‘Back Pain: The Realities And Remedies’

by Rebecca Huber

1/29/09

Four out of every five Americans will have back pain at some point in their lives. The causes can be wide and varied, anything from serious kidney disease, cancer, a ruptured disc or irritable bowel syndrome to the more common causes, an everyday life of use and abuse- which is about 99% of most cases of back pain.

Most of us tend to ignore our back pain until it has our full attention. We knew that chair at work wasn’t right, lifting the kids car seats, a sudden burst of overuse- shoveling snow and so on.

The reality is that the cause of most back pain is varied and unknown, but certainly heavy lifting and sudden over use are at the top of the list. So maybe don’t worry that something terribly is wrong until you’ve addressed the obvious.

Here are the best yet simple remedies for acute back pain

1. Cold and heat. An immediate first aid measure is the application of cold for 15-20 minutes every hour or two until the pain begins to subside. Moist heat is often as helpful. I tell my clients if the cold feels good do that, if heat feels good do that.

2. Pain relievers. The use of Arnica gel is one of the best and simple back pain relievers bar none. It can be used frequently without any side effects. If the pain persists try using some aspirin.

3. Massage therapy. Massage is another wonderful pain reliever and will help relieve tense tight muscles that are at the root cause of the pain. Massage is known to help release endorphins, the body’s natural pain reliever. It will also help produce natural drug free sleep necessary for muscle healing and repair.

4. Spinal manipulation. Chiropractic care, which involves hands- on manipulation of the spine, is often helpful.

5. Acupuncture. These treatments can be effective. Like massage acupuncture helps release endorphins.

6. Homeopathy. There are many wonderful combination homeopathic remedies that address back pain. It can be confusing since there are so many, pick the one that best matches your set of symptoms.

7. Exercise. Certainly one of the root causes of low back pain is weak abdominal muscles, and weak muscles in general. If you are currently struggling with acute back pain wait until most of the pain subsides. Then start gradually. If you belong to a gym or the YMCA you might want to check with a trainer to make sure you don’t over do it and re-injure your back.

8. Intermittent rest and activity. It was once thought that back pain suffers should be treated with bed rest. Too much rest or too much activity will only further aggravate your pain.

9. Be patient. Healing takes time.

If your back pain does not resolve, you have symptoms of numbness of weakness in your legs be sure to check in with your doctor. Till next time, Rebecca