Back problems...

[Mister Boh]

I feel your pain, or did, feel similar pain until getting my very first steroidal cortizone shot 2 weeks ago in the joints between my spine. I spent the entire summer wearing a back brace, and still do when i have to do any lifting (my bass) or spend more than 10 minutes driving.

Im 49yo and been having on and off back pain for about 8 years, growing more intense with longer lasting flare ups each year since.

I didn't read thru all the responses here, but I'm sure it's already been mentioned that you first need to go see your primary care physician, who will likely refer you to a specialist.

I did physical therapy 2 years ago to increse my range of motion, but those take home exercises weren't cutting it any more. Specialist sent me for a bone scan after an x-ray revealed an exaggerated curve to the right, clenched muscles likely causing that, and some arthritis. The bone scan was much more telling, and you can actually see the painful activity where there is white in the center >
View attachment 3186834
And here's the initial x-ray >
View attachment 3186833

So far so good with the shot, but it's my understanding that one can only get 2 or 3 per year, so if it doesnt last longer than 4-6 months, the next step would be to burn the nerves off.

Good luck and healing vibes to you. Subbed

Well no wonder! You had a belly button ring stuck in your spine!

In all seriousness glad you got some relief.

 

[scooper]

I'm 52 years old. When I stand on stage for more than 1 set, my lumbar(s) tighten up and I'm in agony. I'm thinking about a tall stool so I can "reset" two or three times during the sets by sitting or leaning for a few moments.
I've been gigging on and off for 30 years. Last night the 3rd set became very painful. This is the rule now rather than the exception.
Yoga? Gym? I'm open to suggestions.

Lots of excellent suggestions. I recommend (1) first seeing your physician about physical therapy to learn back exercises to do regularly (2) acupuncture which worked wonders for me (3) a cortisone shot if really inflamed. My problem is shoulder pain. I switched from a Fender Jazz V to a G&L 2500 for a lighter base as the Fender proved too heavy for those 4-5 hour performances. Imagine I once had a Travis Bean - was that ever heavy with the metal neck!

 

[catcauphonic]

Well no wonder! You had a belly button ring stuck in your spine!

In all seriousness glad you got some relief.

Ya know what's funny in an ironic kind of way?

I just did the math and my back problems started around the same time I joined TB
 

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Just finished an acoustic gig.
I did two things differently. Took a turmeric capsule before the show...
Moved around on stage.
My back isn't even half as bad as it was over the past 6 gigs. Moving around seems to be key!

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

Just finished an acoustic gig.
I did two things differently. Took a turmeric capsule before the show...
Moved around on stage.
My back isn't even half as bad as it was over the past 6 gigs. Moving around seems to be key!

Excellent! Stay at it...

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Usually I feel half crippled the next day too and today I don't. Keep moving keep grooving eh?

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

Usually I feel half crippled the next day too and today I don't. Keep moving keep grooving eh?

I'm just enjoying your relief vicariously man. I think it's awesome you found something that works. I've absolutely played through hell this Summer, and I sure know what it feels like being punished for doing what you love. For all I knew when they rolled me through those O-R doors a couple weeks ago, the gig was up for me playing music.

Thanks to a rockstar of a neurosurgeon, I'll play again, but with some radical changes. And it'll be a long time before I'm gig-ready... shoot, I'm not allowed to touch a bass guitar (or anything else weighing over 5 lbs) until December, so I'm spending my days digging through threads here and everywhere else looking for solutions. Nothing but time to kill.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

I'm just enjoying your relief vicariously man. I think it's awesome you found something that works. I've absolutely played through hell this Summer, and I sure know what it feels like being punished for doing what you love. For all I knew when they rolled me through those O-R doors a couple weeks ago, the gig was up for me playing music.

Thanks to a rockstar of a neurosurgeon, I'll play again, but with some radical changes. And it'll be a long time before I'm gig-ready... shoot, I'm not allowed to touch a bass guitar (or anything else weighing over 5 lbs) until December, so I'm spending my days digging through threads here and everywhere else looking for solutions. Nothing but time to kill.

Dude I'm joining a gym the SECOND I get out from under the massive credit card debt I'm under. I'm really committed to shedding the debt, then strengthening my body slowly but surely.
I'm becoming like our fathers generation, with a body that will not survive past 65 and thats bad.

 

[pht2356]

I'm 52 also and have had numerous back injuries resulting in huge bone spurs on the front of my lower vertebrae. I've gone to lighter weight basses (doesn't help 100%) and see a chiropractor every 2 weeks. I still have to play the last 2 sets on a stool. I feel very fortunate that my band nor the club owners have an issue with it. (That I know of)

Try elevating one foot approximately 6-8", maybe a book or singers head. Should relieve some pressure from your lower back & remember that the stronger your stomach is the stronger your back becomes

 

[pht2356]

I'm just enjoying your relief vicariously man. I think it's awesome you found something that works. I've absolutely played through hell this Summer, and I sure know what it feels like being punished for doing what you love. For all I knew when they rolled me through those O-R doors a couple weeks ago, the gig was up for me playing music.

Thanks to a rockstar of a neurosurgeon, I'll play again, but with some radical changes. And it'll be a long time before I'm gig-ready... shoot, I'm not allowed to touch a bass guitar (or anything else weighing over 5 lbs) until December, so I'm spending my days digging through threads here and everywhere else looking for solutions. Nothing but time to kill.

Unfortunately, in my experience(L5 S1 fusion)pain becomes a constant companion. The issue turns to pain management and how you deal with it. Things that were pain free before may cause discomfort but as long as you can still accomplish them the enjoyment outweighs the effort(hopefully).

