Back Pain Alert: Doctors Tell Mom it Was Due to Bad Posture, But it Was a Baby-Head-sized Tumor

A young mom told her doctor that she was experiencing excruciating back pain. The doctor told her that it was because of "bad posture" while working from home. The doctors later found out that she had a tumor the size of a baby's head at the base of her spine.

She is now taking intense treatment, including monthly injections to shrink the tumor and eventually undergo surgery to remove the mass. She urges people suffering from back pain to take it seriously, as per DailyMail.

Bad working posture

Ellie Chandler first felt back pain after giving birth to twins Brooke and Parker Chandler in December 2019. When the pandemic hit a few months after, her symptoms worsened.

She visited the doctors several times in October 2021 when the pain increased rapidly. The doctors told her that it must be from bad posture from sitting at her desk. She was advised to buy a support pillow and take painkillers.

According to Daily Mirror, the pain became so severe that she would cry in pain. She could not sleep or sit, which affected her ability to use the bathroom.

She set an appointment with an orthopedic specialist and received a clear x-ray until her gynecologist felt a considerable mass from inside her rectum and vagina.

After several tests, doctors found that she had a rare 5.5-inch (14 cm) giant cell tumor on the base of the spine.

She said doctors did not necessarily suspect it was a tumor "because you are young and healthy, and they think of other things first." This must have contributed to how the mass grew so big it was the size of a baby's head when they found it.

People tend to normalize back pain, especially people who are working from home. She now warns people that back pain is not normal, and one should take the symptom seriously if it causes an impact on daily activities.

She encourages young people not to put off going to the doctor before the condition worsens.

Managing back pains

Physical therapist Eric Robertson, DPT, says that normal back pain is due to sitting too much and not moving enough, as per WebMD.

Robertson is also the spokesperson for American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). He gives the following advice for those who are suffering from back pains:

• Avoid bed rest. Lying down for long periods can slow recovery and increase the pain. Being active as you can with back pain aids its recovery.
• Keep moving. Robertson says that most back pains are not severe, even if they may seem so painful. Not being afraid of motion and moving despite the pain is very important in healing the pain. Walking is also a good choice. Working with a physical therapist to learn to identify dangerous pain levels to know the right moves is the best.
• Do not sit up with your bed hunched over your laptop.
• Use cushioned chairs when sitting for long periods. Hard seats do not support your back and keep you from sitting up straight.