Just about every person alive today will experience some level of back pain at some point in their life.

What causes back pain? The answer is as varied as the work you do. You can get back pain from having poor posture or from lifting heavy items improperly. You can get back pain from sports accidents and car accidents. You can get back pain from sleeping in an odd position or from stress. There is an endless list of issues that can cause back pain.

Generally speaking, back pain is often caused by an improper stretching of muscles in your back. Sometimes the pain will show up in a strong and immediate way, and other times the pain will grow over time.

If you experience numbness in your limbs, have chest pain, or also have serious headaches, consider visiting a doctor. However, outside of these extreme cases, many times you can do some simple things to help yourself.

Don’t stop moving. The answer is not to lay in bed all day. In some circumstances this will actually make your back pain worse.

Consider taking a long soak in hot bathwater. Alternatively, put an ice pack on the affected areas. These simple actions can help to relieve sore muscles and loosen tight muscles.

Also, be cautious about extreme treatments. You might initially think that an epidural injection to treat the pain will solve the immediate problem. Or you might think that surgery on your back will help you finally resolve the problem for good. These approaches might be appropriate in some circumstances, but each carries significant cost and risk. You might be much better of trying some simpler and less invasive approaches first.

You might want to visit a Licensed Massage Therapist. Many people believe that massage is only for relaxation. While that is certainly a benefit of massage, and an important one, it is not the only way that therapists treat their clients. Many massage therapists also provide therapeutic treatments. They have studied anatomy and muscles. They know how to locate and correct tight muscles. Some insurance plans cover massage therapy treatment when it is prescribed by a primary care physician. But even if this treatment is not covered by insurance, it can be a terrific investment in your overall health and can help you avoid painful medical treatments.

Another alternative is to consider chiropractic. Chiropractors are doctors who attend medical school and are licensed to diagnose and treat medical conditions. They understand the structure of bones and how they should work, and they have many techniques that you help you address back pain. This include adjustments, where the doctor manipulates your bones as you lay on a table, but also specialized equipment that can help you build or tone muscles to keep your bones properly aligned.

Plan time in your schedule for stretching, exercise, and eating right. Your best method of preventing problems is to maintain a healthy body.

The information on this page is intended for educational purposes only. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

As a chiropractor here in Plano, Texas, I often have patients who come in for treatment because of lower back pain, and some find that it’s the sciatic nerve that’s giving them the pain. Sciatica is commonly seen as a pain of the lower back which runs down from the back into the leg. This pain can be sharp, tingling and cause numbness of the lower back and leg. As part of my chiropractic care, I prescribe non-surgical methods to bring relief to my patients.

The sciatic nerve is the longest and widest single nerve in your body. It branches off at the base of the spine and runs down each side of your pelvic area, supplying nerve impulses to your butt, legs and feet. If you’ve ever experienced sciatica, you know how debilitating this pain can be. I’ve seen patients, who could barely walk, couldn’t bend over, or even stand. There are a lot of things that can trigger problems with your sciatic nerve, poor posture when you sit, slip and fall on your butt, improper swing while playing golf, and the list goes on. For most of my patients, I recommend, certain exercise, lots of rest, and certain pain medication, while they recuperate. Usually you will be back to your normal self within 2-3 weeks. However, if your pain is still severe and continues beyond 2 months, it might be necessary to consider surgery as a last resolve. In this article I will focus on alternative methods to treat this condition and leave the surgery to those more qualified.

Chiropractic Treatments and Alternatives at Home

I immediately recommend heat packs and ice packs. Both can be used independently or combined at various intervals. If you do not have access to over the counter packs, please use ice in a Ziploc bag and heated towels or a heating pad. Both should be applied for 20 to 30 minutes and then repeated every 2-3 hours. This should bring relief until the patient can get in to my office.

Along with heat and ice, I suggest that you use Tylenol, Advil, ibuprofen, or naproxen to help reduce the pain. Another consideration if the pain is very acute is the use epidural steroid injections. These injections are different from the oral steroid medicines because the steroid is given directly to the injured area and should bring immediate relief from the pain, much quicker than meds or oral steroids. This must be administered by a qualified medical specialist, I do not provide this service but can recommend other medical professionals who do.

