Nigel Farage 's 'terrible ' back and shoulder pain has forced him to cut his working day and consider quitting smoking . The UKIP leader said the pain meant he was not 'firing on all cylinders ' during the early weeks of the election campaign , but insists he is now 'back on form ' . He revealed he was suffering after a flare-up of an old spinal injury and had been prescribed Temazepam , a strong sleeping pill and muscle relaxant . Scroll down for video . Quitting : Mr Farage said 'terrible ' back and shoulder pain has forced him to cut his working day and consider ditching cigarettes . Mr Farage is known for having a cigarette in his hand but was pictured smoking an e-cigarette yesterday . The party leader admitted he had not been following his doctor 's orders to the letter , leaving him seeming under par in the opening weeks of UKIP 's campaign . Mr Farage has been dogged by speculation that he was ill during the run up to the General Election but he insists he is not unwell . The 51-year-old told the Daily Telegraph he has been receiving private hospital treatment in London and had been prescribed the sleeping drug Temazepam . He claims campaigning has not left him with enough time to attend NHS appointments . Certain things can make people become more at risk of developing back pain , including smoking . The increase in risk may be because smoking has caused tissue damage in the back or because smokers tend to have unhealthier lifestyles than those who do n't smoke . Source : NHS . ' I was not unwell , I have not had heart palpitations , but I was getting increasingly terrible pain in my shoulder , my back , and so I was suffering from neuralgic pain , ' he told the newspaper . ' I am taking a few tablets but it is something I have got to live with , and I have got to pace myself . I think I am going to have medical treatment for the rest of my life . ' Mr Farage said he has cut his working day to 14 hours and may give up smoking . He was pictured smoking an e-cigarette yesterday . When asked by BBC 's Newsnight earlier this week whether he was 'operating at 100 % ' , Mr Farage said : 'To be honest with you , in the earlier part of the campaign I was n't , and I was n't feeling quite as sharp and as fit as I should have been . ' However , he blamed it on getting his 'diary planning wrong ' and said he was now feeling 'pretty bouncy ' . Mr Farage was injured in a plane crash on the day of the 2010 General Election , suffering broken ribs and other minor injuries . Mr Farage revealed he was suffering after a flare-up of an old spinal injury and had been prescribed Temazepam , a strong sleeping pill and muscle relaxant . The party leader admitted he had not been following his doctor 's orders to the letter , leaving him seeming under par in the opening weeks of UKIP 's campaign . He told BBC News : ' I 've not been doing physio . I 've not been doing my exercises . ' I 've been so obsessed with the UKIP campaign that I put myself into a position where I was n't really firing on all cylinders . ' Mr Farage was injured in a plane crash on the day of the 2010 General Election , suffering broken ribs and other minor injuries .
Nigel Farage is considering quit smoking because of ' terrible ' back pain . quit smoking was n't ' firing on all cylinders ' at the start of election campaign . Suffering from flare - ups of spinal cord and been prescribed sleeping pills .