Back Pain: Share your experience

So I am not going to pretend that back pain is something new.  I've had it on and off for what feels like my whole life.

I had my sleeve surgery in March and I'm down 73 pounds from my heaviest point. I certainly feel lighter and have more energy, but the back pain is really strong.  The trend is pretty clear: if I sit or lay down for a while my back is in pain. My movements are that of a cripple, and then once I move a bit it gets better. Last week I was talking to a friend of mine for perhaps 10 minutes, once I was ready to walk... I had the craziest spasm which literally froze me in one spot (that spot was not all that great, since I was trying to cross the road!!!!). Today I've been at the store and kept getting these jolts/spasms.  I would say all of my pain is at the lower back.

I know people are saying having back pain after surgery is normal. However, I'd like to hear from others as to what is "normal" and what I should be looking out for? Any pointers on dealing or minimizing the pain?  And also does it get better after say a year or after you are in maintenance phase?

I had back pain off and on before my WLS and after my surgery, it did get much worse.  I'm not sure that's related to the surgery and at this point, I can only imagine how bad my pain would be if I was 150 lbs heavier.  Many days I struggle to lift a gallon of milk.  How could I possibly lift 150 lbs?!  I don't know how I'd ever get off my couch.

Unfortunately, I don't have any great suggestions.  I saw a chiropractor, I went to physical therapy (two rounds of it, in fact), had steroid injections, a procedure that involves burning some of the nerves so they won't transmit pain signals, etc.  I have to say the back pain is better currently that it was, say, a year ago.  But it's still really bad.

The second physical therapist I saw pointed out that one of my disks (I have a herniated disk and also degenerative disk disease in my lower back) was bulging out in such a way that bending forward put a lot of pressure on it.  She gave me exercises to do that involved bending backwards and basically encouraged me  not to bend forward too much.

I now have a service dog, which I got about 18 months ago, mainly to help with PTSD but he also does things like pick stuff up for me from the floor and gets my laundry out of the dryer so I don't have to bend over to do it, and I think that has helped my back pain some.  Just not having to bend forward.

I've had chronic back pain for years before and after surgery. I finally got permanent relief with a spinal stimulator that is attatched to my spine and it has completely rid me of the lower back pain I had. I got it thru a pain management group, if you are interested PM me and I can give you more info.

My pain mgt dr wants me to get the stimulator for my back pain as well. I have gone back n forth about having it done although I have only heard great things. I was kinda hold back thinking once I got a lot of this weight off it would get more manageable. I am on permanent disability from a car accident so I know I will always have pain. Any recommendation as to if I should have it done before surgery n a few months or wait?  How much of a difference did you see?

Thanks

Amanda

I had back pain before surgery, and it got much worse when I was down about 80 pounds. About 30 pounds later, it got suddenly better, and continued to improve.

That was almost ten years ago. I do have more back pain now than I did, but I'm also ten years older. It is much better than it was pre-op.

I have extensive arthritis, and have since I was 20. I take Aleve twice a day, every day, so I'm sure that's a factor, too.

I've been overweight my whole life, so no surprise that I've had back pain for most of it, mostly in the lower back where my belly pulls my spine forward.  About 12 years ago I had a really bad bout of sciatica and went to a chiropractor for intense therapy.  I still see her once a month for maintenance and she is super awesome.  Along with the low back pain, I also have trouble with my left shoulder.  Since I've lost 117 lbs since October, I have observed a huge reduction in pain in both areas.  A couple of months ago I started having back pain up high between my shoulder blades which is highly unusual for me.  I had a few adjustments and it eventually went away.  I don't know if that was due to the muscles in my lower back suddenly adjusting to not being pulled forward as much or what.

I know that even stick-thin people have back problems, so I wish I could tell you they'll all go away!  I know for me being a lighter weight has helped my back pain considerably.  As for dealing with it, I would advise seeing some sort of back pain practitioner wether that's a chiropractor or a doctor.  Your body is going through a lot of rapid changes and there's no reason to make it harder than it already is!

Good luck!  Let us know how it turns out!  :D

Jen