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Troy: Alright hello and welcome truckers. The date is January 1st and this is the 45th episode of Big Rig Banter. I’m your co-host Troy Diffenderfer.
Lenay: And I’m your favorite cohost, Lenay Ruhl, coming at you with the 1st episode of 2020!
Troy: Lenay, how are you doing today?
Lenay: (Laughing) I’m good! Still recovering a little bit from New Year’s Eve.
Troy: Oh boy. But, yeah it’s time to ring in the New Year, but before we do that, Lenay, let’s take a look back on this past year. We spent a whole year together, sitting across from each other, staring at each other.
Lenay: You make that sound really creepy.
Troy: I thought it was lovely.
Lenay: It actually is kind of creepy.
Troy: But, what was your favorite interview or episode that we might have done over this past year?
Lenay: I don’t know, I mean, obviously, I enjoyed having my family on the show, a few episodes back. I really liked the episode I did, I guess like a whole year ago, with the team drivers. We interviewed a mother-daughter team, driving team, I should say. That was really cool. And, yeah, what about you? What were your favorite episodes?
Troy: I definitely liked the dog one. Listening to your friend talk about bringing her dogs–
Lenay: Marcia and her puppies.
Troy: I know, that was really cool. And, just a, definitely a unique experience and I’m trying to think. I think the trucking charities one was really cool. Any time we can highlight these awesome organizations, I think that’s really cool. And, I would have to say, I think the team driving one was really, really interesting as well. Like you said, speaking to the mother and daughter and what life is like driving together on the road. I think that was really cool.
Lenay: Yeah, they had a cool story. And, I personally really liked this past year, I got to ride in a big rig, so that was pretty cool.
Troy: You did. And I got to hear all about it. It was pretty exciting and exactly what I expected. What about your New Year’s resolution? I think we should check in with it one final time.
Lenay: Sure. Great.
Troy: I remember your New Year’s resolution.
Lenay: I don’t know. I don’t think I believe in those.
Troy: I do remember you were supposed to be nicer to me this year.
Lenay: Oh yeah. Well, that was easy. I mean…
Troy: Was it?
Lenay: Well, I mean other than, you know, when you invited your entire family for Christmas and I had to yell at you. But, that was for Lydia. That was not personal.
Troy: Yeah, yeah.
Troy: I am eating healthier though. That was my New Year’s resolution.
Lenay: True.
Troy: If any of the listeners remember. I have been doing my best. I’m definitely cutting down on the McDonald’s trips and things like that.
Lenay: There we go again.
Troy: I know.
Lenay: Another McDonald’s mention.
Troy: I know. I’ll mention McDonald’s all the time. But, I have, I mean, we’re getting past the holidays, so I definitely didn’t eat as good as I should have these last couple of weeks. But, I think I’m gunna get back on track and eat healthier now we’re in our new house which is also pretty exciting.
Lenay: Alright, so let’s have a new house, new year, New Year resolution for Troy. So, what’s it gunna be? What is your resolution as you and Lydia take the next step as homeowners?
Troy: I think do my own laundry, more than like once a week.
Lenay: You don’t do your own laundry?! Oh my gosh, Troy, how am I supposed to be nicer to you? Well, that ended now. Nevermind. (Laughing) New year!
Troy: Yeah. Alright maybe we’ll think on our New Year’s resolutions for this year and maybe reveal them next episode. How about that?
Lenay: Yeah, that’s a good idea.
Troy: I’ll give you some time to think on it. But, this episode we’re talking all about something that I think a lot of drivers deal with on the road, for sure. And, that’s truck driver back pain. It’s a huge issue, I’m sure many of you listeners have dealt with it. Whether it’s sitting in the cab for too long or maybe you tweaked it lifting something or loading something onto your rig. Thousands of truckers across the country deal with truck driver back pain and luckily we have an expert here that’s gunna share some awesome advice, whether it’s tips, prevention, things you can do curb some of that pain. He has some really good points.
Lenay: Yeah, before we jump into that interview that Troy did, I just want to mention we did also do a video on truck driver back pain a few months ago. So, you can check that out obviously. This is really cool because we have an expert who is a physical therapist and he’s gunna drop some really good tips for you guys. So, let’s give that interview a listen.
Troy: Alright, I’m here with Shaun Smith. He’s a licensed physical therapist. Shaun, how are you doing today?
Shaun: I’m doing great! How about you?
