#spine problems

[tired-cripple-punk]

It’s Ehlers-Danlos awareness month and I am very aware right now

[spookysalem13]

Just a fellow spoonie 🥄 here to share a relatable hilarious 😄 video.

Being chronically ill, you have to learn to find the humor in your diseases. For me, it's a major way I get by day to day.

This made me smile, I hope it can make you smile as well.

[cpunkwitch]

Hi I need people to remember scoliosis isn't the only back issue that exists

I've had multiple instances where I talked about my back issue, stating a defect in my spine causes me chronic pain, and people respond with "so do you have a form of scoliosis?"

NO. not only does this show how little people understand scoliosis but that scoliosis being the first thing to come to mind means other back problems and spine conditions are not known well enough and we need to fix that.

Start talking about your conditions, talk about your back problems, explain what you experience and listen when people talk about theirs.

Don't let the world continue to be ignorant and assume there's only one condition for you to have, don't let peoples ignorance out you in a box, that happens way too often and the only way we can solve and prevent it is if we don't stop talking about it.

Bringing awareness to things is the only way we can stop having to deal with situations like this where people are ignorant and make assumptions about our bodies based on our age, appearance and their limited knowledge.

And for the able bodied folk, don't talk over us, listen and learn and help us spread awareness. PLEASE

[schizoaffectively]

Does anyone know if, generally speaking cuz I know it won't be the same in all clinics, Spine Departments can help with SI joint stuff too?

The guy I'm seeing is a physiatrist and specializes in both spine problems and general musculoskeletal stuff (I looked him up). But the thing is, my appointment is specifically in the "department of spine." I have multiple spine issues and a lot of my main pain is back and neck pain, but my hips and SI are also affected. I know the SI connects the spine to the pelvis, but it's also technically part of the pelvis I think? So I'm not sure if it will be focused on much or not.

[crazycatsiren]

I'm going to hard agree with @crippled-pvp here: fellow chronic pain warriors/members of the fucked up bones and joints club, don't waste your time and money on a chiropractor. A solid orthopedic specialist who knows pain management can do wonders.

[arsonistfriday]

feel like there isn’t enough scoliosis positivity, and I wanna change that. To anyone with scoliosis, I love you.

If you have a mild case? I love you.

If you have a moderate case? I love you.

If you have a severe case? I love you.

If it causes you chronic pain? I love you.

If it doesn’t cause you any pain at all? I love you.

If you have to wear a brace? I love you.

If you have to get (or already gotten) surgery? I love you.

If you think it disfigures your body? I love you.

If you’re neutral to its changes on your body? I love you.

People with scoliosis, I love you.

[torturing-characters-101]

Different anon, do mild spinal injuries worsen over time? I've heard of people having some kind of back injury as young and it making their health worse over the years, what looked mild now making their day to day life difficult.

The injuries themselves do not, but frequently injuries to bone or cartilage cause osteoarthritis in the spine. Osteoarthritis can change the shape of bone- usually causing overgrowth in certain areas that can press against the spinal cord, nerves leaving the spinal cord, or muscles surrounding the spine. It can be exacerbated by a loss of cartilage between the vertebrae, which occurs in many people as part of the aging process. Since this process causes pain and may cause progressively worsening numbness, nerve pain, weakness, or paralysis, people often feel as though their injury from long ago might have come back or gotten worse.

Treatment for these can include medications that decrease nerve pain, injections or medications to decrease swelling and inflammation, and surgery to trim the boney overgrowth and fuse vertebrae that have lost too much cartilage between them. This sometimes causes symptoms to get worse just after the surgery due to swelling, but frequently surgery solves at least some of the pain, numbness, and other problems.

-Ross @macgyvermedical

[yacrimago]

I'm visiting a spine surgeon today. I'm nervous. The last doctor said I had nothing to worry about, that is probably that I will be just in physiotherapy. Hope everything goes fine.