File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
Hey /fit/

I hurt my back In early March of this year at work. I was trying to lift a heavy (probably 60-70lb) bag of coffee grounds into a large dumpster (about 5 feet tall), which I clearly wasn't capable of doing. Since I was in a hurry, I backed up a little and "swung" the bag into the trash (stupid, I know) - I felt a little discomfort in my mid/upper back, but nothing extreme. Within 3-4 hours of this, having been working the entire time, I was in an excruciating amount of pain and went to the doctor. They gave me Ibuprofen (lol) and sent me on my way.

It started to get better over the next month - it didn't hurt much when I was stationary, only causing me moderate pain if I was lifting/stretching.

In mid April, I apparently re-injured it, although I can't connect this to any one event like I could initially. Over the course of 7 days, having worked 8 hour shifts each day, I noticed my back becoming increasingly more painful. Finally on the last day of the week, the pain increased to a level greater than that which I experienced from the initial injury.
>> Anonymous
ContinuedÂ….

That was over 2 months ago, and I've seen no improvement at all. I almost feel like I'm in a much worse condition than I was when either injury occured, as I am experiencing the same amount of pain now while almost entirely stationary, as I did when I was in the process of aggrovating it at work.

I can't drive because it's extremely painful just to have my arms extended, writing becomes intolerably painful after 5-10 minutes (which is great for school), and I frequently can't sleep because of the pain. I've done physical therapy, and I haven't worked since I reinjured my back (although i'm not getting paid....). I've never had back problems before, and I feel more like an old man than a 20-year-old female these days.

My pain is between my shoulder blades and higher (right behind the shoulders - traps?). The sensation is usually sort of a tight/burning feeling, sometimes pulsing - as though someone was trying to rip the muscle out of my back. In the middle of my back it feels more like nerve pain, and the levels of pain vary much more drastically - sometimes this same sort of pain will occur in the other parts as well, but it's almost always present in the middle.

TL;DR I know, sorry.
Anyway, what is wrong with me? I can't imagine that it's anything more than a strain just due to the non-extreme nature of how it was injured. But this shit is taking a fucking ridiculous amount of time to heal, and hurts like hell.
Could it be something more serious than a strain?

Picture unrelated, although filename is relevant. Thanks for reading.
>> Anonymous
you need to exercise - start low on lower back weight but not too low since you will turn into a girl... exercise it makes shit work again...
>> Anonymous
Are you still working long shifts?

If you've hurt your back in a significant way, it'll take a good deal of proper rest. It can't rest and heal if you have to keep putting strain on it.

Go see a doctor or a physio ASAP... repeat what you posted here to them and get them to take a good look at it. It is likely it is little more than a sprain, which you can then gain leave off of work for with a doctor's note.

When the back problems cease... go do some deadlifts and squats to work your back into good posture and strength, so that it doesn't relapse into a problem later on.
>> Anonymous
have you tried going to a different doctor or something?
>> Anonymous
Go see a doc

If it's simply a muscle strain, take pain killers and stretch a little.
>> Anonymous
massage and diclofenac.
>> Anonymous
Hey OP, welcome to Getting Old.

It's possible that you have a herniated disk in your spine, but it's much more likely that you've just torn some muscles that need time to heal.

Take a few days off of work and move around as little as possible. Don't stay in bed all day, but DO NOT LIFT ANYTHING and do not stand for long periods of time.

Rest is the only cure.
>> Anonymous
you can't lift a 60-70 pound item? Fucking pussy.
>> HypnoticDan
I hope you have a union or health coverage from your employer. Call your local work safety organization and tell them what happened, they can probably help you.
>> Anonymous
You could have blown a disc in your spine by lifting something if you did it just right. See a doctor and don't lift anything over 30 lbs.
>> Anonymous
>>178690
I've been doing physical therapy and trying to exercise to the full extent of my ability, but it's just extremely painful.

>>178693
I've seen multiple doctors, but none of them have done anything more than poke my back for 3-5 seconds (honestly) and tell me that I'm fine to work. I'm scheduled to see an Orthopedic doctor (have been waiting 6 weeks for the appointment) next week, I'm just trying to get some clarity before then if possible, as this has been going on for so long.

>>178731
I haven't worked since the end of April, and have been fairly sedentary - I stretch until too painful, and do physical therapy twice a week.

>>179113
I'm a girl, sorry to disappoint.
>> Anonymous
>>179118

I'm not a part of the union (work for Starbucks), but I've been doing this all through work comp. My doctors visits, while absolutely worthless, have been paid for. I'm not receiving any monetary compensation (so more student loans for me!), but at least they're paying for the shitty treatment they've provided me with :p
>> Anonymous
I'd suggest an MRI if you've got coverage for it, OP.
>> Anonymous
>>178680
So after staring at that extremely hot picture for a while, I noticed the guy bending down behind her has a weird, photoshopped smudge on his face.

WTF?
>> Anonymous
>>179129
shut the fuck up, you stupid bitch. what can they do? treatment for back pain basically is either conservative (NSAIDs, physical therapy) or surgery. Surgery is the point of no return. You're not having any neurological compromise, no numbness/weakness, or intractable rest pain. What the fuck do you want them to do? Operate on you even though you're basically healthy? Even if they order a several thousand dollar MRI, they've examined you and probably can't find any reason to suspect any cord or nerve root compression. 99% of the time, the MRI will just show a mild disc bulge, which they will not operate on.

face it, you're just a goddamn whiney little cunt, blaming others for what you perceive is misery. grow some balls and shut the fuck up.
>> Anonymous
>>179143

Aww, somebody is angsty, how cute.

That sure is a lot of passionate hate for someone posting outside /b/ on a fairly non-controversial subject.

Girl troubles, princess?

My issue with the actions (or lackthereof) of the doctors is this - I am being written up by them as "capable of working", despite both the fact that I am in a debilitating amount of pain, and that my work in unable to even accomidate to the requested limitations. They are continuing to maintain this stance even though have not done anything to rule out other possibilities. When dealing with an injury of over 3 months that the patient has consistantly described as being immensely painful and debilitating, regardless of any sort of bias associated with self-assessment, I don't think that expecting an MRI is at all unrealistic.
>> Anonymous
>>179162
yes, keep wasting your doctors time until they do what you want. clearly, you know better than a whole cadre of them. they've only seen your stupid ass problem 50ty billion times before and know how to work it up and treat it, but hell, i'm sure your whiny little fat fuck ass trumps their experience.

so what, let's say they order an MRI, worst case scenario it shows a nerve root being impinged. do you want to go to surgery, and deal with a lifetime of post-operative complications on top of the likelihood that it won't even be fixed? and again, the vast likelihood is that the MRI will be normal except for minimal disc bulging.

face it. you are what's wrong with this society. a fucking self-entitled, arrogant, ignorant wimp who wants everyone else to take care of your completely insignificant problems.
>> Anonymous
Backs, and knees.

Fuck these up and you're... uh... fucked.
>> Anonymous
>>179170

I'm 20, live on my own and support myself, and go to school full-time (worked full time as well until this). Don't know what you're trying to prove, but you're not doing so very affectively.

Furthermore, 5'9 and 125 is not so fat imo :)