"All I Did Was Cough!"

"All I Did was Cough, and suddenly I had this sharp pain in my lower back. And ever since then I've had back problems."

That first experience of sharp back pain is an eye-opener. What happened? Why did a simple little cough cause a back problem? The answer is probably that you've switched off or ignored warning signals for a long time before that cough.

Let's go back a little way before we return to that cough.

Escaping the Tiger

Let's say there's a local man-eating tiger, and let's call him Richard Parker (see Life of Pi for the reasons!)

Let's say Richard Parker has caught you napping and is chasing you round the garden. You will find that for a few brief moments you forget that your lower back has been feeling a bit achy after going jogging. In fact, not only do you sprint faster than you've ever sprinted before, but you float effortlessly up into the branches of a handy oak like a piece of supercharged thistledown, much to the admiration of the local 13-year-olds!

If your back is usually sore, for that few moments it certainly wasn't: getting up the tree was more important than nursing your back, and your body switched off the pain signals to help you get through the current situation. But when the tiger tamer comes and leads off Richard Parker, snarling, and you're having a stiff drink, THAT might be the moment you notice your back's sore. You might even have damaged your back further hiking up the tree, but you're only noticing now.

What's the Difference Between a Tiger and a Tax Return?

Man-eating tigers aren't a common problem in York or even New York, but working hard under stress can have have pain-suppressing effects remarkably like Richard Parker breathing down your neck. As far as our bodies are concerned, stress is danger, and when we're in danger we blot out pain until the crisis is past.

When you were escaping a snarling Richard Parker, your body was quite ready to ignore the usual rules and even risk injury for a few moments to get out of Richard Parker's clutches. Damaging a knee is less important than being eaten alive.

When I'm slaving over my tax, and it absolutely has to be finished for the end of last week, I too can ignore injuries, tiredness and age-- for a while.

But here's where Richard Parker and my tax return are different.

No Recovery Time

If the stressful work situation goes on and on, I go on having stressful deadlines, my body goes on hiding symptoms from me, waiting until I am under less pressure to take stock and lick wounds. But the pressure's continuous in many of today's jobs, so my body can't stop suppressing symptoms.

Building Up to a Crisis

See where the cough comes in? No? Well, if you go on ignoring pain, you go on injuring yourself more and more. But there may come a time when your body can take no more. One more tiny stress-- like a cough-- and the whole edifice comes tumbling down.

With no chance to be quiet, take stock and repair, the damage builds. And there is only so much damage our bodies can take. One day, after a tiny cough in my tight, strained, care-worn chest, the full weight of the damage I'm carrying in my body spills over.

"But All I Did Was Cough"?

If a cough, a sneeze or any other tiny little thing seems to "cause" severe pain, it suggests there's more here than meets the eye. Listen carefully, and listen now. Get some professional help.