sudden back pain - horrible

[cachargirl07]

I am currently waiting MRI results. I have had a normal x-ray. About 7 days ago, I went to bed with a back ache in my lower back. The next day, by 5 o'clock I was crying, in so much pain that I could not walk or lift my legs. I was scared. The next morning it felt a little better, but by 5 the next say..same thing. At first it was a sharp pain in the base of my spine, then it moved to the left. Now, I have some pain down my left leg and in my hips, and a little of the sharp pain is left. But, when I walk is when the problem really starts....I cannot stand completely upright and as I walk, the muscles in my back become so tense it takes my breathe away. I have to hold onto something and gasp, like my muscles become frozen. Once I sit, they spasm for a while, but relax and the pain is moderate. I am having a hard time functioning, not being able to walk or stand for more than a minute at a time. What cousl this be?

[anjel75]

This sounds alot like me; however, sitting is the worst for me. I would rather stand than sit. I call it "spells". I always have a really bad back pain problem but it will take its spells and the pain will be so bad, I can't stand straight. My back will go in a right-type direction. My hips will go way left and the top of my back will be going to the right like an S shape. Its odd. I have been asked if I had Scoliosis and everything. But that is when it is always like that. It will just take spells and I can't even tell you what it is I have done to cause it. I sneezed one time...lol. I seen a PM doc for injections and he made the most sense of all of the other opinions. First of all, I have DDD and facet syndrome. That being said, I have two bulging discs and the one with the most bulge to it, at the L5-S1 region, I have a tear in the annular ring. What happens is when I do a certain thing, the bulge actually ruptures a little spilling it gel stuff and comes out through that tear and then my nerve is exposed to it. The nerve and the gel is toxic. It takes a while for your body to absorb the gel stuff so in the meantime your muscles are trying to aide in keeping the two away from the other. Ala, severe spasms that pull you to the side. I would like to tell you of something that would help but I can pop 4 10 mg hydro and 4 Somas together and still can't walk. What I have discovered though? PREDNISONE!!!! Go to your family doc and tell them you would like a quick 7 day Pred pack starting in really high doses until you are down to one-a-day. They have a lot of side-effects but is truly the only thing I have found that helps. What is confusing to me is you said it is easier to sit. Sitting is the devil to me. The best to me than anything. STOOP. If you are like me, you will drop from a 10 to a 1 in a second. I have to go but will check back with you in the morning. If it can't wait, go to your ER and tell them that you have had this problem before and Prednisone helped. Get you some Pred, Muscle relaxers and pain meds and it WILL help! Good luck!

[genji]

I feel so bad for you!  I hope I can help a little.  I have heard that magnesium can really help with sore muscles and muscle soreness. It has something to do with blocking messages sent to the nerves that cause the soreness.  Here is some stuff from the page:
"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."

I don't know if this is anything that can help with the heart of your problemm but I thought it could help your sore back muscles.

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