Most cases of back pain are caused by bad posture or an awkward movement. Spending most of the day behind a desk or slouched on the sofa is a sure way to develop back pain.
A sedentary lifestyle is a risk factor with respect to cases of diabetes or heart disease. It can even take years off your life.
Correct posture is truly essential for good health. However, the majority of people living in industrialized cultures have a far from ideal posture.
Understanding the functional mechanics of your body, you can learn to optimize the way you move at all times. This in turn prevents injury and pain from developing.
The majority of adults will experience back pain at some point in their lives. It’s the most common cause of work-related disability.
Could it be something serious?
For many people, this pain is neither permanent nor serious. Usually it’s resolved with rest and anti-inflammatory analgesic drugs like ibuprofen, naproxen, or acetaminophen.
Non-addictive medications include muscle relaxants that can be prescribed by a physician and used temporarily until you can exercise or receive physical therapy.
Avoid narcotics to treat back pain caused by your routine. These medications can cause constipation and create dependency, as well as other adverse side effects. The only time that you should resort to them is for acute severe pain and under the supervision of a physician in an appropriate environment.
However, there are several reasons why you should seek immediate treatment by a physician. These signs and symptoms include:
- Pain that radiates down the leg
- Numbness or weakness in the groin, or legs
- Any loss of bladder or bowel control
- Fevers
- Night pains or sweats
Causes
Very often, the problem is mechanical in nature. Typically, it’s the result of poor posture, repetitions, or incorrect lifting (as opposed to the result of an injury, infection or serious illnesses such as cancer).
If you visit a conventional doctor for back pain, it is likely that you’ll only be offered a superficial treatment.
Medication to relieve pain is among the most common medical treatments prescribed, followed by steroid injections and surgery. As well as having many side effects, none of these solutions tends to lead to a full recovery. This leaves many patients battling back pain, often for the rest of their lives.
10 Practices for Back Pain Relief
Here is where natural remedies can be invaluable. Before even considering medications, injections or surgery, try these 10 tips from experience specialists for back pain relief.
1. Chiropractic care
Seeing a qualified chiropractor is a good option if you suffer from some type of chronic pain, including back pain.
2. Stretching
Participants who took 52-minute stretch classes (emphasizing trunk and leg stretches) received as much relief for back pain as those who took yoga classes.
3. Strength training
A regular strength training routine will help strengthen your back and core muscles, which is essential both to relieve pain and to prevent injuries.
4. Osteopathic manipulation
It was discovered that osteopathic manipulation (which may involve moving joints, massaging soft tissues and help relax stressed muscles) reduces chronic lower back pain.
5. Reduce stress
People with persistent negative thoughts and anxiety are more likely to suffer from back pain.
6. Meditation
Meditation can be a powerful analgesic. Volunteers who had never meditated before but who attended four 20-minute classes experienced significant relief.
7. Yoga
Yoga, which is particularly useful in aiding flexibility and strengthening core muscles, has proven to be beneficial if you suffer from back pain. People who took a yoga class per week had greater improvements than those receiving medications or physical therapy.
8. Massage
Massage releases endorphins, which helps relaxation and relieves pain. 10-week massage therapy offers huge relief for back pain and the benefits last at least six months.
9. Acupuncture
Acupuncture can be another useful approach. Actually, this method is focused on the reduction of chronic pain, such as back pain and headaches, rather than the standard treatment for acute pain.
10. Tai Chi
It’s an old form of self-defence, which aims to support the balance of “yin and yang” in your body, thus improving the flow of “qi”, or vital energy.
Often described as “meditation in movement,” Tai Chi leads to your body through a specific set of elegant movements where each movement flows directly to the next.
Be careful with conventional treatments for back pain relief. Don’t let your doctor to convince you that prescription drugs are your only option for back pain relief.
Via: EverydayHealth | WebMD
