Laid Up

[WendyKeymaster]

So maybe two weeks ago, I pulled something in my lower back. I wasn’t aware the moment it happened, but over the course of a couple days my back got really really sore and tight and during those days I was carrying jackson (in his stroller) up and down a lot of subway stairs, taking him on long walks, and riding my new bike. Anyway, I jacked it up, but rather than hire a babysitter to watch jackson all day while i rested in bed — that’s the only way a strained back can truly get better — I pushed through the pain. I had friends visiting over the weekend and I pushed through the pain to walk all over brooklyn with them while they were here. And then i pushed through the pain on Monday to take jackson on another long walk and to a play date in the park with some other babies where i had to chase him around (he’s a very fast crawler now and getting close to walking). Then I came home and spent another 45 minutes on my feet cooking dinner. By 8 PM, I couldn’t even stand. By Tuesday morning, I was in so much pain, it hurt just to roll over in bed.

Drew called in sick and I spent the whole day in bed. I was in pain, yes. A lot of pain. But I got to read all day! I finished “Wild.” Three weeks early! I never have time to read, so that was nice. Today I feel a lot better, but still sore, so Drew stayed home again. He and Jackson are currently at story time at the library.

I feel a little guilty that Drew’s had to miss work. But I think my body was telling me to slow down, and I have to admit that as much as it sucks to be in pain and be immobile and feel guilty about putting more responsibility on Drew, this rest has been necessary for my mental well-being, as well as my physical well-being. I feel like i’ve been going, going, going all summer. Even on the vacations I’ve had, I didn’t really get to rest.

Remember sick day when you were a kid and your mom or dad stayed home from work to take care of you? And even though you were sick and that sucked, it was nice to have a break from reality and let someone else care for you?

• This topic was modified 9 months, 2 weeks ago by  Wendy.

[katieParticipant]

yay for a few days of downtime! boo for your back hurting! i dont know if its covered by your insurance, but maybe a chiropractor could help as well? or a nice massage?

i hated missing school when i was in high school -not that i didnt like having days off, i hated actually missing a class, you have to work like twice as hard to make up stuff you missed- so i would go to school sick. all the time. and sometimes it got to the point where i was so sick my mom would have to make me stay home- and she would always say “you are staying home and that is that and you are going to let me take care of you! now go back to sleep!”.. haha. you reminded me of that.

[iwannatalktosampsonParticipant]

That’s awesome. It sounds like you go on too many walks, haha. I am that weirdo that looks forward to surgeries so that I can just lay around, not work, not shower, not be judged for not showering, eat soup, read books, and watch daytime tv. So I feel you there.

That’s awesome that you got to finish the book. I’ve been slacking on the book club. Which is weird because I read all the time! Although Jonathan Tropper has changed my life. After his month I read all his books. I can’t wait for September!

How is Jackson doing in general? Does he sleep through the night? Are you getting more sleep? Also even though I’m sure missing work sucks for Drew – I’m sure he secretly loves the extra time with Jackson.

[TurtledoveParticipant]

I’m sorry, back pain is absolutely awful.

A while back I pulled a muscle in my shoulder at work and I was either going to have to miss work or do light duty until it healed. My boss sent me to a really good masseuse and he worked wonders on it. He did a really deep massage on that muscle and it was super sore at the time, but it didn’t hurt a day afterwards– so if you can, you might consider it. Also alternating hot and cold packs every half hour will help tremendously.

[Jessibel5Participant]

Have you tried Icy Hot pain patches? They are awesome whenever I have back pain. Hope you’re feeling 100% better soon!

[llclarityllParticipant]

augh sorry to hear. This happens to me often, especially after wearing heels that are too high or aren’t supportive. If you can afford it, or have coverage, a good chiropractor works wonders!!

[WendyKeymaster]

Thanks, everyone. I did get a massage, and I may see a chiropractor if I don’t heal quickly. Though, after one day in bed, I am feeling so much better already. This is what I should have done from the get-go, but I guess i didn’t realize how messed up my back was and that it really needed time to heal. I’ve been doing ice packs every two hours and taking Aleve. Everything is helping. And this morning i slept in until 9, which was amazing.

