Low Back Pain
Low Back Pain in the 21st Century.
Low back pain is one of the most common problems that affects us in the 21st century. Low back pain can be very debilitating and painful, but it is rarely serious. It is also common for low back pain to cause someone to miss work or be unable to help out around the home. Even in these cases, the pain can be very quickly improved before working on strengthening the low back to stop the problem from returning.
What Causes Low Back Pain to Develop?
Low back pain can be caused by many factors. For many, it develops over a long period of time as a result of either too little movement or the wrong kinds of movements repeated too many times. Low back pain is common in the 21st century partly due to all the lifestyle habits we now have – all the sitting at work, looking down at computers and phones, getting stressed and carrying tension through our shoulders. Over time, all these factors build up and gradually reduce the ability of our back to “resist injury”, unless something is done about it!
Where Does Low Back Pain Come From?
There are many structures in the low back that may cause pain to be felt. Anything from the muscles to the joints, from ligaments to the discs and even the nerves.
Is Low Back Pain Serious?
Low back pain is very rarely serious, and normally goes away within a few weeks. Despite this, low back pain can still be very scary and can stop you from being able to enjoy your life.
How Do We Treat Back Pain?
Low back pain is one of the most common problems that we help people overcome at Pro Chiro.
The specific treatment we provide for low back pain will vary person to person, as we are all unique and as such require a unique treatment plan. For most patients with low back pain that we help, we will use a combination or hands on treatment such as spinal adjustments and soft tissue releases to the tight muscles. This combination is extremely effective at reducing pain levels and allowing our patients to return to normal day to day actvities.
We don’t just stop there though – if we left it at that, our patients would be at risk of the pain returning and then becoming too reliant on the treatment as a quick fix. Instead, we progress all of our patients through an exercise programme to ensure they strengthen the low back and other affected muscles. This stops the pain from returning in the future and makes sure our patients are as Injury Resilient as possible.
Treatment Techniques Used for Low Back Pain
Spinal Adjustments
We use adjustments to improve the movement in stiff joints throughout the back. This helps to decrease pain and improve pain-free movement.
Soft Tissue Release
There are various soft tissue release techniques we use for low back pain, including instrumented assisted releases such as in the picture.
Strengthening Exercises
It is essential that once the pain levels have reduced, exercises are performed. This prevents the low back pain from returning.
This video shows one of our favourite low back pain exercises to perform at home. Doing this exercise will help you to recover from low back pain.
How Can You Help Low Back Pain At Home?
Firstly, it is important to remember that even though the pain levels may seem very high, it is probably nothing serious and nothing to worry about.
Most people with low back pain will recover much faster the sooner they get back to moving normally. Although certain movements may be uncomfortable, they won’t harm you, so try to push through the discomfort as much as possible. Exercises like the video above are a great way to get movement into the back, which will then help to reduce the pain.
The worst thing to do for low back pain is remain static and still. In the past, bed rest used to be recommended, but we now know that lying still is one of the worst things to do for low back pain. Instead, try going for a 5-15 minute walk.
7 Most Common Causes of Low Back Pain - Free Ebook
Low back pain is so common, and is often caused by habits from 21st century lifestyle. To help as many people as possible, our sports chiropractor and owner Josh French has written a free ebook. This ebook contains lots of useful information about the most common causes of low back pain and how to eliminate these causes.
If you want to learn more about the low back pain treatment techniques we offer and what they entail, click through to this page.
We also have a Facebook page where we share lots of useful health tips and advice. This allows you to have confidence that you’re staying as injury resistant as possible.