Thank You Subscribers and Friends!

Happy Easter, Happy Passover, and Happy Weekend!

Jack

A Conversation with a Facebook and YouTube Subscriber

asks

How Do I Reclaim My Life After Back Surgery

NOTE: Before I do anything, I want to apologize for my recent neglect when it comes to this blog. A funny thing happened on my way to building this blog…I got my life back!

In the process of regaining my strength and control of my life, I stopped doing some of the things I was advocating, the things that worked for me and for so many others.

Please understand, my advice has always been anecdotal and provided solely to help others, and my neck pain, back pain, and sciatica didn’t completely disappear, but my pain was significantly reduced and I was able to start rebuilding my life.

How great is that?! 

Why am I even mentioning this?

Because I feel responsible and because of all the Christmas (Happy Holidays) emails I sent out to the subscribers of my various blogs and websites? I had the biggest reaction from my back pain blog subscribers.

I have three back pain blogs, all dedicated to helping others overcome their acute and/or chronic neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica and reclaim their lives.

I honestly love making the videos, writing the articles and blog posts, and providing insight into how I achieved real and lasting pain relief.

I love it!

I just got away from it for a time.

So, the reaction I’m talking about, the one that came from those I tried to help?

It was entirely negative!

I sent out over 500 Christmas eCards/emails to my neck pain, back pain, and sciatica blog subscribers; and, I had the highest open rate I have ever had. I also had the highest unsubscribe numbers to date…all from my back pain websites!

Not one unsubscribe from any of the hundreds of subscribers at any of the other websites or blogs…not one!

I got the message!

I let you down and I am so very sorry! You were in pain and I apparently let some of you down!

My labor of love somehow let several people down to the point that they not only unsubscribed…they complained about spam!

They complained that a Christmas card, a Happy Holidays greeting, constituted spam!

Now understand this:

• They subscribed
• They went through a double opt-in system, confirming not once but twice
• They received a Holiday Greeting not a sales solicitation
• They unsubscribed (OK, I get it)
• And then, they complained!

That’s a message!

So, once again, I apologize!

I will do all I can to provide useful information on a regular basis. If I find I cannot? I will either take the blog down or sell it and donate the money to Providence House, a childrens’ shelter in Cleveland, Ohio. Providence House, and one other shelter for domestic violence, have received every penny generated from the sales of ebooks and ecourses specifically designed to help my readers, subscribers, and social media friends with their neck pain, back pain, and sciatica.

OK?

Now, on with an exchange that grew into something I thought might help others. This sort of thing happens quite often, either on Facebook, YouTube (where we have had almost 250,000 video views in less than 3 years), or here at Ultimate Bad Back Strategies.

I’d love to hear from you about what happened over Christmas or any insights into the conversation below.

Why?

Because you are important to me!

You see, I did all this to help. Somehow it backfired. Lesson learned, point taken.

I wish every one of you the best each and every day!

I also hope each one of you finds relief from whatever kind of pain you are suffering from:

• Neck Pain
• Back Pain
• Sciatica
• Fibromyalgia
• Depression as a consequence of chronic pain
• Failed Back Surgery Syndrome
• Or any of the other conditions I’ve attempted to cover here

Happy Holidays and the Happiest New Year!

John

The Facebook Exchange

Anita - FB/YT Friend: Hi John I was watching you tube. Are you the gentlemen who had back surgery?

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr: Yup! All 14 times! Hurts just thinking about it.

Anita - FB/YT Friend: I just had tlif 6 months ago. Cage l5 s1. I fell off ladder at work totally rupturing the disc. L5 resting on S1. So disc replacement, rods n the screws. Every day is agony. Just wondering if you are better and what helped. In physical therapy now and it’s hell!

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr: Use ice as often as possible! Heat with the metal will create more inflammation…and thus more pain.

Invest in a solid straight-back rocker and a recliner with an electric control. Invest in 1 or 2 great pillows.

When you can’t sleep or are in too much pain to move, put an ice wrap on your lower back, sit in the recliner, elevate the foot rest, have 1 or two pillows placed under the knees, and recline until comfortable. Put on a good movie, one you know and can follow with your eyes closed or a good audiobook or some peaceful, soothing music.

Then drift off!

It will help with the pain, a lot. Get off the narcotics immediately!

Narcotics will cause rebound pain and you will end up dependent and in pain. A terrible scenario!

Get active! Walk as far as you can each day. Try to walk a little farther on each walk. You will be in more pain if you are inactive, so get active and don’t stop!

Walk to the end of the driveway if that’s all you can do…but start right away.

There are 5 factors that contribute to back pain. You can find them at http://UltimateBadBackStrategies.com/

Good luck Anita! Let me know if I can help in any way!

