Back Pain- how long does it last

[Janashlin]

I am 9 months post surgery. I spent two months post surgery in ICU without getting out of bed. I had major complications and when I was finally able to get out of bed I had horrific back pain. Could not stand up straight for months. I am still having bad pain across my lower back and my right side is very painful. I am doing Thai Massage, reflexology and exercise to try to increase my muscle tone. I lost 57 pounds and feels like every muscle has wasted away. I would love to know how long others back pain lasted and any tips for improvement.

[slobjohnb]

I am 18 months post Ivor Lewis and although nowhere near as badly affected as you were I do still suffer from pain around my ribcage which I don't think will ever completely go away, it seems to move around my ribs and is never in the same place for more than a couple of days.

Major surgery of this kind damages the muscles and nerves and take a long time if ever to completely heal. This was not help by your being confined to bed for so long. I have found exercise to be most beneficial and it is amazing what the body will recover from.

Climbing my stairs although painful to begin with was a good form of exercise for the arms, chest and legs.

I wish you all the best,

[Janashlin in reply to slobjohnb]

I am the same with my rib cage / diaphragm. A sneeze still brings me to my knees! All the best to you and thank you for your response.

[liz_crisp]

Hi I was told to take pain killers when I felt the pain begining so I didnt try and compensate by twisting the way I walked or sat to make it comfortable, and i took pain killers before bed so that I actually relaxed. I spent ages exercising to try and build muscle and found out that I was doing too much, I needed fat to provide the energy to rebuild the muscle otherwise I was just using muscle to create muscle! I did small amounts of exercise, mainly like slobjohnb I walked around the garden, up the stairs, walking in the swiming pool against the water was really good, and pushing foam dumbells below the water, just treading water for short periods, using resistance bands by sitting and pulling against them lifting my legs against them , sitting on a ball and later sitting on a ball and lifting a light weight or using the gym weight machines but with no weight set, all helped to build my core strength. but it is a slow process and you dont want to do too much at any one time. I went from 12st down to 7st 7lb it took me ages to get the weight back but your body is so busy repairing itself and actually trying to function with the food it does process that there is not alot of energy left for exercising and building new muscle. Good luck you are doing well, 9 months is not long after what your body has been through. It seems like you are not getting better but if you make a diary of what you can do you will see that climbing the stairs, doing the shopping, hanging out the washing, washing the car are suddenly routine again and not tasks that you have to sit down after and rest a while.

[Janashlin in reply to liz_crisp]

Thank you, a good reminder of how far I have come and a reminder to give my body the appropriate time to repair. All the best to you .

[slobjohnb in reply to liz_crisp]

Well said Liz, all this discussion is so helpful to new patients, it certainly was for me.

[strangetimes in reply to liz_crisp]

liz I just want to say that your post has given me the most helpful advice for exercising after this op . I've been looking for guidance for a few years now but the physio I was sent to ( well 2 now as they are on "rotation" don't seem to get the impact of this op .

As said there seems to be no guidance on this area after the op ,all the focus is on nutrition and feeding .

Janashlin -keep going ,you will get there !

[liz_crisp in reply to strangetimes]

Thank you

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The muscle wastage from this operation especially when you've had complications has a big impact on your body. It does as Liz Crisp says take a long time to rebuild and i underestimated its impact. Three and a half years ago I had seven weeks in hospital on TPN for nutrition and had no muscle whatsoever. For the first two years I struggled to maintain my new low weight let alone rebuild my body. Although I could walk further and became less tired throughout that time and used weights and bands to increase my strength. I returned to ballet classes but injured my knee as a result of loss of strength in my legs. I have had some strengthening exercises from an NHS Physio and they have been really helpful. I also teach Pilates albeit on a very limited basis. There seems to be very little information on regaining muscle strength after cancer. However I suggest you try yur local MacMillan Centre if available also you are still in early days as it were and I think things will slowly improve! It a slow recovery!

[Janashlin]

Thank you for your response. It is very slow for sure. The exhaustion is beyond anything I have ever experienced and I have had three children! I wish you well.