Sounds like you are having some kind of spinal issues and need an evaluation by a spine surgeon to sort out what it going on.

I would suggest that you seek the opinion of either an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in spines or a neurosurgeon who specializes in spines only.

The fact that after 8 months of relief with OTC meds, the pain is returning, leads me to believe you may have spinal stenosis and over time it is just getting worse.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Fran

thanks
well I am not sure I would say that I had 8 months of relief with OTC meds.I only took them for the 2 or 3 weeks my doctor prescribed and thereafter had only mild stiffness in the mornings.
I now (8 or 9 months later) feel that it is returning to maybe half as bad as it was before but not crippling at all -just worried that it might develop to that level .
Previously ,when it was very bad , I noticed that the condition never seemed to improve even after 6 months or so and I was starting to accept it as normal.
But after I went to see the doctor I was really surprised at how quickly it cleared up (I had been using OTC medication but the naproxen he prescribed was not OTC over here so I had never tried it before)

Naproxen is old OTC under the name Aleve in the US. Thought there are higher doses than is allowed OTC that are prescription required.

It is a strong anti inflammatory that can relieve muscle pain as well as symptoms of spinal stenosis.

It is an NSAID which can have side affects with long term use that are not ones that people would want to have.

You need to have your spine pain evaluated by a spine specialist to determine what the cause is and why it continues to come back, even with the use of anti inflammatory medication use.

Fran

I would recommend you have an evaluation by your local Chiropractor.

If you have chronic muscle tension and/or bone pain of inexplicable origin, you may want to consider taking a vitamin D test. Recent research has shown that chronic muscle tension can be caused by a vitamin D deficiency. See vitamindcouncil.org for more info. For me, the main symptoms were chronic tension in the neck, shoulders, back and hamstrings. After I started taking an ultra high (50,000 IU/week) dose of vitamin D the symptoms gradually went away over the course of a few weeks.

If you have chronic muscle tension and/or bone pain of inexplicable origin, you may want to consider taking a vitamin D test. Recent research has shown that chronic muscle tension can be caused by a vitamin D deficiency. See vitamindcouncil.org for more info. For me, the main symptoms were chronic tension in the neck, shoulders, back and hamstrings. After I started taking an ultra high (50,000 IU/week) dose of vitamin D the symptoms gradually went away over the course of a few weeks.