Question
Hello. Well, I came to Canada to visit mom and help her recover from a hysterectomy. However, I found out she's fine from the surgery but suffering a lot because of her back. Three years ago she fell over her little finger, and then went to countless bad massagers and chiropractors who have been worsening her situation. Now I'm worried about her cause she has been massaging herself for two weeks now and her back is all bruised cause she does that day and night. She says it hurts less and less, she affirms she's putting her back muscles straight and fixing what chiropractors did wrong... my question: Is it possible for a person to fix their own back? Is she at risk? What kind of specialist should she consult? The doctor keeps saying everything is ok cause she's taken tests, X-rays and nothing appears to be wrong. However, I can see she's in pain. I'm desperate... she can't sleep well, she isn't hungry, she's just massaging her back all day... sometimes she shows me her arm is all swollen cause a muscle is pulling it... then she fixes it and the next day is something else... it seems this will never end... please, help me...  

Answer
Dear Edith,

I hope your mom is getting better at this moment.  It is hard for me to give advise regard to her condition when I have not examined her myself.  However, it seems to be good news with all the tests turning up negative and she improves with the self massage.  If she has a bad experience with a chiropractor, it might be a good idea to get a second opinion with and doctor or chiropractor.