Severe Back Pain - Should I See a Doctor?

[OzzyKP]

Is there a doctor in the house?

Last night I simply stepped out of my car at Target and suddenly had a rush of bad back pain. It continued the rest of the evening, sometimes depending on how I moved it was really bad, other times it was barely noticeable. I went to sleep.

Now, in the morning, it is much worse. Again, if I don't move, it is ok, but if I move a certain way, could be as simple as reaching for something relatively nearby then I have overwhelming pain in my back.

Also, and more troubling, when I have a particularly severe rush of pain (often from trying to walk or stand up or something) it is followed by numbness in my arms, a ringing (sounds like wind actually) in my ears, light in front of my eyes, and queasiness. These symptoms all go away if I just stay still.

So... what is going on? Pinched nerve? Slipped disk? Spinal cord injury?

Should I see a doctor? I don't have health insurance . How serious is this?

[SlowwHand]

Do you have access to a hot tub?

[OzzyKP]

Nope, and I'd have a huge amount of trouble trying to walk across the house to one if I did. My girlfriend is bringing over a heat pad before she goes to work though. I've taken two Ibuprofins.

[Dr Strangelove]

Yes, see a doctor. The unusual secondary symptoms, queasiness, tinnitus, etc. though are probably just sympathetic responses to extreme pain.

[SlowwHand]

There you have it.

[OzzyKP]

Yes, see a doctor. The unusual secondary symptoms, queasiness, tinnitus, etc. though are probably just sympathetic responses to extreme pain.

Good news about the secondary effects. I was worried there was some like spinal cord or other nerve damage.

As for the doctor.. what kind of stuff do you think they'd do? Should I see a chiropractor or go into urgent care? I don't suppose you'd have an estimate as to what something like this would cost? Could it clear up in a day if I just rested?

[Guynemer]

Do NOT see a chiropractor.

I have no idea what it will cost. If you don't have a doctor, and can't find one, then try urgent care. But that is not optimal.

[OzzyKP]

I just called my friend's dad who is a doctor, said I should rest and call him if anything changes. He seemed concerned over whether it hurt when I breathed, and it doesn't unless I take a very deep breath.

While this guy doesn't deal specifically with backs, I doubt anyone at urgent care would have any better advice and they'd probably charge me $300 for it.

So I'm just gonna hang out here and rest.

[Tuberski]

You have lousy or non-existant health insurance. An Urgent Care visit for me is the same copay as a doctor's appointment.

ACK!

[OzzyKP]

Also, is it just me, or is WebMD worthless?

[Arrian]

The numbness sounds like a nerve issue... some sort of pinched nerve in your back, I'd guess. I have some experience (my back is a mess).

Anti-inflammatory drugs may help (for me, Naproxen, aka "aleve" really helped), along with rest and icing the area. For me, icing helped - heat was bad.

But yeah, see a professional if you can. They may order an MRI (you may have a bulging disk that's hitting a nerve).

-Arrian

[Darius871]

Do NOT see a chiropractor.

QFMFT. As a teen I had a double-fractured L4 vertebrae that a chiropractor apparently missed in the X-ray, and then his tapping away at the whole area like a chisel sculptor only aggravated the injury and also wasted a critical period in which the bones were most able to fuse. Then after one visit to an orthopedic specialist, I had a diagnosis and brace within days, and fusion within weeks, bada bing.

[Arrian]

I've had ok experience w/chiros myself, but since I can't prove that they've done any good (rather than simply saying they've done no harm), I won't argue. I'm just a wee bit atypical anyway.

-Arrian

[Saras]

Sounds like upper spinal disc hernia, I have a healing L5-S1 herniation, had similar sensations down my right leg - numbness, loss of control, loss of strength etc., accompanied by general nausea, dizzyness when in great pain.

I never saw chiropractors, but went to a spinal doctor who puts sportsmen back on, he showed me some stretching exercises, I also swam a lot and now it's much better.

[Blaupanzer]

Pain is nature's way of warning you not to behave in certain ways, specifically the ways that cause more pain. Definitely see an orthopedic-type, as it is clear you are unsure of the whats and whys in this message. Chiros are great for stretched muscles and dislocations, and reasonably good in dealing with old injuries acting up. They are not good diagnosers, however.