Quick simple how to fix (most) costochondritis and Tietze's Syndrome - the short version
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- Опубликовано: 15 окт 2024
- Most costochondritis and Tietze's Syndrome chest pain is NOT a mysterious inflammation that nobody understands - regardless of what you've been told. That's why just treating it like that usually doesn't work. Read on for more information about how to fix it.
This very short video explains briefly what causes most costo and Tietze's. We shot it up a mountain in New Zealand because that was fun.
The standard "mysterious inflammation" medical explanation you get given is NOT evidence-based. Just treating it purely as an inflammation entirely misses the point. That's why mostly it doesn't fix the problem. Our New Zealand physiotherapist approach to treating and fixing it is fully validated by the best research evidence to date (2018).
For more detail, see our longer RUclips video 'How to fix (most) costochondritis and Tietze's Syndrome chest pain - no, it's NOT a mystery'. The link is • How to fix (most) Cost...
For the treatments and exercises we use see our RUclips video 'How to fix most costochondritis and Tietze's Syndrome, Part (2): Exercises and Treatment details.' The link is
• How to fix (most) Cost...
For a clear explanation, home test, types of costo and their treatments, see the 'COSTOCHONDRITIS' pages on the Backpod's website - link is www.bodystance... Or just Google the word 'Backpod'.
PERSONAL HISTORY: I had costo myself for seven years after a climbing fall onto my rib cage - with all the sharp stabbing chest pain, the breathing difficulties and the fear I was having a heart attack that comes with it. I fixed it after coming through physio school in New Zealand, and haven’t had even a twinge in decades. I can do anything physical - it’s completely fixed.
SERIOUS NOTE: Chest pain could be your heart so emphatically get yourself checked out by a doctor first. Doctors are good at this - they're just not usually good at costo. But up to a half of patients presenting to a doctor or hospital Emergency Department with chest pain don’t have heart problems - so here’s the way to go if you’re one of them.
Think for yourself and good luck with the work.
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio. (New Zealand)).
The backpod + fixing my posture has helped me a great deal
Hi. Well done on thinking for yourself, then doing the work.
One word i want to say steve saved my life with backpod.1 year back i started using now i am feeling so much improvement.you are a god to me.thank you sir.
Thank you very much. Well, you did the work! Well done.
If you need to do any fine tuning on any remaining bits of your costo, here's a long wordy PDF on what costochondritis actually is and what we find works best to fix it. It is more easily read on a computer, not a phone.
The PDF covers using the Backpod for costo, and also the other bits that often need dealing to as well. Cheeringly, these can nearly all be done by yourself at home. It takes a bit of time and effort, but it's not that difficult. Good luck with the work!
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
How did you do it and how long did it take you
Hey Steve, I hope you will see this massage.
About 6 months ago i was able to diagnose myself with costo, mainly through youtube. At that time I was in very good shape- swimming, strength exercises and yoga. I think making a gym membership massed me up. After resting, the costo even got worst, I also had to do a long drive 2 times a week that made things worse. After seeing you videos I got my hope back alive, the way you describe the problem and stating "it will go away" really had strong impact on my positive thinking, you are wonderful for that. Fast forward, 3 months after using the backpod (followed by your instructions) everyday, My issue almost gone completely. I am amazed as I was sure it will become chronic. Thank you so much, a thousand thanks. Through the long drives I do, I use the backpod and it is fantastic.
I also have some questions that bugs me:
1. When I use the backpod, I feel in the beginning that my back is "frozen". It doesn't hurt, but nothing really moves too much. Than after 2-3 minutes, I can feel and sense my ribs moving, freeing as you say, or at least that is what I want to believe. Maybe you can confirm that this is normal?
2. I really want to gradually go back to training, would you advise in any way (in addition to take things slowly)? what do you think about swimming?
When I stopped training, I felt weaker and I felt that it actually "helps" the cc to become worse.
I think strengthening my back is the best option and do it in control manner (The tips in the added notebook of the backpod). I also notice that when doing Stand-Up-Paddle I feel great and pain free, i'm just throwing it up here so maybe it can help others to try. Also I avoid pushups or anything that can make a big impact on the sternum.
3. No question, just wanted to thank you again. I didn't even go to a chiropractor.
Hi Navon. That's great. Well done on thinking for yourself and sticking with it until it worked. Very pleased the Backpod's done such a good job.
Yes, feeling the ribs starting to move when you're on the Backpod is completely normal. Often it can be quite tender or sore as you start off, then that goes as the joints stretch freer. It's like stretching a really tight hamstring - gets easier as you keep the stretch on.
To get the last bit of stretch out of the rib and spinal joints now, you can get some more oomph out of the Backpod by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and stay on them 1-3 minutes.
Re working back into training: good question. Costochondritis is different - you can’t treat it like a muscle injury, say. The problem is that any exercise or stretch tends to further strain the already strained costosternal joints, way before you get a benefit to the hypomobile posterior rib articulations (costovertebral and costotransverse joints). The strained and probably hypermobile sterncostal joints are very easy to flare - like going over yet again on a chronically floppy sprained ankle.
We get past this by freeing up those posterior rib joints first and specifically. You've done that, on the Backpod. So now you’re working back cautiously - good! General emphasis should be on building the support muscle around the back/scapula/extensors - as you’d expect. (Avoid dips for at least six months, and bench press for almost that long - dips trigger more costo than anything else in the gym.) I find the safest way back in is using the cable machine, upright, starting with one arm work only (so less torso rotation), pulling back to work the posterior torso muscles; progress to more diagonals, then to both arms cautiously as this brings in more torso rotation. The other advantage is that you're not lying on your chest, which squashes the rib joints on your breastbone somewhat.
Re cardio, I find the cross trainer (elliptical) the safest way back - upright, no jarring, and it gives a mild rotational workout for the torso as well as cardiac. Thanks for your tip about paddle boarding - I'll use that. I can see why it works - it's strengthening the posterior muscles including especially the lats, with some gentle torso rotations to both sides, plus you're upright and no jarring (plus great for every stabilising muscle in your body). Great idea - I never thought of it.
I'm a little wary of swimming with costo. The crawl requires lots of torso rotation, which is fine when it's completely fixed but a bit at risk if there's any restriction round the back still. Better to start with breaststroke, which is also better for strengthening all the muscles down your back, which is what you want. Even so, i'd hang off swimming until you can do at least 30 minutes on the elliptical with no problems.
Add in pec stretches - the more upright you can get the better. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
If you haven’t already, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
Hope all that helps. You've done a great job. Thanks for deciding my Kiwi physio view of costo made sense. The standard medical view is still that costo is a "mysterious inflammation", which is NOT evidence based, and just nuts. We were flabbergasted to find this is how the rest of the world sees costo. I am trying to get our understanding out there, as there are literally millions of people in pain unnecessarily. If you'd like to help with that, you could pass you experience back as a review on Amazon (if you bought the Backpod that way) or the Backpod's Facebook page, or any costo group you were on. It would be worthwhile. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203
I searched also info about cc in my native language (Hebrew) and couldn't find the slightest hint for a back issue. That's a shame, I'm worry to say the reason why I think that is.
As for swimming, that's really a shame, I thought that because water had low impact on the body it will be a good solution, but I guess you are right, I just miss swimming at the moment. As for the caution from flaring up - that's really what guides me, better to keep it safe then going backwards.
Cable machine sounds like an amazing idea. I don't have a gym nearby at the moment, so i'll buy some light resistant bends instead, what would you say about these exercises?
ruclips.net/video/MnsYn2Hx-A4/видео.html
I'll get myself a nice massage package. About the peck stretch itself, I add a video that seems very legit, the doc recommends one type of door stretch out of the 3, I know you posted a different kind, but I throw it out there:
ruclips.net/video/Lc3-tkCSSOA/видео.html
Thank again, i'll spread the word.
@@nadavnavon2140 Hi Nadav. Yes, swimming is low impact but the crawl (overarm) is high rotation, and that's the bit that's risky with costo. It'll be fine when you're fully free.
Re the costo strengthening video - yes, it's good, completely agree, except for the second exercise where he's punching forward against the elastic resistance. Again, that's risky. I'd leave it out until later on.
Mm - we get quite a few queries about costo from Israel. I'm guessing that your docs have picked up the standard medical US view of costo as a "mysterious inflammation", which is very inadequate. Oh, well - spread the word! Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203
Thank you Steve. Any last tips if my pain is located mainly at the costochondral junction and not at the sternum?
I feel the pain only when pushing on it directly. I can also actually feel in that area and more towards the shoulder (still on the pec) that kind of scaring you were talking about. Working throw it as you suggested, although it's not at the sternum area.
@@nadavnavon2140 Hi Nadav. You essentially treat giving at the costochondral junction the same way as for giving at the rib joints on your breastbone. Both are happening and not settling because the rib machinery around the back is too tight - that's why you get the give further round the rib. The CC junction is less common, and seems to be trickier to settle down. It think this is because it's not exactly a full joint, like the rib joints on your sternum are.
The massage(s) should help lots for the muscle scarring component, including over the CC junction; often they need to go right up to the shoulder on the pec as well. The pec stretches will help too.
Give it more time - they are difficult at the CC junction; technically it's called a 'slipping rib' when it happens there.
I just purchased your back pod. I am excited about it. Hopefully, my back and chest pain can be a distant past. I am waiting to receive it.
Did it help? please say it did
I have just purchased the backpod after reading many positive reviews and viewing your videos, I was diagnosed with costochondritis just 2 days ago, I am only 18 years and male, I will be honest I am a gamer and do work online so I've mostly been sitting at a desk hunched over my keyboard for the last few months, I feel this has been an awakening and I know crazy to say but a great thing because it's given me the motivation to lead a different lifestyle, a healthy one from here on out, I was 6 hours in the ER yesterday because of the severe pain, I had my heart tested and a blood test taken and my heart is all good, they said as did my GP that its costochondritis, the Doc prescribed me painkillers and keral an anti-inflammatory drug. I have faith in you and this backpod and look forward to fixing this nasty condition, I also would love to visit New Zealand one day and I will because it looks like one breathtaking country with good people, anyways thank you and I will persevere through this sending my thanks from Ireland.
Gidday, Youtrooper. Well done on thinking for yourself and gambling I might know what I'm talking about. Look, this is a wake-up. There are over 2 billion gamers in the world and a fair proportion are heading for LOTS of upper back and neck pain, plus costochondritis on top. We call it the iHunch - see that page on the Backpod's website www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ This is your chance to turn it around for yourself.
Nothing wrong with gaming or computers, but if you didn't put oil in your car, the engine would eventually seize. It's like that with bending over laptops, tablets and smartphones. Eventually your body can't sustain the hunching any longer, and then it'll seriously bite you. I'm not saying stop gaming - just look after your own spinal and rib machinery so that it'll handle lots of screen time.
That's exactly what we built the Backpod for - to counter the iHunch. Better do all the bits in the Backpod's programme in the user guide. Sure, you can get a bit tender for the first few days as the Backpod stretches bit that haven't stretched that way for years. Stick with it.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Ideally, also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you're tight enough on the joints to get costo, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
As well, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Cheers for the quick reply I'm going to follow everything you have said once my backpod arrives, do you think I should not take the painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs, I feel like they do ease the pain a little but the side effects seem to overall make me feel worse,
Also, should I start straight away with the backpod,I used a foam roller on my back a few days ago and the pain got increasingly worse since then and my uncle who is a qualified sports physician which I will definitely ask him for a massage, he told and explained more to me about the condition and inflammation than the 2 doctors did, told me to ease off and wait for the inflammation to go down and take the meds for inflammation and to slowly ease into training again because my muscles are weak now.
And what about exercise, light walking, stretching, running, punchbag, How quickly should I ease into these things, because what hurts a lot is just breathing, taking a deep breath hurts a lot which is scary and does cause anxiety even though I know my heart is all clear. I want to get into my new lifestyle as soon as possible and your advice would mean a lot, and like you said there is nothing wrong with gaming and computers, I myself am a professional poker player so and along with many other jobs spend too much time sitting in bad posture staring at a screen all day, I plan on getting into not just exercise but things like cooking, I enjoy it a lot and your standing and moving and I just see that it reaps many benefits, I'm also into guitar so I'll dedicate time every day for that too.
Cheers and let's tackle this new decade in style, this costochondritis truly could not have come at a better time haha.
@@youtrooper2314 Hi. Painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs do have side effects. if they're not helping anyway, then no point using them. The only reason you've been prescribed the anti-inflammatories is that your doc thinks costochondritis is an inflammatory problem. It's not. The actual medical research shows it's not - I've covered this in a video covering the published medical research on costo: ruclips.net/video/t8k2LCLeR24/видео.html Sigh.
Start in with the Backpod, but read the instructions first. All you do is grade the stretch so that it's mild to start off with.
You can't exercise through costo. If it's hurting then you're just straining the already strained rib joints on your breastbone. You should stop anything that hurts it until you can lie on the Backpod with no pillow and no pain. That'll mean the tight joints have freed up well. Until you do that, as long as those joints round the back are tight, any general exercise or stretch is just going to strain further the already strained rib joints on your breastbone, way before you get a benefit to the tight ones round the back. I know there are videos out there saying you fix costo with exercise, but they do not understand the problem.
