That Paul Bunyon Show

[Bro. Noble]

I'm hurting for a report ;D

Were the brownies as good as the ones at the Piggy Roast?

[Norm]

I know what ya mean Noble, Jeff was supposed to bring back some brownies for those of us not able to make it. I have a sneaking suspicion that if I want any I'm going to have to make my own. :D

[Jeff]

Guys I got several pictures put will post some later. Right now I am incapacitated with a back/hip/sciatic nerve something or other problem that plagued me at the Paul Bunyan show. I'll add a thread in a bit once I get unpacked and able to sit longer then 10 seconds at a time. I had a super time regardless!  (I was able to give LogRite a little extra biz cause that long hookaroon makes a perfect cane  )

[SwampDonkey]

Man, take care of yourself cause i know what that sciatic nerve business can do. It can even effect the bowels (without being explicit). Then the pain killers are another issue. :

[Jeff]

we'll be posting pics and stuff on the thread named "Paul Bunyan and no Chisel! "

The hip got so bad it made me forget my shoulder.

Its like the time years and years ago I had a tooth ache. This old fella at the mill said to try a big chaw of his redman, that it would take the toothache away. Well, he was right. That stuff made me so sick I forgot all about the toothache. It also cured me of ever trying chew again!

[SwampDonkey]

:D :D The school took us to Kings Landing Historical settlement when we was in grade 4. We walked into the old general store and in a glass case there was some chew and us young fellers asked the shop keeper for a piece. We took one bite of that stuff and ran outta that store to the watering trough. It was hot as chilly peppers. I dunno what it was laced with, but none of us ever ended up chewin, I know that. Reminds me of the little rascals, and we was just as bad to. :D :D

[Timber_Framer]

 :D When I was in Hihgschool footbal I thought it was cool to dip during practice...until that one fateful hit

Hope the hip gets better Jeff, it seems we know a bit about that particular ailment  :

[Jeff]

does anybody have any methods of relief for sciatica? Jeez this sucks. :-/

[Rod]

I had that same problem just a few months ago Jeff and I never did find nothing that would work.It lasted for about a month,maybe 2, and one morning I woke up and it was gone. weird I know,but true..But the way I've got it figured is, after I turned into my 50's weird pains like that word come and go.Now I'd say when I'm in my 80's and on, those pains will just stay.But my threory could me totally wrong too.

[Rod]

By the way Jeff,mine just would hurt when ever I would move my right leg,I told the Doc that, and I asked him what I should do,he told me not to move my right leg

[SwampDonkey]

If your in your favorite lounger chair, sit with a pillow behind your lower back, without your feet up. Might try using some pillows at night to find a comfy position, but I don't remember gettin much sleep no matter what position. Sometimes I was good for awhile on my back and then sometimes on my side. Sleeping on my stomach was a definate no no. I found keeping my back as straight as possible was the most comfortable.

'No slouching young man', as your teacher told you when tapping your desk with her yard stick.  ;)

[Timber_Framer]

After six years of off and on pain I finally listened to my wife and tried yoga. I know, I know, it looks silly as hell considering I'm 300lbs and 6'4" but it gave me relief. And if I'm smart enough to do two twenty minute sessions a week it stays away. Unfortunately I'm not that smart :

[Bro. Noble]

I had it on my right side several years ago--------took lots of time to get better.   Had it on my seft side this summer wasn't near as bad and is about all better.

Jeff,  in a couple of weeks,  you won't be thinking about your hip much :-/   As you already know the shoulder is worse,  but you will have those little pills to help you along

Then again maybe you're being punished for eating Norm's and my brownies ;)

In an case hope things go well with you

[SwampDonkey]

Timber framer:

I agree that excercise is the best releif for any back and sciatic ailments. Doing alot of bending in low ceilings is hard on ya, like stacking furnace wood and working around air ducts in the basement. :D If you have stiff knees from sitting to much it also helps to walk. I've been walking over 7 km every day when doing trail layout, similar when doing PCT layout. The only downer is my arms are up in the air alot compassing and tying ribbon and it gets me in the kneck and middle back. You also need really good work boots that are comfortable because the natural terrian in the woods can be unforgiving to your hips and footsies. But, by 5 am the next day I'm ready to do it all over again. :D Working on a cement floor all day with bad boots is gonna get to ya also.