Alternative Chiropractic Treatment at my Office

Chiropractors sometimes suggest the need for exercise. This might sound counter productive, but very mild exercise along with the other treatments listed above, can help strengthen muscles of the lower back and your stomach muscles. To qualify the type of exercise I recommend, I prescribe simple stretching starting slowly and gradually increasing as you recover and also to prevent future recurrences of sciatica or other back pain.The equipment I’ve installed at my office is very effective in helping with the pain and if utilized correctly, will contribute to end of sciatic pain.

Other techniques for pain relief are spinal decompression, cold laser therapy, heat and cold applied with gentle massage therapy. I have patients who I see in my office that usually need a combination of the above techniques to resolve their sciatic pain. We use various forms of massage and cold laser to relax patient’s muscles, improve blood flow, and most important, the release of endorphins in the body that act as natural pain relievers.

Last but not least, a highly effective technique for treatment that is being used more and more is acupuncture. Most people think of being a human pin cushion and even though the origins of this technique were developed by the Chinese, it is an approved procedure for back pain by the FDA. A qualified and trained acupuncturist can provide relief from back pain by simply using thin needles inserted in the area where you feel discomfort. Acupuncture focuses on the applied principle of harmonizing your body’s flow of energy through various pathways in the body. There is no guarantee that this or any other combination of treatments will totally eliminate sciatica from recurring but if you follow the advice of your chiropractor and seek help early, you should prevent this from happening again in the future.

Back exercises for pain are something that a lot of us would benefit from but what sort of exercises should we be doing to get the maximum benefit?

Surprisingly around eighty percent of us will suffer from back pain at some point in our lives. This figure refers to non-specific back pain. That is the type that comes on for no apparent reason and can not be attributed to any specific injury or back condition. It is usually the result of our lifestyle.

Most of us sit badly at work, often spend at least some of our time as couch potatoes and do not get enough exercise. Taking all of the above into account it should come as no surprise, that our backs complain from time to time. Non-specific back pain will usually disappear after a few days in exactly the same mysterious way that it arrived. Unfortunately it often returns and once you have back pain, unless you treat it, it is likely to be a frequent visitor.

Seeing as most back problems stem from bad posture it would make sense to take up a form of exercise that improved posture and developed the core muscles of the torso to support the spine. Exercising back muscles in isolation can cause as many problems as it solves. It is important to regain the balance in the body that we have lost through poor posture and lack of exercise.

Pilates is a form of exercise that is designed to stretch, stabilise and strengthen the core muscles of the body. All our movements involve the muscles of the core to some extent. If you lift an arm or leg, you will be using muscles in the main trunk of your body. From there it is easy to realise that not looking after the core muscles can have wide ranging impacts on health.

Pilates is built on seven main principles which are proper alignment, breathing centering, concentration, precision, control and fluid movements. It is an extremely flexible system designed for people of all abilities. Each exercise can be completed at a different level depending on yore level of fitness. As your general fitness levels improve you can move on to more complex or challenging movements.

The exercises are performed in a specific order, each exercise will use a number of different muscle groups and so quickly improves fitness levels and muscle tone. Because Pilates exercises focus on flexibility and control they are carried out slowly making them ideal for back pain sufferers as there is a significantly reduced chance of injury. It is important to develop slowly allowing your strength and flexibility to grow before trying the more difficult exercises.

Pilates will not only sort out back problems caused by poor posture but will also help with lung capacity, improving circulation, improving balance, flexibility and control as well as improving posture and reducing stress levels.

Non specific back pain affects about eighty percent of us at some point in our lives. This is the type of back pain, usually but not always lower back pain, which just seems to come out of nowhere. It will not be caused by a specific injury or disease but is more likely caused by lifestyle; too much sitting, too little exercise or the wrong type of exercise.

When our ancestors lived in caves, we were a lot more active than we are now. Our activity was a lot more varied meaning that we exercised a much wider range of muscles. Modern life where we can spend a lot of time sitting is not good for our backs. I can virtually guarantee that if you suffer from back pain, you will stretch painfully whenever you stand, ironing out the kinks in your back as you straighten up.

So, if lack of exercise and the resulting poor posture is the cause of non-specific back pain, and many other back conditions, it should hardly come as a surprise that back pain exercise is the best way to sort it out.

Most of us know that, even if we choose to do nothing about it.