Anita - FB/YT Friend: I am still taking 3 Percocet Aday. Do you take anything else instead. I live by ice. It freezes my brain lol. I don’t use heat. I had a bad bout of inflammation month 3. I guess the active part is what I really need to work on. I do walk but not far. I am sure my weight don’t help. Many nights I can’t sleep. We had just bought a new sofa and chair right before injury. So I Need to look at that. I just came across your videos and something told me I really needed to reach out to you. Physical therapy had me squatting lifting 40lbs before I even could just do squats. That set me back That happened 3 weeks ago.

So how are you doing now? How long has it been?

Anita - FB/YT Friend: John I pulled up sight but on fb I can’t get but part. I will try to google it. If still can’t maybe I can have you email it. XXXXXXXX@gmail.com

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr: I almost lost my life to osteomyelitis, a staph infection introduced along with the plates, screws, etc. Over the years, I have had 15 major surgeries, 14 on my spine, a total shoulder reconstruction, and a broken neck.

The worst thing was the pain. It wasn’t until I got off the pain meds and started doing a little more each & every day that my life started to turn around.

I not only have the experience as a patient, I have the education as a physical anthropologist. So, while not a medical doctor, I understand the spine and SI joint as well as anyone alive.

The more active you get, the more weight you will drop and the stronger your muscles will become. Deal with the muscle strength, the activity level, and the meds and you will do well. Be careful with PT. They often have no idea what they are doing, particularly when it comes to spine surgery and chronically acute pain.

Great about the ice!

When sleeping, I sleep on my side with a decent pillow between my legs, one at my belly (to keep me from rolling onto my stomach), and one or two under my head. The idea is to keep your spine straight from the cervical region to the sacrum. If someone looked at you while you’re resting on your side, they could draw a straight line. That’s how your spine should line up! It will help with sleep too.

Here are the first steps I took:

• Buy comfortable shoes
• Use ice often
• Walk a bit farther each day
• Integrate a stretching program (twice daily – morning and bedtime)
• Buy a comfortable chair and follow the instructions I gave you
• Count your steps (plan your days to provide for special activities late in the day and to reduce pain)
• Get a Handicap card or sticker for your car (1 fall on the ice will undo everything – and it helps with counting steps)

By counting steps I mean, you only have so much energy and pain tolerance on any one day, particularly when starting out post-op. So, make sure you have enough in reserve to make it through the entire day!

That should do it. At least it will help!

BTW, don’t swim!

Everyone wants to get you into the pool. People think swimming is the be-all to end-all! It’s not true. If you want to get in the water, fine. Just make sure you walk in the water. Do not swim!

Eventually, you will be able to do more:

• Swim
• Ride a bike (recumbent)
• Go for long walks
• And much more

However, when you begin remember to count your steps and to use baby steps!

Best wishes to you in the new year. Contact me anytime and take care Anita!

John

Postscript from Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr: Would you mind if I use our conversation on my blog? I will of course change your name if you want me to but I think it will help a lot of people!

Anita - FB/YT Friend: No don’t mind. For now you can just change or use last name. Icing  Lol

Don’t understand the blog thing.

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr: NO worries! Thank you!

Stop Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatic Nerve Pain with 3 Simple Strategies!

I hope this short video helps you overcome your pain, regardless of the type of spine-related pain and severity. I have suffered from neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain for decades. However, I have learned to overcome it and life pain free. I am creating a new video and article series and it will be available throughout the summer…please stop back often!

If you need anything? Or would simply like to share your story? Please do so!

We can learn from each other, help each other and perhaps overcome our neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica together!

Contact me anytime!

John Zajaros, The Bad Back Guy
216-712-7004
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com

How to Stop Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatica…Forever!

A funny thing happened on the way to my demise…I reclaimed my life!

Am I being melodramatic? Not at all! In fact, at the time I was trying to figure out just how my family was going to make it in my absence. I was in really bad shape! I had lost 10 years of my life to health issues, some I don’t even want to think about any more, most centered around chronic and acute neck pain, back pain, and sciatica.

Suffice it to say, I was getting ready to call it quits, one way or the other.

You see, I had reached the point where I had to decide what would be next, whether I would give life one last try or punt. I had to decide whether I was going to let hopelessness and ill health take my life or fight back. I was battling chronic neck pain, back pain, sciatica (most of my spine was involved); Type II Diabetes (insulin dependent and oral medication four times a day); high blood pressure; congestive heart failure; and the real killers, a combination of depression and addiction to the pain medication, pain meds that had been my life for over ten years. I was a legal addict dealing with a “controlled addiction!”

Pain medication for the chronic and acute neck pain, back pain, and sciatica was prescribed each and every month in massive quantities (e.g., Oxycontin, Fentanyl, and a number of others); and, there was nothing controlled about the addiction…nothing!

Like I said, a funny thing happened on the way to my demise!

