7 Ways To Support Recovery From Back Pain

Man with lower back pain

The majority of us will experience back pain at some point in  the course of our life.. Back pain is estimated to be the second most popular reason for all doctor visits. 

Back problems often relate to the spine’s flexibility, balance, and strength combined with your overall wellbeing and stress levels. Bearing this in mind, here are some pain management strategies that can be useful in conjuction with appropriate professional help:

A woman sleeping
1 - Sleep Better

When you have back pain, sleeping can be difficult. And insufficient sleep can worsen your back pain. A night of restful sleep can cause your back to feel less sore, but a poor sleep posture can further intensify back pain. 

Try lying on your side. Place a pillow between your knees to keep your spine in a neutral position and ease the strain on your back. When sleeping on your back, slide a pillow beneath your knees. 

Be mindful that if you sleep is significantly disturbed by pain, or you sweat a lot at night,  you should get checked out by a professional  ASAP.

1 - Sleep Better

When you have back pain, sleeping can be difficult, and conversely insufficient sleep can worsen your back pain. A night of restful sleep can cause your back to feel less sore, but a poor sleep posture can further intensify back pain. 

Try lying on your side. Place a pillow between your knees to keep your spine in a neutral position and ease the strain on your back. When sleeping on your back, slide a pillow beneath your knees. 

Be mindful that if you sleep is significantly disturbed by pain, or you sweat a lot at night,  you should get checked out by a professional  ASAP.

Ice and heat packs
2 - Ice And Heat

Wrapping ice packs in a thin towel and applying to the painful area for 20-minutes several times a day may help reduce your pain. . After a few days, switch to a heating pad to help relax your muscles. Warm baths will do or lying briefly under a heat lamp. Be cautious of using  heat during periods of intense  pain as for some people it feels good at the time,  but increases their pain later on.

Ice and heat packs
2 - Ice And Heat

Wrapping ice packs in a thin towel and applying to the painful area for 20-minutes several times a day may help reduce your back pain.  After a few days, switch to a heating pad to help relax your muscles. Warm baths cana slo be good or lying briefly under a heat lamp. Be cautious of using heat during periods of intense pain, for some people it feels good at the time but increases their pain later on.

3 - Try Stress Reduction Strategies

Meditation, yoga, tai chi, brainwave entrainment (which we have at our clinic), float tanks and other cognitive and relaxation strategies can all have a significant positive impact on pain. With mindful meditation or mild breathing exercises, you can control the way your body perceives pain. Yoga stretches the back, slackens your spine, and also lessens stiffness in your back. 

4 - Physical Therapy

An exercise prescription can help to increase mobility and strengthen muscles that hold the spine. Physical therapists like us can instruct on ways to sit, stand, and move with reduced strain on your back. Strengthening your back and abdominal muscles — your core — is also an obvious way to cultivate lower pain levels and a more resilient spine. Core strengthening should be done very cautiously with he help of a healthcare provider. If you have back pain exercises like planks and crunches are not for you!

5 - Hands-On Therapy

A recent study discovered that weekly soft tissue manipulation over 10-weeks improved back pain. Benefits lasted about six months but dwindled after a year. Another well researched hands-on strategy is spinal manipulation. Administered by a licensed specialist, this treatment can help ease structural problems of the spine and restore lost mobility. These are just 2 small examples of the many effective means there are of easing back pain through hands on type treatments.

6 - Biofeedback

Biofeedback uses a special machine that serves to train your brain on controlling response to pain. Breathing, blood flow, and muscle tension are moderated. Some researches have found that it subdues pain intensity by about 30% more than back pain medication, with no side effects.

Nerve Stimulation

Some treatments stimulate nerves and lessen chronic back pain. Acupuncture is one way to do this , another is transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), during which gentle electric pulses are passed to the nerves and override pain signals in the pain pathway.. 

The most important ingredient in recovery from back pain is seeking the right help. There are very few of us who can fix our own vehicle when it has significant mechanical issues. There are very few of us who can resolve our own toothache once it has set in. And there are very few of us who are qualified to resolve our own back problems. These are all good times to seek professional help.

7. Nerve Stimulation

Some treatments stimulate nerves and lessen chronic back pain. Acupuncture is one way to do this , another is transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), during which gentle electric pulses are passed to the nerves and override pain signals in the pain pathway.

 

 

The most important ingredient in recovery from back pain is seeking the right help. There are very few of us who can fix our own vehicle when it has significant mechanical issues. There are very few of us who can resolve our own toothache once it has set in. And there are very few of us who are qualified to resolve our own back problems. These are all good times to seek professional help.

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