I know it’s a joke " oh haha you’re 30, everything hurts now cuz you’re so old!" But really, is something wrong with me or are backs just this stupid? Not overweight. Decently active although I don’t exersize every single day. No genetic issues, doctor always says im in perfect health. But my lower back will randomly act up, sometimes it gets so bad that I about black out from the pain. Thats pretty rare though, usually it’s just an ache all day when I move or try to put my socks on. Its not sciatica, as I never feel numbness or pain in my legs. Mild weakness maybe if it hurts really bad.
I feel like any doctor is just going to say welp, you’re old it happens, or tell me I need 3.5 million dollar spinal surgery.
Your normal doctor will not have a good answer for you. You need to see a spinal specialist. Or a specialist for your back. No an x-ray will not show you what’s wrong. You will need something better like a MRI. Better to go and know then not go and regret it.
Start weightlifting, more specifically deadlifts. I would discourage you to go to CrossFit and anything that involves mixing cardio with strength.
Also, use as little machines as possible. 99% of the work is with dumbbells, barbells and a rack
/me that had back pain in his late 20-mid 30… and then started weightlifting and had never had a back pain 🙂
Not normal at all. See a doctor. You could have pulled muscles or something like that or you may be like me and have degenerative disc disease.
Sounds like your sacroiliac joint is gone. I did mine in by moving house and having bad posture, specifically the deep curve in my lower spine. I went to a physio they taught me some exercises that strengthen specific muscles that support the joint, to take the weight of the joint, off the joint. Sacroiliac is the joint of the spine and hip bones. Does it kinda shoot through the centre of one butt cheek, and lower back and seems to hurt no matter what position you lay or sit or stand?
I have exactly what you described, went to a doctor, they suggested physical therapy which I couldn’t afford.
Do you mind sharing some of the stretches that helped you? I’ve found a few online but they don’t ever seem to actually help it much.
Of course! They’re super simple but they actually worked.
Standing at the sink, (or wherever) leg straight, lift leg backwards (keep straight). (Do a billion times, (I forget the number, 30 odd? I can look for the exact sheet I was given) but work up to a billion times slowly)
On floor, on all fours keep leg in bent position, but lift upwards (keeping knee at 90° angle) bend only at hip, till back and thigh are a straight line. Both legs. I forget how often, I’ll look for the sheet, but it was a solid block of time, 10 minutes, go easy though, work within your comfort levels and work up to more.
Both those above 3x a day for a good month to 6 weeks.
This one I found super hard, walking backwards for at least 10 minutes a day. And it has to be vigorous, I was told walking around my coffee table wasn’t enough. Be very careful. Do whatever you can that’s safe.
I also just worked on strengthening my lower back and core, too, after I got to a place where the pain stopped and I had good muscle tone to support it.
The physio person also focused on my walking pattern, you might also be able to find some info on that online. I know tiktok isn’t loved much but it is great for people sharing medical information similar to this, also. You could see what the algorithm there spits out.
you are not supposed to have any pain at all
No. Chronic back pain is not normal. Acute back pain so bad you pass out also not normal.
Occasional back pain, I think is normal - over my more than half a century I’ve thrown my back out about 4 times and it hurt for a few days each time. Then went away. That seems more normal.
In addition to spine and muscle issues, there can be other things going on like an enlarged prostate or other swelling that pinches nerves which hurt in the lower back area instead of where the cause is located. Less common than sitting too much, but is another possibility beyond spine or back muscle issues.
I was surprised to find out that could feel like a kidney stone!
wtf no,not normal i m way over 30, and never had such symptoms
go see a doctor , not normal
I’m 54 and my backs hurts when I’ve been doing lots of physical activities I don’t normally do, like digging or anything not upright for several hours. But this pain is more inconvenient than anything. Like it’s uncomfortable to sleep, a sudden sharp thing like my body is saying “don’t do that dumbass!”, or more like sciatica and taking a shit hurts.
What your describing is definitely not normal and should be looked at for sure.
Well, I mean I guess after a long day or working really hard it can get a little achey and-
But my lower back will randomly act up, sometimes it gets so bad that I about black out from the pain.
No. Holy shit, no. Not normal at all. Go see a doctor ASAP. If you’re ever in debilitating pain for no obvious reason, that is a colossal flashing “go see a doctor now” sign.
I started experiencing this after 30. In my case it’s back muscles tightening up, because of bad posture that lead to the weakening of the core muscles which put too much strain on the back.
Got shown some excercises and got better after a while. Got back every once in a while, but usually I managed to get it under control.
Just got back again and wouldn’t get away for weeks now. Sounds a lot like what you have. I’m going ti schedule the doctor again, I recommend you do the same. This shouldn’t be normal.
Can you name the exercises you were shown, or link to a video or article explaining them?
I don’t know if this could be a case of “what’s good for me might be bad for you” but bad posture must be pretty common in today’s world.
Did your back pain get as bad as OP’s?
I’m younger and don’t have a serious injury, so I wouldn’t say this would fix back pain for someone with an actual injury.
But for me, back pain was fixed with better posture and muscle strengthening too.
I think the biggest thing was focusing on engaging the muscles supporting the lower back. Glutes and core specifically.
And for posture, just be conscious about keeping the body in alignment in a way that feels comfortable, not “sitting up straight”
I would if I could. A plank and a side plank were one of them. Other than that, no idea as I was shown the excercises, but was never really given names. And even then, I don’t live in English speaking country so might not be useful anyway.
It was mostly about strenghtening the core and stomach muscles, without straining the back much.
Not sure about pain levels. First time around, it was quite bad. I just suddenly couldn’t move, everything hurt so bad. Not quite blacking out pain but it was bad. I first did like one or two weeks of intensive back muscle stretching to be even able to do the other excercises. Currently the pain is not bad, but it is making my life dificult a bit as it blocks some movements.
Call your insurance company and ask for a list of physical therapist providers in your area. Make an appointment at the same time you’re asking your general practitioner for a referral to speed up the process if they’ll let you book the appointment without the referral. Follow all the instructions of the physical therapist to a T no matter how stupid it may seem.
Have you been x-rayed? You could have a disc problem or something. My father had diskectomy at a young age.
I’m almost 40, tall, not in great shape, have bad posture, and have two misaligned disks in my lower back and even my back pain isn’t that bad, so I would say that no it’s not normal. You should definitely get that checked out.
30 isn’t old, but I had pretty bad back pain in my 30’s that mostly went away as I got older.
If it’s acting up I’ll take ibuprofen right away. 400mg for a few days before I call a dr.
I keep prescribed muscle relaxers to take if it’s bad but those really knock me out so only as a last resort.
Usually after a week it’s all cleared up. It happens maybe 1-2x per year.
It’s never been “I might pass out from the pain” bad though.