Not so funny really, not when you think about it. Perhaps ironic? Perhaps it was just sad? Yes, sad! Sad in the sense that I had wasted so much of my life. Sad because I had believed the doctors, nurses, hospitals, physical and occupational therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists who told me there wasn’t as lot they could do for me, that the situation was too complex, that there was little hope of any sort of a recovery.

Fooled them!

One doctor said: “If you had no arms or legs, you would accept the fact that you are never going to walk again, that you would be forever disabled. Well, you are actually in the same situation. So, accept the cards you have been dealt and make the best of it!” He walked out of the examination room and I walked out of his practice…for good!

Another doctor said: “Your case is just too complex. Frankly, I wouldn’t know where to begin. Honestly, I would rather not take you on as a client.”

That one took a while to get over!

Still another specialist, the guy who ended up saving my life, called me “salvagable!” My wife cried.

“Salvagable!”

I will never forget that word. I felt like human refuse! But at least he was offering something approaching hope.

The interestingly part of it all? That conversation actually presaged the most difficult part of my journey back because it was in that instant I learned I still had a chance. It’s a funny thing about hope, it cuts both ways. Sometimes it’s easier to resign yourself to your fate than it is to fight back.

Well, after several back surgeries, a myriad of treatments, and days, weeks, months, even years in the hospital, I triumphed!

The road took many turns and it was a terrible journey. At times, the road back was so difficult I wanted to quit, really wanted to just quit! I ended up stuck in a dead end or two along the way and the biggest hurdles, mentioned above, were depression and addiction. The combination of depression and addiction was more difficult to overcome than any of the physical ailments. Combined with osteomyelitis and cancer, the depression and addiction meant that every day was a gauntlet, pummeled from all sides simultaneously. Interestingly, the psychological pain, and the ordeal of fighting with and through a terrible addiction, was every bit as horrible as the physical pain. At times, the psychic pain would take me to the depths of despair; and, at other times, it was the chronic and chronically acute neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain that would do it. When all guns were firing simultaneously? It was as if I were in hell on Earth!

Ultimately, I triumphed over the pain, psychic and physical. In retrospect, I don’t know how I did it, how I made it through, but I did! I learned a great many things about myself and a number of things about others, particularly about those closest to me. Significantly, I also learned many things about the medical community; and, many were not very complimentary.

What I learned about myself? I can take more pain and go through more hardship than I would ever have imagined. Of those close to me? That they love me and that without them I would have been doomed. About the medical community? They do not like to admit it when they don’t have the answers; and, they are unwilling to acknowledge that fact to patients, even if it may cost the patient his or her life. Additionally, there are good doctors and bad, just like there are good mechanics and bad, good accountants and bad, good dog groomers and bad. The difference? An incompetent physician, one unwilling and/or unable to admit his or her shortcomings may cost you your life!

The moral of the story? If you can call it that? If you are suffering from chronic and/or acute pain, get a second opinion. If you don’t agree with your physician, get a second opinion. If the quality of your life has been affected, get a second opinion. And, if a physician wants to put you on narcotics for chronic neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica treatment, run screaming from the office and, get a second opinion!

More to follow!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The “Healthy” (used to be “Bad”) Back Guy
216-712-7004 (bus)
440-821-6526 (cell)
johnz@ultimatebadback strategies.com

PS, My secret? Take a look at this video and then go to TheBadBackGuy.net and watch the 8 minute video. Then, follow the directions and check out the trial offer. It will change you life. Taking action saved mine! Don’t forget to confirm your email address!

Overcoming Neck, Back, and Sciatic Nerve Pain: You Too Can Reclaim Your Life!

After some time off, building a life and a business, TuffGuy and I, both a few pounds heavier than last fall, are now back on the road again!

Overcoming neck pain, back pain, and sciatica once seemed an impossibility!

Now?

I am living a miracle, a life I once considered over has been reclaimed…and it is wonderful!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. What does that say about a video?

This video is long but I hope you will find it interesting and informative.

I finish up this video with a surprise, a related message from an amazing writer, a source of inspiration I discovered while looking for something else.

Isn’t that the way of things? We find messages and inspiration in the most interesting places, from the most unexpected messengers. I think this one ranks right up there at the top, one of the best books I’ve read…and I’ve read a lot!

Let me know what you think, leave your story, tell us all about your struggles, your life, the challenges you still face. I would love to hear from you. I am certain my other readers will too!

Thanks and remember, contact me anytime! If you need help or just need someone to share war stories with, contact me! Neck pain, back pain, and sciatica do not have to be a death sentence…you can reclaim your life!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros Sr. The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526 (home office)
440-821-7018 (cell)
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com
excellencepaidforward@gmail.com (personal email)

Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatica Do NOT  Have to Be a Death Sentence…or a Life Sentence!

I have been thinking a lot about why people seem to lash out and cast aspersions when someone is sincerely trying to help, when someone is offering a better way to deal with some aspect of one’s life, and I finally got it!

