Lower back pain only in morning

[SJMCRAE]

I wake every morning with horrible pain in lower back (kidney area) that radiates to the front of stomach (rib area).  I have had battery of tests and found nothing.  I am only able to sleep 5-6 hours before pain wakes me, also unable to take a deep breath until I get out of bed (very painful just to roll over), once I stand and get out of bed the pain almost immediately starts to ease.  After about 20 minutes of walking around and after first morning void, pain disappears for remainder of day.
Could this be a pinched nerve or nerve compression?  Had MRI of lower lumbar which showed normal...chiro recommends stretching excersises, something serious has to be wrong with this kind of pain.  If anyone has any ideas it would be GREATLY appreciated!!

[anjel75]

This is very common to how my pain started. It would hurt the worst in the morning but I get up and walk. Once I had walked that was it for a while. I would have to take pain meds 30 minutes prior to getting up. I have moderate to severe DDD and Facet Syndrome.

[SJMCRAE]

Thanks for your reply.  May I ask what DDD is?  Also, after seeing a chiro, he also gave me a diagnosis of Facet syndrome.  Is your morning pain so severe that it hurts to inhale and exhale?  Again, once I'm up for about 20 min the pain is no longer there.  Its just horrible to wake with this pain every morning. It all seem to come out after the birth of my daughter, 9 years ago.  I have been dealing with this pain every since...nothing helps.  I've had about every test you can imagine ran and they come up with nothing.  There has got to be a reason for this pain and someway to manage it. Are you presently taking any meds for this condition?  Thanks again, I'm sorry you have the same problem but I'm glad to know that someone else knows what I'm going through and understands.

[anjel75]

DDD = Degenerative Disc Disease. I don't know how you would have got the diagnoisis of Facet Syndrome without having the diagnosis of DDD. That is a precursor. I take Lyrica and Hydrocodone APAP. I also take some Relafan but the dr. doesn't know that. I am allergic to NSAIDs and I am most definitely allergic to this Relafan. It gives me horrible chest pains but sometimes I will just take them over the back pain. I have an alarm clock with 2 alarms on it. One wakes me 30 minutes prior to getting up. I have my meds on the bed side table and take those with the first alarm. I just go back to sleep. 30 minutes later, I am OK enough to get up , get dressed, and go exercise!

[SJMCRAE]

Thanks for the definition, the chiro is who gave me the diagnosis of Facet Syndrome, gave me some literature on the syndrome and wanted me to continue with office visits, stretching procedures, etc.  To be honest, after a few visits insurance stopped paying and I didnt see any results for the pain.  I asked about pain meds and chiro explained that he was not of authority to write prec's(?)  I just wish I could find something to stop the pain.  Do you have difficulty inhaling and exhaling with the pain upon waking?
Thanks again - God bless.

[andersun]

I have the same problem as you have stated. Here is my story and hopefully it may help you understand why you may have these pains.

I have had two herniated discs lower back since I was 12 years old.(fell out of the loft of a barn and landed on my butt!) The result was severe pain after sitting for more than 15 minutes unless a lumbar support was utilized. I am 44 now and have been able to control the pain, which used to knock me to the ground after sitting, through major abdomen exercises. Twelve years ago, I joined a wellness center work-out room and started using a quality ab-roller. After one month of using the ab-roller 3 to 4 days a week, I forgot about my chronic pain and was able to throw out all of the lumbar supports I had for the office, car, etc...!  One symptom I still get once or twice a month is pain horizontally through my body at the waste line in the morning. The pain is increased if I take a deep breath. I have to get up and walk around for 10 minutes and the pain goes away for the rest of the day. I can even go back to bed after about 30 minutes and sleep more without the pain returning. Most likely, you all probably have disc issues with your lower back.

[ryanmitton]

if you have ever travelled to thailand or asia, they have hard hard beds there.  i noticed (before i had the drx900 treatment) that when i was sleeping on these beds (on my back) i awoke with hardly any back pain....and it was after i got up and compressed the spine again it came back.
we bought a hard hard kingsize bed at ikea....my wife got used to it, and i never wake with back pain anymore.

we had one of these 3K kingsize beds...hahaha, the ikea bed mattress we stuck on it was 300 bucks.  if anybody lives in calgary and wants a kingsize pillowtop mattress they can have ourold one. (new)  ryan.

