much as the surgery was. I have been pain free since and can do anything anyone else can do.

You might want to see a physiatrist.

Get some PT setup and make sure it’s annotated in your med records.

I wish I had people that actually gave a shit when I was in. My back is ruined. 2 weeks from now will be my second procedure for facet injections. 12 needles in all.

quote:

Originally posted by KP93:
On leave to get car and house set up for moving from Italy before putting back to sea one final time…knew better but under-load, made a twist and then heard what sounded like a crumpling aluminum can where my spine joins my butt.

No problem laying flat but mostly unable to walk without looking 105 or stand straight! Think i am heading to the medical professionals tomorrow if no progress. Never heard or felt that sound before…
Fortunately my team is awesome but the timing can’t be worse— Y’all be Safe out there!

Been there done that!

Dry needling fixes me pretty quick.

You have my attention…..

Please explain more about this and your experiences, if you wouldn’t mind, please and thank you!

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
Been there done that!

Dry needling fixes me pretty quick.

If you have ever used a TENS unit it feels like that but subcutaneously.
They take what look like acupuncture needles and put maybe 6, I have never actually counted, in and around the area of pain and they send electric pulses through them.
It’s a weird feeling at first but becomes very rhythmic and soothing. My sessions are usually 12-15 minutes. I have only had 2 back spells pretty much as the OP described. 2 days of muscle manipulation, stretching, and a heated roller table, then the 3rd day get dry needled, and I am back to full movement with no pain just tightness.
Then I use the TENS unit at home twice a day till I am back to normal.
Last week was my second bout of this and it was really bad actually had to take a couple days off work just to be on the safe side.
I am getting up and stretching every morning now and walking 1-2 miles. Once I am fully better going to work on more exercises to strengthen by back.

My Chiropractor does my Dry Needling.

Thank you very much! I will be talking to my doc at my next appointment which is in about a week.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
If you have ever used a TENS unit it feels like that but subcutaneously.
They take what look like acupuncture needles and put maybe 6, I have never actually counted, in and around the area of pain and they send electric pulses through them.
It’s a weird feeling at first but becomes very rhythmic and soothing. My sessions are usually 12-15 minutes. I have only had 2 back spells pretty much as the OP described. 2 days of muscle manipulation, stretching, and a heated roller table, then the 3rd day get dry needled, and I am back to full movement with no pain just tightness.
Then I use the TENS unit at home twice a day till I am back to normal.
Last week was my second bout of this and it was really bad actually had to take a couple days off work just to be on the safe side.
I am getting up and stretching every morning now and walking 1-2 miles. Once I am fully better going to work on more exercises to strengthen by back.

My Chiropractor does my Dry Needling.
[FLASH_VIDEO]<iframe frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dI6OOxBUJUU" width="560"></iframe>[/FLASH_VIDEO]

Understand that everyone’s pain and back issues are different. Had issues for a while then my wife bought me an inversion chair. Teeter inversion chair. Fixes me right up and you can hand and hear the vertebrae release the pressure. Good luck with your back…

I lifted something in a very ill-advised way, maybe forty years ago or so, and ended up with sciatica. It's occasionally come back. For the most part: Providing I stretch (hamstrings) and do minimal ab work, it stays away. (Though about twenty years ago or so, I did it again <smh>.)

This is one reason why I've worked out pretty regularly since 2005, and why, now, the core of my workouts are compound exercises that stress the entire posterior chain and the core: Squats, front squats, deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, (vertical) presses, and rows. Mostly performed with barbells or dumbbells.

A strong back is more resistant to injury than a weak one

True. Very true.

I will be investing in one as soon as I have the funds.

quote:

Originally posted by smittydog:
Understand that everyone’s pain and back issues are different. Had issues for a while then my wife bought me an inversion chair. Teeter inversion chair. Fixes me right up and you can hand and hear the vertebrae release the pressure. Good luck with your back…