But, it needs to be the right sort of exercise using a wide range of muscles. The spine is a very complex piece of machinery; there are a huge number of muscles that are involved when we bend our backs. Every movement that we make puts a load on your back.

The major leg muscles (gluteus maximus) attach to the bottom of the back. Move your legs and your back moves with it. Your neck is a direct extension of your back and even your arms share muscles with the back.

So, bearing that in mind, it is logical to assume that if we can get our back in shape our whole health will improve. It also follows that exercising our limbs will also exercise our back.

A lot of people who suffer with a bad back try doing stomach muscles, thinking that strengthening their abdominal muscles will support their backs. To some extent they are right, stronger abs will help, but that is only part of the picture. Strengthen your abdominal muscles without balancing that by balancing back muscles will lead to a further imbalance and possible injury.

So exercises need to be balanced, developing all the muscles that are involved in back movement.

Yoga and Pilates exercises are based on the principle of developing core strength, focusing on control and flexibility. Each exercise is designed to exercise a broad range of muscles to develop balance within the body. People who practice Yoga or Pilates two or three times a week experience a number of benefits; reduced back pain, deeper breathing with improved lung capacity, improved flexibility and circulation, better coordination and balance as well as improved core strength. It has also been shown to help with weight loss and stress control.

The other great thing is that all you need is an exercise mat and a couple of square yards of floor space.

We all the know the statistics, 80% of people suffer low back pain at least once during their lifetime. The bad news is that it tends to recur. Just like the common cold, you can get it again and again and again.

Typically, most people have poor posture. We learnt this from our days of sitting at school hunched over desks and with our sedentary lifestyle nowadays, we continue to sit and slump in front of the computer, watch TV or just relaxing reading a book. The challenge is that it is very difficult to sit with good posture and relax. When we relax, we think, sit, chill out and slouch into our favourite chair and just let our muscles go.

So what can back pain sufferers do right now to change their pain? Well, if you have pain when sitting, think about the way you are sitting. We all have a general idea of good and “not so good” posture. If you fall into the “not so good” category, grow up tall. Think someone is pulling a piece of string up through you head and stretching you out or think tall like a catwalk model or ballet dancer. What you will now find is that you will have a natural curve or lordosis in you low back….around your waist level. The loss of this curve when you sit may be one of reasons why you are suffering from back pain. So, keep this curve and slide you bottom all the way back into the firm chair you are sitting on. If you have kept the curve while doing this, you will most likely find that there is a gap between the back of your chair and the lordosis or hollow in your back.

NOW, this is the IMPORTANT BIT. You must not lose this hollow. Sounds impossible, well it is. After a few minutes or even less, you will have lost some of the curve. It is not your fault. You forget, your body isn’t used to it and a lot of the tasks we do in sitting involve leaning forward. As a consequence, the curve will be lost and you will become the shape of the chair you are sitting in and you pain will most likely return if it has been hurting in sitting.

So, what is the answer? Go to the bathroom and get a towel. Yes, a towel! Fold it in half length ways and then roll it up like a sausage. Now, put that sausage shape along the curve or hollow in your back. It should be positioned just above your belt or waist level. You may need to wiggle it around a bit and find the right position. Be patient…… Once you have it in position, you will find it easier to keep the curve as the rolled towel is filling in the gap. Does that make sense?

When sitting with the curve, low back pain often goes away immediately as long as you maintain the correct position. However, be warned, if you lose the position and slouch, the pain will come back.

Now this new position may feel a little weird. That is because your body isn’t used to it. Give it a few days or even up to a week and you will find that your brain gets used to this new position and will want to avoid the old painful position.

If you would prefer to use something other than a towel because the towels falls on the ground when you stand up, you may want to purchase a lumbar roll or “support” that straps around your chair. The lumbar support is a great visual reminder of sitting tall and when you stand up the roll stays in place, ready for you to sit the next time.

Remember, if your back hurts when you are sitting, have a look at the way you are sitting. Most people can improve their posture. Just use a simple rolled up towel in your back and a lot of your suffering may be gone within a couple of minutes.

Do you sit with a slouch? Or maybe you walk with a humped back? Maybe it’s the way you stand, with your feet pointed towards each other that makes your posture look awkward. Whatever the problem is, anyone who has ever had a posture problem knows just how much it can affect day to day life. You lose confidence, you want to hide away from people and it ends up having a big effect of all areas of your life.

