Brandon S.
This review is going to be a bit long, but I’m hoping it might help someone experiencing the same things I went thru, and can help you decide if you’re thinking of purchasing this.
I’ve had back problems since my early teen years and tried everything, including chiropractors (which often helped - but it lasted for only a day or two, and then right back to the same pain again). X rays showed I had a slightly curved spine, and I’ve always had extremely poor posture. (“Lazy back/Lordosis”) they called it. No matter how much I was aware of it and tried to make myself walk straight and “stand tall”, I’d always catch myself slouching and hunched over again. I just couldn’t stop doing it. This went on for years. I’m 32, and walk/stand like someone in their 80’s.
Last year a buddy of mine who works at the same dairy farm as I do and wears this brace for similar back problems as mine, offered me to try wearing his brace to see if it may help me when I told him about my issues one day in particular when my back was acting up pretty bad. Until then, I didn’t even know these things existed, (or even that he wore one). And NO doctor ever mentioned anything about using any kind of brace for my condition…not ONE. I’ve been to a number of back/spinal/pain clinics and “specialists” too! Anyway, he and I work opposite 12 hour shifts (standing on our feet for 11 of those hours, 60 hours a week milking cows in a parlor). Luckily, we happen to be nearly identical in body size. Plus we live just a block from each other, so this worked ideally. (As I was going into work, he was getting done, and vice-versa). He helped me get it on for the first time and explained how to use the air inflator, since I had absolutely NO idea how to use it. He told me to wear it as tight as I possibly could and to wear it for one full shift. I wore his brace a few hours that day, and honesty hated it! It just felt really awkward. I took it off at my first break-time. I asked him how the heck he could wear this weird “body cast” as I called it, all day - everyday? He said it takes some getting used to, but he forgets he even has it on. I couldn’t even understand HOW he didn’t notice it being on, because it’s ALL I thought about while wearing it. It restricted a lot of my typical movements (*which later I’d find to be, is the whole point). He kept telling me to trust him and give it more time because he knew exactly how odd it felt at first. I tried it once more the next day, but still…just couldn’t tolerate it at all.
Then, a month later, I was back at the doctor getting another cortisone shot and anti-inflammatory 10-day med pac once again.
Fast forward, I finally gave in and ordered one of these braces, and here’s what happened: I decided I must try wearing it for a day or two, and did. While it definitely helped to keep me aligned, and pretty much FORCED me to stand “tall” and upright, I still found the brace to be clumsy, awkward, hot, bulky and cussed a lot about it! Since these are meant to be worn tightly (just as my buddy had told me previously), it felt like I was in a straitjacket or wrapped in a Viking metal combat suit from the olden days! Due to this, I once again got discouraged and took it off. Tried again in a few more days, and was again annoyed by wearing it for anymore than a few hours. It sat unused for several months. Woke up with really really bad AGONIZING back pain one day that persisted for days. This made me re-think that brace sitting in the closet. It was then that I finally decided I was gonna just (literally) FORCE myself to put it on and KEEP it on for at least 3 weeks. To make it harder to back out, I made a deal with my buddy that I would pay him $100 if I failed. Again, after less than a few hours, I was wanting nothing more than to remove it. It just was so annoying. BUT this time, I did not. (Longer story shortened), my fight with this contraption went on for about the first 2 weeks. BUT, I also couldn’t help but notice that during this time, my back was feeling ALOT better (without pain pills, back patches, heating pads, etc etc) and my posture seemed tremendously improved. I even felt like I was taller. I felt sore in spots now and then, but I realized it was just my “old back” fighting the (good) change. I kept on pushing myself to wear it for another week. By this time, I was definitely noticing huge improvements and even much less back pain! As this was happening, I also started to not even think much about having the brace on (turns out my buddy was right again!) Again, fast forward yet another 2 weeks of wearing it daily….one day I was running really late and didn’t have time to put it on before leaving for my 12 hour work shift. I didn’t think it would be too bad, being just one day. Well, it was awful without it!! That’s when I really realized this thing (unbelievably) had become my new best friend. So now after having constantly complained in the beginning, it’s hard to admit, but it actually feels odd NOT having it on now. My body has adapted to it and my back rarely hurts at all and I feel naked without it. So, the moral of this whole story is this; if you’re new to wearing one of these TLSO braces, and struggling with getting used to it, just give it time, and MAKE yourself do it - NO MATTER WHAT! It will be worth the effort and initial struggle. At least it was for me (as it was for my buddy too). Turns out he was right about everything all along, but I didn’t want to admit that to him! Haha. Just make sure you keep it clean, and wear a T-shirt (or I find that an Under Armor compression shirt works nice for me) underneath it at all times. Your skin will likely itch after you remove it after a long day. I splashed on some rubbing alcohol and spread it over the itchy areas and it soothed it fast. Also, play around with the adjustments at first to “fine tune” it to your specific body shape. This is really important!! This part is definitely annoying and quite time-consuming but it is really important to get a really custom fit. Yeah, you’re gonna feel like a turtle for a while, but even turtles have a hard shell for a reason!
I’ve only had my brace for a few months, but this is the same one my buddy got, and he’s had his over 3 years now, and it is still holding up good for as much as he wears it. Hopefully mine will last that long. Hope this story helps someone who will benefit from knowing that it just DOES take quite some time (and a huge amount of self-discipline) to experience the benefit these braces can provide. Constant back pain sucks much more than being a bit uncomfortable for a relatively short time!
