<p>
</p>
<p>Yep, that *might *do it. I am so frustrated with these young people who really do know better…</p>
<p>LTS, I like your tendency to fight through things, and I am hesitant to tell you to slow down, but I think the luggage and the laptop “lugging” on your trip was hard on your disc, and “too much” walking and stairs is also not good right now. I think you need to balance some mobility with some rest. Maybe a taxi to work, use the elevator, but go to work and get things done. At home, get some additional rest. Use some local ice/heat I think that waiting to take something for pain until you can’t stand it any longer is not a bad philosphy when it comes to narcotic pain pill and patches, but waiting too long for an anti-inflammatory for pain like this, while coming off steroids, is not such a good philosophy. Check with your doctor about ibuprofen around the clock for a few days. Ibuprofen is so short acting that he/she might suggest a longer acting one such as naproxen sodium (Aleve/Anaprox), or even the temporary use of a prescription once a day NSAID (there are several.) I know that you are not one to sit still, and I don’t think you need to go home and stay in bed. But I think some modification is advised. Pain is there to tell you something. And the timing of the pain probably relates to the tapering of the steroids. So maybe a compromise.</p>
<p>Rethinking the swimming idea…maybe not such a great place to be when your immune system is down. Ugghhh …germs.Forget I mentioned it.</p>
<p>sunnyflorida, </p>
<p>I’d be curious to hear what you think of this for the disc situation… I had HORRIBLE tennis elbow, it persisted for six or seven months, to the point I had pain lifting a coffee cup. I saw a sports injury specialist who did ultrasound on the area to speed healing. It brings blood to the area (?). The pain was gone in about three visits. Would this help with a disc problem?</p>
<p>Sunnyflorida thank you for taking the time to post this, it helps and I appreciate it. I took an Aleve this morning and I have actually been able to sit at my desk and do my work without having to stand up every ten minutes. </p>
<p>I will take a few days break from the stairs, and have my daughter drive me in to work, and see how this improves. I’ll also talk to my doctor Monday…by then I should have more detail to give him…</p>
<p>By the way my daughter said the same thing to me last night regarding waiting until I can’t stand the pain any longer - she got in last night, saw me, basically said, are you nuts, and then I got some long lecture with just entirely too much detail. (Talk about sudden role reversal - or - maybe this is what happens when they go off to college and do stuff like science degrees and completing the premed core lolol.)</p>
<p>Sax - you know, I hate wigs. I would prefer to not have to wear one. Professionally I see no way around it though. Re the medicine, I do have pain patches, they were prescribed to me back in March. I haven’t needed them past the first few days I was prescribed, and, this time, I didn’t want to use them because I thought it was more important to try to get a sense of what this pain meant, would it improve or worsen, if so how long will it take, and so on…plus, I am not a fan AT ALL of loading my body up with drugs. Anyway, daughter last night convinced me my strategy was bad, plus, when something hurts this much it’s not hard to convince me to get some relief…</p>
<p>LTS, your D is one smart girl. And I am a big fan of Aleve/Anaprox actually. The commercials are true, it does last longer. </p>
<p>SB mom, the U/S treatments are most helpful on ligamentous pain, sometimes muscles as well. And it especially works well on things that are near the surface. It worked wonders for my teenage D2 when she sprained her ankle and needed to be well “now” for an othletic competition. I don’t know how well it works on the type of pain LTS is having. Some of it could be muscular and ligamentous. Some of it is the disc itself, and the pressure of the disc on the nearby nerves. Sorry I can’t be of more help.</p>
<p>Sax,
I too was going to suggest swimming…not sure why germs are more of a concern in a pool vs metro stairs…</p>
<p>maybe schedule an hour every other day with a physical therapist who can guide you LTS on what exercise is worth doing that won’t increase risk of back/disk pain? </p>
<p>a suggestion of a thing to do to help pass the time? perhaps a trip to a “make your own jewelry store” is in order…you and your daughter could pick up a magazine with ideas… and then buy the pieces/parts needed to make the item, a necklace or bracelet etc…and take it all home to work on? I gave a girlfriend all the parts for a necklace when she had a hysterectomy…and she made a beautiful piece that she wears with pride as it honors a significant event in her life… </p>
<p>sending healthy vibes your way…</p>
<p>I had terrible back pain for a year or two. Couldn’t sit. LTS, you will get a kick out of this. I used to have to LIE DOWN in client meetings. Yes, lie down on the floor. Still went to the meetings thought:).</p>
<p>Hot/cold works. Aleve works. I found that walking was good, but carrying anything on your shoulders really bad. Swimming never really helped me.</p>
<p>Eventually, the pain died down as the disc stopped bulging. </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Alumother I can actually see that happening. Yesterday, I had a two hour long conference call. It hurt too bad to sit still at my desk and so I kept standing up and pacing. Or perhaps turtling is a better word for it. One gentleman on the call complained no less than four times “you’re breaking in and out” as I kept moving further away from the speakers. So I had to ease back to my desk and the dreaded chair lol. I totally wanted to lie down on my office floor, all day yesterday. It helps to know that perhaps some day the disc will stop bulging…although obviously for me that’s a secondary issue…</p>
<p>Sunny, my daughter is annoying. I love her wildly of course, but she is annoying. Still has a lot of that “often in error, never in doubt” thing going on, especially when it comes to subject matter that she mastered academically but where she has no congruent real life experience. I should have shipped her off to the salt mines or sold her to Gypsies when I had the chance. Now there’s no putting the toothpaste back in the tube. LOL.</p>
<p>LTS,
I hesitate to mention where your D gets it from… ;)</p>
<p>^^^^^ Rotfl</p>
<p>The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree… (wink).</p>
<p>^^^^^^don’t hurt yourself</p>
<p>LTS, have a look at this web page:[The</a> Fitness Fixer](<a href=“http://www.healthline.com/blogs/exercise_fitness/2006/11/cause-of-disc-and-back-pain.html]The”>http://www.healthline.com/blogs/exercise_fitness/2006/11/cause-of-disc-and-back-pain.html). A lot of back pain can be due to (or at least aggravated by) poor posture. I found that when I changed the way I sit, stand, bend, and even the position I sleep in, my back problems became minimal. Perhaps some things on that site will be of help to you.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>. .</p>
<p>LTS, you need a head set. Then you can move around, or lie on the floor, without anyone on the other end knowing what you are doing.</p>
<p>LTS, do you ever feel like you have hundreds of mommies and daddies?</p>
<p>or bossy big sisters and brothers…</p>
<p>Or 10,000 ghosts trying their best to carry you and your pain … </p>
<p>Electrons DO have mass and all these electrons in the computers are moving to wish you well. They’ve GOT to pick up some of the load.</p>
<p>LTS, the disc pain you describe sounds all too familiar. I have actually had two spinal surgeries for this problem…</p>
<p>one more corner from which you will hear advice:</p>
<p>DO walk, stand…or lie flat if you can. DON’T sit any more than you have to and ABSOLUTELY I believe this disc problem has been aggrivated by your carrying things over the past few weeks while it was otherwise masked by the steriods you were taking. Those are, as you well know, pretty much the ultimate anti-infamatory drug, and it makes sense that your pain from the disc pressing on surrounding nerves would be worse as you taper off of them.</p>
<p>And I must say that the pain from that disc was absolutely awful, and I am a pretty tough cookie (not as tough as you, though!). In this situation, my humble opinion is that you need to NOT do lifting or sitting (as much as possible), but walking, as long as it does not make the pain worse, is a good thing.</p>
<p>Best to you!!!</p>