Yep, you need the Backpod and its program. Everything you've described involves bending forward. You do really need to have good working machinery to handle all that. Fortunately this isn't difficult - just takes a bit of work. Cheers, Steve august.
This makes perfect sense my condition. I tweaked my neck lower back during a grappling tournament and then developed Costco. Now I’m essentially locked up from both sides
Yep - it's usually one side or the other but you can get both together. It's like wearing a corset - often breathing is a bit difficult. But not difficult to fix, usually. Have a look at the Part (2) how to fix costo video - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ Also the costochondritis page on the Backpod's website www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
Hi Steve. I will receive my backpod in 4 days. Few questions:
1) How many times a day/how long should I use it?
2) When do you recommend getting back to the gym?
3) What exercises should I avoid in the gym?
4) How long will it take to heal?
Thank you:)
Hi. (1) Just follow the instructions accurately. Bet once a day for the first week until things are freeing up a bit; then you can go to twice a day.
(2) When you can lie on the Backpod with no pillow under your head and no pain on the Backpod. That means the rib and spinal joints are moving well. If you go back to the gym before that, you'll just flare the already strained rib joints on your breastbone. This can definitely take a few weeks or more.
(3) Avoid dips - they're the worst; bench presses are almost as bad. Best to start back in quietly, when you do, with the ellpitical/cross trainer machine, which gives quite a good mobilising workout for the rib cage.
(4) It's not really a healing problem, more a hinge freeing up one. It usually takes about three weeks to free up the rib joints okay, but this can vary. usually feels clearly improved after one week, though. Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
You'll get there, but it takes some work and time. mostly, DO use the Backpod as per the instructions. Good luck with the work.
Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio
I appreciate your advice. My backpod arrived & I love the stretch it gives to the rib.
Besides, I can withstand & use it without any pillows already, it’s also my 1st week & I’m using the backpod twice already. Will it be an issue?
Should be fine. We try to keep people using the Backpod quietly for the first week or so, as most are so tight that they just flare things if they try to do too much too soon. It'll still take a few weeks to stretch the tight stuff fully.
When it's good enough, you can get some more oomph out of the Backpod higher up by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend a minute or two on each.
Good - you're doing fine. In about a week start adding in the twists and stretches shown about 10 minutes into the Part (2) costo video - link is ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html
Steve NZ Physio
Hi there, I tried doing the rib stretches with fingers but my pecs muscles get in the way.
Am I supposed to be stretching the ribs near sternum or far?
Hi. Ah - I just checked the Part (2) costo video and actually the stretch and exercise I was recommending you should do starts just after 13 minutes into the video. Sorry - the one 10 minutes in needs to be done by someone else - no wonder it was confusing.
Hi Steve, you are a blessing. Thank you for your videos. Question, why does costochondritis trigger panic attacks?
It's usual with costochondritis. The tight rib machinery round the back that causes the rib joints on your breastbone to strain, also means you can't take a full breath in - it's like wearing a tight corset. So that makes you breathe high and fast, and that hyperventilation pushes you towards panic attacks, and certainly anxiety. It's all classic costo.
As well, I think it's perfectly sane and reasonable to be worried about a scary and debilitating chest pain which the docs do not seem to understand or know how to fix.
@@stevenzphysio4203 thank you so very much Mr. Steve. You have helped me so much and since learning this I will be able to help my patients better! Much love all the way from the States!
@@Athletictruthcoach Good luck. You can really help them - costo is logical, not a mystery, and usually not difficult to fix. Here's a long wordy PDF on the sorts of things needed to fix costo. Note the two home massages - you can easily do these for the tight muscle overlying the tight joints.
It is long. It's best read on a computer rather than a phone. You can skim the bits that don't apply to a specific patient.
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
@@stevenzphysio4203 thank you so much
@@stevenzphysio4203 hey Steve would I feel like I can’t breathe almost all day? Even if I don’t really have as much stabbing pain or tenderness to the chest
So what causes the inflammation in costochondritis is the tight muscles in the back? Once those muscles are loosened up then the inflammation decreases?
i believe what caused it can be a number of things. whether it’s an injury, or heavy lifting which is my case, but i think it can be a number of things but it’s easily treatable over a period of time with rest and probably seeing a physical therapist. just do some research and it’ll help a lot. i’m pretty sure physical therapists are the ones that can treat it and figure out where the pain is coming from etc. just try to remember down the line if u had an injury and that might be why you’re now feeling the effects and it could’ve left “inflammation” in the chest area or whatever. or a rib out of place too. could definitely be a misaligned rib
Can the back still be the problem/cause of costochondritis even if it was a hard hit to my ribs/chest that activated the pain? Fell and landed on a metalbar 4,5 months ago. Have been through horrible pain since. dont have pain in my back. Dont struggle with with breathing anymore but all impact, movement and flexing my upperbody gives me a lot of pain that will take many days to get better. Got an x-ray and my ribs and lungs was fine. But it dosen’t seem like its going away by itself, its been so long and still the smallest jumps triggers it and I have to lay still for several days afterwards. My ribs/chest,shoulders and albows has started clicking all the time with movement, was never a problem before. Im a pro athlete and im completely powerless, any movement will set me back in an invalid situation. In my situation can it still be the back that is the problem and could working on the back to open it up still be What could fix my problem/pain even if it was a hit to the sideribs/right chest and not feeling affected in the back but the pain is most located in my right chest/sideribs and under. Please hope to get answer im super desperate. Thanks in advance
Hi Elias. Yep - front (or side or back) impact is a common route to starting off costo. A front impact doesn't stop at the ribs and muscles at the front - the jolt goes through to the rib joints at the back as well.
The chest impact damage will mostly heal and repair, as you'd expect. BUT the rib joints round the back can seize up also - from normal repair scarring such as you get with a sprained ankle, say. (It's called adhesive fibrosis.)
When the frozen up, immobile rib joints around the back can't move, then the more delicate rib joints on the breastbone HAVE to move excessively to compensate, every breath you take.
So they 'give' (usually with clicking and popping and often with a sharp, stabbing, scary pain), strain, irritate, inflame - and there's your ongoing costochondritis.
The frozen rib joint movement where the ribs hinge onto your spine cannot show on X-rays, CAT or MRI scans, because these are all essentially still photos, and simply can't show whether the rib and spinal joints can move fine, or are frozen solid and completely immobile. So it's nearly always missed.
You have to free up this frozen rib movement around the back to fix costo. Any treatment purely for the painful front of your chest is not treating the ongoing cause of the strain and pain. Have a look at the Costo page of the Backpod's website, including the videos, for more info on costo and how we fix it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
That's the main answer. You can also have remaining scarring on the front of your chest, especially if you hit hard enough to get bruising or swelling here originally.
All it is is intracellular fluid - the same sort of fresh fluid swelling that happens if you sprain your ankle. As with a sprained ankle, after a week the fluid swelling sets hard. This is just the normal inflammatory response of strained joints - there’s no auto-immune component. It’s a normal repair process, with fibrin in the fluid acting as a slow setting glue to hold everything together while the torn fibres and cells are repairing.
So you often get some hardened swelling remaining there on the sternum, pec muscles, and where the ribs join onto the breastbone. This doesn’t just interfere with the normal free glide of the rib hinges, it also binds down the free nerve endings and receptors, tethering them and making them hypersensitive. It's not a matter of waiting for it to somehow "heal' - it's like hardened glue, so after a month or more it's become a tethering problem, not a healing one.
Break it down. This is like working hard putty or play dough or cold pastry dough until it becomes malleable. You can do this yourself.
Use something to let your fingers slide. Massage wax is better than oil - oil dribbles. Better again is something that will also reduce the irritation of working these sensitive bits around, like Voltaren (diclofenac) anti-inflammatory gel or the best is a CBD cream like Penetrex. You won’t weaken the scarring round the joints or any surgical scar, just make it flexible and not pulling on the nerves.
Spend about 10-15 minutes every three or four days working your fingers through the hardened bits in all directions. Start gently - it’ll get easier as you continue. It will be tender and probably sore - it gets easier as it frees up. The first time is the worst. Just do what it feels like it can handle, and expect to feel it tender, especially to touch, afterwards.
You’re also probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
It takes time - probably a few or several weeks. But it’s easy enough to do. It’s the main answer to this specific bit of the problem. But just done on its own it’ll keep coming back, unless you sort out the tight ribs round the back driving the ongoing strain at the rib joints on your breastbone.
Good luck with the work. You are not alone. This is very common after a car crash onto the steering wheel, seat belt or airbag, or after any other sort of front impact, and usually not accurately treated at all. Just treating the front pain isn't enough.
Cheers, Steve August.
Hi, Steve. Is it possible to have costo/tietze for 7 years? I have pain in chest, under right shoulderblade, on the ends of 4th and 5th ribs with little lumps and my collarbone is clearly out of place/swollen for a long time. Seen many doctors, no answer, only a bad posture with really slight scoliosis and kyphosis. My pain is present every Day for Last 5 years. No episodes, just still there. Any idea IF i should try the backpod? Thanks
Sure. Note that every treatment you've had for seven years has not worked. So you're either incurable, or the treatments have all been wrong. Relax - it'll be the latter.
Have a thorough look over the Backpod's costochondritis page, including the videos - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ Then get a Backpod and start fixing yourself. It's not going to go away otherwise. The docs are wrong about that too, against the actual medical research. Cheers, Steve August.
So how do I fix it. You didn’t really answer it sir?
Hi Daniel. No, I didn't. This is just a short video explaining what costo is. Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
Hi Steve, ive been to the doctor 3 times and he diagnosed me with tietze's syndrome.
But doing some research online, i am not so sure about it since i see people having problems i totally dont have.
So first of all I have a sharp pain at the right side of my sternum, its been 4 months and the pain has been the same ever since.
I experience pain when pressing my shoulders inwards and when doing certain movements.
I dont have pain while sneezing, coughing, breathing in deep... like i see most people have.
But the worst pain is when i wake up, every morning for these past 4 months, I wake up with the joint pain being very extreme, and gradually decreasing during the day.
I dont see anyone saying anything about this, making me wonder if I have costo/tietze.
(nothing visible on xray, and i can do heavy excercises requiring the pec muscles without pain, so it shouldnt be the bones or the muscles)
I love working out and i dont know what to do, i fear going to the gym will not allow it to heal, so i have not been doing any sports since ive had this.
Hi Victor. Okay, this test should clarify things - you can do it yourself at home. Sit squarely back on a table, stool or bench, knees right at the edge so you're good and stable. Then get someone to hold your shoulders and twist you round in both directions. Normal range will be about 90 degrees, with your shoulders coming into line with your thighs. If you don't get so far towards the right, and if that brings on the sternum pain on the right, then what you've got is exactly what I've been describing - immobile rib joints around the back (on your right) causing the strain, pain and localised inflammation at the rib joints on your sternum (on the right).
If that's the case, forget any nonsense you've been told about "mysterious inflammation" and fix it yourself. See the costochondritis page on the Backpod's website for how we do that.
Cheers, Steve August.
exactly the same symptoms I have brother, did it go away ?) how did you cure it ?) I like sports, too.)
My left bottom rib is sticking out. I just got the back pod today. It seemed to have worked wonders so far. Ill report results at week 2
Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. Do please READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the 31-page user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf. These are the best detailed instructions on how to use the Backpod.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks, hand sanitise, and when you get home take all your clothes off and put them straight into the washing machine and you straight into the shower, including washing your hair.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks. Get them to go hard down between your shoulder blades.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Thank you so much for the time you took and effort (time stamps etc) in writing back! As far as covid, there’s a 99.97% survival rate and I don’t even think it’s real, they used it to steal an election here in America but that’s another story! I did read the manual a couple times before using it which is a VERY informative and helpful manual but now reading your reply which I’ve taken screen shots of, I have an even greater understanding on what I can expect as far as taking my time with this and not expecting and instant fox, as I know it didn’t get this way over night either. I’ve been looking into this type of injury for a bit now because I’ve been narrowing it down for the past year and I had some things I wanted to try as well like laying on my side with the fulcrum under my very last rib which is the problem area rolling frlm my back to my front and could hear my ribs cracking as I got closer to my sternum relieving a lot of pressure so I’m going to add that and the things you’ve suggested in your reply to me on here. As far as bribing someone to do the massages, I just made an appointment to a sports medicine doctor a block away from me and I will bring the manual and ask them if they will do them. Hopefully I can target that shoulder too. The lower ribs really have been debilitating to the entire left side of my body from constant headaches all the way down to my feet because of the nerves in that area so your product has been a Godsend ! The amount of effort you put into writing back to me and further clarifying exactly what to do for my exact problem ( not to mention the Rib section which was quite extensive) truly shows the difference between you and your amazing, wonderful, life saving product and these “as seen on tv” type products. You truly have a passion for what you do and I felt more cared about as a customer than I felt I even deserved really. On top of that your product is top of the line. I feel like you took some time out of your day to help me and I was in so much pain I couldn’t do ANYTHING for the past year, it ruined my life! (Covid kind of saved me because I wasn’t the only one who lost the last year) I guess that’s a long way of saying you have me the attention of a payed appointment here in America and just because that’s how much time effort faith and testing you put into this backpod, so if you have a PayPal or a way I can send you an extra payment for taking the time out to literally save my life, and help me get my life back, I feel like I haven’t paid you enough and would like to do so out of my appreciation for the care I’ve received here with your program that’s above and beyond the care they have here even in the US. Email me your PayPal or a way to send you payment at eddiepizzle@gmail.com I want to thank you again, and I will let you know if I get down to no pillows in the next two weeks, run into any problems or need help with something but the manual explains everything so well and this reply went above and beyond in helping me understand this ribs/spine area. Thank you Steve!
