10-03-2016, 06:27 PM
10-15-2016, 12:00 AM
Is A tens machine the same thing as an empi machine? The ones with the little stickers and it sends electric pulses? I have one and it's amazing for muscle tension and pain.
10-24-2016, 01:54 AM
I Love my Tens machine. I don't travel without it. However, I'm still tired of living with constant pain. Yes, I'm taking various medications but that can be serious as well. It seem like Hydro, Percocet, Trams, muscle relaxers, and etc will eventually take a toll on your stomach and/or your body at some point. But, I'm in so much pain. It's just a no win situation which also has me very depressed. Which adds another medication to my poor body. My doctor recently put me on Lexapro. Apparently, most doctors use Valium for muscle relaxers now. So I'm just full of pills. I'm either sleeping or in pain.
10-29-2016, 05:03 AM
I would suggest a combination of anti-inflammatory medicines, muscle relaxers, and opiates. This combination has always worked best for me: Naproxen Sodium, Carisoprodol (Soma) or Tizanidine (Zanaflex), and Methadone or Oxymorphone (Opana), with Oxycodone instant release for breakthrough pain. These opiates are stronger and harder to source than Hydrocodone or Tramadol, but the relief they've given my wife and I in the past has been immense and long-lasting. I shattered both kneecaps in a fall down concrete stairs 7 years ago and she has degenerative disc disease and a severe herniated lumbar disc.
Opiates, muscle relaxers, and NSAIDs have always helped these pains, but, as BeepBeep said, they are just a temporary fix; as soon as the drugs wear off or worse, run out, you will be back at square one seeking more. Not to mention the prohibitive cost. It's nice that modern medicine gives us these "band aids" to take care of our symptoms, but sadly, the true problem is still present, ready to rear it's ugly head when the chemicals that give you relief leave your system. And then there's the withdrawal to worry about...
Consider practicing yoga. Anyone can do it, no matter how mobile or flexible you may be. The movements and poses you learn will stretch out your muscles, ligaments, and tendons, strengthen your spine, core, and pretty much every other area of your body you choose to work. The beauty of yoga is that you can practice all of it or just pick choose poses you feel you need and leave the rest. Any pose can be modified to fit your needs. I would suggest doing some beginner's yoga routines at home first (there are plenty of them free on Youtube), then branching out into more complex routines/poses. There are plenty of free resources online and in books/DVDs at your local library. All you need is your body, comfortable clothing, and enough space on the ground to stretch with your arms and legs splayed out fully. A yoga mat is not necessary at first, but eventually you'll want one; it provides traction for your hands and feet that many poses benefit from. Quality yoga mats are available for as little as $20. Optional other equipment is also cheap: a block (to make yourself more comfortable and improve alignment), blankets (folded and used for support in certain poses, you probably already have some of these), and some poses benefit from straps, which are only $5 to $10.
Kicking addictions to these hardcore opiates was no small task, but with kratom, massive heaps of willpower, and the support of each other we were able to do it. After the many months it took to somewhat "normalize" our bodies, the pain persisted, but it was nowhere near as bad as we had recalled it being during our years of addiction (long term opiate use will screw with your chemistry that way).
For a few months now I've been doing yoga, and recently I got my wife interested too. It's helping immensely with EVERY pain, entire body (especially core) strength, mental discipline, and all around feeling of well-being. I can't recommend it enough!
Opiates, muscle relaxers, and NSAIDs have always helped these pains, but, as BeepBeep said, they are just a temporary fix; as soon as the drugs wear off or worse, run out, you will be back at square one seeking more. Not to mention the prohibitive cost. It's nice that modern medicine gives us these "band aids" to take care of our symptoms, but sadly, the true problem is still present, ready to rear it's ugly head when the chemicals that give you relief leave your system. And then there's the withdrawal to worry about...