[genji]

Here is some info that I found that may be helpful for you.  I have used magnesium for about six months now and it has been great!  I don't know if this can be as helpful with your problem but I thought I would share with you anyway.  See below:

"Magnesium is involved in more than 325 biochemical reactions, some of the early symptoms of magnesium deficiency include body aches, chronic constipation, headaches and migraines, insulin resistance, PMS, leg cramps, muscle twitches, and more. Left untreated, a magnesium deficiency can lead to more life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and others.

Magnesium's role in energy production. One of the primary roles of magnesium is to activate the adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the energy storage molecule, to create and store energy. Without energy, there is no life.

Magnesium's role in relaxing muscles. Another primary role of magnesium is to work with calcium to help regulate the body's nerve and muscle tone. In many nerve cells, magnesium serves as a chemical gate blocker - as long as there is enough magnesium around, calcium can't rush into the nerve cell and activate the nerve. This gate blocking by magnesium helps keep the nerve relaxed. If our diet provides us with too little magnesium, this gate blocking can fail and the nerve cell can become overactivated. When some nerve cells are overactivated, they can send too many messages to the muscles and cause the muscles to overcontract. This chain of events helps explain how magnesium deficiency can trigger muscle tension, muscle soreness, muscle spasms, muscle cramps, and muscle fatigue especially in the back and legs where some of the body's largest muscles live."

http://www.jigsawhealth.com/products/magnesium_supplement.html

[HURTINPHX]

Boy oh boy can I realate to you SJMCRAE! I have not heard anyone say they have the severe pain in the early morning hours only. This is me. I just dread going to bed every night because I just know how much pain I am going to be in come 7 hrs later. It is totally amazing how all day and all night it doesn't hurt at all, only SEVERE pain in the am. I can barely roll over. My husband has to help me out of the bed as I grit my teeth. This has been every morning for the past year or so. The pain first started when my little boy turned 7 months old. We thought it has something to do with lifting him etc. We know it's not because he is 3 now and I don't pick him up at all! I also have had numerous xrays, bloodtests and everything always comes back normal. I have done 4 months straight of PT and was religious about the exercises, it did absolutely nothing. I can't take the pain meds the doc gave me for they make me to grogy. I recently started doing massages a couple days a week along with swimming and regualar mild exercise and it seems a little better. After the doctor's advice we just laid down $4200 on a Tempurpedic bed which was delivered this week. Seems so different, but I am willing to give anything a try. I have heard many people get better by this sleeping on this type of bed. The doc said to watch the posture, ice pack for 20 min every night and mild exercises. This was after he did 8 trigger point injections in my back that did nothing. It's been 2 weeks since the shots and I've felt no relief. I am so with you SJMCRAE. This pain has to be something! The pain is so bad that I can not take deep breaths and even struggle to talk. I think I'm going to get rid of my $300 sealy posterpedic office chair and get one of those balls or stands so my shoulers do not go forward. If anyone who has back pain like this in the am only can give advice it would be so wonderful. From 8am - 10-11pm when I go to bed I have zero pain. It is only in the early morning! Ugh.... Hurtin' in Phoenix....

[ingrid219]

I have the same condition. I usually wake up paralised, really stiff and in excruciating pain, specially in my lower back which made me think of kidneys but all the exams come back  fine.. Takes me a while to get up and to move! Once I sluggishly start moving takes about t 20 to 30 minutes to dissipater ( but it has taken longer)

[idared15]

I have the same problem. If I wake up in the night; I am ok, but if I wake up in the morning hours; I am in severe pain - in the lower back (kidney area, right and left hip (on the sides) and upper back in the middle.  After about 30 min to 1 hr; it goes away.  I have a sedentary job and if I sit too long, my hips will ache again and makes it slightly painful to get out of chair, but nothing like the morning.  Since I had a cesearean in 1988; I have had a big stomach, so I thought that might be the reason, because when I suck in my stomach; it relieves my back.  I am going to the doctor today, so we will see what she thinks.....

[njosh]

Funny that this appears to be more a female problem than male. I am a man in my mid 30's and recently started having this puzzling morning pains that end almost immediately after walking around. I tried changing the mattress, posture of sleep and even droping off the pillow but to no avail. Thinking of trying out the abdomen exercises. any other suggestions???