@@eddiepizzlefully Thanks, Eddie. I don't need the money, and I don't do it for that anyway. If the Backpod's helping, pay it back to other people in pain - let them know your journey, e.g. on the Reddit costochondritis page, or whatever. Good luck with the work.
@@stevenzphysio4203 hey thanks again Steve! In America that would be said at an appointment you’d have to pay a lot of money for! That’s a life saver. Already paying it back by buying one for my mother who’s had broken ribs due TO CPR and noticed her looking at mine. You’re truly a life saver Steve! Thank you for inventing this! I thought my life was over, now it doesn’t have to be . You take care , and I will pass all of this on to my mother and make sure she passes it on to someone she knows who needs it.. Do you see that, American Healthcare System? THIS IS HOW YOU UPHOLD/HONOR YOUR HIPPOCRATIC OATH!
Did you have syndroom of tietze? I have a lot of the same things do you think I should get a backpod to?
Hi Steve, Glad I found this! I have ordered a backpod. I have been fighting this for 6-7 years. I have a quick question... have you ever heard of Costochondrits causing ab spazems as a symptom? This has happen to me 12-15 times over the years. My top ab muscle on this right side will seize up (turn rock hard) for 20-30 seconds and then release. Is this something you have heard of before?
Hello, Joshua. Yes, it's just a reflex muscle spasm triggered by pain. It's your body's automatic attempt to splint a damaged area. It works fine for a broken bone, but it's the pain that triggers it. So if you get a costochondritis stab, you can get the ab contraction that you're describing.
After 6-7 years of costo, you will need more than just the Backpod alone. Here's a long wordy PDF on what we find works best to fix costo:
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
@@stevenzphysio4203 Deal, thank you!
I purchased the back pod last night after finding out it has worked so well for other. I think i injured myself weight lifting during a Crossfit session, not training for the past 10 weeks has been terrible and really getting me down. I have mild Kyphosis in the spine which has been OK the last ten years since i gave up rugby. My costo is mainly affecting ribs area low down on the right hand side and the sternum. I will stick to this and i am praying it makes a difference.
Hi Andrew. Well done on thinking for yourself.
As you've found out, you can't train through costo. The core of the problem is that the rib joints round the back can't move at all, so the joints at the other end of the same ribs where they hinge onto your breastbone HAVE to move excessively - every breath you take. So they strain, 'give', get irritated, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo.
So, this means that any general exercise you do, whether in the gym, yoga, stretches, etc. just further strains the already strained rib joints on your breastbone - way before you get a benefit to the tight rib joints round the back. You can't train through costo, and you can't fix it by training. Anyone who thinks you can doesn't understand it.
Sure, general muscle support, especially the muscles around the back, and stretching, etc. are helpful, but only, repeat only, after you've freed up the rib machinery around the back first. That's why we use the Backpod. As far as I can tell, it's the only thing commercially available that will give an effective strong localised stretch to the frozen rib and spinal joints around the back causing the problem - for definite technical reasons which are discussed on the Backpod's website www.bodystance.co.nz/en/backpod/.
It really is a very precise problem, with a very accurate answer.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
As well, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Thanks so much for your reply. The backpod is due to arrive this week, that plus the stretches you have mentioned and hopefully i will see a difference. Thanks for the advice, I have limited myself to gentle jogging, i have stopped Crossfit for the time being. Costo seems to be such an uncommon thing that no-one knows much about or has answers to. I am so glad i came across your work. Thanks again
Just bought your back pod product, I’m so excited to get rid of this pain. I really hope it works!!!
Hi Kelsey. Well done on thinking for yourself and giving it a go. Do please follow the instructions. It takes time for the tight stuff to stretch free. Just stick with it, and expect a bit of tenderness as things start to move. The usual result is 90% clear in three weeks, though obviously improved in the first week. That can vary, of course. Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio Hey Steve, so I have the backpod now and I’ve been using it for 4 days. My sternum didn’t really hurt much 4 days ago but it’s been on and off since 2016 so I know I needed to try it anyway. But after using it, my sternum and even back is very tender. Does this mean it’s working or am I overdoing it?
Hi Kelsey. Stick with it. DO follow the instructions accurately. It shouldn't be actually sore using the Backpod (with pillows, etc. if needed) but it's entirely normal to feel some tenderness afterwards. You are starting to move rib and spinal machinery that's probably been frozen for a couple of years - sure, you can feel something as if starts to free up. Imagine going for a run for the first time in two years - yes, you'll feel it afterwards.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
Cheers, Steve August.
@@kels. How are you a year on, are you still in pain or how long did it take before it went?
Kelsey how are you??
Hello Steve, I've been suffering from Costochondritis for more than 6 months now, I wanted to buy the backpod but unfortunately I saw that there is no shipping to Europe (I live in Italy), I hope that things will change in the future. What can I do in the meantime to heal? Aren't there any alternative solutions? I hope to receive your reply.
Hi. There should be. We have partners in Germany, and they definitely sell the Backpod in Italy. Try Amazon.it or Bodystance.eu Please get back to me if no go.
Here's a long wordy PDF on what costochondritis actually is and what we find works best to fix it. It is more easily read on a computer, not a phone.
The PDF covers using the Backpod for costo, and also the other bits that often need dealing to as well. Cheeringly, these can nearly all be done by yourself at home. It takes a bit of time and effort, but it's not that difficult. Good luck with the work!
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
sir u explained so vividly.... ..how can i buy backpod in Nepal sir? .. Any acess for it ?
Hi Rajan. I think you can get the Backpod in Nepal. Try these guys: buybackpod.com/products/backpod If no go, try emailing them directly and ask. If still no go, try getting a friend outside Nepal to send you one.
Do watch out for rip-off artists out there on Amazon, eBay, etc. who are selling the Backpod for many times our official sellers' price in the hope they'll suck someone into buying it. It's nothing to do with us whatsoever. Don't buy one.
Until the Backpod arrives, you can use some tightly rolled up socks taped up into a ball about 90mm across. Use that as we'd use the Backpod. The instructions are in the user guide - there's a pdf of it near the bottom of the Costochondritis page on the Backpod's website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ That'll start you stretching the tight ribs. Yes, the Backpod is hugely better - it's got much more specific leverage because of its unyielding core, and usually the joints need that oomph. But the socks will start you off okay.
Good luck. Cheers, Steve August.
P.S. I hope you liked the mountains. I loved Nepal when I was there in the '70s - walked from Lamsangu near the Tibetan border along to just short of Everest base camp in the Khumbu. Wonderful, wonderful place.
Hi steve, I am 16 years old and i was diagnosed with costochondritis . I got it from severe anxiety and overuse when i was lifting . I’ve been to countless doctor apppointments, and have tried many anti inflammatories, but nothing worked . I asked my parents to get me the backpod , and i have been using it for several months now. Ive read the manual and I can assure I have been using it correctly . The pain is still there, not as bad but still there and I don’t know if this is gonna go away. My cardiologist said this might be a result of my big growth spurt and that my body just has to get used to my “new body” and reccomended me to start lifting, but from extremely light weight (I am currently using 5 pound dumbells ) do you think I am on the road to recovery ?
Hi. Okay, fine - can you now lie on the Backpod without pillows, and with lifting your buttocks off the ground, and hold each position for a minute or more, and just feel a satisfying stretch on the Backpod? That would be normal, with your thoracic spine and rib joints moving fine and fully. Like mine do. If you can't do that yet, then you're still tight. If you can, then your joints are good, and you'll need to deal to some other bits of the problem.
Here's a long wordy PDF on what costochondritis actually is and what we find works best to fix it. It is more easily read on a computer, not a phone.
The PDF covers using the Backpod for costo, and also the other bits that often need dealing to as well. Cheeringly, these can nearly all be done by yourself at home. It takes a bit of time and effort, but it's not that difficult. You'll likely need Sections (30 and (4) for a start, plus the sitting twist exercise in Section (2).
Good luck with the work!
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
Hi Steve! I have found a physical therapist that is working with my costochondritis. I’ve had multiple suggestions to also see chiropractic care and massage.
My question to you is what massage technique do you think would be the best for my intercostal ribs my SCM and my traps? Soft tissue therapy or Deep tissue therapy?
Anything that's hard enough to tease out scarring in the muscles.
How has your Costochondritis been mines been much better getting there
@@stephaniehamlet2474 so much better however I went on a mountain drive for 2 1/2 hours and I felt it acting up again. I know it was from sitting and driving 2 + hours straight plus I was somewhat tense because mountain driving makes me nervous. So when I got home I did a bunch of stretching on the back pod and the rad roller and it helped a ton. I had gone over three weeks without having to see my chiropractor/muscle therapist but I think I’m going to have to see him again next week if I’m still locked up. But it’s very minor and I at least know that it’s due from tight muscles and nothing crazy.
@@stephaniehamlet2474
I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this to you yet or not but I have found a chiropractor who also does deep tissue trigger point therapy and he has been helping me the most. He literally spends anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour doing deep pressure slow muscle tension release followed by a very light chiropractic adjustment. He also teaches me how to stretch using the rad roller and other foam rollers and I also use my back pods still.
How is your Costco going now? Just got back on doing the backpod again stop because I had to move and everything but this time I'm sticking to it until it's fully gone tired of this Costochondritis
Would having pectus excavatum be a reason for this?
Hi Steve. I have a question about the backpod. Is it ok to use it more than once a day or should I just stick with the 10 minutes? Also, I've been having a stiff neck that has been lingering since I've had the chest wall pain (3 months now). Do you have any recommendations on how to treat it?
Steve is there any no no foods or drinks that's a no no with the use of the backpod with costochondritis.
And a vitamin B Deficiency can that make it worse
Ive been dealing with this for 3 years and its only getting worse. I feel extremely weak and like all my muscles are tight. The arthritis in my neck doesnt help and I cant sit in a chair for more than an hour or 2 some times. Im so miserable and tired of being suicidal every few months. I went to a chiropractor over a year ago and they showed me some things wrong with my back as well as mild scoliosis. Massages always helped but I havent had one in years due to the cost. Im now stuck in a pattern of pain and lack of sleep that I cant get out of no matter what. Ive done diet changes and try to exercise, I know my posture is bad. I cant even lay down without thoracic/shoulderblade pain. I Need help so bad, I cant even cry anymore.
Hi Tanner. It sounds horrible. Get a Backpod. That's overwhelmingly your most cost effective way of helping yourself. We built it for problems from hunching, and the home program that comes with it has exercises and stretches you can do yourself, plus a couple of home massages if you can talk someone into doing them on you. It also stretches the tight rib hinges which cause your costo, plus helps with scoliosis. Read over thoroughly the Backpod's website www.backpod.co.nz including the videos, including the one on scoliosis. Then get a Backpod and start using it and following the program. Otherwise you're just stuck where you are. Cheers, Steve August.
In my experience i started experiencing this about 25 years ago. it happens sometime when i read for a long time hunching over,also when i lay asleep sometimes with shoulders hunched inwards involuntary,also sometimes when im dealing with alot of stress and something builds up in there,also in its a hot day and sun is hitting my chest. My quick remedy that always works its drinking small amounts of water thats cold always takes the pain away within seconds. 😊
Sounds useful - good to know. However it hasn't fixed your costochondritis - in 25 years. I'm talking about fixing costo completely - as I fixed my own costo over 30 years ago. I've had no pain whatsoever since then.
Sounds like you have costo on top of the iHunch. This is quite common. Have a look at the Backpod's iHunch and Costochondritis pages for how we fix them both - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/
Hi, You've mentioned collagen. This is a stupid question but really need to be clear. I've been taking collagen supplement for over 4-5 years on and off. Do you think this could be a cause of Costochodritis in my case? Thank you in advance.
Hi. I really don't know. It seems very unlikely, though.
Collagen is what holds your spine (and rib cage) together - muscles just move it around. It's normal, making up the ligaments, joint capsules and fascia around the moving hinges. Imagine making a fist for two years, and then trying to straighten the fingers after that long. Pretty difficult, because the collagen will have tightened around the immobile joints.
That's what happens around frozen rib and spinal joints. It's just normal, and you can stretch it free again (which is what we use the Backpod for). It's not like the collagen is proliferating around the joints and stiffening them up - rather that the joints are jammed, then the ligaments, etc. tighten down around them.
Incidentally it's why just manipulation doesn't last, if that's all you do. You can bang the joints free with a manipulation - like hitting a rusty hinge with a hammer - but you cannot stretch collagen in a split-second like that, so it just freezes up the joints again. Where I work in manual physiotherapy in New Zealand, we regard ongoing repeated manipulation as crap treatment and a racket.
Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Many thanks for your reply Steve. I have been taking collagen for young looking skin etc. I don't think there is anything to do with me having Costochodritis but my husband said well could possible and said I should stop taking it. I will let you know once I try the backpod if it get rid of it or get better. Many thanks again :)
Hi Steve, the backpod and the many other associated exercises have managed to give me bouts of relief. Sometimes 2 weeks, 1 month etc.
