Back Pain and Disability

The Disability of Back Pain

Todd Madison

Intro to Physical Therapy

Most people will suffer from some form of back pain in their lifetime. Back pain can take over a person’s life and interfere with daily activities, recreation, and job performance. Compensating for a back injury is difficult because most body movement effects the back in some form. I’ve experienced back pain in my life and this is why I chose this topic for my disability simulation.

Back pain is second only to the common headache when it comes to neurological ailments. Back pain generally falls under two categories. The first type is acute or short term pain. This pain tends to last from a few days to a few weeks. The second type of pain is chronic. This pain is labeled chronic if it lasts longer than three months. Bulging disc, sciatica, spinal degeneration, spinal stenosis, and osteoporosis are some of the conditions that can cause back pain.

My disability simulation was to portray a person with chronic back pain. I wore an exposed, post-operation back brace and used a walker while I shopped as Walmart. I had a friend come with me to push my cart and help me observe people’s reactions. The first person I had interaction with was the greeter at the entrance to the store. The greeter immediately noticed my brace and wanted to know how I had injured myself. She was more than helpful and polite because she had a history of back pain herself. She proceeded to inform me of all of her problems and procedures she had endured. Once we left the entrance area of the store, we made our way to the toy section of the store. We found a family with two small children in one of the aisles. My friend walked ahead of me with the cart and I followed. The parents noticed me coming toward them and they moved their cart over so I could make my way past them. The parents didn’t make eye contact with me but their children kept their eyes on me. After we left the toy section my...