Health Activists' favorites - lower back pain products
The causes for lower back pain are as numerous as the people who suffer from it.
As Health Activists, what products for chronic back pain have you found or heard of as effective? What are your personal favorites?
I have always been a prevention nut, preferring to keep my back strong by staying fit. However, after a fractured sacrum and then a fall some 18 yrs ago, the damage has been done. I also have spurring on many vertebrae, spondylolisthesis, herniated discs, degenerated discs, and osteoporosis. Mild scoliosis and very mild spina bifida complicate the picture. Add to the mix a connective tissue disease and inflammation, and well, the pain can get pretty bad at times.
I was urged to have surgery after my fall, but chose not to. Instead I underwent chiropractic and osteopathic treatments for my situation.
The treatment took years, but one of the most helpful things I did was a technique called Flexion and Distraction, which utilizes a special table called a Cox table. The object of the game is to decompress the vertebrae. While some patients do okay with simple inversion tables to create traction, this was not an option in my case. There's no doubt that Flexion and Distraction in the Cox table helped me avoid an unwanted surgical procedure.
I have used various back braces when suffering acute pain, but although these do help me to feel better temporarily by supporting me, using them for long periods of time can actually cause more of a problem because it allows the muscles to weaken and atrophy.
One of my osteopaths prescribed tiny lifts for my right shoe because that leg is slightly shorter than my left. This did relieve some of the stress on my hips and lower back, and moving became somewhat easier.
When I became unable to do much exercise recently, my back became incrementally worse. Strength and fitness really is the key to spinal health! I can't do anything about my current exercise problems, but the issues I have with posture as a result of my weakened condition can be dealt with. I've always been told I have good posture (a result of my athletic history and the necessity of good posture when riding horses), but as the pain increases, the posture is deteriorating quickly. Because of my struggle with osteoporosis, I became afraid the changes might become permanent. I want to nip this in the bud as quickly as possible, so I went out on a limb. Because I spend hours sitting while working on the computer or riding in the car, I ordered a Back Joy. I want to give it a couple weeks trial, then will write a review here in Chronic Pain/my blog. Have you or one of your community members used a Back Joy? What was your experience with it?
In the interest of pain relief, I also went out on another limb and ordered a new memory foam mattress, which I hope to review here soon as well. The mattress took a somewhat scenic route to my home, but arrived yesterday and sets in my daughter's room awaiting its unpacking. The fact I ordered a memory foam mattress isn't itself too interesting, but times are tough, and the fact that I ordered it for a fraction of the regular price from an online company called BedInABox is. Will the mattress be the quality I expect? Will it help my back to heal? Will it help my chronic pain issues? Will it bother my chemical sensitivities or my autoimmunity issues? Time will tell, but I'll be sure and let you know soon when I write a review of this product as well!
Have you had good or bad results from any of these products that you'd like to share? What are your favorite back pain products? What products are your groups discussing - the good, the bad and the ugly. Tell us about them all here!
As Health Activists, what products for chronic back pain have you found or heard of as effective? What are your personal favorites?
I have always been a prevention nut, preferring to keep my back strong by staying fit. However, after a fractured sacrum and then a fall some 18 yrs ago, the damage has been done. I also have spurring on many vertebrae, spondylolisthesis, herniated discs, degenerated discs, and osteoporosis. Mild scoliosis and very mild spina bifida complicate the picture. Add to the mix a connective tissue disease and inflammation, and well, the pain can get pretty bad at times.
I was urged to have surgery after my fall, but chose not to. Instead I underwent chiropractic and osteopathic treatments for my situation.
The treatment took years, but one of the most helpful things I did was a technique called Flexion and Distraction, which utilizes a special table called a Cox table. The object of the game is to decompress the vertebrae. While some patients do okay with simple inversion tables to create traction, this was not an option in my case. There's no doubt that Flexion and Distraction in the Cox table helped me avoid an unwanted surgical procedure.
I have used various back braces when suffering acute pain, but although these do help me to feel better temporarily by supporting me, using them for long periods of time can actually cause more of a problem because it allows the muscles to weaken and atrophy.
One of my osteopaths prescribed tiny lifts for my right shoe because that leg is slightly shorter than my left. This did relieve some of the stress on my hips and lower back, and moving became somewhat easier.
When I became unable to do much exercise recently, my back became incrementally worse. Strength and fitness really is the key to spinal health! I can't do anything about my current exercise problems, but the issues I have with posture as a result of my weakened condition can be dealt with. I've always been told I have good posture (a result of my athletic history and the necessity of good posture when riding horses), but as the pain increases, the posture is deteriorating quickly. Because of my struggle with osteoporosis, I became afraid the changes might become permanent. I want to nip this in the bud as quickly as possible, so I went out on a limb. Because I spend hours sitting while working on the computer or riding in the car, I ordered a Back Joy. I want to give it a couple weeks trial, then will write a review here in Chronic Pain/my blog. Have you or one of your community members used a Back Joy? What was your experience with it?
In the interest of pain relief, I also went out on another limb and ordered a new memory foam mattress, which I hope to review here soon as well. The mattress took a somewhat scenic route to my home, but arrived yesterday and sets in my daughter's room awaiting its unpacking. The fact I ordered a memory foam mattress isn't itself too interesting, but times are tough, and the fact that I ordered it for a fraction of the regular price from an online company called BedInABox is. Will the mattress be the quality I expect? Will it help my back to heal? Will it help my chronic pain issues? Will it bother my chemical sensitivities or my autoimmunity issues? Time will tell, but I'll be sure and let you know soon when I write a review of this product as well!
Have you had good or bad results from any of these products that you'd like to share? What are your favorite back pain products? What products are your groups discussing - the good, the bad and the ugly. Tell us about them all here!
Tags: back, herniated disc, pain, product reviews, scoliosis, spina bifida, spine, spondylolisthesis
© 2009 Created by Marie