I always relapse though and the fix is never permanent. Laying on the sofa, hitting a ping pong ball too hard or lifting something heavy are just some of the things that can make me relapse.
You said you haven't had a twinge in decades. What is the difference between you and me? I am so exhausted and don't have any more energy to keep on fighting. Costo has destroyed my life. I just want to sleep.
My reply to you has disappeared - don't know why. i suggest you email me off the Backpod's New Zealand website.
Friend you need to visit a reliable doctor .
Steve I have purchased one of your back pods and I have rhomboid pain aswell as breathing , is the backpod still the right method of which me to fix this knotted pain
Hi Benjamin. Costo usually does have rhomboid area pain where the rib joints underneath the muscle can't move, and breathing problems because you can't breathe in fully if you can't expand your rib cage fully, and you can't do that if some of the rib joints can't move.
So, yes, it sounds like the Backpod is exactly what you want - it's the only thing around that does a really effective stretch on the tight rib joints round the back that are the core of the problem.
Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Cheers, Steve August.
What should I do if my tietze's syndrome affects the sternoclavicular joint? The physiatrist who checked me said it is caused by a slight scoliosis that puts my right sternoclavicular joint in a more vulnerable position
Hi. Mm - that gets tricky. It's too high for the Backpod to directly stretch it. Also sometimes they're moving too much anyway. Really needs a good physiotherapist or PT or similar to assess what needs doing, including what's causing the slight scoliosis anyway.
Finding a good one is a bit of a lottery. Failing that, you could just free up everything you can reach with the Backpod and massage, and often any remaining bits will pull free when the main stuff has loosened up.
So keep working on it all. When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
As well, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but along with a scoliosis you usually get a bit hunched, which is common anyway from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the Backpod's page on the iHunch - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, better do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture.
Lastly, also see the RUclips video on using the Backpod for scoliosis - link is ruclips.net/video/gAm82WWyyYU/видео.html
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/
Hey steve I was just wondering if there is anything i can use at home that can be used as a "back pod" to help free up those hinges, I recently had gotten cc ( been about 5 days) and I'm a little short on the money to be able to buy anything atm, if you can reccomend any objects that can act like a back pod it would be great, I'm saving up right now as I really need this pain to perish
Thanks for all the tips so far !
Hi. Well, the Backpod's the best - for various technical reasons; it's not hype. However you'll still get help using something else in the same way. Try a smallish towel rolled tightly and taped like that. Use it as per the user guide instructions near the bottom of most pages on the Backpod's website. It's a step in the right direction. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 wow incredibly fast with the reply, props for that, I also have one minor question, I used to do a lot of heavy weight training, trying to pack on muscle, how long do you think the break will take until I can fully recover and head back to the gym? I'm only 17 so still growing
Heh - sheer luck, Ralo. I was checking RUclips comments before drinking more wine and filling Christmas stockings when your question came through.
The problem with costo is that any exercise or stretch you do just strains the already strained rib joints on your breastbone way before you get a benefit through o the joints around the back. With people on the Backpod I recommend they don't get back to the gym until they can lie on it with no pillows under their head and no pain, i.e. the rib and spinal joints are moving pretty well. Costo is so easy to flare that I've learned to err on the side of caution. Hope that helps, and Merry Christmas.
Hi steve, I was wondering if the backpod will help me to get rid of inflammation as I got Tietze syndrome from getting hit by a cricket ball. And I don’t have pain even though I have a really bad inflammation on my sternum side rib’s since few year.
Hi Sanjaya. Well, it's clearly not going away otherwise. I assume you've been checked out by the doctors for other reasons for the swelling. That leaves costochondritis, which is called Tietze's Syndrome when there's observable swelling.
Usually you have to treat two bits - the swelling at the front, plus the tight rib joint movement around your back which is still driving the strain at the rib joints on the front. That's why it's still a problem after years - just the front impact on its own would have healed by now.
Here's a long PDF on what we find works. Good luck with the work. See Sections (2) and (6) especially.
www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/Costo-treatment-plan-incl-Costo-and-iHunch-PDFs-19-July-2022.pdf
Hello Steve, I recently got diagnosed with costochondritis a few weeks ago and its terrible. I have bad swelling on both sides of my rib cage in the upper and lower region, 4 spots specifically. I've been to two doctors and nothing has worked for me. I'm not even sure if I have been diagnosed with the right condition because I've gotten so many different things that it "could" be. I really want to try the back pod but I don't know if it will work for me. How do I know if what I'm experiencing is costochondritis or Tietze's.
Hello Mahdie. Tietze's Syndrome is just costochondritis bad enough to show swelling at the rib ends on your sternum. The fact that you've got it on both sides says to me you're probably quite hunched in your middle and upper back and frozen in some of the rib joints which hinge onto your spine. When that happens the rib joints on your sternum crack, pop, strain and give - and get very painful.
It's up to you. See the Costochondritis page on the Backpod's New Zealand website www.backpod.co.nz That should let you know what's happening and what to do for it.
Hey, I’ve been using the backpod for a while now. I have no pain now, but just a little tightness in my traps and neck. I think I had teitze syndrome and it effected my neck and traps and stomach but it’s it’s gotten better tho :) Can you completely heal from this after a while?
Sure. I had costo for seven years before becoming a physiotherapist in New Zealand. Fixed it after that, and haven't had even a twinge in 30 years. We don't find it difficult.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. You can also talk someone into doing the two massages shown in the Backpod's user guide on you.
Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio thank you :)
Sir,
May I sincerely thank you for your effort to bring a solution to this very painful problem.
I started to stretch and will order the backpod today.
In the meantime there are two things im not sure about. The most intense pain is during the evening when I rest and lie down, is there a logical explanation for that?
Secondly, until my posture and hinge ribs are fixed, which posture is the best when you sleep? I experience a lot of pain dhring the night and am not aware of the best way to lie down if you experience this problem (the pain is almost only on my right side; anatomical perspective)
I would really appreciate an answer
Greetings from Holland
Hi. You get pain with costo when you’re sleeping because you're lying on your rib cage no matter what position you're in. So that pushes on it. The frozen rib joints around the back can’t move, so the already strained rib joints on your breastbone strain even more. It's like stretching an acutely sprained ankle - it'll hurt!
As well, the tight rib machinery round the back that causes the rib joints on your breastbone to strain, also means you can't take a full breath in - it's like wearing a tight corset. So that makes you breathe high and fast, and that hyperventilation pushes you towards panic attacks, racing heart and certainly anxiety. It's all classic costo.
It’ll go when you free up the tight ribs. That’s what the Backpod is for - as far as we can tell, it's the only thing around that will actually do an effective stretch for the tight and immobile rib joints round the back which cause the costo strain and pain at the front. Hang in there - it’s not a mystery, and it’s usually readily fixable. Read over the Backpod's Costo page - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@stevenzphysio4203 this has been with me over 5 years. Tightness around the sternum when I over stretch. Sometimes when I'm putting a seat belt on, or sweeping. In bed a night when I lie on my side is also painful. It feels like my chest is torn, and my pulse races. I bought the back pod and it does provide great relief however I have double hip dysplasia. My back is weak so I'm focused on diet anti inflammatory foods, and stretching like Steve said. Awful pain 100% costro
@@DjDugiUK Hi. I had costo for 7 years myself. Fixed it completely after I became a physiotherapist in New Zealand, and haven't had any pain whatsoever from it for 30 years. Of course it's not a mystery and of course it's fixable.
The hip dysplasia won't affect the costo - just keep your knees and hips well bent up when you're on the Backpod. The anti-inflammatory diet approach will help take the heat out of it, but it won't fix costo on its own.
Stick with the Backpod - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. Do please READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the 31-page user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf. These are the best detailed instructions on how to use the Backpod.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks, hand sanitise, and when you get home take all your clothes off and put them straight into the washing machine and you straight into the shower, including washing your hair.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@stevenzphysio4203 I can't thank you enough for firstly the back pod, and secondly the information. We have a great chiropractic clinic near me, I've used them many times. Ill definitely increase the tissue massage, and have a look at the links you suggested. I don't get as much pain as I first did when using the pod and now I can use it without the pillow. I take 30 seconds and move it slightly up and down the middle of the spine. Keep up the good work. Ill tag you in a video when I upload one. People need to know about this. Thanks Steve
@@DjDugiUK Good oh - it's freeing up fine, then. Do use the Backpod comprehensively, up and down the thoracic spine and also up and down the ribs just out from the spine.
Mm - see how you go with the chiros. The good ones are very good, but I don't know where you are in the world, and I don't have a high opinion of the trad US ones for treating costo.
(1) They usually use the standard body-slam-onto-the-patient-with-their-fist-in-your-back technique. This is usually a dumb choice with costo, because it just squashes and strains further the already strained rib joints on your breastbone. Every time.
(2) In my experience, they have a bias towards manipulating the spinal joints and (often) missing the rib joints - and freeing these up is the irreducible core of fixing most costo.
(3) All manipulation does is bang a tight hinge free. It doesn't put anything at all "back in" - that's just a nonsense phrase meaning nothing. I’m speaking as a New Zealand physio - I’ve used manipulation myself for over 30 years. It cannot in a split second stretch out the very tough collagen of the ligaments and joint capsule surrounding the joint which will have stiffened down around the immobile joint. So this just freezes the hinge up again rapidly.
That's why we developed the Backpod - to stretch out the collagen so the joints can stay free and you get a lasting improvement. We think the chiro approach of continually banging the same bits free is silly and expensive.
Just saying! Nothing beats good hands-on intelligent assessment and treatment tailored to your specific spine. I just get overwhelming feedback that that's not what usually happens with trad US chiros treating costo.
Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
So, costo’s a mystery, they say,
And, no, it won’t just go away;
The New Zealand view’s clear -
Free the ribs at the rear,
Then their front joints will settle okay.
Steve NZ Physio I’ve been using the backpod it’s working. I have also been doing some stretching to which is helping me recover to. In the beginning I promised myself 4 weeks of using it, the pain is gone. But I do get a little tightness in my upper chest area. But that’s been going down to. Now I promised myself four more weeks of using it, I now lift my butt up from the floor just a little so I can get more use out of it. I’m recovering a little slow but it’s definitely going away. Thank you for looking into Costo and I’ll spread the work around to people I know who was this problem.
Hi Emerald. Well done on thinking for yourself and giving the Backpod a go. The timing's good - it does take a few weeks to stretch the rib hinges fully free. Well done for sticking with it. No that you're free enough, chase the tightest bits left and spend at least a few minutes on them - it's all about getting the rib movement around the back perfectly free.
(And also the spinal joint movement since i see you're a gamer. Would be good to add in the other parts of the Backpod's program (strengthening and massage) if you can.)
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
If you like, it'd be great if you could put some feedback up on Amazon or the patient.info costochondritis forum or our Facebook page. I'm really trying to get the idea out that there's a sensible way of understanding and fixing costo, as compared to this "mysterious inflammation" nonsense.
Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio one question, how do you know when to stop using the backpod and give it a break?
Hi Steve..I've just brought your backpod and have been using it for the past two weeks ..my symtoms have lessened a bit..I've also been doing your exercises where you lie down on your chest and raise your arms back..
I have been having pain now between my shoulder blades and the base of my skull ..any Advice sir?
What do we do we have similar symptoms in the lower ribs..say 6-12?..ribs being stuck...popping clicking sound In the front? Will the backpod work?
Hi Sean.
I've replied to you on the Part (2) How to fix costo video comments. Steve August.
Hi Steve,
I have been suffering from cc for several years. My flare ups used to last bnb a week or so and got better with rest and ice/heat. It has gotten so much worse over the past 6months and I have been having a flare for over a month with no relief. Went to the dr and even had ekgs. I have large breast (g cup) and I'm thinking abt purchasing the pod on Amazon. Do u think it will work for me? Should I wear a bra while using it. Please help
Hi Shamieka. Sure - go for it. Have a good look over the 'Costochondritis' page on the Backpod's website www.backpod.co.nz
There's a home test on that which you can try - it's a good indicator of whether you've got the usual tight rib machinery round your back causing the costo pain at the front. If that's the case, then just free it up - MUCH easier than hunting for a magical cure for this "mysterious inflammation" that nobody understands.
Best not to wear a bra when you're using the Backpod, only for the reason that otherwise you can squash the hooks on the strap into your flesh a bit; it's not a biggie.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
Also, have a look through a longer RUclips video of mine on costo - link is ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html That's got some stretching exercises on it - but not until the rib joints are well freed up, which usually takes only a few weeks on the Backpod. Good luck with the work. Cheers, Steve August.
Did you ever get rid of your Costco?
I have the similar pain I had a bone scan are you able to tell if you have costochondritis with a bone scan ?
Hi. Nope. A bone scan will show things like fractures (so will X-rays), osteoporosis and cancer. It can't show whether the rib joints round the back can move or not, which is usually the crucial thing with costo. Neither can X-rays or MRI or CAT scans, simply because they're still photos and can't tell if your rib or spinal joints are moving fine, or are frozen solid.
A bone scan also can't show inflammation. None of the above are silly things to do - they're all checking you out for dire stuff, which is a good thing to have done. There isn't any single definitive test for costo. What you do is exclude all the dire stuff, then call it costo if what's left fits the costo pigeonhole. Unfortunately most docs then get it wrong, because mostly it's not a "mysterious inflammation." That's why just treating the inflammation almost always doesn't fix it.