Troy: I’m doing good. Thank you for coming on and talking with us, you know, obviously, back pain is something that a lot of truckers out there deal with, so it’s definitely good to get some information out to them and try and help these truckers that might be suffering from back pain. What are some of the causes of back pain that you’re seeing? I’m sure you have some truckers coming into your office dealing with back pain. What are the main causes?
Shaun: Typically with back pain we see pretty much any industry and any age comes into the clinic. Definitely with drivers I see a couple things. I see back pain can develop as far as an acute injury, so maybe that one single event where a trucker is trying to pick up something off the ground, they’ll pull something in their back, develop the pain. To me, that’s an acute injury. Other times, it occurs over time. It’s more of a chronic injury and that could be more the wear and tear. Where a lot of times there’s not an asymptomatic symptoms, meaning you’re not really feeling much and then over time you start to get these aches and pains and it slowly progressive. And then eventually it becomes more of a chronic problem and even between acute and chronic, we also have a combination of that where a patient might have had back pain over the years and then, again, they go to lift or twist and then there goes their back again. So, definitely acute and chronic injuries that we see with truck drivers. To mean, a lot of it is just the nature of the beast with what the job demands are, especially with truckers. The sustained sitting while they’re driving. The repetitive motions. The lifting. And, just the environment they’re working in can really, over time, can wreak havoc on their back. And, as far as other causes, I mean, there’s a huge list. One thing we look at is age. Age can definitely have an impact, especially as we get older we get more arthritis and degenerative changes. But, even with age, you can have someone who is young and in good shape, 20 years old, goes to lift something the wrong way and they feel their back go out. A lot of it does play into posture too. Sitting posture. Drivers sitting in the truck driving for 10-12 hour days or in and out of the truck. So, just poor posture. And to me, posture is really 24-7. It’s your sitting posture. It’s your standing posture. The way you sleep. All those things can be factors as well. I think poor body mechanics, that’s a big one too with drivers. So, that could simply be just poor posture when sitting, but it could also be the lifting. Heavy lifting, twisting, bending, overreaching, repetitive motions. So, that’s a lot of times too with working with products, using a hand truck, lifting, those types of things can happen. Poor physical condition. Fatigue. Temperatures. Vibrations from the trucks. Stress. All those things can play into the back pain.
Troy: With back pain in general, what are maybe some things that truckers can do to help with the pain?
Shaun: Well, as far as trying to really prevent the back pain once they have it, I really go to posture. That’s a big one. Proper sitting posture while they’re driving. I think even getting in and out of the truck. That can play havoc on your back as well. Taking rest breaks and stretching, especially when drivers might be sitting for long periods of time. The muscles get tight. Hamstring muscles. The back muscles. And then you get out of the truck and maybe now you have to move your product. Or you are doing some lifting, pushing, pulling. So, especially with the muscles not warmed up that can definitely cause more as well. I think, going back to the body mechanics which adds stress to a lot of patients. It’s really that lifting too. Keeping the weight, the objects close to your body. Keeping your back straight. Trying to bend your knees. Don’t bend at your back. Try to avoid twisting. And a lot of these are bad habits we develop over time. So, to try to change those habits can be tough at first. But, proper body mechanics is really important. And I think too, just overall health. Staying physically active and exercising. And that can definitely get tougher as we get older. Again, especially that job, if they’re sitting for most of the day, that can definitely be difficult especially a long day, you know, to go home and want to try to exercise. That can definitely be tough, but really having some type of physical activity outside of work. Physical activity could include mowing the grass, raking the leaves, shoveling snow, doing projects around the house. But, as far as exercise, really to have a standard set program that’s gunna include stretching for flexibility, strengthening your arms, legs, and of course, the core and the back muscles that we always talk about. And even the cardio. You know, walking, biking, treadmill. Cardio is also going to help with the endurance. And factors that we sometimes forget about is nutrition and hydration. Being on the road and maybe having to stop and get fast food and having difficulty getting proper healthy food items and staying hydrated. That can also affect. And rest and sleep. A lot of us, you know, have trouble sleeping maybe a lot of truck drivers only sleep a couple hours every day, but you know, when you sleep that’s when your body can rest and that’s when your body can heal itself. I think just trying to modify your activities outside of work. If you’re having pain with certain things, maybe modify those activities.
Troy: And we’re seeing a lot of truckers out there dealing with sciatica from driving. What’s that like? Can you give us maybe a rundown of what causes that? And what treatment is like for that? If I’m understanding it, it’s more of a nerve issue. So, I’m sure that the treatment might be a little different than, say, a muscle issue.
