Back Pain - Riding Days May Be Coming to A Close

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mcgovern61

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Kingsport, Tennessee
My Bike Models
Former '82 GL1100 "The Slug"
Been fighting back pain for many years. 2 herniated discs, closing of space in other areas and such. We are out of town at my oldest daughter's seeing the grand kids in Virginia. Yesterday, I had a significant incident with popping the left side bone structure after stepping down from a high position and thinking my left foot was planted, but I was still 8" off the ground. I am practically down and out. Not sure if the disc ruptured, but it is a close second. I couldn't even think of lifting my leg over a saddle, let alone sit.

Working through remedies, but I have been having trouble even bending over to work on the bike the last few years. Trying not to cause any further damage, but it is getting harder all the time.
 
[url=https://classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=194680#p194680:34kiv7g5 said:
dan filipi » Mon Aug 14, 2017 1:52 pm[/url]":34kiv7g5]
Sorry to hear!

What do the doctors say? My brother had back surgery for the same problem years ago and has been doing much better since.
Don't know yet. We are out of town. I will follow up with my doctor's when I return late next week. For now, just stabilizing the area so I can walk.
 
Ouch!
My back don't like bending over for more than a few minutes either, but I don't have any major bone issues.....I'm just gettin to old.
Sure hope your Docs can do something for you....being down with back problems ain't good. :beg:
 
If there is any way you can drop some weight I can vouch for the benefits, I was taking max dose of hydrocodone plus sometimes extra and max dose of ibuprofen daily for years and now I'm off both. L4/L5 fusion is what they want/wanted to do to me. I was lucky, the Cymbalta(anti-dep) I've been taking to help reduce pain helped me drop 50 lbs. Not that it applies here I'm also no longer hypertensive or have to control my blood sugar with meds(Metformin).

~O~
 
ouch...i deal with pain like that a lot ....i fight and struggle all the time...sometimes i feel like i will never walk again ....sometimes i cant even get out of bed ...or walk into another room ...takes months sometimes for me to get better ....i just keep fighting the condition till i get better ...and when i do get better its a new day and i try to do all i can ....i simply dont waist any good time i have ...its very precious to me to move and do ....been doing it decades now ....last big bout took me aboyt 2 months before i could throw my leg over hooches saddle...when i did i was off on a ride ...rode the whole tank out ..as i had no choice then but try and stop and get off lol...it was quite the feet getting off too ....if i quit riding it wil be cause i totally cant get on the bike for a year or so trying ....its tough being damaged goods ...but im pretty hard headed ....
 
Sorry to hear, Jerry...back pain SUCKS!!! Herniated, disks, sciatic nerve issues, deformed lower lumbar...grrrr!! We do what we can though. Between that and my vision issues, my riding days are done. I hope your issues can be taken care of, I know how much you love riding!
 
hope the doc's can do something for you Gerry, sorry to hear this
as for me I know my riding days are numbered. with all the ride reports I do you would probably think there is nothing wrong with me but my herniated disc is at c6 c7 in my neck along with the sciatic nerve issues. I've been dealing with this since july of '98. I've had sooo much ibuprofen that I can't get a script for the stuff, they are afraid that my stomach lining might go so while I still can you'll get all the ride reports I can manage to hang on the road and get
 
Very sorry to hear about your back troubles. Seems like riding a motorcycle is hard on a tender back. The only other thing I would suggest, and you might already be doing it, is to pray to the Holy Spirit...is can work wonders. :good:
 
Gerry the miracles of modern medicine and the human body can be amazing, but knowing your wife's profession... you already know that!

In 2003 when I was diagnosed with Multiple-Sclerosis, I gave up on all my dreams as far as bikes were concerned because I thought it was the right thing to do. I was forced to finish my career in the Navy and also the aviation field. I went to one MS "support" group meeting and realized I didn't want my life to become what I was seeing in front of me in the others that were at this meeting.

Don't simply throw in the towel! If you have to go out, go out kicking and screaming!!! When I was diagnosed, I was shocked and numb but I lived my life knowing that I have MS: it didn't have me. I know my limitation and I don't exceed them. Slowly I started regain some of what I lost until last year. In 2003, I was numb. Last year the Doctor told me he was changing my diagnosis to benign MS.

The day I married my wife, the birth of my sons, and the death of close family members. There are only a few events in my life that have brought me to tears. That Dr's appointment has now been added to that list.

Some times it is just mind over matter. NEVER say "never."
 
My back actually feels better after riding a while. That said I can't recall ever having a pain free day. I'll learn to build an exoskeleton before I quit riding. Although I may at some point have to choose a lighter bike. Hang in there Gerry.
 
[url=https://www.classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=194729#p194729:gvtn8hal said:
desertrefugee » Tue Aug 15, 2017 11:05 am[/url]":gvtn8hal]
"exoskeleton" :smilie_happy: :smilie_happy:

Perhaps a trike might extend your time in the wind?

Just saying I'd go to extremes to keep my riding. A trike wouldn't be out of the question but I prefer to stay on two wheels.
 
I feel your pain brother, I just shortened my rides and don`t ride as often as I would like, cant do anything about spine compression but might try an inversion table..may straiten you out enough to get a little fun and make your ride tolerable, a pull strap back brace can help too, they come in black.
Best of luck.
 
Speaking of inversion: I think we all experience back issues as we age. Some are less fortunate than others, but gravity, activity, injury all eventually take their toll. Spine decompression is a key treatment for addressing a lot of the disc problems we experience. But, an inversion table is both expensive and takes up a lot of space.

My wife, God bless her, discovered an apparatus from Australia a few years back. It is fairly compact, you don't have to hang upside down and you get the same effect - i.e. the spine is stretched. It is not painful, but woooonderful. We bought one and it has been INCREDIBLY helpful in treating both of our occasional pinched nerves and other back issues. I would highly recommend folks who have issues to read up on this thing. I cannot say enough about it.

Nubax Trio:

https://www.google.com/search?q=nub...rome..69i57.3052j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
 
[url=https://classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=194742#p194742:2f2zcfe7 said:
desertrefugee » Today, 11:03 am[/url]":2f2zcfe7]
Speaking of inversion: I think we all experience back issues as we age. Some are less fortunate than others, but gravity, activity, injury all eventually take their toll. Spine decompression is a key treatment for addressing a lot of the disc problems we experience. But, an inversion table is both expensive and takes up a lot of space.

My wife, God bless her, discovered an apparatus from Australia a few years back. It is fairly compact, you don't have to hang upside down and you get the same effect - i.e. the spine is stretched. It is not painful, but woooonderful. We bought one and it has been INCREDIBLY helpful in treating both of our occasional pinched nerves and other back issues. I would highly recommend folks who have issues to read up on this thing. I cannot say enough about it.

Nubax Trio:

https://www.google.com/search?q=nub...rome..69i57.3052j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Think I'm going to get me one of those.
 
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