Consider practicing yoga. Anyone can do it, no matter how mobile or flexible you may be. The movements and poses you learn will stretch out your muscles, ligaments, and tendons, strengthen your spine, core, and pretty much every other area of your body you choose to work. The beauty of yoga is that you can practice all of it or just pick choose poses you feel you need and leave the rest. Any pose can be modified to fit your needs. I would suggest doing some beginner's yoga routines at home first (there are plenty of them free on Youtube), then branching out into more complex routines/poses. There are plenty of free resources online and in books/DVDs at your local library. All you need is your body, comfortable clothing, and enough space on the ground to stretch with your arms and legs splayed out fully. A yoga mat is not necessary at first, but eventually you'll want one; it provides traction for your hands and feet that many poses benefit from. Quality yoga mats are available for as little as $20. Optional other equipment is also cheap: a block (to make yourself more comfortable and improve alignment), blankets (folded and used for support in certain poses, you probably already have some of these), and some poses benefit from straps, which are only $5 to $10.
Kicking addictions to these hardcore opiates was no small task, but with kratom, massive heaps of willpower, and the support of each other we were able to do it. After the many months it took to somewhat "normalize" our bodies, the pain persisted, but it was nowhere near as bad as we had recalled it being during our years of addiction (long term opiate use will screw with your chemistry that way).
For a few months now I've been doing yoga, and recently I got my wife interested too. It's helping immensely with EVERY pain, entire body (especially core) strength, mental discipline, and all around feeling of well-being. I can't recommend it enough!
10-30-2016, 04:01 PM
Just wanted to add a couple of my thoughts here.
I have musculoskeletal chronic lower back pain, with no accompanying spinal problem.
Tramadol, hydrocodone, and codeine have all been helpful for me; however muscle relaxers have been critically helpful.
I tried cyclobenzaprine, but it gave me groggy "hangovers" and KO'd me for 10-12 hours. Switched to Carisoprodol and that has been much more helpful for me and does not KO me. You shouldn't use it every day though, as it is habit forming. I use it 1-2 days per week.
Sometimes when I get a bad spasm, I need both PK and muscle relaxer. I've done some research and found that Tramadol is not good to mix with other prescription drugs in many cases. Based on what I've read, I choose to use Codeine with carisoprodol when I have this situation. It works well for me; you need to be very conservative with mixing them though as carisoprodol potentiates many opiates. Start with very low doses.
Hope this info is helpful to someone!
EDIT: I forgot to mention exercise, even if it is just walking, makes a huge difference in my back pain levels as well, as long as I am not experiencing a severe spasm.
ALSO! I start each morning with 30 minutes on an electric heating pad, placed under my pain epicenter. This has been very helpful too!
I have musculoskeletal chronic lower back pain, with no accompanying spinal problem.
Tramadol, hydrocodone, and codeine have all been helpful for me; however muscle relaxers have been critically helpful.
I tried cyclobenzaprine, but it gave me groggy "hangovers" and KO'd me for 10-12 hours. Switched to Carisoprodol and that has been much more helpful for me and does not KO me. You shouldn't use it every day though, as it is habit forming. I use it 1-2 days per week.
Sometimes when I get a bad spasm, I need both PK and muscle relaxer. I've done some research and found that Tramadol is not good to mix with other prescription drugs in many cases. Based on what I've read, I choose to use Codeine with carisoprodol when I have this situation. It works well for me; you need to be very conservative with mixing them though as carisoprodol potentiates many opiates. Start with very low doses.
Hope this info is helpful to someone!
EDIT: I forgot to mention exercise, even if it is just walking, makes a huge difference in my back pain levels as well, as long as I am not experiencing a severe spasm.
ALSO! I start each morning with 30 minutes on an electric heating pad, placed under my pain epicenter. This has been very helpful too!
10-31-2016, 01:12 AM
Lower back pain can be both intolerable and difficult to diagnose.
Following the onset of significant lower back pain accompanied with acute sciatica several years ago I found myself challenged with the simplest of motions. I could not find a comfortable position at night to sustain much needed sleep.
A variety of the usual PK's did little to nothing to mollify the pervasive, ever present pain. Two different spine specialists recommended ambiguous surgical repair.