Shaun: Yeah, a lot of times when patients come in they might have the diagnosis of back pain or sciatica. And sometimes that may be more of an umbrella term. Essentially sciatica is whether it’s a disc issue or a soft tissue issue. Maybe the muscle being tight, something is pinching on the sciatic nerve. Now the sciatic nerve comes down off the back and goes down behind the back down through the glutes and then down through the back of the leg. So, a lot of patients will come in and they’ll have these symptoms whether it’s pain, tingling, numbness, pins, and needles, down the leg. A lot of times that’s termed sciatica. A couple things with that is really: A) trying to figure out what’s going on with it, but also trying to work on the impairment you’re having. So, some of the things that will help with that is, again goes back to the posture, sitting posture. If you’re sitting in a bad position for long periods of time and putting a lot of pressure on the glutes and the back part of the hip and the back muscles that can really cause more tension, muscle tension, there. And I’ve even seen a lot of truck drivers that put their wallet in their back pocket and as they’re sitting that wallet is pushing right on that spot where that nerve goes down through the glutes and there is a muscle there called your piriformis muscle and that puts added pressure right there. So, a couple of things with trying to manage sciatica is, stretching. Stretching is very important, especially the hamstring, which is the back of the thigh. The glute and the hip muscles. And even the calf muscles. Again, staying in that seated position for long periods of time can really make those muscles tight. And it puts the hamstrings in a shortened position, so you’re sitting and those hamstring muscles are in a shortened position and now you go to stand up it’s really putting a lot of stress there. And they’re pressing, pulling on the pelvis as well, so it can cause a lot of discomfort there with the muscle tension. Really, you know, again, get moving. When they can get out of the truck, go for a walk, walk around, try to stretch out before, if you have to move any product. Other things you can do once you’re at home is using heat or ice. Ice and heat, a lot of times patients will ask ‘Well, I don’t know which to use, heat or ice.’ Ice is going to be more for an acute pain that came on if it’s a higher pain level. So, maybe the first couple of days, maybe the first week or so you may use ice. Choose that over the heat. Also, if you’re having muscle spasming, the muscles are really cramping on you, you could use the ice. Heats gunna be the more chronic stuff. So, once you’re out beyond that time period the heat might actually help to alleviate the muscle tension, make the back and the hamstring muscles a little bit looser. I think we forget too about sleeping posture. I get a lot of patients that come in and they will say, “Hey, I developed back pain last week.” And, I’ll ask, “What happened?” They will say, “I don’t know. I just woke up this way.” They will say went to bed, no pain, they woke up with it. So, sleeping positions can play havoc on your back as well. Ideally, laying on your back, that’s not gunna really happen for most of us. You might try, but you might toss and turn through the night. But, using pillows, put a pillow underneath the knees. If you sleep on your side, try to put a pillow between your knees as well. If you have to sleep on your stomach, you do what you gotta do, but just being aware of your sleeping posture too. I think taking something for inflammation. So, a lot of times patients may take over the counter naproxen or ibuprofen. So, that might be Aleve, Advil, or Motrin, to help with inflammation. And really, if your symptoms get worse, if the pain, the tingling, numbness is getting worse, it’s hard to function at work or doing things around the house, or if you get any weakness in the leg, then, definitely, you want to talk to your doctor. You want to set up an appointment, go to your physician, your family physician, and discuss your symptoms with them and then they can help guide you in the right direction.
Troy: Yeah, that’s one thing I wanted to bring up. When should a trucker with back pain, maybe consult a physical therapist? And I wanted to bring up the point, I’ve read articles on it and even written some about using an opioid alternative like physical therapy, like stretching, things like that. I mean, it’s no secret that the opioid epidemic is hitting people hard and a lot of people are urging those with pain to shy away from that and try an alternative.
