Final Blog

 


  It’s time for me to conclude what I had done in past few months to improve my low back pain. Low back pain is a common problem nowadays. As mentioned in Health Psych textbook, most of the low back pain is not permanent and most people recover after sometimes. 

I experienced low back pain since four years ago. At first, I did go and consult a Chinese physician. He told me that he could not do any treatment to my back because it is due to inflammation of ligaments of my back. He recommended me to use a corset with steel inside to support my back, so that I could sit straight to avoid pressing the ligaments. He also prescribed some antiphlogistic drug for me to let it recover faster. After one week, the pain disappears itself. Therefore, I never care about it anymore because I thought that since no pain anymore means that it recovered already.

In this few years, my low back pain come and goes frequently. This phenomenon will occur during study week or holidays. After sometimes, I found out that my low back pain is cause by sitting for a long time without moving around after sitting for twenty or thirty minutes. Unfortunately, my low back pain come back to me day before Chinese New Year Eve after I do some households. At the beginning of the pain, I had the thought like “rest for few days and it will be fine after all”. According to the Theory of Reasoned Action, individual belief takes place in this situation. I think that if I rest enough, I will be fine. Therefore, I did not go for treatment although I was in pain. My attitude toward the behavior in this case is I do not want to see doctor because it is only small injury and will recover soon if I use the corset to support my back. Moreover, it is around Chinese New Year, maybe there is no physician available. Thus, I just ignored my low back pain. My parent knew that my low back pain problem and keep advice me to see doctor or physician. Relative importance of attitude and subjective norm comes in at this point. My parent nagged at me about this issue everyday. After my Chinese New Year holiday, I came back to KL. My low back pain is still there after one week. That time I felt worry and wondering why it will be pain for so long time. Then I think that it will be better if I go for treatment and cure it completely. If not I will be suffer in the future during my pregnancy in the future. 

As a result, I have the intention to go to the Tung Shin Hospital, which is near the Puduraya bus station there to consult the Chinese physician. Because I do not have class on every Monday and Wednesday, hence, I went to hospital to have acupuncture sessions twice a week. The Chinese physician advice me try to do more exercise but not to do strenuous sports, such as playing badminton, running etc. He also told me do not sit for too long time and carry heavy things. He said swimming is a good exercise for me to improve my low back pain.

Actually, I felt a little bit scare to have acupuncture at first. If there is any alternative, I think I will not choose acupuncture because I have a bad experience before. The first time I went for acupuncture in my hometown make me feel terrible and horrible. When the physician pricks the needles onto my acupoint, and connect with a mild electrical stimulation, the pain is indescribable with any words on the world. My tears came out automatically and non-stoppable. After that time, I really feel phobia towards acupuncture. Luckily, the Chinese physician I met in Tung Shin Hospital is expert in acupuncture. Although I did felt some numbness and little bit pricking pain, but it is very okay compare to my first acupuncture experience. From my back to my leg, the physician put the needles on twelve of my acupoints. Each session takes time twenty to thirty minutes. Besides the needles, the physician will connect the needles with the electrical stimulate machine and oscillate an infrared or heater on my back. Tung Shin Hospital Chinese Medical Department actually is a charity department. The outpatients there no need to pay consultation fee. They only need to pay the treatments fee. Therefore, many old folks go there for treatments because the treatments fees are very reasonable. This is one of the reasons I willing to have my treatments there. Another reason is the transport there is very convenient for me as an outstation student without own transport. I can take the LRT there and walk for a short distance to reach there. All these factors are important to determine adherence of a person. Acupuncture is a long run treatment, thus, the factors I mentioned above are very important.

Besides acupuncture, I accept the physician’s advice that I should do more exercise but not strenuous exercise. Although I do not know how to swim, but I still learn from my housemate and friends. I practice the legs movements by the side of the swimming pool. The most important is I did exercise and move my body instead of sitting all of the time. No matter how busy I am, I will go for swimming with friends at least once a week. I have strong will to improve and cure my low back pain to avoid any unnecessary consequences in the future. Swimming not only improves my low back pain problem, it can also improve my health because I was lazy to exercise previously. After exercise, I can feel the difference. I feel more refreshing and healthier compare to before. Swimming can stretch out the back muscles and it can reduce the period of time that the back muscles and bone being pressed.

I getting adopt the habit of not to sit for a long time. After I sit for around thirty minutes, I will try to walk around or stretching to prevent long time pressure on my back. In addition, I try to avoid lift thing without bend down the knees and squat down for a long time. However, sometimes it is unavoidable because I need to clean and wash the bathroom and toilet. Hence, I use some tools to aid me clean the walls and toilet bowl, so that I no need squat down to wash. 

Sedentary lifestyle is the main cause of low back pain in my case. In order to maintain my low back in good condition, I need to change my lifestyle by do more exercise. I hope that I could go for swimming twice or more a week. I also tend to reduce my time of using laptop to play games and online. I found three swim-mates that could motivate and encourage me to be more commit to my plan in the future.

This health blog did help me to improve my health and take good care of myself. Hopefully I could maintain myself in a healthy condition in the future. Although this is blog is comes to an ends, but my plan will not stop here due to the end of the semester.

And I wish all of the classmates can maintaining your health and good habits in the future to become a person who always have good condition in physical, psychological and mental.