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I'm having a bit of trouble with lower back pain.

I've had it before but usually goes away after a couple of days, but this current episode has lasted around 2-3 weeks now. Was just uncomfortable at first but it's bordering on excruciating now.

Sitting is uncomfortable and laying flat is uncomfortable. The only way I can remain in some kind of comfort is standing up. I've tried Anadin which isn't even touching it, just Ibuprofen which eases it a little and now I'm doubling up on Ibuprofen and Paracetemol.

I'm off to the docs tomorrow to try and get some Codeine prescribed, but in the meantime does anyone have any tips for pain relief? Ta.

Whiskey!!!

My mum has back pain so I asked her:

Apparently says magnets work, but ibuprofen is best. You can also lie on the floor and bring your knees up to your chest (hug them) to stretch it off.

You might get referred to a physio if it's a longer term or recurring problem.

My stepson got a dog in his eye last week and was in agony. He also found Ibuprofen/Paracetamol ineffective, so on recommendation of Tesco pharamacy got some Solpadine Max which contains codeine and is about as powerful as you can get without a scrip. Seemed to help him a bit more than Ibuprofen so that may be worth a try. Also try and keep dogs out of your eyes

If its muscle releated than a soak in hot bath will do some good.

vicodin :-)

As well as pain relief try Tiger Balm.  Rub it all over the affected area, much better than Deep Heat or anything like that. 

It should go after you've had the baby :) If not try an osteopath or chiropractor.

 Try a good walk...you say it's ok standing up. Probably the consequence of an over sedentary lifestyle. Once you've done the good walk repeat on a regular basis...sorted.

Try applying Ibuprofen gel or thermocare heat wraps
for stronger over the counter analgesia try Co-codamol

No, no NO! It's complete psycho babble and pseudo science. The same as homeopathy and acupuncture. The only relief you will get is placebo because you think it works (if you believe in that sort of remedy). One of my customers swears by his chiropractor. "How long have you been going?" I asked. "Twenty years" he said. "He's brilliant, he gets rid of the pain every time". Quite. If the quack actually cured the source of the problem then he wouldn't need to keep going back would he? That's twenty years of income to the charlatan, nice earner.

You need a qualified physiotherapist Sam.

Switch to whichever tablets you don't normally take, so if you use Ibuprofein a lot, then try Asprin.  Ask over the counter for the strongest they have.

some back conditions will never go away completely.chiropracters can help those in that situation

Oh, and if you google your symptoms I'm sure it will either say trapped nerve or possible life threatening tumour

Cheers for all the advice. I've tried stretching and hot compresses but nothing seems to even touch it. Looks like I'll just have to wait until I can get to the docs tomorrow.

I think TT is right about a physio. A lot of back problems come from a different source e.g. tight muscles in the legs.

Which is why walking is good....

Ive had a bad back for a while, brought on by stress, id suggest go swimming or as Reg says walking, if walking pop over and borrow my dogs....cheers

Go to a Physiotherapist. It sounds very much muscle/nerve related, so a good ol' massage might be what you need. There is a case it could be to do with your posture also, so again, sort yourself out with a Physiotherapist. Doctors will only prescribe summin to 'ease' the pain, they don't get rid of it.

it could be caused by a variety of reasons.i'd ignore every bit of advice in this thread and see what the doc says.
what works for one person could be the completely wrong thing to do for another.

In the first instance, absolutely. He will probably refer you to a physio anyway. That is what Jon does for a living. Most of his referrals are either for back pain for chronically obese people (all he can do is to tell them to lose weight) - not that I think you are overweight Sam - or people who have been fucked up by a chiropractor. Oh and sports injuries as well.

I've suffered from back pain for years, I was first told it was sciatica and after quite a few years I was diagnosed with a prolapsed disc.

I'm lucky so far in that the periods of pain I get are very infrequent (Usually 4-5 a year) lasting between a couple of days and a couple of weeks. Sometimes it's brought on by over excersion, although sometimes it's just because I slept in a funny position.

The pain is a real bastard, I've been in tears before and unable to put my own pants and socks on ('While you're down there love......') But the intense pain usually passes quite quickly after I've been up and around for a while.

When it's really bad I hit the Co-Codomol, it doesn't stop the pain, but makes it bearable.

Been diagnosed with spongilathosis.  As Ive got older my spine has moved forward causing back pain in the lower back and pain down the leg (sciata as a by product of the back problem really).   Apparently Andre Agassi had the same during the later stages of his career and he managed to get though it and win grand slams!  God only know how its a horrible pain but like Hertha the only way for me to get through it is through time and movement, so once Ive got up and forced myself to move around and maybe had a few dicofenac im ok.   It pretty much a daily pain but it cant be fixed.  They just seem to think Ill get used to it.  Hooray.

Crystal Meth

I sometimes get a pain in my back, and then i seem to have a tingly feeling in my legs and I can fall over if i dont grab onto anything. I dont think this is good. It has only happened a couple of times, but i occasionally get back pain a few times a year

Is this a sign of sciatica?

Sound more like pins and needles.  You can die from that.

I think you are having sympathy pains... In sympathy for your lady who im sure is finding it hard to get comfortable at such a late stage in pregnancy. Sorry i have no pain relief tips but its the first thought i had when i read your post!

see if the doc will give you either diclofenac or tramadol as a short term treatment! too much cocodamol will bung you up! exercise and stretching will help!

Yeah!  I agree!  I love exclamation marks!

Ive got tramadol and diclofenac at the moment to stop the pain of recovering from a hernia op.  Bit spaced out as it goes.

im an angry person.

*!

That looks like C# code to me.

GRRRRRRRRRRRR.