How I Recovered From 3 Years of Chronic Back Pain

chronic back pain

As some of you may recall, I’ve been seeking solutions to my chronic back pain, which I assume is partly related to my writing-and-sitting-at-the-computer lifestyle since the mid-1990s.

You can read the first installment here.

I’m very grateful to say that I’ve been pain-free for six months and have returned to long-distance running. (I can now run for a full hour and am logging a gentle 10 miles a week.)

I’d like to share what worked for me—especially since so many things did not work, and I know what a frustrating problem this can be, with little hope. I see the updates of friends and colleagues who suffer just as I did.

I’ll first offer some context on my particular history, but if you’d rather just go straight to the solutions, scroll down to the heading What Worked to Eliminate My Back Pain.

The Specifics of My Situation

I think it’s important to point out a few things about my own experience.

  1. I’ve been lucky to have no other significant health problems or limitations during my life. It’s rare for me to see a doctor more than once a year.
  2. I was an avid runner throughout my 20s, and had some minor trouble now and again with sciatica, almost always as a result of overtraining. Symptoms would disappear with rest, and regular weight training was the best prevention of all.
  3. I had a vicious and debilitating case of sciatica in 2011 that seemed to come out of nowhere, since I hadn’t been regularly running for several years. I went to physical therapy, but didn’t take it seriously, only doing the exercises during the appointments. I assumed with time I would fully recover and go back to normal. This was probably my most serious mistake of all, because I never went back to normal. While the sciatica symptoms disappeared, I developed low back pain that was at its worst overnight and in the morning, and became gradually worse over time.

What Didn’t Work to Fix My Back Pain

  1. Waiting. Two years of being very patient didn’t help. When I suffered a pinched nerve in my shoulder (with no discernible cause) that kept me home from work, I knew the problem was only becoming more serious, and that waiting it out wasn’t an option.
  2. My primary physician. The first thing I did was visit my doctor. She asked if I was exercising (I wasn’t), said that I should, then ordered X-rays. She said I had disc degeneration, and I anticipated that her next steps would involve injections or surgery. I didn’t like where the situation was headed, especially since I felt too young (36) for those options.
  3. Treadmill desk. I felt that sitting at my desk all day and bad posture were long-term contributing factors to where I had ended up, so I started using a treadmill desk for part of my work day. It had no effect.
  4. The Gokhale Method. To learn better posture, I took a weekend intensive workshop on The Gokhale Method. This was excellent at bringing awareness to my bad habits, but it didn’t eliminate the back pain.
  5. Strength training, stretching, and cardio. After seeing my doctor, I joined a gym and started strengthening my back with the help of a personal trainer. I undoubtedly became stronger, but it didn’t affect the pain. I also regularly participated in spinning, pilates, and yoga. It was good to be exercising again—and the back pain didn’t prevent me from exercising—but the exercise didn’t improve my situation either.

What Worked to Eliminate My Back Pain

  1. Consulting with an expert in traditional and alternative medicine. When I posted about my situation in the summer of 2013, I was lucky that colleague and friend Anne Carley (who lives in the same city that I do) wrote me and recommended a local independent health professional who has a holistic, alternative approach to medicine but a traditional background. I went to see her immediately and described my history and situation. She examined me and recommended a physical therapist who works to address problems holistically—since conventional physical therapy focused only on fixing the back pain may not in fact resolve the problem.
  2. Working with a physical therapist (PT) who also specializes in the Egoscue Method. After a 30-minute evaluation by the PT, I was given a daily 20-minute passive stretching routine that was primarily based on the Egoscue Method. Every 2-4 weeks, I would see the therapist again so she could evaluate progress and give me a new set of exercises to help me further advance. The pain began to lessen.
  3. Structural Integration. After four months of seeing the physical therapist, she recommended I also see a massage therapist who specializes in structural integration, a system of body work. This involved a series of 10 sessions of deep myofascial work and movement education. The goal was to balance my body’s musculature and connective tissues and, through better alignment, reduce any strain on my structure. The results felt like a near-miracle. Even if you know you have bad posture or that your muscles are wound tight, that doesn’t mean you can easily fix it, no matter how much you stretch. The structural integration was like pushing the “reset” button on years of bad habits, and allowed all the other activities—physical therapy, yoga, and exercise—to do their job better.

