bruised vertebrae?

anyone ever experience what feels like a bruise when they push on a certain part of their spine? it doesn't hurt otherwise. i notice a bit of a stretching feeling when i bend over, but it doesn't hurt. when i bend backwards far enough, i feel a bit of a pain. i noticed this pain after i started learning raleys. there is no numbness or anything like that. when i'm standing or walking, i wouldn't even know the injury is there. anyways, its been there for several weeks. kind of weird! anyone know what this is? small fracture? slightly torn ligament? bruised vertabrae?

I took a wicked faceplant and bent in half the wrong way so far that the bones that stick out from the spine hit and chipped. If you didn't take any huge falls the vertebrae still may have touched and it is causing the pain. Mine felt just as you describe, but probably a little more severe. It was tender for about 5-6 weeks but eventually went away.

could be a disc.....might not cause numbness cause its not as severe.

could be stress fx....

could be spondolythiasis...

didnt check to see how old you are, but those can be causes of the bruise feeling...

if it dont go away, get your doc to order xray....followed by an MRI if pain get worse.

bpski, yeah it is possible that the two bones that stick out from the spine hit and chipped. A hard faceplant would hyper-extend your back just as a raley would. So it could be the same thing.

Jordy, I suppose it could be a disc, but I would be very suprised! I blew my L5-S1 disc about 2 years ago. That pain was very radiating and non-localized. The pain that I am get from this injury, which I believe is around the L1, is very localized and doesn't cause any discomfort as long as I'm not leaning backwards. It definately could be a stress fracture. What is the difference between spondolythiasis and a stress fracture? I kind of thought they were pretty close to the same thing. Also, maybe could it be a compression fracture or wedge fracture? Anyways, I'm 25 and the last time I went wakeboarding was about 6.5 weeks ago when this happened. It hasn't really improved or got worse, it's just there! I will have to talk to the doctor about an X-ray. I've been told to stay away from CT scans for a while since I've already had 2 in my life. Maybe a bone-scan is the best thing but I don't know if they'll want me to stay away from those as well. I'm not really sure how much radiation a bone-scan gives off compared to an x-ray or ct scan. I will ask for an MRI at the very least since they use no radiation.

bone scans are for old people with osteoporosis

you can have plenty more cat scans in your life without any worry.....

xray is done first as protocol...if that isnt diagnostic, mri would be next....usually cant get an mri without having at least an xray first.

if its only causing pain leaning back or bending over... slight chance it could be a small case of scoliosis.... good luck!

Just an update, it's been about 10 weeks now. It has improved a small amount, but not much. It is now much harder for me to find the bruised feeling when I push on my spine. Most of the time, I can't find it at all now. However, I still feel the streching of the muscles when I bend over, maybe not quite as much as before though. And when I lean back, I still feel tightness. I had a CT scan and a bone scan done. Neither test revealed anything. So I guess that rules out any fractures or disc issues. My doctor and physio therapist say that a bone scan would rule out a bone bruise as well. I'm not 100% convinced of that seeing as how I've read that an MRI is really the only way to detect an bone bruise. I'm currently taking calcium and glucosamine just incase there is a bone bruise. I've decided to get back into the gym next week to start doing some core stengthing. Anyone have anymore insight as to how long this may last?? Or just any insight in general? I'm starting to get a little nervous about it. Hyperextending is a big part of wakeboarding. I can't imagine not being able to do tantrum or raley-based stuff anymore.

read this

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance_interviews/the_real_miracle_worker_an_interview_with_art_inno vator_dr_mike_leahy

Michaelspsp, how did you find out about this? Is soft-tissue something you've had problems with as well? I read the article, it's pretty interesting. It brings new hope to me. I actually just got in touch with someone in Toronto that is certified in ART. Man, I hope this isn't something that's going to permanently stop me from wakeboarding. I can't imagine that!