I have been writing on a myriad of topics for a little over a year now, not only on subjects related to neck pain, back pain, and sciatica…but subjects pertaining to business, marketing, success, persistence, determination, and life, in general.

All the things I earned an honorary doctorate in while fighting for my life!

A little background.

A while back I wrote an article and did a video about how Tony Robbins had offered support at just the right time, in just the right way, and it made a huge difference in my life.

I was attacked for it!

I called him the “Crazed Canuck!”

The Crazed Canuck called me a scammer and attacked my personal and professional integrity. He also made mention of my background and questioned my success in life as related to my office furnishings.

Interesting, a bit amusing, and…

Incredible!

I have never made it a secret that I am rebuilding my life after a catastrophic illness(es) and that we are basically starting from scratch.

Had it not been for incredible friends and community support at just the right moment, we would have been homeless. Even after surviving the worst of it, getting a handle on my incredibly complex neck pain, back pain, and sciatica related issues, and beating a decade long addiction to Oxycontin and Fentanyl, legally prescribed, life, and my recovery, were tenuous for a time.

We were the poster family for Dire Straits!

Since that awful time, I have reclaimed and rebuilt my life, getting a handle on my neck pain, back pain, sciatica, and the underlying diseases that were are the root of my acute and chronic pain.

Anyway, back to The Bad Back Guy!

I started writing about neck pain, back pain, and sciatica to help others.

Then, I started chronicling my efforts using video, so people could see for themselves that I was really doing what I said they should do.

Seeing is believing and all of that!

Then, I started promoting a neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief program I have used (see the postscript), and works, because people need an alternative to conventional and institutionalized treatment for their neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain, especially when the medical community has written, and ripped, you off…

As they had me!

But I kept getting attacked!

Tony Robbins said it is part of what makes some people tick. He and I follow each other on Twitter and I direct messaged (DM) him after I was attacked by The Crazed Canuck. Tony Robbins is no stranger to personal and professional attacks, and yet I know him to be an awesome guy with an amazingly big heart!

If Tony Robbins gets attacked, I figured I was in good company!

When I first started online and started trying to make a difference in the lives of people suffering from neck pain, back pain, and sciatica, I was taken aback by the venom in some of the attacks.

I would love to tell you I am used to them…but I think I understand them better.

I have continued to grapple with the reasons for the attacks.

Why anyone would attack someone who is simply trying to help others deal with neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica?

Then it hit me!

You see, I have been wrestling with this for a while now.

First, from a personal point of view as someone reacting to the personal nature of the attacks; and later, as an academic, one interested in what makes some people lash out like that.

Well, I was reading, I say reading but I was actually listening to an unabridged audiobook but Seth Godin, Linchpin: Are You Indispensible? A great book, by the way, and it came to me.

Eureka!

The reason people get angry, the reason they lash out, is because they are afraid!

Well, not wanting to go purely on my gut, I started thinking about it more, started researching the issue, and talking to others who have been faced with the same terrible backlash.

To a person, everyone agreed!

It’s fear!

Now, when I talk about being afraid and fear, I am getting very deep into it and I am not a psychologist or a psychiatrist, I am a physical anthropologist. And, while I am very good with people and can get most people in an instant, the whole fear and self-image thing is not my specialty.

However, as noted above, I do understand people and I am a black-belt at what drives, affects, and motivates someone in pain, whether it is neck pain, back pain, sciatica or some other manifestation.

I have been there, done that…as they say!

Interestingly, as I talked to others, read more on the topic (and I read a lot!), and thought my way through the question, it all became clear.

Let me explain.

When we are in pain, and again it really doesn’t matter what sort of pain we are talking about, and when that pain has altered our lives significantly, in other words, when we are disabled as a result of the pain, either temporarily or permanently, we get stuck.

By stuck I mean inertia takes hold.

The question is then a common one, a complex question with a very simple answer.

How can inertia be a factor when someone is in pain? Wouldn’t anyone suffering from acute and/or chronic neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica do just about anything to eliminate the pain, permanently?

The answer is actually surprising…because the answer is:

NO!

It was like a bomb went off, a moment of crystal clarity, the moment when every attack, and every attacker, came into focus and I got it!

You see, I had the same thing go on in my head, the same fear, the same reservations, and I reacted in much the same way….

Angrily!

Neck pain, back pain, and sciatica are terrible, horrible, life-altering, pick an adjective or a descriptive phrase!

And yet, we are familiar with the pain, with the life and the lifestyle it imposes upon us. We become accustomed to the pain, we get used to the routine, it is predictable and we know from day-to-day what will happen in our lives.

The fact is, there are very few surprises in life when one deals with chronic pain day in and day out.

We simply deal with the pain!

Enter The Bad Back Guy!

Here is a likely scenario:

One day while surfing the net, you run across this blog and you watch some crazy guy calling himself The Bad Back Guy and his little dog, TuffGuy, run up a hill!

