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QUESTION:
I've been experiencing pain in my upper back and frontal ribcage
for the past year now. I've seen a doctor, a physiotherapist and
am now currenly seeing a chiropractor. I must say my current
chiropractor is the only person that's managed to relieve some of
this pain recently.
Through a pattern of elimination, we have narrowed down the possible
causes of this by me purchasing a new mattress, putting the mattress
on the floor and siting in a straight backed chair rather than the
*really* cheap armchairs that are in my pre-furnished rented appartment.
My pain is relatively fine during the week (I work in an office), but
it gets a lot worse on the weekends especially in the mornings getting out
of bed.
My chiropractor has suggested that I purchase a recliner, so that long
periods of sitting in one spot (which I do on weekends) will not aggravate
my upper back pain and allow it to heal over time.
What I'm really looking for is a second opinion. I respect the knowledege
and experience of my chiropractor, she has given me great success in relieving
this pain - I just want to get as much opinions on this as possible before I
justify spending a reasonable large amount of money on a good recliner.
ANSWER:
I'm just curious, have you ever been evaluated for Fibromyalgia? I think
you need to get to the actual source of that pain, and it doesn't sound like
they have done that yet. Am I wrong about this?
Do you have subluxation of the spine visible by x-ray? If not, the
"adjustment" is not helping you. *Do not* read this to say that the
chiropracter is not helping you, or even that the treatment he is giving you
isn't helping. But it may be that the help is massage rather than
adjustment.
Since the chiropracter is helping, and also trying to help more, I would
continue with what he's doing and listen to what he has to say. Being the
person I am, I would then make my own decisions.
1. It might very well help. I have one that I sit in (pelvic pain). My
wife bought it for me and I complained about the waste of money, but I have
to admit that it does make a difference. (In other words, she was right and
I was wrong. I even admitted it to her.) But buy a good one -- cheap
furniture can cause pain and it certainly adds to pain caused by other
problems.
1a. I don't believe that there is any way to calculate the odds. You
choose, and then you find out whether it was a good idea or not.
2. Why do you sit in one spot for long periods? Do you think this might be
causing or contributing to your pain? Can you change this behavior? Maybe
a good walk is what you need most. Or maybe you can't change it -- you
didn't tell us enough about your physical condition for us to know. But
maybe lying down on the couch (again, a good one -- I prefer a futon on a
wood frame, because of the total support it gives) would be better than
sitting in a chair, any chair.
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