It is likely that you have tried so many ways to try and fix your posture, but none of them seem to bring any long term results. Well, throw all that old stuff out! Its time to get yourself the Perfect Posture Program!

Designed and developed by fitness expert Mark Sias, it is guaranteed to leave you looking and feeling much better much faster. Posture is all about your spine, and how it supports your body. This program helps you understand the relationship between your spine and your posture, the problems that can arise as a result of poor posture and also how to remedy those problems.

Some people try to get help for posture problems by seeing a chiropractor, who is able to give them therapy for their muscular, skeletal and sometimes even neural problems. Well, with the Perfect Posture Program, you don’t need to spend all that money on chiropractic therapy. One purchase and the determination to see yourself through the program is all you need. The program is so effective that it comes with a money-back guarantee.

There is actually only one way to improve your posture and you will find it in this program. The program uses postural muscle equilibrium to correct posture by working the muscles that surround and support the spine. In fact, it is so effective that it cures conditions that have not really had any cures to date including lordosis, kyphosis and even scoliosis among others.

You may have poor posture, but to get the maximum benefits of the program and the muscle equilibrium technique, its important that you first diagnose the kind of posture problem that you suffer from. There are many kinds of poor posture problems, but here are some of the more common ones:

1. Lordosis - this is an excessive inward curvature of the spine. It is very common in people who work for long hours in sitting positions. In more serious cases, it can be a birth defect or can come as a result of an accident. Fortunately, it is not permanent. The Perfect Posture Program outlines techniques which you can use to relax and lengthen muscles that are too tight, or strengthen those that are weak.

2. Kyphosis - This condition is commonly called “hunchback”. It is the opposite of lordosis, where the spine curves outwards right at the top part. It can be congenital, but it’s also a common problem that affects people who train a lot or lift weights. While trying to build upper body muscle, they end up putting great strain on the chain muscles - the anterior ones get over developed while the posterior remain under developed. It is actually quite common to see weight lifters of heavy trainers who have a slightly hunched back. Fortunately, it’s reversible if you corrected in time. With the Perfect Posture Program, you will learn techniques that will restore the chain muscles and give you proper posture.

3. Scoliosis - This can be called a crooked spine in other words. Instead of it curving inwards or outwards too much as outlined in the above 2 conditions, it is simply weak and crooked. It can be crooked at several points. Its cause is not known, but there is a suspected genetic link, as well as poor bone density in most cases. If it has a genetic link, one may need additional physical therapy and medical attention in addition to the strengthening programs outlined in the Perfect Posture Program. If it’s as a result of poor bone density, the program outlines techniques to strengthen bone density as well as muscles, eventually straightening them out.

In addition to the Perfect Posture Program, there are little exercises that you can do as you go about your day that will strengthen your spine. The solution is really to get physical. The more sedentary you are, the more likely you are to develop posture problems. If you find you are sitting down for long periods, try the following:

1. Go out and get some exercise. Get some stretches, run or do whatever you like, but get your circulation heated up - it’s a great way to maintain posture. Heavy lifters be warned though - make sure not to damage your back thus your posture as you exercise.

2. Get active in the house - do the laundry, water your plants, vacuum your carpet, wash some dishes - just get up and do something physical. It will strengthen your back muscles and improve your posture.

3. If you have a job that requires that you sit for long hours, plan for breaks and take them. Take a walk around the office or outside. Stretch a little bit every 2 or 3 hours and you will feel the tension in your back ease.

4. When you sit, try not to slouch. Sit up straight and let your back be well supported by the chair.

5. Yoga is a great help because it stretches muscles - join a yoga program if you can or get a couple of videos and do it at home.

6. When driving, make sure not to slouch. Let the seat support your back and when you slow down, shift your weight around a little.

In this present era of computing people requires to sit in front of computers for long hours and this has lead to new kinds of disorders. These day people experience neck pain or back pain normally in their lives. Such pains can be acute, meaning it lasts a few hours to a few weeks, or it can be chronic. Neck pain that persists for several weeks or longer is considered chronic neck pain. Most causes of neck pain or back aches are caused due to poor posture at work, such as leaning into your computer, and during hobbies, such as hunching over your workbench, are common causes of neck pain. But sometimes such pain can signify something more serious. If your neck pain is so severe that you can’t touch your chin to your chest, seek immediate medical attention.