[Tom]

I'm enjoying some pictures in another thread, maybe some will show up here as well. :D  Are there any of Jeff hunched over cane?  Hmmm  Chet the yodeler and Jeff the howler. :D

I have had Sciatica too and it's no fun. It shows up without reason, hangs on a week, a month or a year, and if your lucky will dissappear as fast as it showed up.  There's no reasoning to it.

I hear that Eating More Grits will eleviate the pain. ;D

[Jeff]

From a distance, Chet and I thought we saw a guy cooking a huge cauldron full of grits, We walked up and it turned out to be bean soup. I told the guy thank god, I thought those were all grits and he laughed.

[SwampDonkey]

awe well, you know we gots to look after one another. ;D

[D._Frederick]

Jeff,

What I did for my nerve problem was to put ice packs on the lower back and take ant inflamitory pills such naproxen (SP). You need to leave the ice on long enough until the skin is num.

[pappy]

I've had lower back problems since "75 (motorcycle wreck) --I've tried three different chiros and the last one I'm going to does me GREAT !! He keeps me on the bench for no less than 40 minutes (I just love that inferred tool he has) -- but the best tip he gave me is two cups of Epsom salt in the tub with water as hot as you can stand it.  Believe me it works.  Sometimes the old home remedies  !!!!!


Matter of fact that's right where I'm going.


good night,
pappy

[Ron Wenrich]

I've had sciatica a couple of times.  Once I went to a doctor who gave me pain pills.  It came back after the pills were gone.

The guy who cured it was a chiropractor.  It took awhile, but it never came back.

To help reduce the pain, you should be using moist heat.  Put a wet washrag on your back, then put a heating pad (water proof) on top of that.  Then sit back in the lounger for about 1/2 hour.  It will fell lots better.  

[Bro. Noble]

Anyone use a rice bag------- A flannel bag full of rice?  You put it in the microwave and then use it like a hot water bottle.  It conforms to your body,  feels moist,  and stays hot a long time.  You can also keep it in the freezer to use on sprains,  bruises,  and other injuries that call for cold to reduce swelling.  I used one almost constantly after shoulder surgery and pinched nerves.

[chet]

Rice....... I wooda thunk ya wooda suggested a bag of grits.   :D   :D

[Bro. Noble]

Heck no,  them's for warming your innards ;D

[DanG]

This is Dr. DanG typing. Jeff, now you listen up and listen up good!  .....er, I was gonna say something here, but I forgot what it was. ???

Anyway, I had that problem some years ago, and sorta narrowed down what was causing it. I was sitting on an old worn out couch in the evenings, watching tv and working crosswords. Started having these wierd and severe pains through my left hip and leg. I was just about crippled from it when we rearranged the place and I started roosting elsewhere. Pretty soon the pain went away. I've been more careful about where I habitually sit, and the pain has never come back.  Check out your normal sitting spots and change some things around a bit. You might discover the cause of your problem.

Best hot compress I know of is a wet towel in a garbage bag. Poke it in the microwave for a couple of minutes and it will last for a good while.

[SwampDonkey]

HI Bro_Noble

I also have one of them microwaveable grain sacs. Its here someplace, I keep forgetting i got it.

Termite

I also agree with epson salts theoropy, I have that and sometimes I soak my feet in warm water with that disolved in it.  I have one of them ConAir foot thingies from Wallyworld. Some times my feet get cramped from walking all day and that's good for it.

DanG

I also agree with what your saying about furniture. Some chairs I need something behind my back, like a pillow. Those old hard wooden chairs they sit on playing cards in winter , I can't take for too long. Cut the circulation off in the legs, and hard on the lower back. Mind you I don't go to the card games too often. I don't sit on chairs that have that cord running around the rim of the cushon, that cuts into the legs too.

cheers

[Ianab]

Jeff
Seriously have you tried a good chiropractor. Workmate has back problems and normal docs will give anti-inflamatories and pain killers. Only treating the symptoms.
A good chiro should be able to x-ray your spine, show what vertabrae are out of line and pinching, and then beat them back into shape. Mate actually found where he had broken his back in a sking accident several years ago.
Things like chairs can also agravate the situation for sure. A different chair with your back in another position can also help

Ian

[Jeff]

I do see a Chiropractor, and I am planning on calling him today. This episode started two days before we left for Paul Bunyan. I lived with it the first day cause it started out tolerable. The next day of course when I tried to call was his day off. :-/ Then it was time to leave for Paul Bunyan. A 1000 miles later I am in pretty rough shape. I need to get straightened out some how this week because a week from today I have shoulder surgery and I dont know how I'll be able to function.