If you’ve found yourself struggling with back pain or other types of chronic pain related to muscles, joints, or connective tissue, I highly recommend looking for a physical therapist with a holistic approach, as well as trying a structural integration session to see if it might press the reset button for you as well. The results have been lasting; my last appointments were in the spring, and over the summer I started running again without any problems. It was a long road, but I have my health back.

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DJPaterson

Thanks, Jane. I too suffer from back pain and have a fantastic physiotherapist, who always gets straight to the problem and explains why I am in pain, and gives me the exercises to address the weaknesses I have. Unfortunately I am my own worst enemy in that once the pain has gone away, I tend to forget to continue with the exercises – until I hurt my back again!

Jane Friedman

Indeed, in the past I’ve found myself relapsing/forgetting as well. Hoping I can remain disciplined, fingers crossed!

TheCreativePenn

Such an important topic, Jane! I had terrible back pain last year, so bad that I was having tests for spinal tumors because of night pain. With all tests clear, I was discharged to physio who helped me work with a swiss ball for micromovements and stretching. I have been working on a swiss ball instead of a chair for a year now and it’s brilliant – the constant micromovements keep me pliable, and I can back bend to stretch regularly – the pain is mostly gone!

Jane Friedman

The swiss ball technique is something I’m interested in as well; I need to find a good trainer to help introduce me to it!

Nancy Parish

Glad to hear this worked! I have a MS in Exercise and Health Studies, so I love hearing success stories like this!

Jane Friedman

I had no idea that was your background! Cool. 🙂

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[…] Update (9/15/14): I’ve written a new post explaining what eventually resolved all of my back pain problems. […]

Ben Murray VirtualPioneer.com

Glad to hear you are feeling better Jane. I found myself in a similar situation which happened due to incorrect posture while working on the computer for long hours. Even after creating a new habit of sitting correctly and even taking some time to stand and work at the computer, I still catch myself slouching here and there.

Jane Friedman

I’ve found slouching really hard to remedy simply by thinking about it. Some argue that slouching isn’t natural if everything else is aligned, though I’m not sure. In any case, I definitely use props to keep things where they should be.

christinakatz

Yay! Glad to hear you were conscientious about getting better. This seems like an important message here. Never settle for anything less than totally cured. Way to go!

Jane Friedman

Agreed. 🙂

emccullough

This is so great. I’m going to look into the various methods you recommend and see if I can find them in my area. I’m working on a frozen shoulder that’s probably a result of too many years of desk work and poor posture.

Jane Friedman

I’ve had similar shoulder problems (e.g., that pinched nerve), and I think some of this may apply to that issue as well. It’s worth a try!

loquacialoon

I terrible back pain – arising like yours from hours sitting at the computer. I also had sciatica, I was on pain killers and the specialist told me I’d just have to learn to live with it. No other therapy was offered.

I tried a chiropractor, who pulled me around, cost me a fortune and only gave me temporary relief.

Then i took up Nordic walking at a friend’s suggestion. (Here’s a video introduction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKTufkzpo8E). This is walking with a version of ski poles which you push against the ground as you walk, exercising arms as much as legs. Although I didn’t take this up expecting to gain any relief for my back, i found that within a week the pain had completely gone, and it hasn’t come back.

I wonder if others have found this work for them.

Jane Friedman

I’ve never tried Nordic walking myself.

Ed_Cyzewski

This may not be exactly the same thing, but I went to a place that offered manual physical therapy, and I remember walking out and feeling strange. I finally realized… my torso was straight, perfectly lined up for the first time in a long time. My poor posture and stress had combined to really mess things up. So the manual physical therapy helped a ton, but I also have needed to strengthen the muscles around my shoulder blades. I’ve found that push ups really can work wonders for a simple exercise you can do on the cheap, but the physical therapy was essential.

Jane Friedman

Ed, I’d say it’s probably very similar! Structural integration does feel like a cross between physical therapy and massage.

Maggie Shayne

Just started using the Egoscue method and the results are stunning. So glad to hear it worked well for you. I want to be able to go running again.

Jane Friedman

I would say it’s 100% possible—especially since I experienced long periods where I assumed there was zero chance of that.