Chronic back pain + I swear I became shorter

I see this forum hardly gets any traffic, but I'll post anyway.

For one, I've been experiencing some serious back pain on a daily basis for awhile now. I don't know for sure how long it's been, but I believe I've endured roughly 4 months of it. It's become gradually worse. I know this is a very common problem, but it's one thing to have chronic back pain in your 50's, but at my age I see it as cause for greater concern.

Basically, I wake up pain-free, but then as the day progresses and I'm back and forth on my feet, the pain starts to develop. It's always in the lower lumbar spine region. I've had to take a break while doing the dishes before, because all that standing in one spot makes it become unbearable. It's always atrocious by the late evening. Another thing that may be useful to point out is that there was a day when I felt a sharp and very sudden pain. I was doing something on a low table and had to maintain a slightly leaned-forward position. Then out of nowhere, a jolt of shooting pain in that area.

Another thing to add is that I know for a fact that I became shorter at some point in this time (I never remember the times of little things like this, I just don't). I can tell, if I stand straight and directly forward at a specific spot on the wall, my eye level is about a half inch below what it was before. I can also tell that almost all of my normal daily shrinkage occurs very quickly in the morning, probably within 3 hours easily.

Now, I'd like every to please refrain from accusations like "Your posture sucks," or "You're too sedentary." I know these things are true, and are surely a contributing factor at least. If I had a more normal life and my mood stayed at a consistency that's more humanly average, I'd probably be out running 5 miles a day (Reasons for that are unrelated). The main two points of advice I'm looking for are: 1. What techniques/routines would you recommend to alleviate this back pain, and 2: Does it seem worth visiting a chiropractor? There's several scattered around in the area, but there's this one that looks highly reputable, it has 30 google reviews and every one of them is 5/5 stars - no joke! It's located in the county seat, a small city, but still a city, unlike the various ghost towns like the place I live. All the others have like, 2 to 0 reviews.

I don't believe in Chiropractics. I think you should consult a back bone specialist. Shortening of the vertebral column could be due to age related degeneration of the intervertebral disks.

I herniated two discs in my lower back when I was only 36 years old. I practically became bedridden after that for years. It got to be so painful that I could not bend over to pick anything up off of the floor, I could not bend over the sink to wash my face, I could not tie my own shoes. It hurt to sneeze or cough or roll over in bed. When I finally went to the Dr. to demand pain medicine, he refused and told me that it would do no good. He told me to start walking. I didn't want to walk everyday in snowy Nebraska and hot humid summers in Nebraska. That is when I remembered that yoga was good for the spine. So, I decided to take up yoga. It was a Godsend. I bought three beginning yoga DVD's and over the next few months, I did yoga four times a week. Over that time, I noticed that my back was beginning to feel much better until one day, I had no pain or physical limitations at all. I attribute it all to my yoga practice. I even noticed my strength and endurance improved too. I've been doing yoga ever since only now, I do it every day. I will never give up my yoga practice.