Looking for people who share what I have to talk about experiences and the future. Please share your story with me....I'll check back later

Thanks

Yes, I have osteoarthritis (OA) in my lower back ....... Pelvic and Lumbar spine (Sorry, I probably spelled Lumbar wrong)

As well as haveing OA in the entire rest of my spine and neck.
Also in both knees and both feet.

I also developed osteoporosis in my spine and combined with the OA it has resulted in a 15% bend convexly to the left. That bend pulled the muscles too tight over my hip and resulted in reoccurring hip bursitis.

OA is a long story since it progresses over the course of many years.
So I'll try to just mention things about OA in the lower back.

But you asked what to expect?
I think you can expect it to get worse. (Sorry)

Since you are in the stage of OA in the lower back only, I'd like to say DON'T let your backache rule.
Do your very best to stand straight even if your back complains.
Don't let it develope into a permanent slump or slouch position.
One thing about the spine, once bent you cannot unbend it.
You can, however slow down the bending by keeping your skeleton as properly lined up as possible.

I recommend useing a knee contour pillow between your legs while you sleep each night to get rid of morning back ache (This simple idea works wonderfully after just a few nights). This keeps the skeleton properly lined up and results in less strain all night long on the muscles and nerves surrounding the spine. Mornings become a lot better.

A Physical Therapist can guide you in the proper excercises to help with OA in the lower back. These are very helpful. As a non-medical professional I also recommend stretching straight up reaching for the ceiling as much as possible.

Wheels are your friend.
Consider getting things like a wheeled grocery cart, wheeled yard carts, all the handy things on wheels so you can avoid lifting and carrying heavy objects. Non-impact excercise to maintain muscles is excellant, but picking up and carrying 20 pounds is not..so think about wheels.

I go to a chiropractor on a regular basis and he has worked wonders with my arthritic spine.

Hi,
I am sorry you are going through this. I was just dxed with OA .
I don't know much about it yet.I have A Rummy appt. on Tue I hope he can tell me what to do to stop the pain.I hope you are not in a lot of pain
I have a few of other problems too.
I have RSD and Fibromialgia,Osteoprosis and now Osteoathritis.
AND LOTS of back shoulder neck & muscle and joint pain all over,stomach problems,fatigue and short term memory loss oh no I was going to keep this short because I don't have any answers for you but I forgot..... LOL
Anyway.....
I am thinking that for me maybe they are all related.
Do you have any other conditions?
I can't offer you any advice but will tell you what my Rummy says maybe you can tell me more about your Drs. experience?
I don't know about you..... but I could sure use a friend that understands!
Have A Pain free night the pillow advice by Snowmelts is something I will try starting tonight.
I usually wake up feeling like a TIN WOMAN run over by a train.LOL
Denise

I have it also and all over; worst of it in cervical spine but lumbar too. And as Snowmelts mentioned in feet and also in my knees. Snowmelts gave some excellent suggestions. I have the knee pillow and a cervical pillow as well; they really do help. As for meds, I take my usual dose but have recently added Limbrel (a botanical medical food) and THAT in particular has helped a great deal. Other than that aqua therapy has also been greatly beneficial.

Hi Kathi,
Where do you get Limbrel? Sounds worth a try.Do you or did you need a trainer for the aqua therapy?Where can the pillows be bought?Where did your pain start ?Sorry for all the questions
Thanks
Denise

Hi Denise,

The Limbrel was prescribed (and it is a prescription) by my spinal pain management doctor. It comes in 250mg and 500mg and if you want to know more about its mechanism you can read about it on Limbrel.com. Anyway, she had me to try samples she had first and I took the 500mg. I noticed a difference overnight although it DOES say it can take a few weeks. And it CAN cause GI upset. Lately I have been taking the 250mg once a day although it was prescribed for twice a day. Ugh, just haven't been consistent because I keep forgetting to take it. But it did and does work...for me anyway. Some say they haven't a noticed difference but others have said they were right back to golfing. Oh, and I don't know what insurance you have but my own covered it.

The aqua therapy was prescribed also by my PM and my Neurologist both. And yes, I had one on one training until I learned all the exercises. It helps a great deal although you do have to be consistent with it. I was going twice a week sometimes three times a week.

The pillow was a Tempurpedic; I have used the imitation ones over the years and they flatten out in no time. The Tempurpedic and I have had two of them (only because I lost one of them) have lasted for a long time now. I bought mine at Relax the Back but I have seen them in mattress stores or maybe you can get it online. The knee pillow can be found anywhere I think but the last time I saw them was in CVS and in another compounding pharmacy.

And the pain started in my cervical spine. But, according to the NS the arthritis was there for a long time (evidence to that affect); having a hysterectomy (actually the intubation process) they think triggered all the pain. Anyway, you just never know will it crop up next which is why I had total bone scan; not to be confused with bone DENSITY scan. So, yep, it is everywhere. The only place I didn't see it were my hands and arms. I also had a bone density scan last year and that was fine. So, no osteoporosis anywhere...just OA.

The other thing is you can take fish oil. I take Lovaza which is also a prescription. The thing is you could take OTC but you would have to take a LOT to make up for the amount that is in the Lovaza. Just saying though that fish oil can help with inflammation. My thing is that I am just not into taking a ton of supplements simply because I think it can be dangerous or have a potential reaction with my regular medications. But these two were fine and recommended again by PM; the Lovaza by the Cardiologist. Others have a different take on it; but I prefer to go by what is recommended by the docs since they know my history.

I hope this helps a little.

...gently to all of you here...I see the posts are slow to come. Perhaps, we can build it a little. I have spinal, joint, and muscle issues. I sleep on a Tempurpedic, costs a lot, but worth it. I could not use the Tempurpedic pillow though, I use a feather pillow. I have a cervical fusion. I think the OA in the spine can lead to disc problems...OUCH!!! I also use a body pillow, instead of the small pillow between the knees. This works better for me since I have shoulder, and lower back problems as well. You know what really gripes me is that DH is 20+ years older than me and despite OA he can sleep better than me. But, then, he does not have fibro. That can complicate things. Some other things that I have found that help me are Noni juice, and diet. I only use the best grade Noni and buy it online. It helps me to control the pain as there are so many meds I cannot take.

SAMe for almost a decade now. It has been very helpful for my severe OA. I use 600mg once a day in the morning, NatureMade brand.

I started in 1999 and have avoided a knee replacement.
Prices have come down quite a bit, and when you get it
during the buy one get one free sales, it is much more affordable. It also improves liver functions and mood.
So you get 3 bangs for your buck! It was very helpful during my menopause to enable me to do my job better and handle the multiple computer systems I had to learn being a contingent and traveling around. I wouldn't have been able to do that without it.

(((Mrsd))) that is so Awesome!!! Thank you for sharing that. Perhaps it can help me to avoid a shoulder replacement. I will check it out.

I'm new here, so hi everyone!

Yes, I have been diagnosed with OA in my lumbar spine, and joing inflammation in my hands and hip(s). I see a a rheumatologist tomorrow. Physical therapy is helping slowly, and the Medrol blister pack that i'm finishing up now (first time on it) made me feel great for a few days. Not sure if I have RA at this point - my PCP thinks so.

Thanks for this thread.