Such disorders are treated by a special branch of medical science called Chiropractic. Chiropractic is a health care discipline that deals with diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mechanical disorders of the musculoskeletal system. It is generally considered as a complementary and alternative treatment, a characterization that many chiropractors reject. The treatment involves manual therapy which includes manipulation of the spine, other joints, and soft tissue; treatment also includes exercises using chiropractic tables, chiropractic equipment and health and lifestyle counseling. Spinal manipulation, which chiropractic professionals call “spinal adjustment” or “chiropractic adjustment”, is the most common treatment used in chiropractic care. Spinal manipulation is a manual passive maneuver during which a three-joint complex is taken past the normal range of movement, but not so far as to dislocate or damage the joint; its defining factor is a dynamic thrust, which is a sudden force that causes an audible release and attempts to increase a joint’s range of motion.

Here are some techniques which are employed to fix such disorders.

Diversified technique (employing various techniques, full-spine manipulation), extremity adjusting, Activator technique (which uses a spring loaded tool to deliver precise adjustments to the spine), Thompson Technique (which relies on a drop table and detailed procedural protocols), Gonstead (which emphasizes evaluating the spine along with specific adjustment that avoids rotational vectors), Cox/flexion-distraction (a gentle, low-force adjusting procedure which mixes chiropractic with osteopathic principles and utilizes specialized adjusting tables or chiropractic tables with movable parts), adjustive instrument, Sacro-Occipital Technique (which models the spine as a torsion bar), Nimmo Receptor-Tonus Technique, Applied Kinesiology (which emphasises “muscle testing” as a diagnostic tool), and cranial.

Most people will experience back pain at some point in their lives, and probably the most common of back problems affecting the lower back is Lumbago.

Lumbago affects the muscles of the back and the pain experienced can vary greatly from severe pain to just a persistent dull ache. It is thought that the condition can be made worse by damp, cold weather, being overweight, having a poor posture, and excessive muscle strain due to pregnancy. Unfortunately, lumbago has the habit of intensifying with age, so it’s even more important for people to keep fit and healthy as they mature into old age.

Often the first experience of lumbago will be when a person is lifting heavy objects, or from bending and twisting suddenly, resulting in excruciating pain. It does not necessarily mean damage had been done to the spine itself, unless a person has experienced an injury to the back, which is quickly followed by low back pain. Lumbago is basically muscular in origin, so the symptoms can be alleviated or greatly reduced by strengthening the core muscles of the body, losing excess weight, and improving posture.

Most sufferers will turn to pain-killers to help relieve their discomfort in the first instance, but taking a warm bath with a little lavender oil can be really beneficial too. Aromatherapy massage can be a more holistic approach to dealing with recurrent lumbago, incorporating oils that help to relieve pain, such as St John’s wort, vervain, white willow, and comfrey.

Taking regular exercise is beneficial for both mind and body, but with lumbago it would be better to concentrate on exercises that strengthen the core muscles and improve posture, such as pilates, which advocates building and maintaining the back, abdominal and oblique muscles that make up the core. Think of you core as a natural girdle that pulls you in, straightens you up and protects your back.

We tend to slow down as we get older, and become less active than we were when we were younger, so making small changes to your every day routine can go a long way to improving your posture, general fitness and associated muscle strength, and lessening the symptoms of lumbago.

Try walking to work instead of taking the bus, or get off two stops earlier. Take the stairs wherever possible instead of using lifts and escalators. Park you car further away from your workplace so you can add a few minutes extra walking to your day. Go for a stroll at lunch-time instead of sitting at your desk. Buy a dog and walk it twice a day. Get the family out into the countryside at weekends for a bit of exploring, or join a rambling club. Take up an exercise class, dance class, or join your local gym for some weight-training sessions a couple of times per week.

Whatever you choose to do, have fun doing it and you will be able to cope better with your lumbago.

Do you have bad posture? If so, Rolfing may be the solution to help improve your poor posture. Over the years, your body reacts to trauma, both physical and emotional, by creating “blockages”. Dr. Chuck Lustfield, Ph.D., a Certified Advanced Rolfer, says that the result of this trauma “intensifies our struggle with the force of gravity, which results in reduced freedom of movement, an increased likelihood of chronic pain, poor posture and a lessened sense of aliveness and self-esteem.”