[Wondermum]

If you look a little further down the page you will find someone has submitted a posting called "Upper mid back pain only after sleeping" ..... This posting has had 177 replies from people all suffering with this horrible same problem including myself.  It takes a lot of reading, but it is well worth it as there is some interesting advice given.  I get the impression that this pain is in fact a huge muscle spasm encircling our mid thoracic region which can be remedied by watching our posture and engaging in specific stretching exercises.  I think the fact that 177 people have had this checked out by their GP with nothing bad being found suggests that we really shouldnt be worrying that we have something dreadfully wrong with us.

[frumr]

I also have a similiar problem.  If I do not sleep to long the problem usually isn't bad.  If I sleep later (like on a Saturday or Sunday) I wake to pain in my lower back and right hip and it usually lasts all day long.

I workout at least 3 to 4 times a week.  My exercises begin with Situps and Pushup and then I run (on a treadmill) and an elyptical machine.  I notice while doing situps that I get some pain near the hip area (lower back but on right side).

I just wanted to pass my info along to the group and if anyone has information for me please provide it.  After reading above... I think that I will try sleeping on a hard surface to see if it helps my condition.

Thanks....

[diane5172]

Well I have these pains too ! They are crippling and becoming worse all the time. I'm a 54 year old female. I have explained this to many doctors and they look at me like I am nuts !  It seems they radiate from the kidney area, then kinda go upwards and downwards. The longer I have them the worse they are getting. I have been sent to various doctors and all of my tests have come back fine. I wake up several times during the night. I can barely move from the pain.  After voiding some pain is gone. There is less pressure on my back. I thought it was kidney related but I went through many tests and all came back normal.  The worst pain is when I wake in the morning,  I have to have assistance or it takes me forever to get out of bed. As usual  I get some relief with voiding. As the morning goes on the pain begins to disappear .But it seems due to voiding.  I am so worn out from pain that I feel I had put in a full day each morning and therefore I am tired and am becoming more inactive daily. I am gaining weight from inactivity. This must be a nerve thing because the other day I turned wrong and found myself in a predicament. Had I had the phone with me I would have called 911.  Seems a lot of people have this yet most of the doctors think your nuts when you explain it to them.  I have gotten more info from this website and your letter then I have from all of my doctors and tests put together.  Thank you all.

[Toughmom]

WOW!
I have been looking for answers to my morning back pain.
I gave up going to the doctor after doing xrays, ultra sounds, kidney tests and all were normal.  I'm 50 years old and in good shape.  I thought it might of been peri-menopausal or have something to do with the arthritis in my hip.  So glad I came across this site.  My pain starts after about 5 hours of sleep.  I sleep on my back and don't seem to move much, but once my back starts to hurt I cannot find a spot comfortable.  The only way for it to go away is to get up and after 30 min its gone.  Will keep looking at this site for more answers.

[LisaLisa9]

      I went online to find some answers today--- I have excruciating pain in my lower back when I wake in the morning. It's every morning no matter what bed I sleep on. I always sleep on my back. The pain will dissipate after about 45 minutes.
     The pain seems to travel through my lower back and in towards my [kidneys?] I am a 28 year old female. The pain has been there since I was 21. I have been taking opiate meds for several years and I am currently coming off from them (through Dr. supervision). I thought that perhaps that was causing the problem (opiates in general). But after reading all of these postings, I doubt that's what it is...
     When I was 17 I had a snowboarding accident. I broke my tail bone. I have also wondered if that's it... I just don't know. My posture is awful and I try to remind myself to stand up straight. I have an odd curve in my spine. I call it the "dinosaur" cause if I hunch over, the spine protrudes (mainly in mid-back) and looks like a stegosaurus. I have been doing better at keeping posture lately, but the pain is still there. often ask my husband to crack my back. When he does, my back will crack and pop from the bottom to the top!
     Recently I began exercising with the hope that strengthening my core would help. It's been two weeks and I see no changes (although it will probably be a month to two until/if I see changes). I have thought about seeing I doctor, but I don't have health insurance at this time and have enough out-of-pocket health costs as it is.
      I know people don't like to talk about things like this; but do any of you have chronic constipation? I read that this can very well be a cause of this type of pain.
     I will definitely try the magnesium supplements. I am very into vitamins! I take several daily and attribute them to the reason why I have not been sick all year! However, I realized that I don't take magnesium! So, thanks to gengi, I will give that a try for sure and report back (mind the pun)!
     If any of you find relief in something, please let us know! I am desperate for answers...

