When I was 19 years old I had several jobs that were very intense and I was moving around all during my shift. Back then I weighed about 125 lbs. Once I went to college and got a mostly desk job I packed on the pounds very quickly. One unhealthy meal threw me off completely, sometimes gaining 2lbs, although oddly enough I don't think my meal even weighed 2 lbs.

Anyway, after struggling to find a job and having applied to 40 different places I finally got a job last week. It's in housekeeping, this is not what I'd hoped for at this point in my life but it's definitely better than nothing. I sweat like no other on this job. Sounds gross, but I have to bring an extra pair of clothes to change into on my lunch. And I'm normally not a sweaty person. So I know I'm working my butt off. My co-workers say that they've all lost some weight when the started, one even lost 50 lbs.

It sounds all great right? My only problem is I experience A LOT of pain. The pain is in my feet and back. It's so bad I've considered just telling them I'm going home and not come back. My feet swell up and my toes have even gone numb. My back has always been trouble for me. But when I work a lot at this job it feels like my back is a rubber band, being streched so much that I'm afraid something will snap. I plan on going to the doctor. I have in the past and there was no lifelong plan for dealing with my back pain. OTC meds do nothing for me. I need this job, and I continue getting calls telling me "We've filled that position" a reminder of how I cannot just leave this job.

My goal is to get onto a helpful medication to relieve my pain so I can function well, like my other co-workers, otherwise every hour will be another hour of accumulated pain.

My fear is the doctor will just say "lose weight and you'll feel better", which I know is not true. Even at 120 lbs I would come home and crash because my feet and back were throbbing with pain.

Anyone experience the same thing? What do you think is wrong with me? Any advice would be appreciated.

Luckily enough I only had to work in housekeeping for three months during my course, but I feel you! I'd come home every night and just go straight to bed. Funnily enough, though I didn't even eat anything (too tired), I didn't lose any weight, I suppose I made up for it when I had a day off...

First of all: don't give up, try to find yourself a better job! (I'm currently unemployed, so I know how hard it is, but still try and go on applying.) And the second thing that basically saved me time and time again: get yourself a pair of really good shoes, they can make all the difference! Yes, money is probably short, but it is worth every penny! I know so many people whose back problems, sometimes even migraines just vanished when they got themselves good shoes. And in a job where you are running around like crazy all day you definitely need them! Especially as you are saying your feet hurt so much and your toes go numb - that is a bad sign of terrible shoes. Please get yourself better ones. Maybe you can even get some through the doctor (sorry, I still haven't got a clue how your health systems works, I only know sometimes it's possible)?

Good luck with finding a better job soon!

I agree with Shyanara, you need to invest in good shoes.
I had an office job for a few months and I was on my feet all day. They didn't have a desk for me, and because of the work I was doing I had to walk around a lot. I tried to wear heels at first to look nice, but my feet and back absolutely killed me after a few days, and I had to stop.

I bought some better shoes and my back pain went away 100%.
Look into grasshoppers. That's the kind I bought and they're reasonably priced ($40-50). If you can spend more, I've heard good things about Dansko, but those are around $100.

I second the good shoes idea. However I'm also going to suggest insoles. I'm a preschool teacher and I hurt badly for months. Then I got insoles and felt better until my shoes went out on me. I got a new pair of shoes and insoles and voila, no more pain.