Get off my LAWN! "Grumpy Old Farts"

[chadds]

Never go to a chiropractor without a letter of recommendation
from a trusted M.D.

Go to a physical therapist.

Most insurance will not cover Chiropractors without a referral from a licensed M.D.
My daughter did not tell me she went to one and ended up owing $4000.00

There are some real buffoons out there even M.D's
I was having horrible back pain after carry a bunch of boxes at work.
Had to go to company list orthopedic doctor.
I was out of work for 7 weeks with no relief.

As it turned out, my doctor ran tests and found out the cause of the back pain was fairly advanced Lyme Disease attacking
my kidneys and urinary tract.

3 months on anti-biotics, but back pain went away after 3 days.

The anti-biotics killed off the good probiotics in my digestive system and I ended up Verklempt!

Ended up in the emergency room 3 times over one weekend.

Yogurt every day for two weeks took care of it.

That's more about what our insurance covers than the efficacy of chIropractIc. You are so right! There are wack practitioners out there of every medical style.

There are still MDs who don't believe in Lymes disease's effects. In fact if you show negative on the less expensive cursory test they will dismiss your concerns.

Conversely my wife would have had unnecessary back surgery if she'd believed an MD. He said she had herniated discs. She slept in a chair for three months. She had chiropractic adjustments got better ran a marathon and now twenty years later is still pain free.

If I waited for an MD to approve a diet change, chiropractic, lowering my bike seat, stop wearing a certain brand of running shoes, change my standing and sitting posture, accupuncture, get a different car, learn how to get in an out of a car I would be a feeble bent over too old too soon man.

 

[lomo]

Here's my .02 as a 51 year-old radiologist who has spent the last 25 years looking at MRI of joints and backs, and performing 1000s of various joint injections under ultrasound and fluoroscopic guidance. A few points to consider:

1)Doctors, like all other categories of humans, come in all qualities from angelic to demonic. The 2 extremes are rarer than the middle ground. If a doctor will not give you a reasonable explanation of what he thinks and why he thinks it, consider finding one who will.

2)When one is holding a hammer, everything looks like a nail, especially when one is paid per driven nail. Therefore, whenever possible, get 2 opinions or see someone who will diagnose you and then refer you elsewhere for the treatment. For musculoskeletal problems, a physiatrist/ rehab specialist is the best option. These people are trained to diagnose problems, but do not operate. They also supervise physiotherapists. They are unlikely to refer a patient for surgery, joint injection or other invasive procedure unless there is objective evidence that this is necessary.

3)I would personally not rely on a physiotherapist or massage therapist for diagnosis, ever. They can be invaluable in treatment, but lack the breadth of training to accurately pinpoint a problem.

4)A chiropractor can be amazing for back/joint issues, but an osteopath can provide all the same benefits and has also been trained well beyond the chiropractor in terms of understanding the entire body, and is less likely to trace any and all problems to the back. Be wary of a chiroparctor who treats things that obviously go beyond the spine and joints. I would not personally allow a choropractor to do any high speed (= abrupt) manipulations on me, especially involving the head/neck. While these can be very effective in treating alignment issues, there is a real risk of severe acute injury from them, especially in the neck, where the vertebral arteries run inside a fairly tight bony tunnel within the vertebrae and can be injured with disastrous results.

5)Don't believe in any pill that purports to renew joints and cartilage unless you want to spend big $$ on a placebo. Pharmacies sell them without prescription, and they have proven to be a lucrative market for shark cartilage, which was discredited as a remedy for cancer back in the 80s (but not until after many people were duped into believing it would cure them). Joint cartilage tends to wear out before the rest of the body. It hurts, and the desperation to counteract this has led to many therapies which, under scrutiny, do not provide any significant, demonstrable benefit. My vet wanted me to give it to my old dog. When I said it has not been shown to be effective, he replied "but it won't hurt".......well neither will my spending the same money on better wine........

