Boy, I've been so torn on the whole chiropractor issue.

I'll be turning 50 this year. Broke my back during high school - car accident. It never's been the same.

I have to be real careful about lifing heavy stuff, but with the horses I'm forced to do it all the time. About every two or three years I do something that puts me flat on my back for a few days or more.

I've been to the orthopedic surgeon - he said there wasn't anything wrong except for some arthritis. That was bogus. He said it was muscle strain, but why was the muscle strain always hurting EXACTLY at the vertebrae that had been broken?

Last year I was really bad off. Finally caved in and went to a chiropractor. I always walked out feeling a lot better, but after a day or two things weren't much better. I'd go back ever 3 days or so until finally I stopped going and decided to just over-protect my back (NO lifting) until it got better. Sloooowwwwlllyy my back got better on its own.

The McKenzie idea makes a lot of sense to me. When my back is bad it feels like if I could just stretch a certain way it would get better ... but I've never found that stretch. To be honest, it feels like if I hung from my legs or arms and let it all stretch out that things would do better. Maybe ... maybe not.

I'm starting to feel the aches and pains of a man turning 50, especially after sleeping on the ground at night. The secret there seems to be taking Ibuprofen before I go to bed AND getting up once in the middle of the night to stretch things out a bit.

Good thread, but I'm sorry to hear you're hurting Ben!!

Ken