Have a look at the costo page on the Backpod's website - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ There's a home test for the tight rib bit that causes nearly all costo. If you're positive on that, and negative on all the dire stuff, then that's almost certainly what it is. In which case - fix it yourself. You can't rely on your doc to hand you the answer - mostly they just don't know it. Cheers, Steve August.
The pain I feel it thought my upper mid back though my chest right side I also feel it in the sternum
@@missy443 That's what you get with costo. It is explained on that website, plus how we would treat it.
Hi there i have just bought the backpod for my costochondritis which is mostly in my lower front left rib where it joins the breast bone but also spreads across them all . Ive been using it for about 5 or 6 days now but each day more i use it my flare ups are worse an more sore . I want to keep using it but just want to make sure im not making it worse . Is it normal to have while you get used to it? As my flare ups are very sore right now and widely spread after using it . Any info would be appreciated .
Hi Olly. Is it actually painful when you're lying on the Backpod? If so, you're probably not using it correctly. Read through the use instructions again, especially the bit about pillows.
Also, I don't know how long you've had costo. If it's at least months, then it does take time to stretch free the tight stuff - usually a few weeks to get most of it. You can get some treatment soreness as things start to free up -= just like you would if you were stretching a really tight hamstring, say.
I don't know any details about your costo. If you're hunched or have had surgery or impact on your front, you can have muscle scarring round there which gets tugged on as the Backpod is loosening up the joints round the back. If so, sports massages and pec stretches sort that out.
If the above doesn't hit the spot, give me a lot more detail about your costo and I'll have a better idea of what's going on. Cheers, Steve August.
Hi Steve, I’ve had had horrible shoulder pain for 8months now. It clicks when I move my shoulder up and down and when I’m doing so I feel the pain in my chest. My sternum used to crack when I would bring my shoulder blades back. I was wondering if this is a sign of Costochondritis. I like to workout and I haven’t been able to for almost a year now and I’ve tried so much but nothing helps.
Yep - sounds like what I've been talking about. The clicking and giving at the rib joints on your breastbone are a complete giveaway - those are mechanical strain symptoms, NOT inflammatory ones. No matter what you've been told.
Basically, costo happens because some of the rib joints around the back of your rib cage are frozen and can't move. But you HAVE to have movement at your rib cage or you can't breathe. So the more delicate joints round the front of the rib cage HAVE to move excessively, just to give you the movement needed to take a full breath in.
So they strain, 'give' (usually with clicking and popping - like cracking your knuckles - and often with sharp stabbing pain - like spraining your ankle), get painful - and welcome to costochondritis. It's NOT a "mysterious inflammation" somehow arriving for no reason.
You fix the problem by freeing up the immobile rib machinery round the back causing the excessive movement and giving at the front rib joints - all other treatment approaches, including the medical ones, are just dabbling.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
Steve NZ Physio Hi Steve I’ve bought you back pod about 3/4weeks ago and I’ve been using it everyday while doing the exercises you recommended and it’s still not giving. I still have pain in my sternum/shoulder but not as bad as it used to be. But some days it’s worse than others. I was wondering if there is anything else you would recommend instead of the exercises and the backpod
@@DARED2PARTY Sounds like it's improving. Yes, you may definitely need other bits too. Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then you’d better do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
Lastly, these are all general additions, and they usually work pretty well. But your particular problem may also need specific assessment and hands-on tweaking by a good physio, PT, chiro, osteopath or doc. Finding someone who's good and effective in this area is a complete lottery.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@DARED2PARTYdid it work and if so how long did it take you
Hi Steve, can i have your email address where i can email you with all the symptoms i am facing before i buy the backpod? thanks
Deepak
Sure, Deepak. It's on the Backpod's website.
You probably already have the answers. Go to the Costochondritis page on the Backpod’s website - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ Read all the text thoroughly and watch the video.
That explains what’s probably going on with you, and how to fix it. You can test if it applies to you by doing the simple home test for costochondritis described on the page.
The Backpod page on the website explains why the Backpod is so much better than a tennis ball. They are now available on Amazon.in if that's where you are.
I’m assuming you have seen the doctors about your chest pain, and that they have checked out your heart, etc. They are really good at that - they just usually aren’t any good with costochondritis.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@DeepakKumar-or6cl Hi Deepak. Good that everything else has been checked out - the docs are good at that. That pretty much leaves costochondritis - which they're usually not good at.
You could do an MRI scan but it really doesn't get you any further on. Even if it does show a bit of swelling at the rib joints on your sternum - so what? If there's enough swelling you can see and palpate it yourself anyway, and if there isn't that much then it's very minor.
The question which needs to be answered before you can fix it is WHY there is the swelling at the rib joints on your breastbone. The answer is almost always because the other ends of the same ribs where they hinge onto your spine are frozen solid and can't move.
This will not show on an MRI or CAT scan, or X-ray, because these are all still photos and can't show whether the joints can move freely or are completely immobile.
You can do the simple home test I suggested before, which will probably show it. Do the test and let me know exactly what it sows, including exactly where your pain is.
That's the thing with costo - everyone rushes off doing more and more high tech investigations, and what they miss are the very simple low tech tests - and treatments.
Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Awesome! I will, let you know where exactly the pain is, after doing those home tests! And i am glad that you invented something unique, will surely buy it once i am done with the home tests
Appreciate your quick response :)
Hi Steve! Good morning! After seeing the video, I feel I am really suffering from Costochondritis, I am now planning to buy today itself, also I want to let you know , what kinda pain I go through, while eating i can feel the pain near sternum, while drinking water I also get hiccups a lot which elevates the pain, my pec Muscles is bit pulled or i can say strained chest muscles..the hinges behind also pains. Will backpod help me in such scenario? And does the backpod contains all the do's and don'ts to be followed while using
Backpod? Also you can ask me any specific questions if you want know anything.
Thanks,
Deepak
@@stevenzphysio4203 Hey Steve! I have ordered the Back pod and hoping to recieve between June 4-5. Could you please let me know and answer my few queries asked above?
Thanks in advance,
Deepak
Hi Steve I’m 16 and I played football and baseball and I’ve had probably two flair ups I’ve had a ekg and was totally fine and x rays were normal the docter said I pulled a muscle but I think it’s this . I also have a sore to touch sternum and some ribs feel tender
Hi Luke. Anyone who tells you it's a pulled muscle probably doesn't understand costo. It could be, of course, but that would be very rare. It's MUCH more likely it's the rib joints straining and giving on the front, because the joints at the back of the same ribs where they hinge onto your spine are frozen solid and can't move. That usually gives you some lesser pain back there under the shoulder blades, and clicking and popping as the rib joints on your breastbone strain and give. That's what costo IS.
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
Your simplest answer is to get a Backpod and start fixing it. Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. Do please READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the 31-page user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf. These are the best detailed instructions on how to use the Backpod.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks, hand sanitise, and when you get home take all your clothes off and put them straight into the washing machine and you straight into the shower, including washing your hair.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
Good luck with the wirk. It's up to you - you are unlikely to find a doc who'll fix it for you, and it's unlikely to just stop happening.
Cheers, Steve August.
@Steve NZ Physico I been on the backpod for a month and three weeks I'm able to lay on it without no pillows been doing it consistently but now I just got another flare up mainly on the left side my ribs under the breast very little pain on the right breast my back still hurts a little just trying to understand am I doing everything right? I'm thinking it's from me being at work as well cause I'm standing on my feet can you please give a insight of what you think had costochondritis since end of October of 2021 haven't had it that long.
Hello, Stephanie. You're doing it right. You've freed up the tight ribs and spine around the back, which is why you can now lie on the Backpod without a pillow. You need a bit more work yet, though, plus you need a bit of work around the front as well.
Now you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However do it safely with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks and hand sanitise.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks. Get them to go hard down between your shoulder blades.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
Good luck with the remaining work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
I am from India and backpod is not available here... So what can i do for that plz tell me ....
Try getting someone outside India to buy you one and send it to you. Do watch out for rip-off artists out there on Amazon, eBay, etc. who are selling the Backpod for many times our official sellers' price in the hope they'll suck someone into buying it. It's nothing to do with us whatsoever. Don't buy one.
It works like this: people spot that a product like the Backpod is in demand. So they copy our guys' ads and put a huge price on. They don't even have a Backpod in stock. Then if someone's desperate enough to buy one from them, they buy one from our guys at their much lower price, and send it to the person who's paid hugely for their one! The record so far is a Backpod on eBay for US$510! Unfortunately it's legal and hard to stop. But don't get sucked in.
You're best to go to the Buy page on the Backpod's website and look through the options there - these are all legitimate. Link is www.bodystance.co.nz/buy-now Those are our only official sellers. Just keep checking the link to Amazon.com You could also try emailing Scott Brundell at scott@sprightly.co.nz Scott's business puts the Backpod on Amazon for us.
In the meantime, you can use some tightly rolled up socks taped up into a ball about 90mm across. Use that as we'd use the Backpod. The instructions are in the user guide - there's a pdf of it near the bottom of the Costochondritis page on the Backpod's website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ That'll start you stretching the tight ribs. Yes, the Backpod is better - it's got much more specific leverage because of its unyielding core, and usually the joints need that oomph. But the socks will start you off okay.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
Hi I'm having chest pains at the sternum very sore and flares in left and right chest I have been remitted to hospital thinking it was a heart attack I also have a lump under my left breast which looks like swelling I have shooting pains in both my shoulders radiating down to my arms hands and fingers I have had weakness i also have back pain on left and right side in between shoulder blades and radiates up to my neck.
Hi Gabe. If the doctors have thoroughly checked out the dire possibilities like your heart, lungs, spine, etc. then you can relax - they're good at that. What remains is usually costochondritis, as I've been describing.
Costochondritis is essentially strain and pain at the joints where your ribs hinge onto your breastbone, caused by immobility of the rib joints round the back under your shoulder blade. (That’s why you get a lesser pain and tightness round the back there as well.) When these rib joints round the back can’t move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively, every breath you take.
So they strain, ‘give’ (usually with clicking and popping and often with sharp, scary, stabbing pain), get irritated and locally inflamed - and there’s your costochondritis. It is NOT a “mysterious inflammation” arriving out of a clear blue sky for no reason. So treating it like it is does NOT fix it. You’ve probably found that out. It's actually more like having the hand brake in the car jammed on - nothing's wrong with the vehicle, it's just that one piece of seized machinery that's the problem.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
Hello Steve, I had an intercoastal muscle strain 4 years ago and the weird part is that I myself pulled the muscles due to severe anxiety. Now, only I understood I managed to have Costo after that. Now I have low lung volume because of 4 year shallow breathing. Bolster stretch is giving me relief. I have problem exactly on 2 and 3 ribs. Steve, do you think backpod can fix my problem, I'm planning to buy it. Pls reply 🙏
Hi Adarsh. Should do - it's not a difficult problem. After four years, you won't have intercostal muscle strain in isolation - the ribs will also now be tight, which means their joints at the back where they hinge onto your spine will be tight and almost certainly frozen. So you need to stretch them back to full easy movement - as long as they're tight then you can't take a full breath in. If you're getting some relief stretching over a bolster, then the Backpod will free things up way more - its small peaked shape with the unyielding core has got much more leverage for stretching tight rib joints, and you'll need that leverage.
Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. Do please READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the 31-page user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf. These are the best detailed instructions on how to use the Backpod.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks, hand sanitise, and when you get home take all your clothes off and put them straight into the washing machine and you straight into the shower, including washing your hair.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks. Get them to go hard down between your shoulder blades.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
So, work at all this. It's bog standard logical New Zealand manual physio. When you start getting pretty good, start back into walking - breathing as deep into your lungs as you can and swinging your arms. It'll take awhile to get fitness back and fully re-inflate your lungs after four years of shallow, restricted breathing. Go for it!
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@stevenzphysio4203 Thanks a lot😀..I will definitely try.
I have a question; why does costo seem to get worse with stress ?
Hi Iggy. Pretty much everything gets worse with stress. Specifically with costo, increased muscle tension means even less movement at the rib machinery round the back, so therefore increased strain and pain at the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone. So you way out of it is not to decrease stress, desirable though that is anyway. It's to restore the full movement of the rib and spinal joints round your middle back, so the rib joints on your breastbone don't have to keep straining to do all the movement themselves.
Hi Steve love the way you explain things. I just ordered the backpod from Amazon. I am wondering if you recommend chiropractor for costochondritis or not? If so what do you think about their use of activator?
Hi ED. Well done on thinking for yourself and giving it a go.
In a perfect world, a good chiro, osteopath or physio would unlock any completely frozen rib and spinal hinges around your back, once, then the Backpod would stretch all the tight collagen around them so they'll stay free, and then you're fixed. Ta-dah!
Actually the Backpod will probably do it all anyway, though it takes a few weeks to get things mostly freed up. Usually you only need hands-on treatment as well if something's so frozen solid that even the Backpod can't loosen it up. So you could just start with the Backpod and only see a chiro, etc. if things don't clear completely.