What else can you do when you suffer from acute and/or chronic neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica?

There are only so many reruns of Law and Order!

Then you watch as The Bad Back Guy gets caught in a downpour, same little dog, 3am in the morning!

Why does he call him TuffGuy?

Doesn’t he know how to spell? It’s tough not TUFF!

Geez!

But you keep coming back!

Now he’s riding a recumbent bike and telling me I can do what?

Take back my life?

This guy is nuts!

It makes me angry!

I can’t get any better!

The best medical minds in the world have said I will have to “adjust my lifestyle to my condition.” They also said I will “never be able to do the things I once took for granted.”

They said I was:

“DISABLED!”

AND…I BELIEVED THEM!

Now?

Now there is this crazy guy, The Bad Back Guy, who I don’t know from Adam who tells me I can live pain free?

This guy who isn’t even a doctor of medicine? He’s an anthropologist, an academic, an entrepreneur, a whatever!

The Bad Back Guy isn’t an MD, a DO or even a DC or a DPM!

Heck, he isn’t even a veterinarian!

He’s just a physical anthropologist…and not even a “practicing” one!

There’s anger because, not only have you been lied to, you believed it, and it cost you days, months, and even years of your life. You trusted the medical community to give you the best they had to offer and they relegated you to the bench for…

THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!

How uncool is that?

And you are angry at whom?

You are attacking some guy telling you that you can have a life?

You can get it all back?

You can get off the bench and get back in the game?

Why?

Because it’s easier…and it is natural!

You SHOULD get angry, I was!

Back to Inertia!

After the initial reaction, you begin to ponder what you have been offered, a life free of neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica and it frightens you.

It did me!

All of the sudden you begin to think of what is possible.

The next questions are:

After all this time, what will I do?

How will I make a living?

How can I take back my life…I have no life?!

The only life I know has been one consumed with neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica for the last ______ years (you fill in the blank).

Now?

Now this, this Bad Back Guy is telling me I might have to take a chance, thus altering my life once again?

What if….

WHAT IF!

The slogan for inertia is:

What if?

The anger returns, anger rooted in uncertainty!

If I do what this Bad Back Clown is saying I should do…and it works?

What the heck do I do next?

Yes, I suffer, I suffer every day, but this life is the one I know, at least I am certain of things, there are no surprises. If I listen to this guy and his little tough TuffGuy, I may end up…where?

I don’t know!

What if….

And so the anger returns again. It consumes you because you blame yourself, you blame the doctors, and…

You want to kill the messenger!

The messenger, The Bad Back Guy, is telling you you can have all the things “they” told you you couldn’t have, the things you would have to “get used to doing without!”

Now, The Bad Back Guy is saying take a chance, what do you have to lose but the pain?!

Well, I have a lot to lose if I take a gamble and believe this guy!

BTW, who the heck goes walking with their dog at 3 in the morning anyway…the guy is nuts!

And so on!

It was so clear, all the things you just read are emotions I have experienced in one way or another…and I am certain everyone reading this has too, friends and attackers.

I understand…and it is OK!

Just take a chance!

Life is amazing on the other side!

But you must take a chance, and that is not easy!

In fact, it darn right difficult. There will be days when you will want to send someone out to “whack” me! But if you stick with it I will promise you one thing:

Life can be amazing again!

And, if you take a chance, your neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica will diminish and it will become contagious; and, that sense of positive expectancy we all feel when we get caught up in something good, something exciting, something life altering is incredible!

Once again, life is amazing and I make you thins promise:

As long as I am on this planet if anyone ever contacts me and wants to talk about their neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica, or anything else for that matter, I will make myself available to you…for as long as it takes!

Finally, please do one thing for me?

Get angry! Get very angry!

Anger is the precursor to action, so let it run through your arteries and veins until you want to scream…and then SCREAM!

Then, get busy, take a walk, ride a recumbent bike, do something, anything, break through the inertia that binds you to this terrible condition and be free of your neck pain, back pain, and sciatica once and for all!

I wish for you nothing but the best! I wish you happiness, joy, and a pain free life…a life free of neck pain, back pain, and sciatica!

Contact me anytime!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526
216-539-7412
Skype: johnzajaros1
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com

PS, The program I recommend is at http://TheBadBackGuy.net and is one of the finest I have come across online and I use it myself!

*

Look Ma, No Back Pain…and an Apology!

First and foremost, I would like to apologize for my absence over the last couple of weeks or so! I have been out and about, rebuilding and living my life for the first time in decades!

The title pretty much says it all, I have had an amazing holiday season and a wonderful neck pain, back pain, and sciatica free New Year…the first in decades!

Ultimate Bad Back Strategies and The Bad Back Guy were created over a year ago in order to tell my story, to share my knowledge, and to inspire others to take the first step towards a neck pain, back pain, and sciatica free life, as I have. It was my hope that in helping all of you, I would also put myself on the spot…and it worked!

