OH MY ACHING BACK

1 May 2003

Ouch.

My back is killing me.

Our new rad tech started work Tuesday and the first order of business was doing precision studies on the new bone density machine (DEXA). The purpose of the precision studies were, Dr. G says, to make sure that "C" was positioning people right on the table so that we knew the spine and hip bone pictures that were being taken were accurate.

To do this, we are doing exams on about 12 different people, three spine exams, 2 hip exams, and three heel exams, so he can compare all of the measurements on each of the patients and determine if C has got it right.

[Aside: I wish I could come up with clever nicknames for the anonymous people in my journal. Haggie has her "Ms. Monday" and other names like that. I come up with 'Dr. G,' 'T' and 'C', etc. Do you see why I don't write fiction? Absolutely NO imagination!]

My friends Shelly and Ellen were among the first to be examined--this is the Gold Standard of exams, and they were getting it free just to let C practice her technique. After all the exams were finished, I had my turn.

Each exam took about 45 minutes, with the subject getting on and off the table, so C would have to reposition them each time.

It's not an uncomfortable table, as tables go. About as comfortable as lying on an exercise pad. Your legs are put up on a block so that it helps the hip bones lie flatter on the table.

The problem is that my back doesn't like to lie flat. It's the reason why I gave up sleeping in a bed. When I get prone, my back complains. Sometimes softly, sometimes loudly. I knew it would be uncomfortable for me, but I was not prepared for how uncomfortable it would be.

The first exam wasn't all that bad. I expected my back to complain and it did. I expected it to be difficult to get up afterwards, and it was. Then we did the first heel exam. And then it was time to get back on the table again.

This time, she decided she needed to have Dr. G check out some things, so I lay there on the table longer than before while they looked at my spine on the computer screen and Dr. G gave suggestions about how better to position my body. I don't know how long I was on the table this time, but it was very difficult to get up, as pain shot through my spine.

The last time I got on the table, she did the spine again and both hips, so it was the longest period yet. We're not talking hours here, we're talking minutes, but when your spine is complaining and you know it's going to be bad getting up, each minute lasts an hour. (I was thinking about what would ever happen if I had to have an MRI--the combination of the back pain and claustrophobia would require a lot of drugs to get me into that tube!)

When she finally finished and I went to get up, I saw stars. It took me a good 3 or 4 minutes before I could get off the table and then C had to give me a mini back massage before I could walk. I limped into the exam room to sit on the couch so I could have a pillow behind my back. I finally left to come home--I couldn't stand it any more (and I didn't even think about going to Curves).

This morning, despite a night in my ergonomic (or so it feels) recliner, my back is still hurting, though I'm not wincing with every step any more.

Cindy tells me that if I get into yoga, my back will feel better. I was with some people recently who were into yoga and I watched them go through their routines and marveled at the flexibility, thinking there ain't no way I could ever do that. I was thinking, when I joined the athletic club, that I would give it a try. After my afternoon on my back yesterday and looking at the yoga positions my friends were doing, I'm a bit more apprehensive.