[ken315]

i have had the same problem for a few months, it hits me after a few hours of sleep. i do not look foward to the weekends ( when i need some extra rest) i pretty fresh of a herion addiction, been clean for 6 months, this is when my morning pain started.i have a temperpedic matress and if flipped on the wrong side provides a harder surface, nothing works.... my guess befoer even reading this post board was a deficiency of some sort. the posting by jenji on Magnesium makes sense to much. i will try......thanks

[RJ233]

You said your pain started after having your baby. Well my daughter started with problems when she had her baby and the baby is now 15 yrs old. They did everything to her. They even gave her a full historectomy at 35 yrs old. It still did not help. After all the years, drs and surgeries, they found her pelvic bone did not close properly when the baby was born. They gave her exercizes that helped her.

She also had a second problem going on with the lower back. She had disc problems in the lower back, so do I, my sister and my son. We are all sway backed. I went to my dr recently and noticed his chart of spine problems. Sway back is a back problem in that the back bone curves in. I thought it was just a build of the body passed down. Well I do have other problems that are causing additional problems of the alignment causing disc problems through most of my back. A therapist told me to put a pillow under my knees at night so my back would be flat against the bed. It would take the pressure off of my back. It does work. I have had a harder bed and soft bed and neither helped me. I have a medium firmness now and if I don't raise my knees, I will hurt more there. Since I have progressed to a much larger area of problems, the rest of it makes up for it. It is worth a try if you are sway backed. The lower back swerves in making the rump look plumper. The best bed I have found for that is a water bed that had baffles and a 3 second movement stop. It made it firmer, but conformed to the curve. Wish you the best.

[jeb321]

I have begun experiencing (about 3 or 4 weeks now) severe pain on left side near kidney area (lower back?) as I get out of bed each morning.  At first it feels like muscle cramp in swinging out of bed and as I  then have to stand there is sharp pain and I can't stand up.  As I begin to walk - at first stooped over - the pain subsides.  This is about 5 -10 minutes in total.  The pain is gone all day - and only returns the exact same way next morning.  Can it be the mattress?  I am seeing my Dr in a few  days but after reading some of your experiences - I am doubtful I will get any real answers - except to be referred to someone else and  have the standard x-rays and tests.  

[churddle]

I experience the same shortness of breath and pain when inhaling in the morning.  The pain, which emerges from my lower back, through what appears to feel like my kidneys are about to explode, subsides somewhat after first morning void and some walking around for about 8-15 minutes.  The pain is hardly noticeable after that until the next morning, but I'm constantly thinking that my kidneys are about to fail or something.  It started several months ago, when my daughter turned about 6 months old.  There has to be some type of connection, in my case, between the lifting and perhaps too soft of a mattress.  Any ideas?

[pianochikke]

Hi guys
    I have been working in an assisted living facility for about
a year, now, and also have in the past 6 or 7 months, gained
almost 60lbs.  (I know, that last part's not good!)  Since the
time I've gained the weight, I've had pretty much cronic lower
back pain EVERY morning when I wake up.  Will exercising
and loosing the weight help this problem, you all think?
It's very annoying--I miss waking up like a "regular person"--
pain and symptom free.  I'm supposed to go to a PT this coming
week, to learn some stretches, so hopefully that'll help, also.
Am I on the right track to fixing this annoying lower back pain?
Thanks for your time/help.  I've been reading everyone's posts,
and have gotten some ideas.  Thanks!   :-)

[phonebook445]

One exercise my Chiropractor gave me to relieve lower back pain is to place a phone book or a book about two to three inches on the floor and stand erect with your toes on the book and heels on the floor. Stand there for a few minutes and you will immediately feel relief.

[workingmom516]

I have had the same issues listed above but only since my children were born (the first 4 yrs ago). I am 36yrs old and I have found that I have to do very intensive core exercising to get that area very strong which relieves my issues.  I am currently alternating between Gunner Peterson's Core Strength and Turbo Jam.  Hard excersing but worth the relief.  Also if I am sore in the morning, I use a heating pad before I get up and that helps tremendously.  Good luck!!!

[clifday1]

I Have the same back pain in the early morning. I had chest pain start to wake me around 4am or about 6 months ago and now the back pain is way worse. The combination of the two make it hard to breathe they hurt so bad! I get rudely awaken each morning with horrendous agonizing pain in my chest and back. The back pain is significanlty worse and just started a month ago. I am lucky to get a wink of sleep after about 4 or 5am. I have to lie on my left side only or sit up at an odd angle to squelch the pain at all. The chest pain is gone 100% after getting up for 30 minutes. The back pain is reduced by 75% after an hour of getting up, but remains mild all day. Waking up at 4 and 5am is getting really old!!!!! I dread going to sleep because the pain will wake me up.

