Whether it’s a dull throb or a shooting pain, we all experience back pain at some point in our lives. Sometimes it can be treated at home with rest, and sometimes relief requires medical intervention. Wendy, an avid athlete, suffered a herniated disc four years ago. She was fully recovered from surgery when things started going downhill again. “Everything was great until this March. It was freezing cold and I was training for the Berlin Marathon and I was running in some hills and I did something terrible to my back,” she said.The pain was so severe that Wendy couldn’t walk, had trouble sitting and suffered difficulty sleeping. She lived with the pain for a month and a half before she went back to the Brigham & Women’s Hospital Spine Center for help. “No one wants an operation me included, so don’t feel like you need to have a knee-jerk reflex to have an operation because you did so well after the first one,” Dr. James Kang said. This time, doctors treated Wendy with epidural steroid injections. “Now I’m back to running 3 miles a couple days, I went to CrossFit yesterday, this morning I was in Pilates, I’m training for my 21st Pan-Mass challenge in two weeksBut, everyone’s pain is different. The causes and the treatments can be different, too. “During this time of COVID, what we’ve seen with so many folks working from home is an increase in back pain from people sitting quite a bit not moving around as much,” said Dr. Christopher Gilligan. “We also see more neck issues because people are staring down at screens quite a bit more than they would normally and they’re just not up moving around.”So, if you have back pain, when is it time to seek help? Doctors advise that pain restricted to the back can be treated at home with rest and anti-inflammatories. If pain lasts beyond three or four weeks, or if the pain travels down your arms or legs, it is time to call a doctor. Other red flags include numbness, weakness, fever, chills, night sweats and unwanted weight loss. Anyone with those symptoms should seek medical attention immediately. Preventing back pain before it starts is just as important as getting help. Doctors suggest getting up from your desk every 30 minutes, making sure your screens are at eye level and integrating some yoga or stretching into your routine.
Whether it’s a dull throb or a shooting pain, we all experience back pain at some point in our lives. Sometimes it can be treated at home with rest, and sometimes relief requires medical intervention.
Wendy, an avid athlete, suffered a herniated disc four years ago. She was fully recovered from surgery when things started going downhill again.
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“Everything was great until this March. It was freezing cold and I was training for the Berlin Marathon and I was running in some hills and I did something terrible to my back,” she said.
The pain was so severe that Wendy couldn’t walk, had trouble sitting and suffered difficulty sleeping. She lived with the pain for a month and a half before she went back to the Brigham & Women’s Hospital Spine Center for help.
“No one wants an operation me included, so don’t feel like you need to have a knee-jerk reflex to have an operation because you did so well after the first one,” Dr. James Kang said.
This time, doctors treated Wendy with epidural steroid injections.
“Now I’m back to running 3 miles a couple days, I went to CrossFit yesterday, this morning I was in Pilates, I’m training for my 21st Pan-Mass challenge in two weeks
But, everyone’s pain is different. The causes and the treatments can be different, too.
“During this time of COVID, what we’ve seen with so many folks working from home is an increase in back pain from people sitting quite a bit not moving around as much,” said Dr. Christopher Gilligan. “We also see more neck issues because people are staring down at screens quite a bit more than they would normally and they’re just not up moving around.”
So, if you have back pain, when is it time to seek help?
Doctors advise that pain restricted to the back can be treated at home with rest and anti-inflammatories. If pain lasts beyond three or four weeks, or if the pain travels down your arms or legs, it is time to call a doctor.
Other red flags include numbness, weakness, fever, chills, night sweats and unwanted weight loss. Anyone with those symptoms should seek medical attention immediately.
Preventing back pain before it starts is just as important as getting help. Doctors suggest getting up from your desk every 30 minutes, making sure your screens are at eye level and integrating some yoga or stretching into your routine.