I seriously fucked up my back and I'm scared.
About a month ago I upped the weight on my stiff leg deadlifts. My back started hurting so I didn't work out for a couple weeks. Then I tried again and it just got worse than before.
So now another couple weeks have passed and just when I was planning to start working out again I bent over to put a banana peel in the garbage and feel the most pain I've ever felt in my life in my back. Five minutes later and it's hurting any time I move.
Have I completely fucked up my back for life? Will I never make it?I'm very scared.
Are you feeling numbness or tingling in your legs or glutes?
>>35178681
Don't ask us, ask a doctor. We physically can't check if you've fucked your back up or not.
>>35178686
No.
>>35178694
Can I just go to a walk in clinic, there's a really close one to me (Canada btw), or do you think that would be a waste of time? Was hoping you guys might have had similar things happen to you at least and could let me know what happened in the end.
>>35178681
Physiotherapist in the making here. You're going to be glad I caught your post, pal.
>Have I completely fucked up my back for life? Will I never make it?I'm very scared.
First off, what's happening here is what's called "catastrophic thinking". It's normal but unfortunately it's also VERY BAD. Note that it's your thinking that's bad here, not your back.
With that out of the way, let's back up a bit and talk about pain. Listen, nothing you can do to your body is directly "painful". Even chopping off your own foot is nothing but sensory input. The actual pain that follows is created in your brain and its intensity is based on how much of a threat the brain determines the sensory input poses. In other words, the more scared you are of a given feeling - whether this is happening on a conscious level or not - the more it's going to hurt.
It's not that the pain you feel is imaginary. The pain is very real and caused by chemical processes in your nervous system. But because of the way you think about your back, these signals become amplified. You're essentially hyper-sentizising your own nervous system.
This is called central sensitization. Do yourself a huge favour and educate yourself on the matter.
Imagine somebody broke into your house and stole some stuff. You didn't like that so now you installed a kickass security and surveillance system to monitor any sort of movement approaching your house. The result is that next time the mailman rings your doorbell, every alarm in the house goes off. THAT is what's currently happening in your nervous system, and you need to get it under control ASAP.
>>35178713
Please don't post in my thread buddy. My back actually hurts and I'm really sad ;_;
>>35178713
You're a fucking idiot.
>>35178723
See a doctor. I doubt it's a herniated disc but it's good to be sure.
Hey bud, random anon here.
Listen, It won't hurt anybody if you go see a doc on the matter. You'll have 2 positive outcomes:
1: A professional is going to find the problem and give you some medication for it
2: Your stress level will be lowered
Don't forget, going to the doctor is not always to fix a physical problem, your brain puts itself in ease as well.
Take care
I'll definitely be seeing a doctor. Thanks for the (You)'s, they make me feel just a little bit better.
>>35178698
>No.
The lack of any numbness or tingling is a very, very good sign. Numbness and tingling indicate nerve impingement, likely from a bulging or burst disc. I have one in my neck and it's goddamn fucking awful.
Anyway, probably just a spastic muscle. See a doc, go to a massage therapist, strategic use of ice, heat, and stretching, and you'll probably be good to go.
>>35178723
Are you fucking joking? I'm trying to save you from years of chronic pain here, pal.
Okay, here's what's going to happen when you ignore everything I just posted:
You go to the doctor's. He recommends x-ray or an MRI. On this MRI you're going to see a bunch of stuff. Maybe you have 3 herniated discs, but here's the kicker: You could've had these herniated discs for years without even feeling them. The majority of the adult population is walking around with disc herniations without even knowing and without ever feeling any pain. This is a fact.
Anyway, the doctor is going to point out these finding on the MRI. It could also be a bunch of other stuff, such as accellerated disc degeneration, and the doc might tell you that you have the back of a 70 year old.
All this shit will amplify your catastrophic thinking and serve to further develop central sensitization, secondary hyperalgesia and even allodynia. The consequence is that everything you do with your back is going to hurt. And it's going to keep hurting for years.
Listen, I know your back hurts. The pain can be extreme. And you probably have injured yourself. But it is absolutely critical that you understand that this injury WILL HEAL itself given proper training and time, as long as you trust in this fact.
Listen, no matter how fucked up you moved when you put that banana peel in the garbage, this movement CANNOT inflict any damage to your body. You need to acknowledge this fact and not be afraid of moving around.
Note that I'm not saying you didn't hurt yourself. You did. But understand that everything is going to be OK.
>>35178735
>You're a fucking idiot.
Honestly, don't you think you should shut the fuck up and consider the possibility that I - given my professional education in physiology, anatomy, neurology and pain science - just might know a bit more about this that you, some fucking anon who probably don't even know basic anatomy?
>>35178755
>THAT is what's currently happening in your nervous system, and you need to get it under control ASAP.
(From your first post) How do I get that under control then?
>>35178744
>>35178681
ayyy op. I fucked my back in a similar way 2 years ago at this date. Worse than you have from your descriptions. I was box squatting 3.5 plate for a 20 rep set, felt really easy so I did it again. Felt a weird sensation but no pain so I set it down and called it a day. Keep in mind i was 150 pounds at the time so it was a stupid thing to do when my ass to grass squat was 2 plate for 5-7 reps.
