Thanks so much for the info. I finally broke down and took one, and guess what? Back pain is so dull I barely notice it at all. I can't believe that I actually made myself suffer worrying about stupid side effects, but I guess it's just in my nature to worry all the time.
No side effects, actually, I feel as if I took a prescription Motrin (my painkiller of choice, if I can get them). Thanks for the tip about the water, I actually took it with my coffee this morning (partly b/c I was afraid of potentially groggy side-effects), but the last thing I wanna do is damage the kidneys, so I'm about to go and down a few glasses of water now.