6)Accept that as we age, the machine requires greater care and preventive maintenance and cannot be pushed as in it's earlier days. That is OK. Getting old is a privelege few of our forebears had the pleasure of, and it beats the alternative.

Best to all,

Morrie

 

[cheezewiz]

Here's my .02 as a 51 year-old radiologist who has spent the last 25 years looking at MRI of joints and backs, and performing 1000s of various joint injections under ultrasound and fluoroscopic guidance. A few points to consider:

1)Doctors, like all other categories of humans, come in all qualities from angelic to demonic. The 2 extremes are rarer than the middle ground. If a doctor will not give you a reasonable explanation of what he thinks and why he thinks it, consider finding one who will.

2)When one is holding a hammer, everything looks like a nail, especially when one is paid per driven nail. Therefore, whenever possible, get 2 opinions or see someone who will diagnose you and then refer you elsewhere for the treatment. For musculoskeletal problems, a physiatrist/ rehab specialist is the best option. These people are trained to diagnose problems, but do not operate. They also supervise physiotherapists. They are unlikely to refer a patient for surgery, joint injection or other invasive procedure unless there is objective evidence that this is necessary.

3)I would personally not rely on a physiotherapist, massage therapist for diagnosis, ever. They can be invaluable in treatment, but lack the breadth of training to accurately pinpoint a problem.

4)A chiropractor can be amazing for back/joint issues, but an osteopath can provide all the same benefits and has also been trained well beyond the chiropractor in terms of understanding the entire body, and is less likely to trace any and all problems to the back. Be wary of a chiroparctor who treats things that obviously go beyond the spine and joints. I would not personally allow a choropractor to do any high speed (= abrupt) manipulations on me, especially involving the head/neck. While these can be very effective in treating alignment issues, there is a real risk of severe acute injury from them, especially in the neck, where the vertebral arteries run inside a fairly tight bony tunnel within the vertebrae and can be injured with disastrous results.

5)Don't believe in any pill that purports to renew joints and cartilage unless you want to spend big $$ on a placebo.

6)Accept that as we age, the machine requires greater care and preventive maintenance and cannot be pushed as in it's earlier days. That is OK. Getting old is a privelege few of our forebears had the pleasure of, and it beats the alternative.

Best to all,

Morrie

Very wise. I've personally found chiropracters to be mostly snake oil, and I've heard from more than one of those "in the know" that you should always avoid having neck adjustments due to the risk of damage. Chiro's who claim to treat allergies, colds, etc., seem to be the worst of the snake oil salesmen. They usually sell herbalife on the side! The joint injections, both S/I and epidural spinal injections, have been life savers for me.

 

[scottfeldstein]

As much as I think the theory of chiropractic is bunk, I admit that their adjustments have been very helpful to me over the years. And I'll also admit that going to a physician usually just results in a prescription for Vicodin and a recommendation to "take it easy."

I don't believe my back problems have been accurately understood and diagnosed by anyone, ever. Even though I've had recurring issues for the last 20 years.

 

[lomo]

The joint injections, both S/I and epidural spinal injections, have been life savers for me.

I do these and many other (mostly image-guided shoulder and subacromial bursal) injections of steroid or synthetic joint lubricant, but only upon referral from another MD who has independently determined that they are indicated/ likely to be beneficial. In the case of chronic spinal disc disease, if massage, rest, anti-iflammatories and physio fail, epidural steroid injection is the only other treatment short of surgery likely to provide meaningful results in the majority of patients. Cervical traction devices and inversion tables can also be superbly useful for disc disease, but not everyone tolerates them well. After training in both the US and Canada, and 18 years of practice in NY I returned to Montreal to work in 2012. The differences in practice patterns are also very interesting and have taught me a lot...anyway...back to bass!

 

[chadds]

I know, Bass!