The objective of Rolfing is to improve health by bringing segments of the body (e.g. shoulders, head, pelvis, legs) into proper alignment by freeing up those segments that are constricted or out of balance. Rolfing is based on the idea that fascia stiffens, shortens, and loses its elasticity after prolonged poor posture and mental and emotional stress.

Fascia is the fibrous connective tissue that surrounds, separates or binds together your muscles, organs and other soft structures of your body. Problems can arise when your fascia is injured since it creates a glue-like substance - a “blockage” - that begins to inhibit your movement. Over time, this will significantly decrease your range of motion, your level of comfort and quite often, your overall health and well-being.

Damage to your fascia can result from a multitude of events, including birth trauma, accumulated stress from poor posture, sports injuries, car accidents and surgery. The list goes on. Rolfing will release this fascia “gluing” and should stop the downward spiral of bad health. Over time, muscular motion will improve as will your blood circulation. Rolfing, also known as structural integration, was named after Dr. Ida Rolf, a biochemist who was influenced by osteopathy, physical therapy and yoga. Rolfing will typically treat conditions such as:

1) Poor posture

2) Muscle tension and pain, especially in the neck, upper and lower back

3) Other conditions caused by poor posture

There is an alternative to Rolfing: A properly designed posture cushion that uses gravity and your body weight to reduce the ravages of poor posture. A suitable posture cushion will allow the head to assume a neutral position in relation to the shoulders. The contours of the thoracic area will push the thorax forward, stretching muscles in the front of the chest and relaxing muscles in the mid-back and upper-back. At the same time, the shoulders should be allowed to rotate outwards.

A good posture cushion will accomplish the same result as Rolfing, but without the human intervention. More importantly, a posture cushion is portable and you can use it anywhere you please, and particularly in the comfort of your own home.

Back pain is shared by all people regardless of race, and acupuncture has been around for a while now to help in easing the pain. All around the world, people have sought medical care at one time or another for back pain. There are a number of causes of back pain but mostly it’s due to overstretching of the ligaments, or commonly called as “sprain”. Sometimes it is caused by a tear or strain in the muscle. These situations can be brought about by injury, poor posture or a disease that has developed.

Nowadays people tend to turn to alternative medicine due to the prohibitive cost of health care, or sometimes due to the concern over the side effects of drugs. Of the various traditional options in the market today for the relief of back pain, acupuncture has emerged as one of the most effective and least expensive choice. Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese therapeutic method that has been around for centuries. It uses fine needles inserted at specific places in the body, which the Chinese call “meridians”. They believe that these “meridians” correspond to the major body systems, and that the punctures are meant to release our body’s vital energy called the “qi”. It is believed that if the “qi” is unblocked and is allowed to flow freely in the body, it can correct whatever disorder a person is suffering from.

Acupuncture can be either distal or local. In distal therapy, the needles are inserted away from the area of pain. This is often used for instant relief of acute pain. Sometimes the needles will be complemented with cupping or electric stimulation. Acupuncturists would know where to find the points that will have impact on the pain and concentrate the punctures there. The frequency of the acupuncture sessions depend on the level of pain: as the pain dissipates, the sessions decrease as well.

There have been studies to support the effectiveness of acupuncture in removing back pain. A Swedish hospital released a study conducted on patients with chronic back pain where they concluded that long term relief is obtained through acupuncture, and that better sleep and an improved sense of well-being likewise resulted from acupuncture. In the United States, acupuncture is now widely accepted as complementary therapy for the treatment of musculoskeletal pains, including back pain. However, there are very few definitive studies on the subject due to the very low number of research on acupuncture.

Nevertheless, acupuncture has remained quite popular across the country, and many swear by its effectiveness in relieving all kinds of pains. It appears to be quite effective and has unbelievably very few side effects. Because it is only mildly invasive, it can be carried out alongside conventional pain treatment regimens. If you are one those people who have been using spending a considerable amount of money on conventional treatment of back pain, all to no avail, it may be high time for you to consider acupuncture. It is always better to keep an open mind while staying reasonably cautious about alternative therapies such as acupuncture.