I just got diagnosed with having spinal canal stenosis, L5-S1 Facet arthropathy, a bulging disc, a pinched nerve and a retroverted uterous. What the H!!! I am only 24 yrs old, the doc’s said this could have happened because I was a gymnast growing up. Can being fit really damage my body like this? what are the treatments for all the pain I am having? The medicines perscribed are not helping and the physical therapy feels like it’s making it worse! I can’t hardly keep up with my two small children.
#1 by Anonymous on February 16, 2010 - 1:27 pm
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The disc bulge at L5 is causing the spinal stenosis, as it is encroaching into the spinal canal at this level. The good news, the spinal cord, the thick bundle of nerves making the cord stops at L1/L2 after that the nerves dangle, like a horses tail.http://www.apparelyzed.com/spinalcord.ht…
Facet Arthropathy is another name for Arthritis!http://www.back.com/causes-mechanical-fa…
L5/S1 is common as in 70-90% of disc problems are here. As to cause, who knows, half the people at Yahoo have this, half do not know it, the others are in pain, but they were not Gymnasts! The treatment is anti-inflammatory drugs, pain killing drugs and PT. However, you can try a TENs machine, swimming, Aqua Jogging, Pilate’s, have a injection the list just goes on.
However the most important thing, the abdominal muscles or your core strength. It is the corset of muscles in the abdomen that hold the spine in place, so if you can strenthen them, then it will really help. I did Pilate’s, learned about muscle groups, located my pelvic floor muscles and then went on to learn how to zip up, or tighten them so they support my spine. Best of Luck
#2 by mistify on February 16, 2010 - 6:46 pm
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There is no definitive research that demonstrates that activity in youth leads to low back pain in adulthood.
If you feel your current method of PT isn’t working, try another…especially if you have not yet tried the mechanical diagnosis and therapy approach (which is called the McKenzie method by the lay person). It is the most researched method for conservative treatment of back pain, but unfortunately, not many people practice it because it is not learned at the entry level. You can go to http://www.mckenziemdt.org to find such a provider.