Never Take Your Back for Granted

You've heard the saying "You don't realize what you have until you lose it" right? Well, not that dance and science classes haven't taught me that my back is pretty important, but now that I am in pain because something is wrong in my back do I realize that EVERYTHING you do, uses your back. 

Here are some examples I found out the hard way:

1. Coughing.

2. Sneezing/Sniffing

3. Laughing.

4. Getting up off the couch.

5. Rolling out of bed.

6. Sitting in a chair.

7. Getting into a car.

8. Putting on pants.

9. Lifting something off your lap (aka. laptop or pillows)

10. Looking down or too far back.

11. Moving something with your foot.

12. Pushing or pulling open a door.

13. Standing up straight.

14. Shrugging your shoulders.

Here is the complete story. Saturday morning, I woke up, and took a shower. Turned the shower off, grabbed my towel, and started drying off. It wasn't until I was drying my feet that I must've bent over wrong, and felt my back just pinch in a weird position. So I tried to stand up straight, but IT KILLED. I slowly get out of the shower and hoped and prayed that the pain would just go away, that it was just a temporary owwie. So, despite the pain, I got dressed (#8 above) and ready for the day because at 10am was my brother's stake youth activity, which I was supposed to go with my dad to drop them off and then do some shopping on the west side of town. But the next oddest thing I learned, was as I leaned down to get into the car...ouchhhh (#7 above)! I should also add, that because of my bright outlook thinking the pain would go away soon, I didn't take any pain meds before I left.

So, I ended up slouching around (#13 above) with back pain all day, and had to sit through my sister's dance recital for 3 hours (#6 above). When I got home, I tried various ways of sitting, and laying, to try and find the least uncomfortable position. Laying on my side turned out to be the least painful, so I tried that for a while, and when it was time for dinner, someone had to lift me up off the floor, I was stuck :( 

After dinner, I didn't want to lay on the floor anymore, so I found a spot on the couch, sitting on a pillow with another pillow behind me, and that was ok for the meantime. But each small movement (#1,2,3 above) was almost too much to handle. Guess what?!? I guess it was my lucky day because Grandma is in town...and I don't know about your grandmothers, but mine, has to take a lot of pain meds due to a hip replacement, and arthritis. So after my mom asked the resident doc (my dad) if I could take one of her Tylenols with Codine, and he said it was fine, they forced me to swallow it.

You probably don't know this, but I'm totally AGAINST taking medicine. I will deal with the pain pretty much as long as it lasts cuz I just hate the idea of things going into my body that are not necessarily natural. Ok, you may argue, don't you eat food?? Well, ya, not all food is 100% natural, but it doesn't change how you feel, as does medicine. Medicine has the ability to make you feel drowsy, nauseous, irritable, hyper, loopy, you name it...side affects are SCARY. To me at least. So I was definitely not very happy-go-lucky about taking my grandmother's pain meds. BUT. This back-pain case was an exception, and with the consent of a doctor (don't worry kids, I trust the guy) I really didn't have any other options. So I swallowed the dang thing, and it took about 30 minutes before I felt any relief. I still wasn't completely pain-less, but it definitely made a difference.

After getting assisted off the couch, I made my way into bed and lay flat on my back with pillows under my knees. I slept fine, and made my way out of bed (aka pretty much falling) and up the stairs. Now, I am sitting uncomfortably on the couch, sadly not at church hearing my brother Andrew give his talk, and not there to teach my 4 year olds in Primary.

I guess the moral of this story is, NEVER TAKE YOUR BACK FOR GRANTED. It literally is the powerhouse of everything you do! So next time you sneeze or laugh without back pain...be grateful. I strongly urge you to now sit with proper posture, lift things with your legs not only by bending your back, and sit UP in bed, don't slouch with your head titled down funny while reading or using a laptop. Oh, and I can't forget to mention...when you're drying your feet with your towel, do NOT just bend your back to do it. Bend your knees. Or better, Sit down and then bend your knees. Please do this, and you will most likely be able to avoid the pain that I am now slowly overcoming.

Sincerely your "crippled-back-girl,"

~Emily