The problem is that health professionals vary - just like hairdressers or plumbers. The good ones are great and worthwhile, but I have three problems with many (most?) chiros:
(1) They usually use that common body-slam-onto-the-patient-with-your-fist-in-their-back manipulation technique to unlock hinges round your back. This is simply dumb with costo, as it also badly squashes the already strained rib joints on your breastbone, and can really things up badly. There are better techniques, e.g. a knee-in-the-back which can be done gently and accurately.
(2) They tend to have a bias to just unlocking the spinal joints, and missing the rib joints round the back, and these are the crucial ones with costo.
(3) They usually want you to keep coming back and back indefinitely. This is expensive, ongoing, and as far as the thoracic spine and rib cage goes, dumb.
If you've had costo for more than a few months, the very tough collagen of the ligaments, capsules and fascia will stiffen down around the immobile joints round the back. Collagen is stronger by weight than steel wire, and it is impossible, repeat impossible, to stretch it out in the same split-second that you can unlock a joint. It's like expecting to stretch a hamstring that's so tight you can't reach your knees out in a split second so you can touch the floor - never happen.
You can get dramatic relief from manipulation - as a New Zealand physio I've used it for 30 years. But of course it doesn't last, as the shortened collagen around the unlocked joints just freezes them up again. Chiropractic has been around for nearly 100 years - you'd think they'd have worked that out by now.
That's the reason for the Backpod - to stretch things out so that they can stay free, hence solving the problem. In my opinion needing to go back all the time isn't a solution. When you get your roof fixed then it's supposed to be fixed, not needing to be fixed again in a week or so, and again and again..
Don't know if this helps you specifically, but that's how I'd see it. If you're picking a chiro, osteo or physio, ask them to watch this video, or the longer version. That's a test on any health pro including a doc - it's a reasonable request, and if they say no then they're not listening, and therefore they're probably not very good at what they do either. On balance I prefer ostopaths to chiros, but there are really good practitioners and flakes in both camps.
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
They all cost money. On the odds you're probably better to go with the Backpod, a couple of massages, then only a chiro, osteo or physio if the improvement stops short of total. Good luck with the work! Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 thank you very much for the great info.. I am getting my backpod in the mail tomorrow! God bless you
Hi ED. Forgot to say re actuators - they're just a hand-held device delivering a jolt; slang name for them is "gun". They can be useful, and fairly mild also. Personally I don't like them because the therapist can't feel what the joint's doing as they manipulate it, so you lose that useful bit of joint feel data.
Well done for thinking for yourself and giving the Backpod a go. Good luck with the work, and please DO follow the instructions. It does take a few weeks for things to free up mostly; usually. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 great thanks again and I look forward to using your gadget
@@EternalDestiny48 Hi Are you still in pain? How long did it take to go? I have also purchased the backpod.
Hi, Steve I got a question for you? My first rib I believe keeps rising on my left side. I tried using a back buddy to work it’s way down due you think a chiropractor or an osteopath be better at fixing that issue? It’s causing pain in my upper trapezius muscle.
Hi. This is really common - the first rib getting tight underneath the upper trapezius muscle (running from your neck to the point of your shoulder; it's what the shoulder straps of a pack sit on). As the upper traps get tight, which is REALLY common, especially with the iHunch from much bending over laptops, tablets and smartphones (see www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ ), then the first rib movement freezes up underneath the muscle.
So, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks. They're mostly for the upper traps, as the freer you get them, the easier it is for the first ribs underneath them to free up. The massages are in the Backpod's user guide, and also as videos on that iHunch page I just mentioned.
Then you can jiggle the first rib(s) as well. The backpod won't stretch them well - they're too high up for it. So you need the extra leverage of someone working the hinge. It gets tricky to describe some of our arcane Kiwi physio practices over RUclips but here goes!
The best stretch for the top rib (a.k.a. rib 1; first rib) is as follows. You need a helper. To mobilise the left first rib, sit in a chair, your head turned to the right. Your helper stands behind you, and lifts your left elbow up with their left hand so that your upper left arm is horizontal (and not more than horizontal). Then your helper puts their right forearm across your upper traps muscle belly, as close to your neck as they easily can, and pushes and bounces their right forearm vertically down towards the floor.
That jiggles your left rib 1 joint (which is under your left upper traps) really well. Thirty little vertical bounces would be good - it's a vertical push downwards; definitely not a sawing back-and-forth motion. Your helper should bend their knees a bit and use their body weight, not just their forearm alone - it's much easier on them and works better. Then do the same thing for the other side. Obviously start gently, then go harder as it frees up. This is a really useful technique, especially for people bending over computers and smartphones lots. Hope you can follow it.
You can follow through by working your upper ribs several times a day, especially to break up a long run at the computer. Just roll the points of your shoulders around in big circles about 20-30 times. Doesn't matter which direction. They'll rattle and bang a bit, as all the joints (including the first ribs) move a bit - that's fine, so long as it's not clearly painful.
Hope that helps. I'm suggesting this as it'll be an ongoing thing, with the upper traps and first ribs tending to keep on getting tight after much computing. Hands-on PT, chiro or osteo is really only likely to do a bit of temporary unlocking. (I'm speaking as a physio.)
Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 alright sweet!!I’m give this a try thank you. I been using a theracane and like where I put it is on my left side closest to my neck as that’s the most tender area and push down on it,but it flared up and was aggravated rest of the day made me wonder if I was hitting it right.
@@babyyoda3992 The Theracanes have their uses, but I find you just can't get an easy pressure with them, because you can't relax your own muscles because you're working the Theracane. It will still be a bit sore to jiggle that tight rib, but it's not a biggie, and it gets easier as it frees up.
I have chest pain around my sternum. I feel discomfort when I lift myself up or reach to the opposite side with my arms. It doesn’t hurt at all when I press on it though. What could this be?
Hi. It could be just a simple pec muscle strain, but the likeliest answer is costochondritis. Costochondritis is essentially strain and pain at the joints where your ribs hinge onto your breastbone, caused by immobility of the rib joints round the back under your shoulder blade. (That’s why you get a lesser pain and tightness round the back there as well.) When these rib joints round the back can’t move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively, every breath you take.
So they strain, ‘give’ (usually with clicking and popping and often with sharp, scary, stabbing pain), get irritated and locally inflamed - and there’s your costochondritis. It is NOT a “mysterious inflammation” arriving out of a clear blue sky for no reason. So treating it like it is does NOT fix it. You’ve found that out. It's actually more like having the hand brake in the car jammed on - nothing's wrong with the vehicle, it's just that one piece of seized machinery that's the problem.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
same
Hi Steve! I bought a back pod back in 2017. It fixed most of my costo issue. I eventually got to a oseopath center and there the doctor did realignments on the ribs. They however didn't fully all go back together moving, I eventually got protherapy injections on the ribs in an attempt to regrow the ligaments and everything. I go to a local gym and I been focusing hard this last year and so on my back and rear delts, from rhomboids to my traps to try to grow them so this issue doesn't happen again. Currently the ribs are still out of placement, it's my 2 and 3rd rib. I'm curious on something tho Steve, why do you think the ribs aren't staying in place after all the stuff I been into? Do you think the ligaments are still damaged from that time or is that my back isn't strong enough yet. I have tried physical therapy and it didn't do anything.
Hi Hat Maker. It's been a journey, hasn't it? Okay, let's really not use that term "staying in place". It really doesn't exist and it confuses things. So, you still have a problem at your ribs 2 and 3. You've been frozen round the back, with no movement at the rib 2 and 3 joints where they anchor onto your spine, and excessively compensatory straining at the rib 2 and 3 joints on your breastbone.
The Backpod should have stretched the tight rib joints around the back pretty free by now, and the osteopath should have unlocked with manipulation anything that was too tight for the Backpod on its own to shift. So that means the excessive movement load should have pretty well come off the strained rib joints on your breastbone.
However, those quite delicate joints have been pretty strained - like continuing to run on a sprained ankle. And for as long as it's been tight round the back, the joints on the front will have been spraining, every breath you take. So they're pretty hammered.
The prolotherapy injections were a good attempt to deal to that - to tighten the stretched out ligaments around the rib joints on your sternum again. Hope they helped - pity they didn't fix that specific bit of the problem.
You gym support muscle strengthening is also logical and good - you should have enough support strength for the supporting muscles around the back, now.
Running out of options! Those ribs 2 and 3 are high up and the Backpod has less leverage up there, even when you do lift your buttocks off the ground. I'm assuming your ostopath has definitely unlocked them - they are trickier than the lower ribs to manipulate. My manip of choice for them is a knee-in-the-back one, shown in a fuzzy video at ruclips.net/video/rWZA8w9tYrE/видео.html There are other NZ techniques also.
Have I suggested working Penetrex CD oil into the painful bit around the front? After so long straining and spraining, you can get local inflammatory response including slight swelling where the ribs 2 and 3 join onto your breastbone.
All it is is intracellular fluid - same sort of fresh fluid swelling that happens if you sprain your ankle. As with a sprained ankle, after a week the fluid selling sets hard. This is just normal inflammatory response to strained joints - there’s no auto-immune component. It’s a normal repair process, with fibrin in the fluid acting as a slow setting glue to try to hold everything together while the torn fibres and cells are repairing.
With your costo, the irritation and strain has continued for a year, so you can get a rock-like build-up of this stuff, often with a bit of fresh swelling on top if the mechanical strain is still happening. It’s a bit like running with tight boots causing a blister and NEVER STOPPING for years. (As the costosternal joints never get a rest as long as you breathe.)
So you've still probably got some hardened swelling there where the ribs join onto the breastbone. It doesn’t just interfere with the normal free glide of the rib hinges, it also binds down the free nerve endings and receptors, tethering them and making them hypersensitive. Break it down. This is like working hard putty or play dough until it becomes malleable. You can do this yourself. Use something to let your fingers slide. Massage wax is better than oil - oil dribbles. Better again is something that will also reduce the irritation of working adhesive fibrosis around, so Voltaren (diclofenac) gel or CBD cream like Penetrex.
Spend about 10-15 minutes every three days working your fingers through the hardened bits in all directions. Start gently - it’ll get easier as you continue. It will be tender and maybe sore - gets easier as it frees up. The first time is the worst. Just do what it feels like it can handle, and expect to feel it tender, especially to touch, afterwards.
It takes time - probably a few or several weeks. But it’s easy enough to do. It’s the main answer to this specific bit of the problem. Hopefully that's the last bit to go.
Sorry - thrashing around a bit now on the fine details; pretty hard to work out over RUclips. That's the likeliest bit now, though. Cheers, Steve August.
Thanks Steve for the advice and help. I got some anti inflammatory rub for the ribs. I went to see my Oseopath Doctor and he says the ribs are moving just the 5 th rib seems to be the big issue now. Says it's not moving as well and he had to re put some other ribs back in lineament so everything is going in order. Told me if everything doesn't go as it should he wants to do stem cells and inject it on the ligaments. Would the backpod be good for the 5, 6, 7 ribs? Also thank you for taking your time to read this.
@@babyyoda3992 Sure, use the Backpod on the 5,6,7 ribs. Push it: lift your buttocks off the ground and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and stay on them 1-3 minutes. Do that twice daily if possible and see how things are in a fortnight. Sounds like it's the last bit of stiffness to go now.
Re injecting stem cells into the ligaments - I just have no idea. Truly don't know if it's a useful treatment or flying a kite. Sorry.
@@stevenzphysio4203I been trying the back pod on the ribs particularly the 5th rib and I'm struggling to get the last bit of mobility there free, where exactly should I be lining the back pod up on the back to hit this area effectively?
@@babyyoda3992 Chase the sorest bit - that'll be the remaining tightest bit. Actually the rib #5 is pretty easy to get - you'll need the Backpod peak just sitting between the row of bony bumps that are your spine, and the inside of your shoulder blade. The Backpod should be lengthwise, in line with the spine, not across it, for this.) Stay on it for a few minutes, as per my last reply.
Hi Steve, I lifted something heavy in September but felt no pain at the time. The next day I had a dull ache down my left side and left arm. When you search the internet the first things that come up are heart attack and lung cancer so I panicked. Roll on to December and I still have the pain so had a chest x ray that came back completely clear. And I’m now going for physio therapy. Main points are my pain/constant ache feels extremely internal and nearer the back, when I breath in deep something in my chest clicks but doesn’t hurt but I feel that’s near the ache. It’s affecting my sleep and I can only lay on my right side because of it. I’m worried it’s something else maybe? Can it really feel that internal? And can this dull ache down one side really last this long? I guess I’m worried deep down it could be lung cancer maybe as I smoked for 10 years but the clear chest x Ray was clear and I’m not coughing up blood or anything. That side does hurt slightly more when I cough or sneeze for sure though. I look forward to hearing what you think?
Hi. It sounds exactly like what I've been describing, and therefore is readily fixable.
BUT you always get the heart, lungs, etc. thoroughly checked out by the docs. That's what they're good at; they're just usually not much good on costochondritis.
Assuming all the dire stuff is clear, what you've described sounds exactly like what I've been talking about - frozen rib joints round the back, causing excessive movement at the rib joints on your breastbone (hence the clicking as they give).
There's a home test for this tight rib bit on the Costo page of the Backpod's website www.backpod.co.nz. If you're positive on that, then that's almost certainly what's going on.
How we fix it is on the website, and also as a video How to fix most costochondritis, Part (2). Go for it. It's highly unlikely any doc is going to fix it for you, or that it's just going to somehow settle and disappear.