Anyway, later that night after i was sitting for a few hours it got really really stiff. Didn't think much of it, i've overflexed my lower back several times and bounced back in a few days. The next morning I couldn't even get out of bed. It took me over an hour of sliding around on the floor to get to my computer chair and crying from the pain. It got very minimally better over hte next 3 days to where I could shower and use the bathroom if i was very careful. a few weeks went by and I didn't touch a weight, it felt "okay" but I knew it wasn't strong enough to lift still. I started doing bodyweight exercises and light cable machines for 2 months after that without much problems.
after those two months I went back to regular weightlifting with the exception of squats and deadlifts, 90% of the time I felt fine and generally strong enough. I got xrays of my back and didn't have a slipped disc, they told me it was muscle related and to do physical therapy and lots of stretching. Even if it was more serious than that, did I really want surgery and risk fucking my back even more?
anyway, over the next year and a half i kept up this routine of only being able to do lunges/leg press/machines for legs and every time I tried to do a deadlift again it just never felt right, like i was on the verge of seriously injuring myself again.
Every few weeks I would, and still, get seemingly random relapses and get about 60% of the pain I originally had for a few days.
post too long 1/2
>>35178766
Well that's the hard part. Mainly because these processes mostly take place on an unconscious level. The important thing is to come to the realization that what's happened to you happens to people all the time and that you're going to be OK. You need to understand that the severe pain you're no doubt going to encounter during your day to day activities at this point, is not a real sign of any danger. Your back may be hurt, but it's not made of paper. Simply moving around, bending over, rotating or carrying lighter things pose no threat to your spine. The pain that you're going to feel does not mean that you're about to snap your shit up. That already happened, and the healing process is probably already coming along nicely.
Understand that because of the hyper sensitive nerve receptors around your back, somebody poking you with their finger may very well feel like they're stabbing you with a knife. But they're not. As soon as come to this realization, the sooner your nervous system will return to normal.
That being said, it can be a long process (for some people it can take years, if they've felt pain for too long). And of course I'm not saying you should go around provoking your pain signals on purpose. It's OK to be a little careful. But the important thing is to have faith in your body. If you want help rehabbing your back faster, see a competent physiotherapist.
>>35178778
but I learned to tolerate the pain a bit better and if I stay active it will reside in a few days. I learned since I can't do the big leg compounds anymore I have to focus a lot on core to give strength and stability to my back. I believe it's related to my left side lower back and effected my left oblique. I was db benching 80's a few days ago and tweaked it again bringing it from the floor to my knee.
when i was younger I injured my wrist to a similar severity and it took about 2 years before it stopped randomly coming out of remission and reinjurying itself. I went from not being able to turn a doorknob wiht my left hand back to deadlifting 4 plates in 2 years time.
It's easy to be apathetic about your injuries and think they will never fully heal but that's no way to live friend. You have to work around them and do what you can. sometimes I still question my passion of lifting but what else am I going to do without physical activity in my life?
I believe when you chronically injure a muscle scar tissue builds up inside of it, which is what causes the intense pain. I'm not sure if it will ever fully heal for me or you, but all of the research I did about my wrist said it would never fully either either. Just keep your head up, stretch A LOT, do lots of core, and take things slow. You'd be surprising how good of a work out you can get with cables for both upper and lower body.
I didn't touch dbs for a year and only used 25-30 pound cables for my chest and the day I went back I was lifting 5 pounds heavier than when I quit.
Also, i'm probably worse off than you because I have scoliosis at a moderate curve which influences muscle imbalances in my core and lower back.
tldr : don't be a pussy, but there's not much you can do except try to rehabilitate yourself slowly
>>35178766
The first step is not taking health advice from an autist on a serbian craft beer brewing board.
>>35178681
>I seriously fucked up my back and I'm scared.
>>35179118
Guess that includes your advice just now then?
Having critical thinking skills is cool and all, but it doesn't take much time on Google to figure out that the above advice is stellar.
>>35179131
that guys reaction is perfect
>>35179131
Jesus Christ. How can someone wear all that pro gear and fuck up so bad deadlifting only 120 kg?
I'll bet you a years supply of whey protein that it's a herniated disc. I had that shit happen to me a year and a half ago. Took me way too long to see a doctor about it.
Go see a doctor. It's worth it to get some knowledge on your specific case.
I don't feel mine on a daily basis at all unless I lift something heavy wrong. It's still a major weakspot of mine when it comes to weightlifting, but on a daily basis it's fine.
I now Bench more than I deadlift.
>>35178681
This happened to me back in october.y back was fucked up for a little over a month (same pain you described while bending over).
It didn't even hurt or feel weird while i snapped my shit up. Only found out after.
I LOVE deadlifts, but am done with them. Not worth the gamble.
>>35178681
hey op
obviously see a doctor if you can afford it and are worried enough
i hurt my back doing deadlifts like 4 years ago. i felt tingling and numbness that ran all the way down to my right toe. a doctor told me over the phone that i should stretch my piriformis and just ease up on it.
it made me get into this whole mobility, stretching, yoga kick that i still keep up with today. i worked on my form and all of my lifts have improved as a result. my posture is better, i'm lighter on my feet, and way more flexible than i was even pre-injury.
unless you are literally paralyzed, use this as an opportunity to improve yourself.
