Many years ago I used to vacation at a resort in northern Ontario, Canada. I basically grew up at this particular resort, had my first cigarette there, drank my first beer, kissed a girl for the first time, broke my tailbone there, wiped out waterskiing and felt my heel hit the back of my head… You get the picture. The tailbone was the first of many lower back injuries I have sustained over the years. I’ve been fortunate to have never broken an arm, leg, or collarbone. I’ve chipped the odd tooth and broke an ankle once, but it seems as though my lower back is a magnet for injury.
About 5 years ago I started to feel some discomfort back there and went to the chiropractor. After the visit I spent 5 weeks in debilitating pain, I had developed a bulging disc. I never went back to that chiropractor. This isn’t a rant against chiropractors. It seems that there are as many good ones as there are bone crunchers. You know, the ones that are adjusting you as you’re shaking their hands. Not my bag.
Fast forward to last Saturday. Pain again. First lower back pain to speak of since the disc issue. The pain quickly manifested into sciatic nerve pain. It was so bad earlier this week that simply standing was limited to 2-3 minutes at most, then I had to sit and wait for it to subside. The big toe on my left foot had no feeling, it’s coming back now. On a scale of 10, 10 being excruciating pain, I was hovering around a 7 at times. It was even getting difficult to wipe my butt!
No Chiro this time, per se. I went to see a noted sports medicine guy. You see, 5-6 years ago I was fast becoming overweight, and my core had suffered many a year behind the console of many a computer. Slouching and eating, and not much in the way of serious exercise. Since then I got serious about what I eat, and I ride my bike (a lot). So I’m fitter, but I’ve been putting off doing targeted core exercises… So, Mr. Sports Medicine has done a few rounds of Active Release and acupuncture. I’m a believer. The nerve is chilling out now, and the pain has started to move away from the nerve to the true source. That friggin disc.
the pain, boss, the pain!
It’s interesting that the brain thinks the pain is about 10 inches away from where it actually is. That’s just the way nerves work.
It’s a good news/bad news situation. The subsiding nerve pain means the inflammation around it is diminishing, but it means I’ll have to deal with some real pain as the disc starts to heal. Unfortunately it’s not something my friends Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen can help with either.
ARGH! All this just as the weather in Toronto has become VERY bike friendly, and I start to see the light at the end of the basement renovation tunnel. Sorry for the rant, but I figured I’d warm up to blogging again by bitching a bit. Hope you don’t mind.
Oh, right, core exercises… Wake up call! Once this issue goes away I’m going to start working on the core in a serious way. So the Scottish Six Pack will make an appearance next summer. Hold me to it!
