Our next guest has been dealing with a big problem due to her breasts. Check out this story.
My name is Lindsey Pelas and I’m 26 years old. I live in Los Angeles and I have 6.8 million followers on Instagram. One of the major reasons I think I have almost 7 million Instagram followers is because I have 32 triple D breasts, and they’re natural. So, it’s kind of a unique look. When I moved here, I actually did a viral video where I ran in slow-mo and it got like almost 10 million views on YouTube, and so I’ve been modeling and acting and doing that ever since. Having big boobs is not all it’s cracked up to be. I’ve even weighed them before. They weigh 11 lbs. I feel beautiful this way, but lately I’ve been feeling this nagging pain in my lower left side of my back in particular. Some days it hurts all over and I’m not sure where it’s coming from. Sometimes I’m just like, “Oh my god, this is really bad. What is it?”
After years of back pain, it was time for Lindsey to get some answers. So, we sent her to board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon Dr. Hooman Melamed.
Some back pain for some time. It’s really gotten bad the last few months.
Basically, the last few months.
And I don’t know if it’s because I had big boobs.
The main pain is basically up here.
Yeah.
When you get it most of the time?
The pain in my back comes usually nightly, is when I’m noticing it. So, after a long day of traveling or a long day of shooting.
What about this pain here, which is the more intense pain?
When I fly, I come back home and I’m usually sore for two days.
What are some of the exercise regimens you’re doing?
I do Pilates, [inaudible].
The most important thing in Pilates is the form is very critical. So, if you’re doing something the wrong way, that’s obviously not a good thing. Once you step down, please walk on your tippy toes. Excellent. Can you go bend down like that? Makes you not flexible. Go back. How far can you go back? Okay, good. Good. Just kind of taking the hips there and go back, and then tilt to the side.
I think the breast size is an issue. I’ve had few patients like that, but you’re still very young right now. For that to become a major issue, usually tends to catch up to them in their 40s and 50s. Anybody who complains back pain more than 3 months or more, it’s automatically, you got to get imaging studies. We want to make sure we’re not missing anything else. So, we just need to get some imaging done. Get an MRI. I wanted to make sure the discs look okay, the spinal cord looks okay, there’s nothing pinching your nerves.
Please welcome Lindsey and Dr. Melamed to the show. Welcome. Good to have you. Now, what did you find [inaudible]?
The great news is that zero structural problems. A perfect spine.
That’s good.
On the MRI and the X-ray show, there’s nothing structurally wrong with it. All the disc look healthy and the balance alignment looks perfect.
What do you think is causing the pain?
She says lately she’s been traveling a lot, sitting on the plane for prolonged period of time, or being more modeling. So you’re standing for a period of time. The body hates being in one position constantly. You know, especially in heels. If she’s modeling in high heels, that may… You think it’s harder to maintain good posture because of that extra weight, that of course the center of the gravity wants to, you know, pull, pull you, pull you down, especially being short stature. So you’re not broad shoulders. So your spine, it’s like having a text neck. You’re down with your phone, basically.
Well, Lindsey, I was going to ask, even watching you now, it seems like your shoulders are forward and you’re in almost the spine. Is it hard for you to open up your chest and, and get that spine?
And I could sit like this, but I’d really have to focus on it. I guess I really don’t think I’m naturally prone to doing this.
You just have to really work on, focus a lot more on these muscles, like back here, all the way from the trap all the way down to the lower back muscles here. Pilates, core strength, core.
Yeah. Exact strengthening that you recommend for all of us that have come to see you with, with our back.
Absolutely. You know, plyometrics, a lot of like using your own body weight, and nothing go crazy like bodybuilding type. You know, there’s a lot of great exercises out there. Make sure you’re wearing the right bra. Make sure you get fitted. Make sure, because not all bras are created the same. You can be, yes, wearing the wrong bra, that you shouldn’t be that uncomfortable by the end of the day.
So the right bra, and, and heels too.
We got to be careful not to be as much as heels. When you’re traveling the long flights, you know, wear comfortable shoes on those flights and try to get up and walk around, not to be sitting for like 12 hours, like, non-stop, basically.
Yeah, that makes sense. These, these are all, I think, good takeaways. Lindsey, thank you for sharing your story. Best of luck to you, Dr. Melamed.
