weak legs and not able to sit or stand

by wandia cecilia
(mombasa kenya)

My mother started in 2009 with pain on her left shoulder joint, this continued slowly to difficulty in standing and walking. Was this due to pain or weakness?

she was given a treatment of vitamins which enabled her walk again, this was short lived because she fell on her back, but no injury seen on x-ray; her scan shows nothing but since May 2010, she has never walked again, she can not sit on her own, and when i try to support her to stand, its like her legs cant straighten.

Hello Cecilia,
When you say your mother can't sit or stand, is this due to pain in her or legs, or due to profound weakness of the muscles?

Is there numbness of the lower legs?

Seeing that vitamins helped I'm thinking of a vitamin B1 (beri beri) or B12 (pernicious anemia) deficiency.

If she has pain, then it sounds like a problem in her spine but you mention no back pain.

Big question: pain or weakness, what stopping her?

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Feb 26, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Looking for a Chiropractic in Mombasa
by: Anonymous

Hi. My daughter who is 19 years now started having back pains 4 years ago. I once took her to a bone specialist who said that one of her hips is higher than the other. Right now her tailbone and her right hip are so sore that she can hardly sit or walk straight. The pain makes her right leg shake all the time and, at times, the right leg becomes numb. Can a chiropractor help her? Are there any Chiropractors in Mombasa? She is in so much pain. Please tell me how I can help her.

Hello Florence,
I trained with a chiropractor from Kenya, but that was 40 years ago and he was ahead of me; I confess I've forgotten his name. I think he was from Nairobi.

I'm concerned about that leg shaking; that's unusual and invites questions as to whether there's something more complex going on. Are her reflexes normal?

Is she doing lower back exercises? That is vitally important; she can find them in the navigation bar at Chiropractic Help.

Have you got x-rays? A copy to Contact would help me. I wish I could be more helpful. Perhaps ask her to continue this, giving me a lot more detail.

I have a lot of questions to ask her, and tests that she could do at home.

Dr B

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Interesting challenges of the day

1. Mr S is a 76 year old man with neck pain of some 9 months duration. Luckily, most of the discomfort is upper cervical which is only rarely arthritic; his lower cervical spine is a degenerative mess that I've left alone. After seven treatments his pain and stiffness is 50 percent better, and he's happy in the circumstances. He can sleep through the night now and that makes a huge difference.

2. Mr P is 32 year old man with very severe lower back pain radiating to the big toe which is 30 percent numb. He had an episode three weeks ago, took anti inflammatories and was soon better as is typical of the medial disc herniation. But before it healed, after a trivia it came roaring back, much worse. The characteristic crossed sign was evident; sitting in a chair, straightening the right leg provoked severe left back pain and tingling in the leg. He's doing well.

3. Severe lower back pain is scary; just ask Mrs P. Just watching her get out of the car I she was in trouble; she had a slipped disc at L4 making her lean towards the opposite side; luckily she had no pain in the leg. Despite family pressure that this was far too severe for a chiropractor, she persevered. Within five days she was standing upright, and after two weeks almost painfree. 

Despite a hectic job, she wisely took my advice and stayed home for what I call exercising bed rest.

4. Mr S has had lower back, groin and back of thigh and calf pain for fourth months.

He has a pincer deformity in the hip causing the stabs in the groin, and a degenerative facet causing the sciatica. Both are responding well to chiropractic and he's well pleased; sixty five percent better after three treatments.

5. Mr T is a wise man; he's taken a warning TIA seriously and has lost 15 pounds, and has at least as much again to lose. A change to a low starch diet and half hour daily walk has made the difference; but the walking is making his foot and back miserable. The expensive orthotic is hopeless; luckily his hips and back are fine, but he needs a simple heel lift.

6. I too have had serious lower back issues, luckily fixed by my own chiropractor; so I too have to do my exercises, take care when lifting supers full of honey, gardening and using the chainsaw. Regaining the function of your spine is just as important as the pain.

7. My own granddaughter, only 7 is hypermobile giving her pelvic, knee and ankle issues. Xrays show a mildly dysplastic hip. Years ago we would have called it growing pains. She too regularly needs chiropractic care and luckily responds well. Increased range of motion is more difficult than too stiff in my opinion. Our care is for kids too.

8. This 65 year old lady is a serious gardener; every day she is bending, lifting and digging for 2 to 3 hours a day. It regularly catches her in the sacroiliac joint, so she has a treatment once a month that sorts it out. She does her lower back exercises faithfully.

9. This 88 year old lady is an inspiration; every day she is busy in the community. With a nasty scoliosis she manages very well with a chiropractic adjustment every six weeks and exercises faithfully done.  

10. Mr X is a 71 year old retired man who wants to continue with maintenance care every six to eight weeks; he had suffered from two years of lower back pain when he first came a year ago. He has no discomfort now after 8 chiropractic treatments, but is aware that danger lurks.

11. Mrs C has been having severe headaches, and taking a lot of analgesics. It's a non complicated upper cervical facet syndrome, and she's doing well.

12. Mr D is a 38 old year man with chronic shoulder pain after a rotator cuff tear playing cricket. It responded well to treatment, but he knows he must do his exercises every day; for two years he couldn't sleep on that shoulder.

13. Mr D, a 71 year old man, has a severe ache in the shoulder and midback since working above his head. Trapped nerve tests are negative but he has advanced degenerative joints of Luschka; after just two treatments he is 50 percent better. Can we reach 90?

And so the day goes; chiropractors shouldn't be treating the elderly most medical sites state but that's so much bunkum.

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