 

[B-string]

Before I took the 2' fall direct to my lower back Chiropractic worked very well for me. After that it did very little. I guess I have a good one as he said he would no longer do lumbar adjustments as he might do more damage than good?
I just want to be able to at least enjoy playing again without it taking 2 to 3 days to recover from it. Not being passed by 90 year olds going in and out of stores would be nice too. Extra grumpy today.....

 

[tgriley62]

Our band was sitting around the bar after playing at our favorite local Blues jam a few weeks ago. Suddenly we had an epiphany. We will no longer say, "I'm going to take a leak." We will henceforth say, "Pardon me while I go do battle with my prostate." Yep, that's what we agreed on.

M. M.

"Battle of the prostate's" instead of "Battle of the bands" would be a great jam session for all of us grumpster's

 

[Neener]

Not to de-rail the medical topics, but I'm gonna.

Fertilized the lawn this morning, now we have a light rain....awesome.
Big glass o rum with a splash of coke
Stevie Ray on the stereo
Wife at work
Grump level is set to simmer for the time being.

 

[sharkbait130]

I fertilized my lawn a few years ago and a light rain came too. I was really happy for about two weeks, then the lawn started growing. I had to cut the stinkin thing twice a week for two summers. Never again. Enjoy you rum and peace and quiet. The ol' lady will be home soon and she will walk through the door saying "we have to talk." The four worst words a man can possibly hear.

 

[FFTT]

As much as I'm glad to see spring arrive, I dread mowing with a passion. It takes me a few days to mow about an acre and a half that is cleared out of 20 acres, using a push mower on the side of a mountain with too steep an incline and too many rocks
to make a riding mower safe, so I'm out there with a semi-self propelled push mower.

Ugh!

 

[Stank56]

I'm better now that I have the damn squirrels outa my bird feeder.

 

[FFTT]

We're all waiting to see if the Black Bears make a showing soon and bird feeders are the number one attraction, next to pet food and trash cans.

Taken through my kitchen window a few years ago.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Mama bear was like 300+ pounds.

My Jack Russell chased off two yearling cubs that weighed a good 200 pounds each.

It was cool to see them for a few weeks, but we had to discourage them.

They were getting way too comfortable around the house.

One Sunday morning Mama bear came back up on the deck. I tried to bang on the kitchen side door to make her leave.
She runs off, then about an hour later she comes back.

I go down to the basement and open the window just under the deck and then plug into my Hot Cat 100R DIMED
doing wind mills and howling feedback with my Ibanez Hollow Body.

Did not phase her one bit!

I finally go back upstairs and bang on the door again and she finally got the idea.

 

[Stank56]

We don't have bear in southern lower Michigan only deer and a ton of small animals.

 

[FFTT]

Caught these guys on the front deck scavenging bird seed and cat food.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

I'm on the VA side of the Appalachian Trail at 1050 foot elevation overlooking the Harper's Ferry WVA river valley off in the distance
and I can see Brunswick MD through Harper's Ferry Gap, so I have a tri-state view.

 

[fnordlyone]

That's all very well and good Fnord, but are you grumpY??

I assume that is rhetorical.
Does the pope wear a funny hat?
Does the bear chit in the woods?
most all my songs are written in a fit of rage and despair, yet I think I feel happy afterwards

fnord!

 

[Roger Ford]

Not if it's a polar bear...

 

[fnordlyone]

Not if it's a polar bear...

Can you imagine "doing that" in your own water/food source? Polar Bears are some sick bastards
f

 

[bachlover]

Yeah, fish too.

 

[fnordlyone]

Well, I'm going to assume the reason that no Grumps are posting here is that they are still trying to figure out the right buttons to push on this new fangled TB! Are you kidding me? Like I can remember my password! What's that?! Then my icon or avatar (picture is what I call it), had to be changed because it was all outta wack. Then I looked at my profile and had to re enter some stuff. This new interface is going to take some getting used to… We can upload all the pictures we want now, though (I think).

fnord!