as anyone used a tens machine for back pain as my mother-inlaw has been taking very strong pain killers for it

Question

with no affect ,the doc says its wear & tear

Answer 1

Yes, I have one & I find it to be great as you can regulate the amount of pain relief you require, together with a number of programmes.
I only tend to use it when the pain is severe as I don't want to end up relying on it.
I also have arthritis & find it's great for that too.
I bought my TENS machine from Lloyds chemist, it was £9.99 (was£40.00) it's bt Solphadene.

I also used a TENS machine in the first stages of labour & it eased the contractions, that was my reason for buying one.

Answer 2

I have suffered with back, shoulder & neck pains for years & have tried all types of pain relief to no avail. I have used tens machines and for certain pain at certain times they are great but for others they have no effect. I have also have the machine from lloyds chemist & have found it very good. I have been diagnosed as having degenerative vertebrae but then again we all have this problem because it happens to us all, it is just how it effects us individually that determines if we have pain or not. I attended a pain management clinic at my local hospital & they showed me exactly how to use a tens machine & where to locate the pads & it was quite different to how I thought they should be & also how the instructions showed. It is worth talking to your gp to see if your surgery has a practice nurse that has had training in fitting tens. Anyway I wish your mother-in-law the best of luck because back pain really is a real pain.

Answer 3

The tens machine should be placed each side of the actual site of the pain, and adjusted until you can feel a slight fuzzy feeling. It is used to help your own natural endorphines to work, which is a kind of natural morphine that your body produces to help reduce the pain you have got. However, it really depends on the type of pain you have, as every pain needs different ways of getting rid of it.
It depends as I said on the type of pain, some people use a tens machine to help cut down the amount of drugs taken, however, this does not always work for everyone. Personally you need to know how to use a tens machine in order to have maximen effect. Also you cant use it all the time, there has to be rest periods in between use.
A chiropractor may be able to help, but sometimes a hospice Consultant may be able to help, as they are very experienced in pain management,Get your doctor or consultant to refer you to a hospice consultant, they are the best in controling pain. However, I dod not know your mother-in-laws history, so difficult to say but your mother-in-law may need strong tablets. If they give some relief then good but not relief, get a second opinion until you get some real help. Dont just settle for the GP advice, you have every right to find relief, even if you hunt for it. good luck and I really hope you find some help.

Answer 4

I was given a TENS machine by the pain management clinic at my local hospital. i have arthritis in my spine. I find it helps if i wear it when doing housework etc, i can do more for longer. Your mother in law needs to be careful as long term use of painkillers can have some nasty side effects. She could ask to be referred to pain management for more detailed advice and possibly treatment. Exercise really does help alleviate some of the worst pain. Unfortunately it is probably something she will have to learn to live with. I wish her all the best as i know how hard it can be.

Answer 5

I am an alternative medicinal therapist and I use tens on my patients and if they are placed in the proper place they are of great benefit. Painkillers will damage her liver and kidneys if taken to often
A massage therapist can also be very helpful for back pain
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Answer 6

hi sp you name it I've tried it for back pain , the tens machine i found of no help at all , i eventually tried acupuncture and found it was really good and very relaxing esp for wear and tear in back problems if yr in the UK ,ask yr mother-in law to ask her doc to refer her to the physio dept as they can give it to certain cases for severe back pain free on the NHS ,hope this is of any use ,because honestly it does work but only after a few sessions mind will she start to feel relief ,best of luck to her as i know how she feels Tc :)x

Answer 7

I also have the Lloyds TENS machine. It helps sometimes, but not all the time. Physiotherapy in water was a great relief, but once the sessions ran out, the pain came back. Best of luck for your mother!!

Answer 8

Wear or tear it might be but poor woman is suffering, what a doc! Get a second opinion, I'd say. Try an osteopath, or a chiropractor. I don't agree with people filling themselves full of chemicals for long periods of time, although obviously it is sometimes necessary.

Answer 9

I used the TENS unit for several months for severe back pain but it didn't help. I also had physical therapy which didn't help. I had a lumbar laminectomy three years ago which helped. However, I still need pain medications and muscle relaxants.

Answer 10

I am currently reading "What your doctor hasn't told you and the health store clerk doesn't know: the truth about alternative treatments and what works" by E.L. Schneider, M.D. In this book, there's a whole chapter on back and neck pain and, as I've been struggling with both of them, I found it both knowledgeable and helpful. Here is what this doctor says:
- for patients who encounter chronic back and neck pain exercice is the BEST treatment, especially when a exercice includes strengthening techniques for the abdominal, back, neck and shoulder muscles. He recommands a combination of cardiovascular exercice, stretching and strength training.
- Heatwraps and hydrotherapy (aka hot bath or shower) can be practiced at home and provide great relief.
- Massage is also a recommanded alternative to pain killers as it will help loosened the muscles that have grown tight in response to the pain.
-Percutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (PENS) is a variation of TENS have been shown to be efficient, especially on back pain and could enable a person in acute pain to perform the exercices that will help him/her feel better.
-Acupuncture, chiropractic manipulation for back pain, ostheopathy, TENS, homeopathy and magnets are acceptable alternatives treatments for back and neck pain, because very little proof of their effectiveness exists, but they are relatively safe to try.
- Chiropractic manipulation for neck pain and devil's claw (harpagophytum procumbens) are both ineffective and unsafe.

Here is what he says precisely about TENS :
"Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation was developped about 30 years ago in respose to a theory about he origins of pain perception. In this theory, known as the gate-control theory, pain perception can be altered or even prevented if other sensations such as touch or pressure can get in the way of pain, blocking it from moving toward the brain. By applying light electrical stimulations to the skin, TENS supposedly provides one of those alternate sensations and prevents its users from feeling quite so much pain.
Three decades later, both the theory and the therapy remain fascinating (though not adequatly proven). And TENS does appear to work well for arthritis pain. But does it help sufferers of back and neck pain? For reasons that are unclear, TENS does not appear to help pain in these regions. An excellent review of five high-quality trials of TENS for chronic low-back pain showed no significant benefit over sham forms or TENS (without the electri current).
TENS is safe however as long as you don't mind the possibility of a rash at the site of the electrical stimulation pack that sits next to your skin. People with implanted pacemakers or defibrillators should not use TENS at all. If you're bent on trying TENS, plan on plenty of visits to the physical therapist, who will have to use trial and error to determine the site and frequency that seem to work best for you (That's one reason TENS is rarely used for acute pain: by the time the equipment is set up and working at an optimum capacity, the pain has subsided on its own)."

Hope this helps.