The journey I started over a year ago, a journey towards a life free of neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica has been incredible!

The benefits I have received have been nothing short of miraculous!

My life from 1997 through most of 2008 was consumed by chronic and acute neck pain, back pain, and sciatica. My life long battle with neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain started in 1971!

In fact, by the year 1999 I spent all day, every day in a recliner we bought because it met my needs as someone who would live the rest of his life in it, 24/7. It was even electric because my legs were too weak to push down the leg/foot rest. I was about as close to an invalid as you can get, my wife afraid to leave me to go to work because I often passed out on the way to the bathroom, a combination of pain and blood pressure issues. I was also a type II insulin dependent diabetic, taking insulin 4 times a day and checking my blood sugar at least 5 times a day.

I had two diseases attacking my body simultaneously and both, separately and in concert, were quite possibly going to end my life!

In other words, I was a wreck!

I had thrown in the towel and felt doomed to a result heading towards me like a Mack Truck!

On top of it all, I was on massive amounts of prescription pain medication, enough to kill a large horse I was told repeatedly, medication that had eliminated my ability to concentrate, to read (one of my true loves), to learn, and to enjoy even the simplest pleasures of life (and we all know what that means!).

I was a Zombie!

Then “It” happened! I really can’t tell you what “It” is or was, other than to tell you one day everything changed!

I guess I got sick and tired of being sick and tired.

It was about that time I talked to a friend of mine who had discovered a product online that had put him on the road to a back pain free life. Granted, his problems weren’t as complex as mine, and he wasn’t fighting the diseases I was, but I thought to myself:

“If he can do it, maybe I can too!”

So, I borrowed it and quietly started applying the principles, along with the things I already knew about physical training and age-progressive phenomena that affect the spine and sacroiliac joint.

At first I didn’t even tell my wife what I was doing in case it didn’t work, I just didn’t want to disappoint her again!

Well, to make a long story short, I started seeing results and I started to experience something I hadn’t experienced in a long time…hope!

The hope and the results provided the impetus to keep going and to slowly but surely reclaim my life!

It has been a little over a year now and in that time I have gone from 265 pounds, and quite literally waiting to die, to 205 pounds and walking between 5 and 8 miles a day.

I have also started several online businesses, for a variety of reasons but mainly because as I started getting better I couldn’t find a job. With the huge gap in my “overqualified” resume, no one wanted to touch me!

Here I was a college professor, the winner of one of the most prestigious doctoral fellowships in the country, and I couldn’t get a job…I mean nothing, nohow, nowhere! Not even delivering pizza! It was the most humiliating part about getting better…I couldn’t find work!

So, I applied my education, started a tutoring business, online at first, at least until I could get my strength back, and then in the home…it was a way back, a way to apply my education and work with kids (another of my loves), and it worked!

When I look back to August and September of 2009, and those first tentative steps, I can’t believe I am the same person; it just doesn’t seem possible.

And yet here I am, quite literally a new man!

It is kind of ironic because now, as I tell my story and create videos and articles to inspire others, I am often attacked as a spammer and even as a scam artist!

Incredible!

If they only knew, if they could have seen me just a short while ago, I wonder if they would still be so quick to cast aspersions!

Well, I know one thing…there is nothing anyone can say or do that can be any worse than what I have already had to live through…and have overcome.

That being said, and I have said this before, if I can inspire just one person to triumph over their pain as I have, and reclaim their life, then I will have paid the kindness of so many wonderful people who helped me, and my family, get through the most trying time of our lives!

I will introduce more of my story over the coming months but for now I can tell you this, had it not been for my friend and that program, a program I recommend to this day, I would either be gone or still seated in that recliner…no future in sight but the ultimate future we all must face.

The difference?

I was ready, willing, and yearning for it…but no more! I simply took a chance on life. After all, what did I have to lose? Just the pain!

I have my life back and you can too! Because, if I came back from where I was at, anyone can!

Neck pain, back pain, and sciatica are in the past and I will help anyone who asks how to reclaim their life and live pain free! Once again, if I can, you can!

More to follow!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526 (home)
216-539-7412 (bus)
Skype: johnzajaros1
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com

PS, If you want to take the first step and reclaim your life you can go about it one of two ways: 1) You can go to the http://TheBadBackGuy.net and begin there, it is only a beginning; and/or 2) You can contact me and I will work with you personally. In either case, I will be happy to talk to you, to recommend strategies, and to provide encouragement.

PPS, I am not a medical doctor, I am a physical anthropologist with a specialization in age-progressive phenomena affecting the spine and sacroiliac….what goes on with the neck, back, and hips as we age. I am a bone guy! The show Bones is a glamorized depiction of what I did. But, I guess it’s about as close as you can get outside of TLC or Discovery. So, my advice is anecdotal and is not to be construed as medical advice. There, now the government is happy!