Cheers, Steve August.
Hi Steve I have pain on my right side on my 9th rib. Do I use the back pod in the same way as show in your videos? Thank you in advance.
Hi Sheereen. Probably, yes. You haven't given me a lot of detail to work with.
I'm assuming you've been checked out by your doctor for other things going on. If that's all clear, then stuck ribs are a common problem, and as far as we can tell, the Backpod is about the only thing around that does a really effective stretch on them.
There's a test you can do which is a good indicator of a tight rib or ribs. It's on the costochondritis page of the Backpod's website - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ If that looks like a fit with what you've been experiencing, then sure, go for it. It's not difficult. Have a look at the video hyperlinked on that page also, for some exercises that go along with the Backpod. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Thank you for your reply! Yes. I saw a rheumatologist who told me it is slipping rib syndrome. I will use the back pod as per your video! Thanks
@@sheereenmallick9692 Hi Sheereen. Yes, you can treat slipping ribs and costo the same way. They're essentially the same problem, except that with slipping ribs the excessive movement and straining is happening at the costochondral junctions, where the ribs change from bone to cartilage. With costo, the giving is at the rib joints on your breastbone. But they're both happening because the rib joints round the back are frozen and can't move, so freeing those up is the core of fixing both problems.
Good luck with the work. Have a look over the costo page on the Backpod's website, including the linked videos. Link to the page is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ Cheers, Steve August.
I don't know whether am suffering from this situation, the thing happened to me was one punched me right on my stern and when I lay down straight on bed and when I wake up I feel the pain so badly, what would be the reason
Hi Anitta. I can't really tell from that little information. Depends how long ago the punch was. Bruising and impact damage will settle down and heal. But if the jolt of the punch transmitted to your rib joints around the back and they are now not moving, then the pain at the front will keep happening until the rib machinery round the back is freed up.
Have a look at the Backpod's costochondritis page - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ That should give you an idea of what's probably going on. Bottom line - if the pain from the chest impact is still continuin long after and bruising or impact damage has healed and settled, then it'll be because the rib machinery round the back has frozen. the page explains this and what to do about it.
It's pretty common, actually - we see it a lot after car crashes where the patient hit the front airbag with their chest. Cheers, Steve August.
The pain is not in my breastbone, it’s in my ribss front and back, right and left and I am so done
Well, get off your chuff and find out about it, and fix it. Nobody's going to do it for you.
It's up to you - you're the one in pain. Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ That should tell you what's going on and what to do. Over to you.
Cheers, Steve August.
Hi Steve i had costo for 11 months now and nothing helping, been to doctors several times and got told its inflammation in the rib cartilage, been taking naproxen and tablets to protect stomach, it’s really getting to me the longer i have costo
Hi Craigy boy. Well, you have the answer in the video. It's no use expecting any doctor's going to solve it for you because usually they don't understand costo. That's why you're still in pain after 11 months. So it's up to you - you're the one in pain.
Have a look at another video on mine on How to fix most costo and Tietze's - link is ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This has the treatment approaches we use. Also have a look at the costo page on the Backpod's website www.backpod.co.nz Good luck with the work.
Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio thanks for getting back to me, I take a 30mg dose of amitriptyline per night also, i feel it’s always there and get these flare ups which resulted in going back to doctors today, think the back pod is my last chance to fix this, I will have a look at it and hopefully can get it shipped to the uk Scotland
@@oasis283 Yes, the amitrips are a standard medical answer to a wound-up nervous pathway, where the pain has become chronic. They're useful to desensitise the fired-up nerves. But they don't fix it if there's a problem still causing the pain, and that's the case with costo.
For you to be prescribed them tells me you've had the problem a long time. Therefore the Backpod s exactly what you want to stretch free the chronically tight rib movement around the back causing the pain at the front. There are various options for getting a Backpod to the UK - have a look on the Buy page of the website www.backpod.co.nz (I think Amazon is out of stock at present.)
Also, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio my costo appeared back in January and can’t think of any injury i done myself, I am 34 years old and always kept active in the gym ie weights/cardio, i still go twice per week to keep my spirit up and also to stay fit.
@@oasis283 Hi Craigy boy. Mm - two likely options. If you're getting a bit hunched from much bending over laptops, tablets and smartphones, and most people are, then along with your upper back getting tight your rib joints also stiffen up. When they get tight enough round the back, then the costo strain will start up on your breastbone. I think it's the main reason for most new costo these days. Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod's website if that sounds like a fit - we built the Backpod primarily as a home package to counter this huge problem.
Secondly, the specific trigger is often dips in the gym - more than any other exercise. These load the whole rib cage, and if the rib joints round the back have got too tight to move, then the ones on your breastbone will strain and 'give' - a bit like spraining your ankle. This one exercise in the gym seems to be the very worst for costo; bench presses can also be a problem but not nearly so much..
Hello I have a lump on my xiphoid appendix and also pain at my ribs do I have costochondritis?
Hi Santiago. Probably. But you do need to see a doctor first to get the lump on the xiphoid checked out, plus other possibilities like your heart.
If those are all clear, then it's most likely you have costochondritis, with the rib cage tight enough that you're getting pain at your xiphoid process too.
Costochondritis is essentially strain and pain at the joints where your ribs hinge onto your breastbone, caused by immobility of the rib joints round the back under your shoulder blade. (That’s why you get a lesser pain and tightness round the back there as well.) When these rib joints round the back can’t move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively, every breath you take.
So they strain, ‘give’ (usually with clicking and popping and often with sharp, scary, stabbing pain), get irritated and locally inflamed - and there’s your costochondritis. It is NOT a “mysterious inflammation” arriving out of a clear blue sky for no reason. So treating it like it is does NOT fix it. You’ve found that out. It's actually more like having the hand brake in the car jammed on - nothing's wrong with the vehicle, it's just that one piece of seized machinery that's the problem.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
I also have a small little bump on my xiphoid appendix
@@wanga_1098 Hi Nana. The answer's the same as I gave to Santiago Belmont. Xiphoids can be odd shapes and distortions, so it's most probably just that. But you do need to get it checked by a doctor to be sure. If it's painful, you get the same answer as I gave Santiago. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203 Thanks Steve, I went to a doctor (in November) and got an ultrasound which found nothing weird on my chest, so i don't really know what is this swelling and slight pain that suddenly comes and disappear (the pain not the swelling)
hi! I've been using the Backpod since September and i'm now down to one pillow. A week ago, I started having a throbbing pain at the top of my skull and it's now spread down the back of my head and down the right side of my neck. While doing my research it sounds like I have the symptoms of Occipital Neuralgia. That would be so random because I haven't gotten injured or anything. The only thing I can think of is maybe i've done something with the Backpod. Is there a correlation?? My collarbones also are a bit painful to touch.
Hi. Good - if you're down to one pillow with the Backpod then your upper back and ribs are freeing up fine. Stick with it.
When you're on the Backpod, just keep your chin held in a bit. You've probably been poking it out a bit, which jams down the joints a bit at the top of your neck, and that's what's causing your headache. You would have been tight there anyway.
Talk someone into doing the two massages shown in the Backpod's user guide, especially the sitting one. You'll be tight in the muscles running up to the base of your skull as well, and massage is ideal for loosening those.
Also, do the muscle stretch and the two strengthening exercises shown in the user guide, especially the chin held in one.
This is all really common. The odds are very good you've got the hugely common slightly hunched upper back we call the iHunch, with costo on top. Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod's website - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, just follow all the elements of the Backpod's program in the user guide - it's what we built it for.
Cheers, Steve August.
Hi would pectus excavatum aggravate costochondritis
Hi Hua. Yes. I get quite a few questions about pectus excavatum. PE means there's an abnormal load on the rib joints on your breastbone anyway, because of the sunken structure of the ribs round your front. So it's a predisposition to strain at those joints.
The usual story is that you've had PE all your life, but you've more recently become painful. So why would that be - what's changed? The usual answer is that like so many people you're getting hunched and tighter in your upper back, from much bending over laptops, tablets and smartphones. We call it the iHunch - see www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/
Now, as the thoracic spine joints get tighter and freeze, so too do the rib joints round the back, where your ribs hinge onto your spine.
When these joints can't move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively to compensate - just to let you keep breathing. This isn't an idea or a theory - it's unequivocal.
So they strain, 'give', often click and pop, get painful and locally inflamed - and there's the reason for your costochondritis. It is NOT a "mysterious inflammation" arriving for no reason. Your pectus excavatum makes you more vulnerable to this strain, which is why so many people with PE get costo.
The solution is logical - which dosing you up with anti-inflammatory meds is not; that's why they don't fix the problem. Free up the tight rib machinery around the back. The Backpod is the only thing around I know of with the specific leverage to quietly stretch free the frozen rib machinery around your back. See www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/ Good luck with the work.
Cheers, Steve August.
Hi Steve,
Thank you for your videos. And taking the time for full explanation and for caring.
My pain began 2 months ago under my left shoulder blade. As a waitress, my left arm was the one used to carry trays, lift tables, chairs, etc. One shift i lifted a table from the basement crawl space and from then the pain became too much to ignore.
So i stopped work. The pain has traveled down into my left ribcage. One of my left ribs was sticking out a bit for a while, and still does, it seems a bit out of place. No doctor has seen it as cause for concern. My right ribcage now is also sore and tender. The ortho said costcochondritis, though he only "examined" me for 60 seconds.
My pain wraps around the left ribs, but they are the lower ribs. The pain is not where the ribs connect to the breast bone. Mostly, breathing does not hurt, which hooray!
However, the aching in both sides is present all day, and worsens with sudden movement, lifting, even walking too long.
I was also working out 4-5x a week before this all happened. Now im afraid to do any exercise, and am losing muscle. I have a history of POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome)- my symptoms from that have resolved. And have not been an issue since 2015. All this to say, i know my body is sensitive to virus/inury.
No one has offered me real help since the pain/injury began. Any insights on this?
All my gratitude!
Jaimie
Hi Jaimie. Initial comment - if you were doing dips in the gym, that's a common trigger of costochondritis. Best not to until this is well resolved.
Go onto the Backpod's website www.backpod.co.nz and onto the Costochondritis page. There's a home test for the tight rib machinery causing costo there. Do it and let me know how it goes. If you're clearly tighter on torso rotation to your left, that fits with frozen rib (and probably also spinal) joints around the back; those will also be causing your rib cage pain.
The easiest way out of it is a Backpod to stretch free the tight movement, plus also shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
It should be a straightforward tight ribs freeing-up problem. Usually takes about three weeks to stretch mostly free on the Backpod, and you can use that torso twist test to measure your progress. You're better no to gym until you can twist your torso 90˚ to both sides with no problems - before that you'll just keep flaring it.
Good luck with the work, but it does sound straightforward. It's a freeing up problem, not a healing one. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203
Hi Steve, thank you for your insight and speedy response!
I feel it was brought on by repetitive heavy lifting..when the upper left back muscle or ribhead became so overexerted, i think my body tried to compensate and when lifting at work- the weight was incorrectly distributed and that pressure came down onto my ribcage. Would that cause costco?
I am able to rotate both ways, but to the left, my upper left back hurts..rotating to the right, lower back left ribs hurt.
Left lower ribs tender to touch in front and back. Right lower front ribs also tender to touch.
The ortho gave a rib belt. Which compresses everything. It makes certain movements less painful, but I cannot wear it all day. I dont know if wearing it is just making things worse.
Is it normal for the ribs to ache all day w this? My only real relief is ice. Painkillers do nothing.
Ive been doing deep breathing. Gentle stretches. And some myofascial release massage between several sore ribs. Can't tell if they exaerbate pain or help.
Does this still sound like Costco to you? The pain has gotten worse, not better with time, Which is what worries me.
Thank you again.
Jaimie
@@jaimiegomes8833 Hi Jaimie.
Well, the ortho's rib support is only immobilising the rib cage a bit. Sensible if you were letting a broken bone heal, but I don't think it's helping what sounds like your tight rib cage problem - it'll just let everything stiffen up more.
I'd (1) get a Backpod and start freeing up the tight rib joint machinery, and (2) shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've been tight in the rib cage for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up.
What you have isn't classic costo, but it sounds exactly like the usual tight rib cage muscle and joints that drive classic costo - you're just not tight enough yet for the rib joints on your breastbone to strain as well.
It's getting worse with the ortho's rib belt - I don't think it's the right way to treat it. Cheers, Steve August.
@@stevenzphysio4203
Thanks Steve.
I went ahead and ordered the backpod. I was so desparate the other night I laid on a sock for a few minutes, right under the left shoulder blade where the pain stems from---- not sure what I did, but the pain a couple hours was worse in that exact spot than its been in weeks. Im a bit afriad to use the backpod now. Would you suggest i wait a bit?
I know you say it is because the rib hinges are stiff- which i dont dont you know what youre saying. It just feels internally like if i try "stretching" that muscle in the back which I overexerted terribly over time its goinf to snap or something! It just feels so extremely weak back there, like it cant withhold much more strain.
Last question- can I do stairmaster at the gym? Or try swimming? Im avoiding activity to avoid pain, but i feel like things are stiffening up. The balancing act is the beast. I dont know what is beneficial and what is too much and harmful.