[alan1963]

I'm a 46 year old man who's been suffering this pain for over 10 years now. Every morning around 5am-7am woken by crippling pain radiating from my kidney area all around my lower abdomen. Even on my days off work i'm forced out of bed by the pain which quickly dissipates once i'm up. I find that sitting leaning forward so stretching my lower back quickly eases the pain, though if i curl up while still in bed this does not. Within 20mins i am generally pain free but I also find that if my bowel is not completely empty then the pain is worse and does not dissipate so quickly until i have been to the toilet.
I simply did not know if the pain is caused by my spine, my kidneys or my bowels as they all seemed likely contenders but have just had a CT scan which apparently showed nothing unusual. My gastroenterologist (I'm coeliac by the way) has suggested it could be due to IBS which I tend to agree with as the pain is so closely related to my bowel not being completely empty. Does anyone else find this?

[beebee123]

I am a 26 year old female, and for about 4-5 months I have been waking up with really bad lower back pain (on the bottom of my spine). If I get up it lasts about 15 minutes, but will keep hurting if I stay in bed. I was wondering if there was anything anyone is doing to help with dealing with the pain... I noticed sleeping on my side while staying absolutely still helps a little. Also, what ab-machines has anyone used? I am worried about my pain lasting forever and would like to do something now before spending all my money at the doctors and them not helping (such as others already did).

[Amylou1693_xxxx]

Finally! I have found people who have this too. It's so hard to describe it to my doctor. I am sixteen (few days ago) and have had it for about three or four years. Every morning, some mornings it's not as bad, I wake up with a dull pain, both sides, kidney area. It goes after about 20 minutes, but it is so horrible. It's, as most of you know, the most frustrating thing, and such a strange horrid pain. I have been to hospital, had a blood test, scan, and everything was fine. I am a dancer, and do gymastics so am very flexible, I often wonder if that is anything to do with it. When I lean back, my back crunches, and my hips crack and knock lots, probably due to all the dance. How is everyone else getting on with it? Amy xxxx

[ilovetheozzfest]

Wow I cant believe how many ppl have this!! I just started going threw this a few months ago and I was thinking it was being caused from my 2 yr old digging his feet into my back at night time. It is only in the morning for me also somedays im so stiff from it i can hardly move and I cant bend forward until after being up for about a 1/2 hour then im totally fine the rest of the day. Some days I just kind of have 2 inch my way out of bed the pain is so bad. I am just happy 2 see that I am not the only one having this exact problem :) So if this many ppl have it why cant anyone figure out what it is being caused from!!?? Im 34 and I dont even want to think about how it will be when im a few yrs older. I did purchase some Bio Freeze and when the pain wakes me in the early morning hours I get up and rub some on and 9 times out of 10 I can go back to bed and get a good sleep. I bought it from a massage place and it works good just wish I didnt have to wake up with the chronic back pain and put it on. Best of Luck to everyone & I hope someone one day soon will have a answer for all of us :)

[dishelle]

Ditto for me. My low back pain started after spending a tough weekend moving into my new home last fall. Something just gave out, sadly. Now I wake every morning with low back pain, but since I am a yoga teacher, I am able to work out the kinks every morning with just a few yoga postures. Google these on line - they will help - I will put the names in English vs. sanskrit - wind-relieving pose (or child pose if you prefer kneeling), lunge posture, half pigeon posture or sleeping pigeon both sides, prone twist both sides, corpse pose with support under the upper legs. All can be done on the floor. Spend at least 1-3 minutes per posture. Crawl out of bed 20 minutes early and start the sequence. Find a good yoga studio that teaches restorative yoga in your area, or look into Yin Yoga or Svaroopa yoga - both these forms of yoga are very therapeutic - and especially, they help open up the hips/tailbone/pelvis - especially the psoas and iliacus muscles. The psoas is your tenderloin, essentially. It connects at the top of the femur, runs through the pelvis, and re-attaches all along the lumbar spine. The iliacus is the shelf of muscle that runs along the upper process of the hip bones and down into the pelvis. If these muscles get tight, low back pain, especially around the lower lumbar and S/I joint where the spine connects to the pelvis, results. Getting the psoas to release any spasm/contraction or to lengthen will definitely help. Plus, find a good bodyworker - and I recommend shiatsu massage, craniosacral therapy, acupuncture or good chiropratic - to help release the muscle spasms that surround your low back and psoas, too. Get as much body work as you can afford. And start doing gentle yoga! It will get better.

