# Who else has back spasms? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 9, 2004, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907 "2004-11-09T21:32:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2004, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/21 "2004-11-10T21:06:44Z")
I have back spasms in my lower and upper back and shoulders. Stretching is the only thing that works for me. I got a book from my doc called “Treat Your Own Back” that has done wonders. It has onset exercises as well as preventative ones. I have a scrip for muscle relaxers that I take as needed (usually once a month or so, when it gets really bad), but they take me to a happy place so I only take them at night, right before bed. I have chronic tightness in my shoulders (they’re hard like bricks most of the time) and periodic spasms in my lower back and in the muscles just below my shoulder blade, especially when I’m riding in Ardred’s car. ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2004, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/22 "2004-11-10T21:12:15Z")
FTR, Flexeril made me a bit light-headed to first week I took it. After that it really didn’t affect me. It didn’t get me high, it just relaxed me. Also, Qadgop, really only two weeks??? I took it in the year 2000 and the doctor gave me five refills on a huge bottle, WAY more than I needed since my back troubles were essentially gone in about two weeks (go figure). I guess he shouldn’t have done that…was this common knowledge four years ago??? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2004, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/23 "2004-11-10T23:10:55Z")
> [@Ghanima](#): > > FTR, Flexeril made me a bit light-headed to first week I took it. After that it really didn’t affect me. It didn’t get me high, it just relaxed me. Also, Qadgop, really only two weeks??? I took it in the year 2000 and the doctor gave me five refills on a huge bottle, WAY more than I needed since my back troubles were essentially gone in about two weeks (go figure). I guess he shouldn’t have done that…was this common knowledge four years ago??? The drug labelling clearly indicates that it is for short-term use and that there is no evidence that it is effective after 3 weeks to relax muscles. Of course, doctors are not constrained to follow those recommendations, and if one has a patient who won’t leave the office until he gets his flexeril, well, guess what? Quite often he gets his flexeril. Then docs get in the habit of just handing it out over and over, or writing for a bucket of refills. It is really not a good medicine for management of chronic back troubles. Acute flares of chronic spasms, yes. But exercise, weight loss, physical therapy, and even manipulation by a chiropractor would be much higher on my list of beneficial things than chronic flexeril use. And don’t get me started on Soma (carisprodol). Run a search on the term if you want, and you’ll find my opinion on the use of that barbiturate. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2004, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/24 "2004-11-10T23:48:09Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > Then docs get in the habit of just handing it out over and over, or writing for a bucket of refills. > > It is really not a good medicine for management of chronic back troubles. Acute flares of chronic spasms, yes. But exercise, weight loss, physical therapy, and even manipulation by a chiropractor would be much higher on my list of beneficial things than chronic flexeril use. Guess that’s why the Workers’ Comp docs in California had me on it for six months. Two a day, plus Darvocet. I brought up the idea of a gym membership for its double-headed benefits of weight loss and exercise, and the response was as if I’d asked to get enough morphine for self-injection four times a day. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/25 "2004-11-11T00:52:50Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Guess that’s why the Workers’ Comp docs in California had me on it for six months. Two a day, plus Darvocet. I brought up the idea of a gym membership for its double-headed benefits of weight loss and exercise, and the response was as if I’d asked to get enough morphine for self-injection four times a day. :mad: You probably could have found a doc willing to prescribe you the morphine like that easier than getting Workman’s Comp to pay for a gym membership. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/26 "2004-11-11T01:03:07Z")
> [@norinew](#): > > I’ve been thinking that I’ve been having major trouble with my right kidney lately; with my history of stones and infections, and the pain being right above my right kidney, it was a pretty natural assumption. But it’s not my kidney; my urologist says it’s back spasms. Nothing terrible happened to start this intermittent pain, and it doesn’t seem to be aggravated by things like heavy lifting. It does seem to be helped by pressure on the spot where the pain is; hydrocodone helps, too, and my urologist has generously provided me with a scrip for such. > > So, who else has these horrible things? Sometimes they’re bad enough to be debilitating. My urologist suggested a heating pad; I don’t have one yet but will get one this week. What do you do about your back spasms? What’s been most successful? Do you have a favorite kind of heating pad? Please share your stories! I’ve had 2 cases of back spasims and they were from different causes. The first was when I finished jogging. I walked into the house and as I was walking up the stairs my whole lower back just kinda spazed… It dropped me to my knees. A couple days later the pain was gone. The second time this happend I was under LOTS of stress and It just happend. So I don’t know if the stress or the physical activity caused my mess. Just to inform you’all. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/27 "2004-11-11T12:50:01Z")
**Jake** , there has been a lot of stress lately; wonder if the back spasms are my body’s way of telling me to chill? ---
**Author:** ![N.Sane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f19dbf/32.png) [@N.Sane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N.Sane)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/28 "2004-11-11T14:03:30Z")
On Monday (my 13th wedding anniversary), I was hugging my husband good-bye and pulled a muscle in my back. ☹ I had already made a doctor’s appointment due to getting 4 migraines in 5 days. He put me on Norflex and Vicoden for my back. I made it to work today, but I’m guessing that I’m going to get my work done quickly and head back home. I’m still in a fair bit of pain here. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/29 "2004-11-11T15:15:52Z")
> [@N. Sane](#): > > On Monday (my 13th wedding anniversary), I was hugging my husband good-bye and pulled a muscle in my back. ☹ > > I had already made a doctor’s appointment due to getting 4 migraines in 5 days. He put me on Norflex and Vicoden for my back. I made it to work today, but I’m guessing that I’m going to get my work done quickly and head back home. I’m still in a fair bit of pain here. Hey, happy anniversary! Today’s mine (16 years). Unfortunately, hubby won’t be home until Saturday or Sunday. But when he comes home, we’re doing dinner and a movie to celebrate. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/30 "2004-11-11T17:08:33Z")
I woke up one morning all twisted up in a very strange position. Throughout the day, my back started aching. Then the spasms started. I tried taking a Flexoril, but that didn’t help. Then it got worse and worse until around 6pm I had to ask my dad to take me to the hospital. They suggested three days off of work, some light streching, some really expensive Ibuprofrin, and as much walking around as I could stand. The next day, it was even worse. A few times I fell to my hands and knees it was so painful. I got my brother to take me back to the doctor, who this time gave me some Progesterone. That did the trick. I was back at work on schedule, and a week later it was as if it never happened. Those back spasms were the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my entire life. If the OP has any, I feel really bad for him/her. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/31 "2004-11-11T17:18:19Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > Those back spasms were the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my entire life. If the OP has any, I feel really bad for him/her. Well, like I said, I mistook them for kidney stone attacks, and _those_ are horrible. The big difference was that with the back spasms, there’s no puking. But the pain is bad enough for me to lose my appetite (and that takes some doin’!). BTW, I’m a woman. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2004, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/32 "2004-11-11T17:33:25Z")
I should have known that, since I just got done reading your thread over in MPSIMS. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2004, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907/33 "2004-11-12T21:43:34Z")
Well, just a little bit ago, I bought myself a lovely new heating pad; it even has an “aquifer”; a little felty pad that you saturate with water and tuck inside the pad, so you get moist heat, which is what my doctor recommended. I’ve been tired and crabby all day. I believe I’m gonna go sit in my recliner chair, crack a beer, and try out my new heating pad! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-else-has-back-spasms/273907.md?page=1)