Guess what? I can’t lift my baby. Sweet.
Yesterday afternoon, I had just changed Suzianne’s diaper, and breastfed her in the Nordstrom lounge when all of the sudden, I couldn’t move.
My back had given out and I could not lift Suzianne into the stroller seat. I couldn’t even stand up. So, there we sat.
I was all panicked; mom was on the other side of the mall. Suzianne was all, “why are we sitting here when we could be checking out the Michael Kors purses?”
Last night, she had to sleep in the bed with me so I could feed her without lifting her in and out of the crib. It turns out, it’s the feeding her part that is making my back seize up. So now, I’m laying here, feeling like a moron. A moron in a lot of pain who cannot feed her baby.
But at least I’ve got this handy Rite Aid heat pack mom had bought me when I had the boob issue. I’m bringing sexy back:
And hoping that a day of bed rest will fix me.
This clearly means that I can’t fly home tomorrow, because I can’t carry Suzianne, much less break down her stroller in the airport security line. I can’t even breastfeed her at this point. Good thing I packed the pump.
This sucks. But it is at times like these that you really, really appreciate your momma. Mom has been taking such good care of me/us. Last night, she took Suzianne away and put me in a bath with Motrin and a glass of champaign. This morning, she took Suzianne at 6:30 a.m. so I could rest.
I’m equal parts sad and freaked out. There’s really nothing worse than hearing Suzianne cry, or seeing her want to play with me, and not be able to meet her needs.
The good news: if you’re gonna be “stuck” in a city, at least we’re stuck in beautiful San Diego.
We’ll be here a few extra days. In the meantime, if you’ve got helpful tips on managing back pain, please leave them in the comments!
my husband has serious back issues from a wreck – and while I’m sure it’s not the same – he swears by the BioFreeze; but don’t get the gel b/c it’ll make everything that’s within 6 inches of your hands tingle for hours….they have a roll on…and it’s way better than Icy Hot. He also gets these patches (if you have access to a doctor) that are essentially alieve, but on a patch, and applied directly to the area that’s in pain….I assume it’s absorbed (thus effective) the same way that hormone gel/creme is….when I have events and my body ACHES I use them, and they definitely help! Good luck!:)
These are exercises I started a few weeks back when I threw out my back on one good lift of Mr. Chubby. It was out for about two days, but I’ve continued, especially with the first few, and haven’t had any problems since then.
. . . . . . .
Dr. Paul Williams first published his exercise program in 1937 for patients with chronic low back pain in response to his clinical observation that the majority of patients who experienced low back pain had degenerative vertebrae secondary to degenerative disk disease (Williams 1937). These exercises were developed for men under 50 and women under 40 years of age who had exaggerated lumbar lordosis, whose x-ray films showed decreased disc space between lumbar spine segments (L1-S1), and whose symptoms were chronic but low grade. The goals of performing these exercises were to reduce pain and provide lower trunk stability by actively developing the “abdominal, gluteus maximus, and hamstring muscles as well as…” passively stretching the hip flexors and lower back (sacrospinalis) muscles. Williams said: “The exercises outlined will accomplish a proper balance between the flexor and the extensor groups of postural muscles…” (Williams 1965, Williams 1937, Blackburn 1981, Ponte et al.).
Williams’ flexion exercises have been a cornerstone in the management of lower back pain for many years for treating a wide variety of back problems, regardless of diagnosis or chief complaint. In many cases they are used when the disorder’s cause or characteristics were not fully understood by the physician or physical therapist. Also, physical therapists often teach these exercises with their own modifications. Williams suggested that a posterior pelvic-tilt position was necessary to obtain best results (Williams 1937).
Examples of Williams’ Flexion Exercises
1. Pelvic tilt. Lie on your back with knees bent, feet flat on floor. Flatten the small of your back against the floor, without pushing down with the legs. Hold for 5 to 10 seconds.
2. Single Knee to chest. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Slowly pull your right knee toward your shoulder and hold 5 to 10 seconds. Lower the knee and repeat with the other knee.
3. Double knee to chest. Begin as in the previous exercise. After pulling right knee to chest, pull left knee to chest and hold both knees for 5 to 10 seconds. Slowly lower one leg at a time.
4. Partial sit-up. Do the pelvic tilt (exercise 1) and, while holding this position, slowly curl your head and shoulders off the floor. Hold briefly. Return slowly to the starting position.
5. Hamstring stretch. Start in long sitting with toes directed toward the ceiling and knees fully extended. Slowly lower the trunk forward over the legs, keeping knees extended, arms outstretched over the legs, and eyes focus ahead.
6. Hip Flexor stretch. Place one foot in front of the other with the left (front) knee flexed and the right (back) knee held rigidly straight. Flex forward through the trunk until the left knee contacts the axillary fold (arm pit region). Repeat with right leg forward and left leg back.
7. Squat. Stand with both feet parallel, about shoulder’s width apart. Attempting to maintain the trunk as perpendicular as possible to the floor, eyes focused ahead, and feet flat on the floor, the subject slowly lowers his body by flexing his knees.
Good luck Margie! If you’re desperate to get home and need someone to come out and get you, I’m free next week other than a dentist appointment on Tuesday!
Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Glad you have your momma there to take care of you. Hope you feel better soon!
Thank you for your suggestions and encouragement!
Mindy, I really might take you up on that if I have an “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” moment! For real.