Pain in the wallet

It’s delightful when there is a simple solution to a terrible problem.    I had a pain in my lower back that was gradually getting worse.  It got so bad that when I was tying my shoes two weeks ago, it took me five minutes to stand up straight, due to intense pain in my lower back.  I also had difficulty getting in and out of my car.  A quick Google search informed me about “wallet neuropathy,” also called “wallet sciatica.”

My wallet has been growing over the past year because of accumulating receipts, membership cards and new credit cards because I’m in the process of switching from a big bank to a local credit union (I was provoked to do this by Arianna Huffington’s “Move Your Money” campaign).  The simple solution was to not carry my wallet in my back pocket (I’ve been carrying my wallet in my back pocket for year).

The good news is that the pain has decreased to only barely noticeable, only two weeks after it was disabling.  I’m thus sharing this simple advice to anyone else who has back pain who also carries a fat wallet:  Think about carrying your wallet some other way.  I’m also sharing this  WebMD article with more straight-forward advice for taking care of your back.  The section on computing and commuting was especially interesting to me.

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Erich Vieth

Erich Vieth is an attorney focusing on civil rights (including First Amendment), consumer law litigation and appellate practice. At this website often writes about censorship, corporate news media corruption and cognitive science. He is also a working musician, artist and a writer, having founded Dangerous Intersection in 2006. Erich lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his two daughters.

This Post Has 4 Comments

  1. Avatar of Tim Hogan
    Tim Hogan

    heck Erich, any good cowboy knows not to put that wallet under your hindquaters…hurts when you have it between you and the saddle! City folk just got no sense!

    1. Avatar of Erich Vieth
      Erich Vieth

      It was mostly one-dollar bills, I assure you.

  2. Avatar of Niklaus Pfirsig
    Niklaus Pfirsig

    Erich,

    I had a "Wallet-ectomy" years ago. I now carry in in a front jeans pocket, usually next to my crosslock knife.

    It is more comfortable and more secure.

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