[Ianab]

yeah.. 1000 miles on the road .. last straw for a bad back  :(

Come and visit NZ and you can check out the thermal hot pools down the road from the Peterson factory  ;)

[Jeff]

Yep, got a big invite from Chris Brown but I think I want to be fit BEFORE a trip like that. Dont know if I'll ever be able to swing 5 grand for air fare, but its a dream.  Chris told me abour catching trout and burying them in the sand on a certain beach where the sand cooks them?

[Ianab]

Yeah.. I can believe the trout cooking story, there is a beach up north that you can walk out at low tide and dig a hole and it fills up with hot water for an instant hot tub.
In the usual NZ way it's imaginatively called Hot Water Beach  :
Work on at least a month to see NZ, I did the South Island in 2 weeks, different motel every night and we were never bored.
At least when you get here your $1 will be worth $1:80 if that helps :

Ian

[Ianab]

btw Jeff
If you book ahead....
I put LA to Auckland return into the Air NZ site for tomorrow... NZ$ 7000  
I put in early December, cheap book ahead fares.. $2042 NZ
 
Shop around  ;)

Of course thats 10,000 km in economy class... so get your back sorted 1st

Ian

[Norm]

Boy I sympathize with ya Jeff, I suffered with lower back pain for years. Our family doc gave pills which didn't help a bit, best relief I ever got was from moist heat. What finally got rid of it was a different job, all those years I was on the road driving 5-6 days a week or stuck on long plane trips. Now I walk to work and if the weather permits take long ones during the weekend, that and not doing the same repetitive motion got rid of it for the last several years.

I'll bet sitting in a sawbooth has taken it's toll on you also, hope you get feeling better.

[Haytrader]

Another thing you can try and it is cheap.
I carry a business card magnet in my hip pocket.
I have no proof that is why my knees don't bother me anymore but I won't leave home without it.

Noble,

My wife has a couple of the rice bags in the freezer and one in the dresser drawer.

[Bruce_A]

A long term approach would be a smaller tool shed roof.  I know the one I am packing is killing my back.

[Jeff]

Bruce, I am sure that would help. I gained over 80 lbs in the last 5 years after I quit smoking. I really need to find the will power to just say no to cookies. :D

And Ice cream.


And Lasagna.

and... ;)

Ian, was that price for 2?  No way I would go without the Wildflower. (L.A. is a whole country away from me)

[Brian_Bailey]

Give some thought to an inversion table!  Does wonders in realigning the ole back bone. Almost as good as a chiro.and cheaper too!

I use one for my aches an pains and it sure does help!

Just a note of caution, have a spotter the first couple times you use one in case you pass out from being inverted  .

http://www.inversion-table-direct.com/

[Gilman]

Here's my personal physical therapist.  It has been a lifesave at times.  

It measures 6" dia x 3' and made from a hard foam.

I got it from my physical therapist after I got rear ended.  The wreck wasn't so bad but my driver's seat frame buckled half way up my back.  Tried a couple different chiropractors, and a couple physical therapists.  I swear by a good physical therapist and swear at the bad ones.  Anyways, a quick roll on this once I get a little back pain and it's gone within minutes. It works really well when when you do a, "uh oh" when you lift something incorrectly and get that quick little sharp pain.

To use it you lay on it lengthwise under your spine and relax.  I takes some experience to learn to relax a painful back.  After (or before) that, you turn it 90 degrees and roll back and forth over the knotted up muscles.  Repeat as needed.