Thanks for your invaluable advice, and dedication to all of us searching for real answers.
Jaimie
Hi Jaimie. Well, of corse I haven't seen you in person but the odds are very, very good that you're just tight round the back in the rib machinery in the way I've been describing. Don't know about the sock - the Backpod is the best thing around to stretch those tight rib joints. Please DO read and follow the instructions accurately. It will take time to stretch the tight stuff free. Sure it can be a bit tender to start things moving again, but it should not be painful if you follow the instructions. Just give it time - usually a few weeks to free things up mostly, though this can vary.
Hello Steve! I have been suffering with Tietze’s syndrome since January this year. I have huge pain on the right side that is constant and when I move my head to my left arm the pain gets worse and sometimes it cracks. After the crack I’m feeling a bit of a relief but it is not what I want. If I try to crack and it does not, it just gets a lot worse. I ordered the BackPod yesterday and I really hope that it will help me. I wanna go back to workout in the gym and live a life without pain. Wish you all good and I will get back to you once I start using the backpod.
Hi Dante.
The Backpod should really help or fully fix your problem. Have a look at the other videos and website from the text below the video.
The cracking is NOT a "mysterious inflammation" symptom, but a mechanical one - like cracking your knuckles. What that tells me is that the ribs round your back aren't moving, and the Backpod is ideal for freeing that up.
In a perfect rib cage, the joints at both ends of the ribs (on your spine and on your breastbone) are sliding fully and silently every time you breathe. With most costo, the ones at the back are tight or jammed solid. So the more delicate joints at the other ends of the same ribs on your breastbone have to move excessively to let you keep breathing.
So they strain, get irritated, inflamed - and there's your costo. The really painful, scary, sharp stab of chest pain is when one or more of the rib joints on your breastbone has 'given' even more - like spraining your ankle. The crack happens when they give - like a rusty hinge. No problems - freing up the tight rib machinery round the back isn't a big deal.
You could also shout yourself a sports massage. The muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. That takes just that much more tightening pressure off the rib cage.
Cheers, Steve August.
How do you feel now dante? Still in pain?
@@Venzotasoki guess yeah😂
What age do we have to be to use this? And can we use on both left and right side of of our back? If so how
Hi Angie. All the Backpod does is give enough leverage to stretch out a tight hunched back and tight rib joints round the back. If you're getting costochondritis then almost certainly you're tight or frozen on the movement of the rib joints round the back - that's what causes the strain and pain round the front. It's only a stretch - not really different from stretching tight hamstrings, say, except it's for the joints. The youngest person with costo who needed that was 10, as I recall. So really it's for anyone with costo; age isn't really an issue.
Yes, you use the Backpod up and down the spine, and also out to the sides of the spine a bit to stretch the ribs as well. How you use it is covered in the user guide that comes with the Backpod.
If you have a look over the costochondritis page on the Backpod's website you'll get a better idea of why it's useful - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
The thing about costo is that you have to take charge and think for yourself. You've probably discovered that the docs are really good at checking out the heart and anything else dire; they're just usually not much good at costo. Cheeringly, you can fix most of it yourself; it's not particularly difficult once you understand what's actually causing it, and treat that cause. Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio Great, where can I purchase it ?
@@ajortiz377 Depends where you are in the world. Just go to the Buy page on the Backpod's website - link is www.bodystance.co.nz/buy-now Scroll down to your country. Cheers, Steve August.
Does Costochondritis Also Cause Like A Burning Pain As Well?
It does if you have it long enough. When you've had any chronic pain for long enough, usually at least several months, then the nerves carrying the pain signals can get fired up and hypersensitised themselves. You get a burning character to the pain when this happens.
It's also called a wound-up nervous pathway. It's like the nerves start firing themselves - no longer just reporting the problem, but firing up on their own. It's a bit like learning a skill - the pathways get well established in your nerves and brain. This is the same thing, only with pain. It's why often just light touch is still painful, and you often get a burning quality to the pain. You treat it two ways:
(1) Fix the actual problem causing the fired up nerves in the first place. With costo, that's usually not too difficult, in spite of all the gloom and depair about it. Have a look at another video on mine on How to fix most costo and Tietze's - link is ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This has the treatment approaches we use.
(2) Settle down the fired-up nerves. The standard medical approach is a very low dose tricyclic antidepressants, such as amitriptyline - NOT because you're depressed, but in very low doses they slowly desensitise the fired up nervous pathways. Usually takes about three months. Those would come from your doctor. I find they work slowly but well once the mechanical reasons for the pain being there have been sorted out.
Good luck. Cheers, Steve August.
I’ve been dealing with it for a month, I noticed when I barely touch my chest/ breast bone with my fingers barely I feel the irritation/burning. It comes & goes. I’m So overwhelmed with it, there’s times when it gets the best of me.
@@donluna6067 Hi. Well, go onto the costo page of the Backpod's website and try the home test for costo that's on there. That should give you a pretty good indicator as to whether it's caused by the tight rib bit I've been talking about. If it is, then it's a matter of freeing them up, and that Part (2) video indicates how. It's a horrible condition, but I do find it's logical and can be understood and fixed quite readily, usually.
Steve NZ Physio Just Seen it sounds Complicated I don’t get it? Any Way You Can Make A Video For It? It Would Surely Be A Big Help 🙏
@@donluna6067 No - I'm just too busy. Don, I don't think it's complicated. Just work through it - it's a good indicator of whether what you've got is what I've been talking about. Cheers, Steve August.
Thank you for this, just got Tietze’s about 5 days ago and I felt lost. Ordered the back pod and I can’t wait for it to arrive.
did it work
@@sayuas4293 It did, I used it consistently and like he had shown how, and it went away in about a month.
How many times of day did you use the backpod?
@@stephaniehamlet2474 I would use it twice a day for like 10-15 mins each time
Did you have any aches in your arms or hands back neck
Nice office😀
Yup. We thought - if you're going to do a talking head video, why not do it somewhere gorgeous? Cheers, Steve August.
I have osthocondrites but have severe sortnes of brave way
Hi Eliza. I'm assuming you mean you've got costrochondritis and severe shortness of breath, but were ambushed by your spell-checker.
Costochondritis is essentially strain and pain at the joints where your ribs hinge onto your breastbone, caused by immobility of the rib joints round the back under your shoulder blade. (That’s why you get a lesser pain and tightness round the back there as well.) When these rib joints round the back can’t move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively, every breath you take.
So they strain, ‘give’ (usually with clicking and popping and often with sharp, scary, stabbing pain), get irritated and locally inflamed - and there’s your costochondritis. It is NOT a “mysterious inflammation” arriving out of a clear blue sky for no reason. So treating it like it is does NOT fix it. You’ve probably found that out.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Breathing difficulties are usual with costochondritis. The tight rib machinery round the back that causes the rib joints on your breastbone to strain, also means you can't take a full breath in - it's like wearing a tight corset. So that makes you breathe high and fast, and that hyperventilation pushes you towards panic attacks, and certainly anxiety. It's all classic costo.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
@@stevenzphysio4203 thanks sorry for my spelling i am afrikaans
@@elizalombard5776 Hi Eliza. I hope you could follow my reply okay. Sorry - I'm only any good in English.
If videos are easier, try the Part (2) Costochondritis video of mine - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html
Also, if you can't get hold of a Backpod, you can use some tightly rolled up socks taped up into a ball about 90mm across. Use that as we'd use the Backpod. The instructions are in the user guide - there's a pdf of it near the bottom of the Costochondritis page on the Backpod's website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
That'll start you stretching the tight ribs. Yes, the Backpod is hugely better - it's got much more specific leverage because of its unyielding core, and usually the joints need that oomph. But the socks will help. Cheers, Steve August.
Has anyone been feeling tired as well and throat feeling a bit tight lately. Or is it just me ?
Those aren't costo symptoms. Go get a COVID-19 test, just to be safe. Cheers, Steve August.
Steve NZ Physio well I do have chosto as I have been diagnosed with it. I bought the backpod and have been doing exercises but when I put the backpod to the lower side I do feel my ribs been really tight and painful.
@@theothethrifter5021 Good oh. That's where you concentrate the Backpod, then - on those tight ribs. If all your rib and spinal joints round the back were moving fine and fully, then all you feel on the Backpod (with no pillow) is a satisfying stretch - because the joints are moving fine. They're only sore when they're tight - which is why you need to stretch them out.
Stick with it - it’s very tough stuff you’re stretching and it takes time. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and the 'Warnings and precautions' section in the user guide. If for some reason you haven’t got one, there is also a pdf copy of the full user guide near the bottom of the iHunch and Costochondritis pages on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/assets/Uploads/backpod-full-user-guide-feb-2020.pdf.
We start people off really gently because often they just do too much initially and get sore. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes. You are starting to stretch joints that haven’t moved for months or years and you can get a bit of normal treatment tenderness for a few days. It’s a lot like stretching hamstring muscles that are so tight you can’t touch your knees - takes a while before you can reach your toes.
When you no longer need a pillow under your head when you’re lying on the Backpod, get some more oomph out of it by lifting your buttocks off the ground, using the Backpod crosswise across the upper back (gives more leverage) as well as lengthwise and out to the sides a little (to get the ribs), and/or linking your fingers together and slowly moving your arms up over your head and down to your waist repeatedly; try that with just one arm as well. Chase the tightest bits and spend 1-3 minutes on each.
Also, when you get to that point, start doing the sitting twist exercise I showed 12.54 minutes into the ‘How to Fix most Costo and Tietze’s , Part (2)’ RUclips video - ruclips.net/video/r7ve6nNVdWc/видео.html This is to work the joints now they’re reasonably unlocked - like working a rusty hinge back and forth after you put some oil on it.
Also, ideally, shout yourself a sports massage - preferably two, with a week off in between. When you've had costo for more than a few months, the muscles between and overlying the tight ribs around your back and sides, plus the pec muscles on your chest, also get tight and scarred. Massage is ideal for loosening them up. However NOT until it’s safe with COVID-19. At a minimum, you should both wear masks, hand sanitise, and when you get home take all your clothes off and put them straight into the washing machine and you straight into the shower, including washing your hair.
As well, if possible, talk, bargain or bribe someone into doing the two massages in the Backpod’s user guide, about once a week for at least a few weeks.
You’re probably tight on your pecs as part of it all, so best to stretch them as well. There’s a good pec stretching video on RUclips - link is ruclips.net/video/EfVKRXhYVEA/видео.html
I’m guessing this next bit, but the commonest reason these days for costo starting is if you’re getting a bit hunched, usually from much bending over computers, phones, patients or whatever - we call it the iHunch. As part of the spine getting a bit hunched and tight, the rib joints attaching to your spine also stiffen and seize. When they can’t move, then the joints at the other ends of the same ribs MUST work excessively just to let you keep breathing. So they strain, ‘give’, irritate, get locally inflamed - and welcome to costo. It’s not a “mysterious inflammation” arriving for no reason.
Have a look at the iHunch page on the Backpod’s website - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/ihunch/ If that looks like a fit with you, then you’d better do all the bits in the Backpod’s home program - we designed it specifically to counter the iHunch and pull you back towards perfect posture. It’s worth looking at the Perfect Posture page also.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).
Anyone on here selling their used backpod? :(
Hi Vanja. I don't know where you are in the world but there's a used Backpod just popped up for sale on ebay.co.uk - £42.50. Watch that the site doesn't default you to 'back pod' when you search, which doesn't work. Good luck - this hardly ever happens. I see it's from the US, so maybe it's on eBay in the US as well. Cheers, Steve August.
was diagnosed today, been over a month, it hurts a lot
Hi Maddie. It sure does - I've had it. Good luck with fixing it. I know it's confusing, with everyone including the docs telling you what to do about it. But you do have to think for yourself with costo.
Costochondritis is essentially strain and pain at the joints where your ribs hinge onto your breastbone, caused by immobility of the rib joints round the back under your shoulder blade. (That’s why you get a lesser pain and tightness round the back there as well.) When these rib joints round the back can’t move, then the more delicate rib joints on your breastbone MUST move excessively, every breath you take.
So they strain, ‘give’ (usually with clicking and popping and often with sharp, scary, stabbing pain), get irritated and locally inflamed - and there’s your costochondritis. It is NOT a “mysterious inflammation” arriving out of a clear blue sky for no reason. So treating it like it is does NOT fix it. You’re probably finding that out. It's actually more like having the hand brake in the car jammed on - nothing's wrong with the vehicle, it's just that one piece of seized machinery that's the problem.
Put the effort in to understand what’s going on so you can fix your costochondritis yourself. It’s up to you - you are very unlikely to find a doc who can fix it for you. They haven’t so far, right? There is a specific reason for that.
Also, no - it usually won’t “just settle down.” That’s just doc reassurance and it’s simply incorrect - the existing research shows most costo lasts for AT LEAST a year. There’s a specific reason for that too.
Thoroughly read the costo page of the Backpod’s website, including watching the costo videos linked from it - www.bodystance.co.nz/en/costochondritis/
Understand what’s going on and what actually fixes costo. Our sensible and effective New Zealand manual physiotherapy way to fix costo is based on the actual published medical research. The popular medical explanation of costo as a “mysterious inflammation" is not. Yes, this is nuts.
Good luck with the work.
Cheers,
Steve August (B.A.,Dip.Physio.).