My back... What can I or should I do?!
Question: Brief back history..... I have none. I'm 31, very healthy and phiscally fit. The past week I have been sick. I have not been doing much. I havn't gone to the gym to work out. Today I went to a friends house and picked up some logs for my goats to play on. I get home and unload them by myself and organize them. No problem! I bend over to pick a up a cinder block and I can't. In bending over I did something to around my tailbone area. A little above it. All I did was bend over? What did I do? I am only comfortable rolled into a ball or with my back curved. If I walk, I'm more comfortable holding the area and walking as straight as I can taking baby steps. I have taken a 800mg Ibprofin and muscle spasm pills that I use when I pull muscles. I have heat on it right now. I need some advise here.
Answers: Brief back history..... I have none. I'm 31, very healthy and phiscally fit. The past week I have been sick. I have not been doing much. I havn't gone to the gym to work out. Today I went to a friends house and picked up some logs for my goats to play on. I get home and unload them by myself and organize them. No problem! I bend over to pick a up a cinder block and I can't. In bending over I did something to around my tailbone area. A little above it. All I did was bend over? What did I do? I am only comfortable rolled into a ball or with my back curved. If I walk, I'm more comfortable holding the area and walking as straight as I can taking baby steps. I have taken a 800mg Ibprofin and muscle spasm pills that I use when I pull muscles. I have heat on it right now. I need some advise here.
There are several things that could have happened when you bent over. Most likely as a result of your recent inactivity your were tight and not prepared physically for the activity that you were doing. You may have sprained a ligament or strained a muscle in your lower back. Another possibility is an injury to the disc that is in between each of your vertebrae. If you have any symptoms in your legs this is what may be causing them. Taking an anti-inflammatory such as the ibuprofen is a good idea, just make sure you have something in your stomach to avoid any irritation the medicine may cause. Also, I would not use heat. You most likely have some inflammation in the area and heat can aggravate this. Use ice instead. Also, do some nice easy stretching such as knee to chest, double knee to chest, and hip stretches such as crossing your leg over the other and pulling your knee to your opposite shoulder. These should all be performed gently and held for 30 seconds performing 3-5 repetitions of each one. Avoid any bending at this point. From now on make sure you use your legs and squat to pick something up rather than just bend over to get it, even if you consider it to be something light & easy. If you continue to have problems after a week or two I would consult with a physician or, if you are in a state that has direct access, with a physical therapist.
Ice for the first 24 hours! No heat yet. That is what I have been told and I frequently hurt my lower back. I believe after icing a day you can then do a ice/heat thearpy.
Muscle relaxers and inflammatory drugs is what you need.
I bent down to put my son in his playpen when he was really small and slipped the L5 disc, I was in agony and could not even lift my left leg. Sounds like you make have a mild herniated disc. You need to ice it and get to a doctor ASAP before it becomes more severe. I'd go to the ER and ask for an MRI. Also do not use heat as that increases swelling in the area, ice for 20 mins at a time.
Let me know how you get on!