Shaun: Yeah, and it’s really, you know, everybody is different. I will have patients that come in with acute back pain where they developed back pain two days ago and right away they went to their doctor and they came in for physical therapy. I think it’s a great option. I know a lot of us try to avoid the doctors. We don’t like going to the doctor. A lot of us might have the mentality, “Hey, I’m gunna work through this.” Maybe it’s something, you’ve had back pain over the years off and on and other times it sort of came on you got rid of it in a couple of days on your own by resting it or doing a couple of stretches, now it’s lingering, now it’s more than those couple days. So, it’s really the call of the person with the pain to see when the best opportunity to go to the doctor is. To me, when it’s not going away, it’s not getting any better, and it’s starting to interfere with the things you’re trying to do, especially with work or around the house. I think, go to your physician. A lot of times now what’s happening is, you’re right, physicians are gunna say, “Hey, let’s try the first option, physical therapy.” And, I think it’s great. A lot of patients can come in, we can do an evaluation, try to see what’s going on, offer education, which is huge. Talk about your posture. Give you exercises to really try to hone in on what the problem is. So, with that, a lot of patients feel better. You know, getting the exercise. Do they need a massage for the muscles? Do they need stretches? Do they need strengthening? Using heat or ice as well. So, I think it’s a great way to physically try to fix the back, try to help the back. But, that’s what a lot of doctors are doing and even with a lot of imaging MRIs or X-rays, they’re sending, they’re going to physical therapy first. We see a lot of patients where that’s the first stop. Let’s try physical therapy. If you’re not getting better still then at that point, we’ll send you back to the doctor and then see what they want to do, that next step.
Troy: Awesome, Shaun. Well, again, I appreciate you coming on to the show, providing all of this great information. Is there anything else you would like to add?
Shaun: Yeah, I think. I think, going back to really just trying to stress the posture. I have a couple of tips here as far as when you’re driving, so maybe that may help some truck drivers out there. I think anytime with getting into the truck, you want to adjust your seat. You’re not sure who had the truck before you or where the seat setting was, so modify your seat each time. Check the height. Check the distance from the steering wheel. You want to make sure the steering wheel and the pedals are pretty comfortable within reach, that you’re not overextending or you’re not too close. The big thing is you want to sit in an upright position. So, you want to make sure that back is supported. That’s where you’re gunna have your back the whole way against the seat, not space between the back and the seat. And, lumbar supports are a good way to help that. A lot of trucks, cars, you’re going to have that lumbar support that you can sort of modify. But, if you need anything else, using a pillow, rolling up a towel, getting an actual lumbar support will help to keep you in a better neutral position. 90 degrees. I like that rule, as far as the hips and the knees. Trying to keep it as close as you can. Making sure your knees aren’t higher than your hips. And even upper. Adjust your mirrors. Make sure that your head, the back of your head, is resting comfortably against the back of the seat, through your shoulders. Keep your elbows by your sides. And the thing is, over time, we’re gunna slouch. And this would go the same as some who’s sitting behind a desk all day at their job for 8 hours. Or someone who is driving. Or just anybody sitting at home. So, over time, the tendency is probably gunna be to start slouching and that’s where all these things are gunna help to come into play and keep you in a better position.
Troy: Well, thank you. You’ve got me sitting up straight during this interview now.
Shaun: That’s great
Troy: And all self-conscious, but it’s definitely gunna help for sure. Once again, a big thanks to Shaun. He’s a licensed physical therapist providing some great information for you truckers. Thank you, Shaun!
Shaun: Alright. Thank you!
Troy: Alright, and thanks again Shaun for all of that great information and listeners, for you out there, we want to know what helps with your back pain? Make sure to reach out to us using the hashtag #BigRigBanter. We want to know some of your remedies or any questions…
Lenay: If they’re legal.
Troy: Yeah. Any question you might have about back pain, well try and find you guys the answers. We’ll reach out to Shaun or try and get some more information back to you, for sure.
Lenay: Yeah, absolutely. And if you like what you hear. Don’t forget to leave us a review. We’d love your feedback and let us know what you want to hear in the coming year.
Troy: And now that we are in the new year, don’t forget we’re opening up some advertising opportunities on the show. If you want to get your brand in front of our audience feel free to reach out to us on AllTruckJobs.com. We’d love to have you advertise with us.
Lenay: Yep, and for those of you listening for the first time, just a reminder that Big Rig Banter is powered by AllTruckJobs.com. That’s an online job board where you can go and find trucking jobs all over the country.
Troy: Alright. And once again, I’m your co-host Troy Diffenderfer.
Lenay: And I’m your favorite co-host, Lenay Ruhl.
Troy: And this has been Big Rig Banter.
Lenay: Happy New Year!
Music – Thanks for tuning into another edition of Big Rig Banter. For your next job check out AllTruckJobs.com, the premier online source for finding the best driver jobs in the country. Browse hundreds of positions by freight or driver type to get back on the road with confidence. Click subscribe to keep the conversations coming until next time on Big Rig Banter.