To Iwanna, who asked about Jackson: yes, he sleeps through the night. He has been sleeping through the night since he was about four months old, but when he is teething or when we travel or when he is under the weather, that changes. Right now, he’s popping about five teeth all at once, so his sleep is a little affected, although not as much as when he popped his first two teeth a few weeks back. He always wakes up early — around 5 AM, although he usually goes back to sleep after a bottle. We’ve adjusted to waking up early. But on the rare occasions, like this morning, when I can sleep in, it feels so luxurious.

[Eagle EyeParticipant]

Please be careful about your back, especially with a baby! My poor yet still wonderful mom managed to rupture a disk when I was 6 mos old, and she ruptured another one with my sister three years later. She ended up being unable to pick us up after we stopped being infants. She was lucky that we were pretty sedentary babies, and they are no lasting scares (I promise!) but it ended up being a problem that plagued her forever after (even 25 years later her back is still a problem), so do keep an eye on your back and how your body is responding to all of the lifting.

It sounds like you responded appropriately, but just something to be aware of.

[WendyKeymaster]

Yes, thanks, I’ll be careful. This was a wake up call for me to pay attention to my body. I should have asked for help the first sign of pain, especially since our morning babysitter would have been more than happy to watch Jackson — she loves him — and earn a little extra money. But I waited until the pain got much worse and our babysitter left for vacation, so now drew has had to miss work (which he doesn’t get paid for, so this is much more expensive for us than just paying our babysitter). Now I know better. Hopefully I haven’t done permanent damage.

I also need to quit feeling like i have to be superwoman, carrying a 20 lb. baby in a stroller awkwardly up many flights of subway stairs. Next time, I’m walking the extra 10 minutes to the subway stop that has an elevator.

[kerrycontraryParticipant]

Take the elevator, Wendy! Here in DC you aren’t allowed to take a stroller on the escalator/stairs. My coworker pulled a muscle trying to push her 3yr old and baby up a hill in a stroller-it’s just not worth it.

[Eagle EyeParticipant]

Yes! You really don’t have to be a supermom all of the time! I had nearly full time baby sitters when I was a toddler/ in elementary school because my mom was bedridden with her back or when driving was too painful for her and my boyfriend was raised a good deal by his nannies, and we both turned out alright (more or less!)/ are still very close to both sets of our parents.

[weiweiParticipant]

Try acupuncture if it doesn’t get better soon!

This happened to my mother once a couple years ago. She couldn’t get out of bed at all. My parents didn’t believe in “old fashioned” hocus pocus Chinese methods, but that’s what they gave her when she was finally hauled to the hospital. A couple needle sticks later, she walked out of the hospital.

Hope you feel better!

[AKchic_Participant]

Wendy – I hate to ask such a question in-forum, but the site of the injury – does it burn? Is it swollen? Tingling in any of your extremities?

If so, it could be a slipped/leaking/ruptured disc in your back. I do it all the time (thank you degenerative disc disease). If the pain doesn’t go away in the next 5 days, I recommend seeing a doctor so you can find out. Usually, for injuries like that, they will prescribe pain pills or muscle relaxers (or both) and oral steroids for the inflammation. They may also prescribe physical therapy to help strengthen your back (it’s what they did to my mom and a friend of mine).

[EscapeHatchesParticipant]

Chiropractors are one of those love ‘em/hate ‘em. Ask for a ton of recommendations from friends before picking one – a bad chiropractor can make everything so much worse.

I remember the thing I hated the absolute most about being single was getting sick. Feeling like shit while trying to wrestle a can of crappy condensed soup with the background music of the flu raging against your immune system and then finding yourself crumpled on the floor too overwhelmed to take care of yourself? Awful. I had to schedule some minor surgery and I think Presidential trips have required less coordination in getting someone to come and check that I wasn’t dead that particular weekend.

Do. Not. Miss.

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