Question
I don't know if you can help me but I figure you're a good place to start. Since May long weekend of 2012 I've been having problems with my back. I think it's lower but I'm not sure. I'm not even sure what brought it on. I was laying in bed at a friend's house when these spasms started. I was using crutches for a short time for a minor foot injury but that was it.
The spasms started off as painless and I viewed them as more of an annoyance than anything that only happened whenever I laid down. After about a week of them not going away on their own I did research and decided since the spasms weren't painful I probably had muscle strain and started to treat it. I tried a variety of things in hopes of treating my back. I tried heat, ice, more activity, less activity, not lifting, and my (now ex) boyfriend would sometimes massage the area (that helped a LITTLE) but the only thing that changed was the spasms; instead of a painless annoyance I now have painful back spasms that have either kept me awake at night or have woken me up from a dead sleep. It's not just my back either now, my right leg will sometimes bend at the knee if I'm laying on my side or stomach.
I haven't seen a doctor yet because I'm still not 100% sure this isn't muscle strain and Google doesn't come up with anything that doesn't scare the crap out of me. Is there anything I can do to lessen this pain and the spasms? I don't like taking pain killers or other medication unless absolutely necessary so I haven't gone to my doctor about this yet.

Answer
To start I would recommend consulting with a doctor instead of turning to Google to find answers. Although the internet can be helpful and definitive diagnosis should not be made without a proper assessment. Because of the chronicity of this issue you should have a health care professional examine your back. If you would prefer to start with a less pharmaceutical intervention, I would start with a chiropractor, they are able to determine with muscle testing, whether or not there is a muscle injury or perhaps and spinal injury which can be causing the spasms.

Unfortunately, I am unable to give you a diagnosis without examining you myself.

Regards,