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Yesterday I tried to live completely different.
Did a set of 10 crunches. Used the climbing wall at the playground while my kids played.
Ate 7 servings of fresh veggies. No red meat. 10 hours sleep last night.

Half of our pain in middle age comes from lifestyle. Knowing this and doing something about it are two very different things.

 

[bearfoot]

I'm 52 years old. When I stand on stage for more than 1 set, my lumbar(s) tighten up and I'm in agony. I'm thinking about a tall stool so I can "reset" two or three times during the sets by sitting or leaning for a few moments.
I've been gigging on and off for 30 years. Last night the 3rd set became very painful. This is the rule now rather than the exception.
Yoga? Gym? I'm open to suggestions.

No doubt that yoga or tai chi, anything like that helps. Doesn't have to be a formal class, some of the simple lower back-relaxing things I do all the time - lay on your back, pull one knee up to your chest and hold it, release, repeat on the other side. Getting on all fours helps me a lot too with the lower back.

you may also want to consider

"GruvGear" DuoStrap. DuoStrap Signature™ I've been eyeing this strap ever since I got my Ibanez SR506, and was considering doing a solo bass looping thing with the 6-string. Since then I've backed off that angle for now, and couldn't justify the $100 strap.

 

[Joe Nerve]

An update on my back sit-sheea-shun...

Started going to a chiropractor last week. Went Thursday and Friday, and I'm supposed to be going tomorrow and Wednesday. I played last night.

My back hurts worse since Thursday than it's hurt in a long while.

I'm told it will be sore, but that things are getting put into proper alignment.

I'm not sure I believe that.

At least not yet.

I'm on the fence about going again tomorrow, but think I'm going to follow through.

If this doesn't work, I'm not sure what my next step will be. I'm determined to heal this. My body has healed itself of many MANY things over the past 3 decades, and I have no reason to believe this is going to be any different.

I'll update. Not happy about this at the moment, but staying hopeful.

 

[Stumbo]

An update on my back sit-sheea-shun...

Started going to a chiropractor last week. Went Thursday and Friday, and I'm supposed to be going tomorrow and Wednesday. I played last night.

My back hurts worse since Thursday than it's hurt in a long while.

I'm told it will be sore, but that things are getting put into proper alignment.

I'm not sure I believe that.

At least not yet.

I'm on the fence about going again tomorrow, but think I'm going to follow through.

If this doesn't work, I'm not sure what my next step will be. I'm determined to heal this. My body has healed itself of many MANY things over the past 3 decades, and I have no reason to believe this is going to be any different.

I'll update. Not happy about this at the moment, but staying hopeful.

If no improvement, I suggest an MRI to see if you have a more serious injury.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

I spent thousands on chiropractors in the past. No faith in those charlatans.
Excercise rest and nutrition.
Oh and accupuncture. If I had the $$ I'd be there every week.

 

[Joe Nerve]

I spent thousands on chiropractors in the past. No faith in those charlatans.
Excercise rest and nutrition.
Oh and accupuncture. If I had the $$ I'd be there every week.

That's next despite my needle phobia.

 

[Stumbo]

That's next despite my needle phobia.

Also try massage.

I went weekly for 6 months massage and acupuncture, then 3 months chiro to fix my lower left back, where I had pinched a nerve.

My arms and back had tightened up so much that the massage part of the therapy seemed to be the most beneficial.

Hope you get to the bottom of your problem soon!

 

[Lance Bunyon]

That's next despite my needle phobia.

A good accupuncturist doesn't hurt you with the needles. You feel the tiniest pinch.

 

[StatesideRambler]

If you've read the whole thread you've read pretty much the whole range of opinions of health care. My take, summarized, is:
M.D.s are the knives and chemicals (surgery & drugs) crowd. Chiropractors are all about physical manipulation and nutritional supplements.
Acupuncture and herbal medicine (they're not traditions here in the west) so we dodge them out of unfamiliarity.
Massage is effective at reducing the aggravation of a condition by muscles tightening up in compensation. It doesn't fix the cause but it reduces secondary problems.

There are some bad actors in health care and it's up to you to figure out how to find the good ones. Recognize, too, that what works for one person may be ineffective for another. The human body is more complex than we understand.

Finally, whatever care you get, don't immediately reverse it by something you do that causes or aggravates it!

 

[pwhalen]

I'm 52 years old. When I stand on stage for more than 1 set, my lumbar(s) tighten up and I'm in agony. I'm thinking about a tall stool so I can "reset" two or three times during the sets by sitting or leaning for a few moments.
I've been gigging on and off for 30 years. Last night the 3rd set became very painful. This is the rule now rather than the exception.
Yoga? Gym? I'm open to suggestions.

I'm 49 and have dealt with muscular lower back pain for years, to the degree that I would bring a stool in case my back was locking up after load out/load in and setup (I do the PA and cabling as well). If you are dealing with a muscular back issue in particular (and even some other types), the best thing you can do is improve your core. I started taking a yoga/pilates weekly class and getting in some other gym time when possible and I can't overstate how much difference it has already made in just over half a year. I used to have constant soreness with occasional bouts of severe pain and now it's rare to feel discomfort there at all.

Edit - Massage can also be a good option, I try to go once an month or so and choose therapists that work out of chiropractor offices. I figure they are more used to working on back pain than most - also, at least in my area, many of them offer deals through Groupon so you can get in for $30 - $35 for a 50 minutes session (though you should tip on the non-discount price so figure another $15 - $20. Still $50 a month for a good massage and reduced pain is well worth it to me).