DISCLAIMER: Doesn't fix broken backs  ;)

[SwampDonkey]

When we worked in BC, in Douglas Channel area, we stayed on a  motor yacht and anchored in hotsprings cove. What it was,  is an area where a bunch of loggers had set up camp. They discovered some hotsprings along the coastline and decided to construct a shelter and make some hot tubs with cement works. There was the main tub which overflowed into a smaller wash tub, with a drain hole. The water was around 100-110 F, I couldn't sit in it long but it was a nice spot to come to after a long day climbing through brush and rocks and boulders. I have pictures, but I don't think anyone wants to see a bunch of hairy strangers sitten around the hot tub. :D :D

Near where Percy lives in Terrace, are also hot tubs, that's only about 1800 miles away Jeff. :D There are also float planes leaving Prince Rupert to hot spring houses along Douglas Channel, they are near a reservation at Hartley Bay and maintained by the BC Ministry of Forests. There are also hot springs on the Queen Charlottes maintained by the native Haida. These areas are remote. ;)

[Ianab]

Ian, was that price for 2?  No way I would go without the Wildflower.  (L.A. is a whole country away from me)

No.. unfortunately that was just one seat return, but at least it was NZ dollars  :
and I guess it's a fair bit for ya to get to LA in the first place :(

[dave7191]

 Jeff this one sounds crazy but I found it works if you can stand to do it you lay on the floor and pull your knees up and rock on your back it seems to straighten out your back  I had an old Dr. tell me to try it 30 or more years ago  I have a small curvature (sp) in my back and it has always cause me a little pain but this help as much as anything
hope you fell better soon
Dave

[Bruce_A]

Jeff;  Febuary was five years of no smoking for me and I added over fifty lbs.  I now notice that everything seems to be better in sixes. Six popsicles, six scoops of ice cream, six pack of beer. etc.  Sometimes all on the same day.  I have cut the time  it takes to eat this amount down to about 3 hours.  Usually between dinner and bed time.

[etat]

Some of these have been mentioned, but as a person that crawls off a roof with a lot of aches and pains here's what I do.


You ever seen them vibrating heating pads like they make now.  You can get em that you can lay on yer bed, or that you can put in your chair and sit down and lean back on.  You can set the better ones for different heat, and more or less vibration and in different areas.

Mild  stretching excerises are good.

And Jeff, when it gets a bit better start walking every day, and 'push yerself back from the table'.  Losing pounds will make a difference.  'tryin to sneak that one in'

Epsom salt baths will make ya feel real good.  Use LOTS of epsom salt.

Muscle relaxers will help relieve tight muscles.  

My last secret weapon is what I call ET.  It's a fairly heavy massager with a long curved handle and a funny looking head and two vibrating balls.  It will either take two soft ones, two hard ones, or two that will heat up. The best thing I've ever seen for 'spot massage'.  Looks almost exactly like ET.

Also I got me one of them electrical things that shock like the chiropractors use.  I don't break that one out too often.

[racer9]

4 years ago, I had sciatic nerve problems. I kept going to the docs, and they too just wanted to give me pain killers. After 3 long months with terrible pain, I found a chiroractor who helped me out.
My right leg was completely numb.When I started to get the feeling back, it was like a sunburn on the inside of my leg.
However, since it took so long to get cured, I now have permanent nerve damage to my right leg. I also get terrible leg cramps frequently. I take magnesium tablets every day. They help some, but not enough.

[Jeff]

Well, one trip to the chiropractor today and I have been pain free most of the day. I gotta go to have pre-op tests tomorrow but after that I am going to come back and see him again for another adjustment before he leaves for elk hunting and I get my shoulder autopsied. I sure hope I stay straight because I cant imagine being like that once they got my wing pinned back on Monday. I would be totally useless instead of just virtually useless.

[Frickman]

Jeff, hope you get straightened up before your operation. Chiropractors have been a life-saver for me, I wouldn't be able to keep working without one.

[Jeff]

A little soreness has returned tonight, and I have to drive clear to grayling and back tomorrow which i know is going to aggravate it, but the cracker said he will be waiting for me when I get home to give me another twist.

[pappy]

Jeff,
A hot compress of 2 cups Epsom Salt per gallon of hot water for your back after the autopsie might be the ticket.

Or maybe right now!!

[Bruce_A]

Jeff;  If you drink that epsom salts, you won't have to worry about driving.

[SwampDonkey]

 :D :D

That the antidote for them little yellow pills. :D :D

[pappy]

It can be used for a laxative -- read the box

maybe some members could use it  :D :D :D :D :D :D

[SwampDonkey]

that's what I was gettin at, since then pain killers can affect ya the opposite. :D :D