[dishelle]

Oh, and one more thing - sleep on your back with a bolster underneath your upper legs, so that your back can relax as you sleep. You may want the bolster to be big enough to get your feel flat on the mattress - sometimes the heels can hurt if the feet are not flat. Externally rotate your arms and keep them about 45 degrees away from your body, if you have room. Don't use a pillow that is too stiff or high. Just support the neck. This will keep the psoas from spasming at night as you sleep. It's not easy to retrain yourself to sleep this way, but the relief in the morning is great. Good luck, all!

[GENUINEJERSEYGIRL]

I have read nearly 100 of the posts, and I have not seen what I believe the problem may be. I searched for this website to see if anyone else was experiencing the terrible morning back pain, relief after voiding, and then fine all day, mystery ailment.
I am pretty sure that in the last few years I have developed a fibroid tumor. When I lay on my stomach, I can feel the pressure on it. It is very, very, common and more women then not have them, so I have often wondered if this back pain is a result form these growths sort of "leaning" on the bladder, or kidney, of back muscles, etc, during the night, which causes the pain after a few hours of that pressure and then disappears after taking the pressure off (getting up and staying up!)
I am petrified of doctors, so I have nothing to "back" up my theory (if you'll pardon the pun) So, I am just wondering if any of the ladies out there might be able to relate.
I wish you all relief...and soon!
Lisa

[courtwebster]

Wow...that's amazing!! I've been dealing with this for about 3 years. The only thing that works for me is to wake up about 5 am. Take a vicodin and then when I wake up it feels fine. I thought i was the only one. Crazyness.

[ryansmom513]

I too just recently (within the past 4 months or so) have been experiencing lower back pain shortly after wakening in the mornings.  I have absolutely no idea what has brought it on.  It seems to be very similar to what alan1963 has described.  This ONLY happens in the mornings.  I'm fine getting out of bed, getting into the shower, but then I can slowly feel it coming on as I'm getting ready for work.  By the time I've gotten' my makeup on and my hair done, I can hardly bend over to even get dressed!  The pain also radiates to the front of my lower stomach.  At first I was thinking it was kidneys, because it's like a dull severe ache, but its weird how my back hurts so much when I bend over - leaving me to think it's disc related or something??  The only way for me to finally find comfort is to SIT in a harder chair for awhile, or get in my car and drive, and surprisingly by the time I get to work (30 minutes), my back feels absolutely fine, and I'm able to jump out of my car and start my day like nothing ever happened.  It has also been aching at night while I'm flat on my back.  I do find some relief laying on my side, but by the time morning comes, it's aching pretty good.  But I'm still able to get out of bed just fine and the stiffness and severe pain doesn't start in until shortly into my morning routine.   It's so strange that I haven't seen a doctor yet because it seems so hard to explain everything.  Thus, the reason I found this site because I  googled "morning back-pain up wakening".   I will try the magnesium, but I just pray this too shall pass....  :-(  

[goanmad]

It's such a relief to hear of others with the same symptoms as myself. I'm currently suffering from 'flu and because I went to bed early have been pacing around in pain since 3am.

My low back pain started about 7 months ago, usually after around 6 hours in bed. The pain wakes me up and no position ever relieves it. It's impossible to even roll over in bed and to try and raise myself up is a complete nightmare. The pain extends around to my stomach and even breathing hurts.

I find the pain usually subsides after around 30 minutes of walking around althought sometimes it takes several hours.

We have invested in an expensive pocket sprung matress and a memory foam matress topper to no avail. The only way I get a good night's sleep is to get drunk but obviously this is not a practical solution!

I'm fit and healthy, 42 years old and well within the correct weight for my height and build. I practice both Pilates and Dru Yoga, attend weekly aquasize and hydrtherapy classes.

I had a total hip replacement to my left hip 3.5years ago and annual checks with my hospital consultant have confirmed that the right side will need replacing eventually however I am not experiencing any of the symptoms I had pre-op.

