Has anybody ever "thrown their back out"?

Baron

Baron

ET Founder
Last Thursday I was moving an executive desk chair into a new room in my house and I had some trouble getting the thing through the doorway. After a couple of attempts, I got pissed and jerked the thing off the ground for the third time to try a new way, and it felt like a bolt of lighting when through my lower back. I did end up getting the chair into the room, but later on that day I could definitely tell I screwed something up.

The next day I installed a new irrigation controller and was walking around the yard checking out each of the zones. One of the zones had a lot of thick bushes and I could hear a sprinkler head running but I couldn't actually see it. So I twisted myself down into the bushes and bent over to check things out. As soon as I leaned back up and tried to unwind myself back out, the same damn thing happened in my back. Only this time, I couldn't do anything for the rest of the day because almost every move I made caused another lightning bolt to shoot through me. Yesterday I laid around doing nothing again because I could hardly move without jolts of pain. Today is a lot better even though I can feel a little twinge when I move certain ways. Looking forward to doing some core exercises tomorrow to tighten my midsection up.

Anybody experienced anything similar?
 
Sure. I am the King of Backthrows.

The very first one happened some 15+ years ago, iceskating. I almost fell, but with a jerky quick movement, I got my balance back, although falling and breaking a hand would have been a better deal. I didn't feel anything, so I went on with my day. The next day I tried to put my boots on and when I leaned forward the PAIN has started.

Long story short, the only time I needed an emergency service to take me to the ER was when I later on decided to visit a chiropractor, and he adjusted me and my probably bulging disc(s). The next day I couldn't move in my bed, because of the familiar lightning bolt pain.

In the following years, I threw my back out 1-2 per year doing the following things:

-playing tennis (really bad for herniated discs, golf too)
-shooting hoops
-lifting something the wrong way
-running up the stairs
-etc.

Once you get a herniated disc, it is much easier to herniate it again in the nearfuture. Although as we get older it is going to get actually better, because of the material bulging is getting harder and more rigid thus less likely to come out. In science Latin:

"A herniated disc (also called a bulged, slipped or ruptured) disc is a fragment of the disc nucleus that is pushed out of the annulus, into the spinal canal through a tear or rupture in the annulus."

So the disc nucleus is getting more and more rigid as we age thus it is harder to get it through a rupture. That was the good news. But as the first rupture happens, further protruding will be easier right away.

The bad news is that although a herniated disc could and will heal on its own, it is going to take months and lots of pain to get there.

I don't lift, but supposedly using the correct form helps a lot to getting back your back. But don't go lifting right away.

TL;DR: Welcome to the Club!
 
If you don't have pain in your legs, it might only be a muscle spasm in the lower back. The symptoms I had for back spasms were intense and sometimes crippling pain in the lower back and being tilted over to one side for a few days. Then all of a sudden, my back would be normal again.

I used to get back spasms several times per year. After using an abdominal wheel exerciser moving halfway to the right and left (not straight ahead), my back spasms have not happened for about three years. So I think this exercise strengthened my back to help me avoid issues.
 
Baron, it could well just be back spasms, as ph1L suggests. They can be very painful and can twist you into a pretzel. Been there, etc. For me they usually go away in a few days. Incidentally, I have found fairly light dead lifts to prevent these spasms.
 
Uh-oh.
If Pek is the king... then I'm gonna be the emperor, pope, Dalai Lama, and the illustrious grand potentate of back pain.
Just go ahead and order one of these now.
https://tinyurl.com/yase5446
I hate to say it, but odds are you're gonna need it on and off in the years to come.
Trust me trust me trust me... its the best $30 you'll ever spend.


Here’s Why People Are Buying These TENS Units To Help Treat Pain
Updated June 4, 2019
Written by: Allison Bowsher
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ph1l said:
If you don't have pain in your legs, it might only be a muscle spasm in the lower back. The symptoms I had for back spasms were intense and sometimes crippling pain in the lower back and being tilted over to one side for a few days. Then all of a sudden, my back would be normal again.
More...

That sounds right to me because I'll just be standing in a certain location not even moving significantly or anything, and then "BAM" out of nowhere I will get this shooting pain and then it goes away almost as fast as it hit. I don't have any pain in my legs at all.

AAAintheBeltway said:
Baron, it could well just be back spasms, as ph1L suggests. They can be very painful and can twist you into a pretzel. Been there, etc. For me they usually go away in a few days.
More...

I'm definitely getting better by the day so hopefully, I will be back on track by tomorrow.

vanzandt said:
I hate to say it, but odds are you're gonna need it on and off in the years to come.
Trust me trust me trust me... its the best $30 you'll ever spend.
More...

I will get one so I can have it handy for times like this.

Thanks for the feedback everyone!
 
Earlier I tried to list all of the occasions when my back went out. Beside the running up the stairs, the strangest one was getting it in Florida while jumping up and down in the waves. You would think that is low impact, but no Sir. It can also happen by sneezing. I was just talking to my SIL and her husband got the backpain while picking up a golf ball...
 
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