Osteoarthritis, Aging, and the Back Pain Complex

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most frequently diagnosed musculoskeletal condition in people over 50 years of age.

OA is the arthritis of your parents and grandparents and arthritis-related spine pain is responsible for debilitating levels of neck pain, back pain, and sciatica in millions of people worldwide.

Osteoarthritis or OA is generally characterized by focal degeneration of the joint cartilage and new bone formation at the base of the cartilage lesion, the subchondral bone, and at the joint margins, often referred to as bony spurs, bone spurs or osteophytes.

The Historical Record and OA

Interestingly, osteoarthritis occurs in all mammals. Osteoarthritis is the earliest documented human disease and the earliest human skeletons shown evidence of OA. In research I conducted at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History (CMNH), the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), The Smithsonian, and the University of Kentucky, Lexington osteoarthritis was evident and, in fact, pervasive in modern and pre-Columbian skeletal samples. It is evident that OA has been around as long as we have, at the very least.

There are two types of OA, primary and secondary. In this article, we will be dealing with the probable etiology, the cause or causes for OA. We will also talk briefly about subcategories of OA, to include localized, generalized, and erosive osteoarthritis. Finally, we will discuss how OA affects spine-related pain or what I refer to as the back pain complex (i.e., neck pain, back pain, and sciatic nerve pain or sciatica).

Once again, osteoarthritis, as it affects the spine, is responsible for spine-related pain, meaning neck pain, back pain, and sciatica.

Localized osteoarthritis presents with Heberden nodes, but without other joint involvement, and is the most common form of OA. Studies of families demonstrate genetic factors being of importance in the development of Heberden nodes. This presentation of OA has to do with the distal interphalangeal joints, is localized primarily in the distal (away from the wrist) finger and toe joints, and affects women more than men. The interesting thing about Heberden nodes, sometimes mistakenly called Herberden, after William Heberden (1710-1801) is that they are a calcifc node, an osteophyte…osteophytes develop as a result of wear and tear at the joint and can be found wherever advanced osteoarthritis is found.

Generalized osteoarthritis was named by R. Moore in 1952 is defined by involvement of three or more joints or joint groups, for example the distal interphalangeal joints (DIP) are grouped and counted as one group. The DIP, proximal interphalangeal joints (PIP), first carpometacarpal (CMC), spine, knee, and hip joints are commonly involved. Other features of generalized osteoarthritis include predilection for postmenopausal women and episodic joint inflammation. See: (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2022370/?page=6).

Generalized osteoarthritis is also labeled as primary, generalized OA and, once again, is recognized by the involvement of several joints or joint groups, as noted above.

In most instances, generalized OA presents in the knees, spine, hips, OA also affects the fingers and the big toe. Interestingly, the shoulders, elbows and wrists are generally not involved in the generalized form of OA.

Secondary osteoarthritis is generally thought to have an underlying cause or that the patient has a predisposition to secondary OA. The underlying conditions of secondary osteoarthritis associated with etiology include a myriad of other arthritis-related contributory conditions, such as excess weight and/or obesity, injury, overuse of the affected joint, and much more.

Secondary OA, for the purposes of understanding neck pain, back pain, and sciatica, seems a more significant, contributory factor.

Once again, osteoarthritis, what your grandparents and parents used to call arthritis, is the most common type of degenerative joint disease.

OA is essentially a consequence of wear and tear or trauma and shouldn’t be confused with rheumatoid arthritis or RA, the second most common form of more than 100 forms of arthritis. In one series, 15% of erosive osteoarthritis patients subsequently fulfilled criteria for a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis or RA. I have dealt with RA extensively at here at Ultimate Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatica Relief Strategies.

Osteoarthritis has many causes, to include recurrence minor joint damage, repetitive motion injuries, and specific joint-related trauma.

Osteoarthritis presents when the cartilage wears down between the bones, at the joints, and the bone begins to undergo changes as a result of trauma. Without adequate cartilage bones rub together at the joint causing pain and stiffness.

OA affects more than 27 million adults in the United States alone, and affects more women than men. Additionally, osteoarthritis results in neck pain, back pain, hip pain, and knee pain, in millions of people around the globe every year.

Interestingly, while the majority of OA sufferers are 50 years of age or older, there are also millions of affected individuals in their 30s and 40s.

In spite of what you may have heard, osteoarthritis is not inevitable. Being proactive, and integrating an activity and exercise program into your daily regimen will help offset the effects and the neck pain, back pain, hip pain, knee pain, and other related joint pain associated with osteoarthritis.

Overall osteoarthritis has multiple causes, affects individuals 50 years of age and older more frequently, and depending on the type of osteoarthritis, may affect men or women more frequently.