[Free_at_last]

I have read all of the comments about intense lower-back pain in the morning and extreme fatigue.  I too was a sufferer, until a day ago.  After reading all of your posts and realizing I wasn't alone, I decided to do some more in-depth research on the issue.  I found that my low-back pain could be a smaller symptom of a larger-more widely known disease: Autoimmune Disease.  Now, being the type of person I am, I never go down without a fight, so I researched how to improve my immune system.  I realized during all of this that I wasn't walking or running like I had been previously.  My mattress is terribly worn causing me to sleep in an awkward position, and my diet may be helping to weaken my immune defenses.  As you know, the diet thing is an ongoing battle, but my physical commitment to walking daily or even running shouldn't be.  So, on Wednesday night I decided to sleep on the firmer end of my bed, lying on my back, tuck a pillow or blanket under my left leg to raise my hip and relieve the pressure.  It was uncomfortable, only because I am not use to sleeping that way.  When I turn to sleep on my stomach, I tuck the blanket or pillow under my left inner thigh with my knee pointing towards my sleeping pillow.  Try to visualize, we've all slept like this at some point.  Remember, this is not comfortable unless you are use to doing it.  That next morning, I wasn't in slight pain, but I could get up without any problem and do my walk.  After my walk, I took time to sit in a warm bath before heading off to work.  My fatigue was dissipating.  Thursday night (last night), I used both the pillow and the blanket for support under my left thigh, and felt no pain whatsoever when turning over or readjusting my position.  I awoke this morning fatigue free and pain free.  I am back to my former self.  I will still use these techniques at night just because my body needs it.  I hope that it helps some of you as well.

[auntysooty]

what a wonderful site! unfortunately we all seem to suffer from an ailment but at least i know that alot of people have similar symptoms and its reasurring that we dont suffer in silence and can possibly get ideas to help with bad back pain.i think we all know to be sensible and to check with our doctors before doing anything drastic to ourselves, eventhough i'm sure most of us will try anything to get rid of the pain that comes in the morning. i am still struggling to get out of bed and the pain is there its just the degree of pain that changes.

[mjones0815]

I'm a male with "lower back pain" when I get out of bed.  I am overweight and I think that is the real problem.  I don't know if any of you folks are overweight?  I try to drink a lot of water (evian) and sweating gets me close to pain free.  I do a lot of moving heavy stuff around the house such as boxes of books.  There was a flood in front of my house a couple of weeks ago and I had to do a lot of broom sweeping.  I find the muscles that do this are in my lower back and every time I do stuff like this my pain in the morning is greater.  I have an old bed and just can't find the time to get to Sears.  I find rubbing both sides of my lower back helps when I get up.  Also I learned how to lay on my side and push myself up with my arms.  The pain is there but it's manageable when I do this.  I also find as I get older it takes more time for all the pain to go away in the morning.

[EvilJeff]

I've got back (kidney) pain as you folks do. I am a 35-year old male. I have been experiencing this for 5-7 years now.

I've found the back pain only occurs when my kidneys are working hard - if I drink any liquids before bed, I get moderate pain. However, if I drink alcoholic beverages that evening, the pain is much worse. If I sleep on one side, that side will get the pain. If I sleep on my back, both kidneys will hurt. I sleep deeply and often do not wake in time to urinate. When I awake with pain, I must stand for awhile otherwise I'll go back to bed in pain.

I am confident out problem lies in the kidneys retaining urine, and swelling under the pressure. I've read other articles, and am now looking into "UPJ" as the cause. It's a restriction in the tubes connecting the kidneys to the bladder. This would make sense, as often I get up with pain but don't produce a lot of urine. I am left feeling like I should be urinating much more but for some reason, I just can't. Please check this out:

http://www.childrenshospital.org/az/Site1723/mainpageS1723P0.html

I realize this is "childrenshospital.org", but applies to all people. Also it's got a great picture.

I've had ultrasounds done on the kidneys, all "unremarkable", meaning healthy. I also have experienced iritis 3 times, all within the last few years. Just listing this to see if anyone else does, too.

Folks, please chime in. I believe we're on to something now! It is frustrating that our doctors haven't solved this for us. Unfortunately, they are just people like us, and their "medical practice" is just that, "practice". We humans don't know everything, we're not perfect, we're not God. That means every one of us, even the professionals, in every profession.... doctors, politicians....especially the politicians!

Good luck, all. I'l bookmark this site and check back with you....