Out of desperation, I bought and used an inversion table. Not only didn't it help, it seemed to make my condition worse.
At a friends recommendation I turned to a couple of simple floor exercises that stretch the hamstrings and help to decompress the vertebrae associated with the pain.
My recovery was not immediate but nothing short of miraculous when it came about and I've not only been free of back pain but my range of motion improved dramatically allowing me to easily bend over to pick things off the floor.
With the caveats that this worked for me and might not work for you (back injury of its nature is very complex), and that you have to start slow and work your way up, here are the exercises:
1. Lay flat on your back with your hands behind your head and raise your feet upward from the floor several times. Obviously, you should stop if pain makes this too difficult to go on.
2. Get on all fours with your butt in the air and push backward with your arms. When you feel your hamstrings begin to light up move forward, then repeat as many times as is comfortable.
3. Lay flat on your back again with your hands behind your head, raise your legs, then move them outward to the side, back, then down again. Stop if discomfort or fatigue makes this painful or unpleasant.
I'm not offering medical or chiropractic advice... only sharing what worked to make me free of chronic lower back pain. Use common sense, have a positive outlook, and imagine coursing through your days free of the scourge of lower back pain.
Sincerely hope that this helps someone. All back pain is not equal so your mileage may vary.
Following the onset of significant lower back pain accompanied with acute sciatica several years ago I found myself challenged with the simplest of motions. I could not find a comfortable position at night to sustain much needed sleep.
A variety of the usual PK's did little to nothing to mollify the pervasive, ever present pain. Two different spine specialists recommended ambiguous surgical repair.
Out of desperation, I bought and used an inversion table. Not only didn't it help, it seemed to make my condition worse.
At a friends recommendation I turned to a couple of simple floor exercises that stretch the hamstrings and help to decompress the vertebrae associated with the pain.
My recovery was not immediate but nothing short of miraculous when it came about and I've not only been free of back pain but my range of motion improved dramatically allowing me to easily bend over to pick things off the floor.
With the caveats that this worked for me and might not work for you (back injury of its nature is very complex), and that you have to start slow and work your way up, here are the exercises:
1. Lay flat on your back with your hands behind your head and raise your feet upward from the floor several times. Obviously, you should stop if pain makes this too difficult to go on.
2. Get on all fours with your butt in the air and push backward with your arms. When you feel your hamstrings begin to light up move forward, then repeat as many times as is comfortable.
3. Lay flat on your back again with your hands behind your head, raise your legs, then move them outward to the side, back, then down again. Stop if discomfort or fatigue makes this painful or unpleasant.
I'm not offering medical or chiropractic advice... only sharing what worked to make me free of chronic lower back pain. Use common sense, have a positive outlook, and imagine coursing through your days free of the scourge of lower back pain.
Sincerely hope that this helps someone. All back pain is not equal so your mileage may vary.
10-31-2016, 11:07 AM
Thanks for sharing Lechter. Mobility exercises have been critical for me as well - I haven't tried the specific ones you mentioned, but I am going to try them today! Cheers.
11-04-2016, 12:09 AM
One thing I've noticed is a helpful adjunct to opioids is Gabapentin, like 400-800mg, it's effects are very subtle at the doses I've tried, but I find myself realizing "hey. I'm not miserable and haven't been for several minutes" ESPECIALLY if you're feeling "over-opioided" so to speak and are taking a little break from them... (lumbar disks all pretty well shot)... nice thing is they're not controlled and not hard to come by...
BUT YES opiods 5-325 hydro and trams are my first and best line of defense for my back pain...
BUT YES opiods 5-325 hydro and trams are my first and best line of defense for my back pain...
11-04-2016, 05:31 AM
Good stretching exercises, Lechter. I do some of those, but need to be more disciplined. If only exercising were @ddictive! I might add that using a rolled up towel or other support under your lower back will help with putting too much pressure on the discs. If I don't have that support, these kind of exercises will aggravate my lower back.
11-04-2016, 12:12 PM
Black foam roller! Use mine every day.