The five factors play a big part in etiology, particularly excess weight and/or obesity, muscle weakness, and dehydration. However, diet and nutrition is also thought to play a big part on contributing to and exacerbating OA, and consequently neck pain, back pain, and sciatica.

We will explore the five factors and OA in subsequent articles and videos.

Contact me anytime!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-539-7412
Skype: johnzajaros1
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com

PS, For a program guaranteed to help you deal effectively with osteoarthritis related neck pain, back pain, hip pain, and knee pain, got to http://TheBadBackGuy.net and discover real and lasting pain relief! Guaranteed!

The 5 Factors, The 5 Effects, and The Second Effect: The Financial Effects and the Impact of Chronic Back Pain

The impact and effects of chronic levels of neck pain, back pain, and sciatica are myriad; and, the increase in pain is exponential as a result of one of the 5 factors feeding into another, and thus leading to certain effects we refer to as the 5 effects.

The 5 effects, impacting and affecting the chronic back pain sufferer, feed into one another and to the next…the pain level increases exponentially once again. In other words, with chronic neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain there is a compounding effect and before long there is no way out…or at least that’s what many would have you believe!

While seemingly without hope of a resolution to and relief from the pain, there is a solution!

The video below explains this far better than I can in print. I actually get a bit excited and start something of a rant (sorry!)…but it’s about time! And, it is necessary!

I also discuss a recently cited research study on exercise and back pain. I found the article in one of the more prestigious medical journals and it was also cited on Johns Hopkins website, so I trust it will be helpful for everyone.

Also, take the time to visit either my YouTube Channel or my other chronic neck pain, back pain, and sciatica blog, there is a ton of useful information on how to live a neck pain, back pain, and sciatica free life.

In other words, how to get your life back…a pain free life!

I believe it is crucial for you to understand what is happening to you and to your spine…and not just tell you anything in order to sell you something! It is imperative that you take an active role in your recovery so you can live a happy and healthy lifestyle.

It is possible to overcome chronic neck pain, back pain, and sciatic nerve pain (sciatica). It is possible to overcome failed back surgery syndrome, and it is also possible to win the battle against long term debilitating pain and disability.

The Second Effect: Financial

The 2nd of the five effects is financial and the impact on one’s life can be profound!

The impact of the second effect, financial, often means everything from hefty medical co-pays and credit issues to bankruptcy and foreclosure, everything from loss of time at work to loss of employment and long term disability. The impact of the financial effects, and they are all inter-related, are physical, mental, and spiritual.

Financial stress feeds into psychological stress and both exacerbate your chronic neck pain, back pain, and sciatica. The chronic pain level increases, then feeds back into the 5 effects and it starts all over again, a classic feedback loop. In short order, the entire organism, the entire system, our body is affected. The chronic pain sufferer then exhibits all of the consequences of the 5 effects of neck pain, back pain, sciatica.

The 5 factors and the 5 effects work against our recovery, so we must understand them and deal with them accordingly…one step at a time!

Contact me anytime. Watch the entire video, as it will give you a better sense of just how passionate I am about this topic and why you should be too! I know it went a bit long but there is a reason and I assure you it will be worth it!

Again, contact me anytime!

John

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526 (home)
216-539-7412 (office)
Skype: johnzajaros1
JohnZ@UltimateBadBackStrategies.com

PS, If you want to get started today on a program that will result in real and lasting neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief, simply click the link here and you will be on your way to a neck pain, back pain, and sciatic nerve pain free life!

How to Pick a Strength and Fitness Coach with Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatica Experience: Empathy is Crucial!

I think I have said it all about neck pain, back pain, and sciatic nerve pain (sciatica), as well as how to choose a qualified strength and fitness trainer, in the video below!

Choosing the right strength and fitness coach can make or break your neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief exercise program; and, empathy has got to be one of his or her best qualities.

Make sure you check out the video below, it will explain quite a bit about my perspective and background as a strength and fitness coach…in addition to being a “bone guy,” also known as a physical anthropologist! I believe this is also crucial, as it is important for you have a sense of who I am and what experience I bring to the table before you take anything I say seriously.

Be careful online, as there is far too much bad information and far too many people simply out for a buck spreading really bad advice!

So, once again, beware of the fast buck charlatans and the misinformation they offer! Take the time to get to know about your condition and who you are taking advice from!

I wish you all the best and I hope this blog and these videos help!

Check out the video about how to choose a gym at Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Sciatica Relief Strategies of The Bad Back Guy.

Once again, choosing the right trainer can make or break any neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica relief exercise program whether you have chosen the proper gym or not! So choose wisely grasshopper!

The video is long but I believe it will be worth it for you! Please let me know by leaving a comment. Thanks!

Contact me anytime for assistance!

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526 or 216-539-7412
Skype: johnzajaros1
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com

PS, As you consider your options, take a look at the video at http://TheBadBackGuy.net as it will provide additional, quality information.