[Mariella160]

Hi, all,
Thanks for this discussion - especially to those of you who suggested a harder mattress. The softness of our mattress seems to be my problem. I've been having the same issues that many of you do: pain and stiffness in hips and lower back, especially after being in bed for a few hours. And by the time I get up in the morning, I'm so stiff I can barely get out of bed. After reading ryanmitton's post from April 2007, I decided to try a harder mattress as a test. In our home office we have an old cotton futon. It is rarely slept on, but I gave it a try one night. I woke up feeling 90 percent better than I have in months! The next issue was how to make our usual bed more comfortable. We have a fairly nice Sealy Posturpedic, but it is just too soft for me (especially as I get older and stiffer!). I decided to look for a way to make it firmer on my side of the bed. I found a floor pad called ComfortChef at Home Depot. It is meant to be used underfoot on hard surfaces such as kitchen floors, but by adding it on top of my mattress, it added just enough firmness for me to sleep much better and wake up without such pain. I placed it under the mattress pad, and it is large enough (19.5 x 35.5 inches) to support me from my neck to knees. The pad is made of PVC foam and is manufactured by Apache Mills of Calhoun, Georgia.
I hope this will help some of you!
Best of luck!
Mariella

[EllBarr]

I am really interested in your UPJ idea.  I wonder what it would take to test it out.  It seems like someone would need to be able to track the urine as it leaves the body.  I know there's a test like that, but wouldn't it also need to be done after we'd been lying prone for 7-8 hours?  Otherwise, the ureter wouldn't be compressed.  I'd love to hear if anyone has ever gotten a doctor to agree to let them do a sleep study.

I recently spent a weekend at my mother-in-law's on an extremely extremely soft mattress.  I got home and woke up with a raging UTI and blood in my urine.  It was the weekend so I had to go to the emergency room.  I tried to talk to the doctor about the possibility of the mattress being the cause, but he was not remotely interested in listening to me.

After I see my GP again I will update as to whether I got her to order a urine elimination test for me.  If she does, maybe I'll see if I can lie down on a gurney at the test center for the whole day.  heh.  Good times.  :)

In the meantime, check out a comment by DK in this thread.  He says his doctor diagnosed him with an extra mini-kidney (not his words):  http://www.************.com/kidney_pain_in_the_morning-t81285-0-asc-50.html

[brenda135]

I have experienced this back pain only in the last few weeks, not every morning, but most.  It is excrutiating and I am barely able to roll over, let alone crawl out of bed.  It disappears after I go to the washroom.  I also believe in EvilJeff's diagnosis.  My mother had to have her bladder "lifted", so I am on alert to these kinds of issues.  I believe there is some sort of obstruction in the flow of urine or one of these functional organs are not working properly.  Sleeping in different positions could possibly alleviate the problem because your bladder, kidney, or interconnecting tubes are in different positions.
Doctors diagnose what they know and maybe this is something they don't know everything about yet.  Maybe we can all help them figure this out!  Thanks for letting me know I am not the only one suffering.

[Keckers]

I am another sufferer of the morning back pain.
It lasts until I am up and moving and have been to the toilet.
My father has been telling me for years he gets pain the next morning if he eats the "wrong" foods. He believes he has a sensitivity to chemicals.
He had been having this problem for 10 or more years, when he was sent to fortnight conference for work.
The place he stayed grew there own food including beef.
He had no pain for 2 weeks.
When I discussed my pain with him recently he said it was my kidneys complaining because they were overloaded.
I tried one day of no preservatives, just water fruit, veges and meat.
Next morning no pain!
The next day I tried eating anything, including potato chips with heaps of flavouring, softdrink, etc.
Next day - worst pain ever.
It's fairly easy to try changing your diet for one day to see if it helps.
If so great, if not you not worse off.
Keckers

[lemonology]

I too suffer from AM back pain. It subsides about a half hour after I'm up. My bed is my friend and my worst enemy. Even the dog gets tired of me tossing and turning to try and find a less painful position every morning. She gets down as soon as I stir.

[Rainypm]

Hi all,

I've been suffering from this type of morning back pain for close to 20 years.  Sometimes it's worse than other times (right now it's really bad), but I can't remember not having it.  I decided to start a message board on Yahoo groups so maybe we can have more of a discussion between people and come up with our own solution.  Please stop by if you want to help solve this!

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/***********/

Thanks!
-Ellisa

[JT48]

I am right there with many of you, the less I sleep the less pain in my lower back area on each side. If I sleep 7 or 8 hrs. I can't even hardly talk in the morning until I roll out of bed and slowly start breathing normal and move around. I do notice though that if I eat right before i go to bed the pain is more severe. Our bed has a soft matress and I think that is not helping either.