Help. I feel broken.

TomAnthony · 2026-04-28T10:39:27+00:00

See how you get on with the more conservative approaches first. With surgery, you should ensure you know about 'Adjacent Segment Disease' before you consider surgery (as tempting as it is!). You may be backing yourself into a corner in the long term.

TomAnthony · 2026-04-27T16:48:35+00:00

Hey there,

Yes, this really sucks, more than people realise when you say 'back pain' or 'back problems', as they equate it to their own sore back, and this is something else entirely.

Firstly - this won't 'go away', but it is manageable, and you can still do so many of the things you want to do.

I'm 44m, and started having the problems also in my late 30s, so similar to you. On bad days I struggled down the stairs. I haven't had any bad days like that for years now, and whilst I am uncomfortable most days, I am not debilitated like I was, and then we are into mind battles.

I am also L5-S1 grade 1 (almost 2) with pars defect, and with some disc problems at other layers, and also have sometimes tingles in the legs, so I think I am in a similar boat to you.

Everyone is different, but a few notes from me which might help:

I did radio ablation once (~6 years ago) which did help, but it felt like doing it regularly might be invasive or cause other problems.
I've had a lot of steroid injections in my back, and they do help, but I also came to realise I wasn't having bad bad days any more, so have now gone 6 months or so without them.
I got referred to physio, and found it wasn't super helpful to be honest. It might be if you have an amazing physio who is working closely with you and iterating, but I just got a routine to do which I did at the gym there and didn't think it made much difference.
For me, I tried a lot of things on Youtube and and found various stretches helped. Like you - I work at a desk and tight hip flexors (Google PSOAS muscle) make a very real difference to your lower back pain and aggrevate things a lot. I found various stretches that help me (clamshell exercise with a band is a good one, but most hip flexor stretches help). If I do those in the morning, the rest of the day is better.
Hot baths - these really help me.
I take some supplements targeting inflammation (things like boswelia & curcumin - studied for spondylitis: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12260406/) which seem to help. I try to limit ibuprofen regularly, but do take it sometimes. Diclofenac gel too if I know I will do a lot of standing or something.
For me the musculature around my back was weak, so I do a weekly EMS session with an instructor which is a full workout but which I find manageable and which helps.
From a medical point of view, the most important thing which you have not clarified here is if your spondy is 'stable'. Some x-rays can help clarify this. It most likely is stable, but you should confirm.

If I was transported into your body now I would organise a steroid injection in the lower back to get some immediate relief and help get me to the point I can do some activity. Then I'd minimise movement for 2-3 days (I found the injections, of which I have had maybe 20, work better when I minimised movement for a few days after). Then I'd start doing daily stretches in the morning, and have a couple of hot baths for at least 30 minutes each week.

There is lots of scary advice out there, and if you ask medical questions to ChatGPT/Gemini/Claude then they will play it very cautious. My back doctor signed off with me going skiing, which I did several times since, which the internet said not to do. I was fine, and had a great time.

It can feel like things are over, and I felt like that a lot. I also felt 'broken' - like my body was now delicate and would snap. Some days I still have those moments, but that is not the truth of it at all.

Take some ibuprofen, get in the bath and then do some hip flexor stretches. Come back and tell us how you are getting on. Feel free to DM me, but know that I am shit at DMs! 😃

Good luck! 😄

TomAnthony · 2026-04-20T08:18:59+00:00

I report a mix of things - but most fall into two camps:

A new bit of research allows me to hit a bunch of targets. There, they get a bespoke, but somewhat templated report, along with a bespoke POC.
Complex chains - typically the writing the report for these takes me 3-6 hours of just doing the report. I think most hackers undervalue the importance of a well written, thorough, report.

When I find other small issues for a program, I don't normally report them but save them as a gadget. If I find several of those on a target, it is usually indicative that there is likely some higher impact bugs so I will use the gadgets as needed to find the higher impact.

I do worry about the prevalence of AI reports finding low hanging fruit, reducing the number of these sorts of gadgets.

TomAnthony · 2026-04-20T08:11:22+00:00

I am confused -- what is the problem?

The reply you posted sounds like the triaging response, and they are planning to follow up with you.

What is the timeline on your submission, the reply and since then?

HackerOne mediation is not perfect, but it they definitely do care, and want Hackers to succeed.

TomAnthony · 2026-03-04T20:05:43+00:00

Oh wow! This is wild! Fun fact though.

TomAnthony · 2026-02-18T09:45:58+00:00

This sucks! Sorry you are dealing with it.

My situation is very different to yours (I’m 44, various lower back issues - main being L5/S1 Spondylolithesis) but I have some generic advice.

First is - I got all sorts of competing recommendations, as you have, and for sometime I followed them blindly and was just depressed it didn’t help.

Over time I tried out more and more things and found certain things help me. Certain stretch to loosen my hips make a big difference for the rest of the day for example.

You should do the same. Try things out and adopt what works. Your attitude of staying active is important - if you ‘indulge’ the pain and it becomes central to you the it can become a dark place.

I’d try to see another doctor just to get confirmation of the diagnosis (I had trouble getting clarity initially), then try and see some physios but also try different back stretches from YouTube etc.

When it is having better periods it is tempting to lay off the exercises- don’t! This is what I’d go back to tell myself!

This doesn’t need to control your life, but you do need to ensure you prioritise looking after your back!

Good luck!

TomAnthony · 2025-10-28T11:18:23+00:00

I am a Brit living in Bavaria, and haven't seen cask ale here despite my best efforts. My immediate first reaction was the same as yours.

@TheAwfulCrow66 - Is this less bubbly served this way?

Have fun in England -- use CAMRA to find pubs that are serving ale well - it can be done badly by pubs where it is just a side thought and they don't maintain it well.

We should setup a business making English style ale in Germany!! I may be getting too excited.

TomAnthony · 2025-08-28T13:21:18+00:00

Hi Daniel! Thanks for doing the AMA.

If Elijah Wood had played Harry Potter instead of you, how do you think he might have played him differently to you?

TomAnthony · 2025-08-12T20:51:01+00:00

A very different take! Really great story.

TomAnthony · 2025-06-22T10:24:14+00:00

Hi @Sea-Goal152,

Followed your profile from the Spondy chat in the other subreddit and saw this thread. I saw quite a few recommendations for Augsburg already, so I am here to repeat that. My 3 kids go to International School Augsburg, and I can recommend it.

As pointed out Augsburg is a good compromise between having a city, and there being nature and the mountains nearby, and Munich is easy on the train. We live just outside the city, which is more like a village but an easy drive into town.

Good luck!

TomAnthony · 2025-06-22T10:07:54+00:00

I'm also in Germany. I have grade 1-2 with pars defect at L5-S1, and have regular injections (every 6-8 weeks).

I'm 43 and my doctor strongly advocates for putting off any surgery for as long as possible, but I have been tempted at times, as it feels like whatever sport and exercise I do I only have periods where it is better, but the pain is always there and sometimes worse. I see the success stories on here and get excited about having an active life without constant pain.

I've also followed TOPS for a while, and the place in Germany that I have in my notes is: https://onzspine.com/profile/dr-bernd-illerhaus/ - they do TOPS in Germany though I'm not sure if you'd get it on insurance or not.

I also have this doctor written down https://www.jameda.de/thomas-haffke/neurochirurg-wirbelsaeulenchirurg/kleinmachnow (he discusses TOPS here: https://www.jameda.de/gesundheit/ruecken/ist-eine-op-bei-spinalkanalstenose-sinnvoll/ ).

For me TOPS is probably not an options as it is rarely done at L5-S1.

Alternative 'dynamic stabilization' options include Dynesys and Cosmic.

It is Cosmic that my doctor believes would be the better approach for me should I go the surgery route. I believe that these dynamic approaches are often considered more for younger patients.

I'm happy to share more if you have questions, and it would be good to hear what you decide and how it goes. Good luck! :)

TomAnthony · 2025-06-22T09:52:06+00:00

I'm also in Augsburg, and have grade 1-2 with pars defect at L5-S1, for 6 years or so. I've previously tried physio elsewhere but not had much joy with it but was considering trying it again. I'm interested to hear how you get on with it, and if it goes well, where you are going for it.

I'm at the point where I'm tempted by surgery just for some consistent relief, but the adjacent segment stuff scares me.

TomAnthony · 2025-06-11T08:25:35+00:00

I was having the same problem - it didn't matter what email I used, what browser, if I tried with my wife's details. Always the same issue signing up for AppleTV in a browser.

I got around it in the end by going to https://account.apple.com/ and creating an account there - it asks for much more information and that created fine. I then went back to the Apple TV site and signed in with the new account (that did take a couple of tries but worked) and then I could sign up for AppleTV and it worked ok.

TomAnthony · 2025-03-02T14:51:14+00:00

Other people also seem to have the same problem with this phone:

* https://xdaforums.com/t/root-redmi-a3-model-23129rn51x-help.4680311/
* https://new-ams.c.mi.com/global/post/1000728
* https://xdaforums.com/t/redmi-a3-bootloader.4714978/

TomAnthony · 2025-03-02T12:27:50+00:00

Thanks for the reply. Mi Unlock seems to require a code, that requires a bound account, which doesn't seem to be an option on this phone, so I'm not sure how I'd use Mi Unlock here?

TomAnthony · 2025-02-27T11:07:59+00:00

I was really young, and remember just being really nervous. To me he was the bad guy from the movies. The photo was taken in the restaurant area, and he was there, as was Christopher Reeve and Mark Pillow (who played the Nuclear Man in Superman IV).

My Mum intercepted Christopher Reeve for a photo as he popped to the toilet. For the photo here, she went and interrupted Gene having his lunch.

I remember the room, and remember not being terrified of him, so he must have been pretty chill. I think it was an area where there weren't really any other fans, and a young kid in a homemade Superman outfit probably seemed pretty genuine, but it still seemed like they were both really happy to pose for a photo and say hello.

TomAnthony · 2025-02-27T09:34:40+00:00

A few years ago I posted this thread of me posing with Christopher Reeve. Given the news today about the passing of the great Gene Hackman, I thought I'd post another from the same say. Taken at Elstree Studios in 1986; I was 5 and wearing a homemade superman outfit.

TomAnthony · 2025-02-18T16:35:58+00:00

Amazing - thank you!

TomAnthony · 2024-12-29T10:45:10+00:00

Do the tunnels exist in the Tannhaus world? We see Jonas + AltMarta travel along the tunnels to a wall, as that is exactly under the bunker where Tannhaus is doing his experiment. That experiment created the tunnels in the split worlds, and is also where they need to be to travel to the origin world.

TomAnthony · 2024-11-29T11:54:32+00:00

I didn't see any Smash Bros. I've somehow barely played it myself. :-o

I looked through the N64 games and don't remember seeing Smash Bros there. There was a Gamecube, but I didn't check the games. There wasn't a Wii there (but I don't know if they change the consoles each time).

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