Those who suffer from back pain are often desperate for relief. After all, whether it’s widespread or concentrated in a small area, back pain can make simple, everyday movements excruciating. Even pulling up your pants or tying your shoes can be problematic. Countless people have spent small fortunes on personal massagers, new pillows, braces, and topical creams. However, the best way to address back pain is by targeting it directly at its source. If you’ve been sleeping on an old, lumpy, over-soft, or under-firm mattress, this might be contributing to or even causing your discomfort. More commonly, back pain is the result of impact events, excess body weight, overwork, and other life factors and activities. Although the wrong mattress can certainly exacerbate an existing problem with back pain, it isn’t always guaranteed to be its source.
One of the best ways to get natural and long-lasting relief is by consulting with a chiropractor. Chiropractic care can entail far more than manual adjustments for realigning the spine. These services frequently take a holistic and multi-pronged approach to promoting wellness. They do so by considering all of the factors that might be responsible for discomfort, limited movement, inflammation, stiffness, or other musculoskeletal problems. Consulting with a chiropractor can help you avoid spending hundreds, if not thousands, on a new mattress that you might not actually need. Moreover, if new sleeping products are required as part of your back pain treatment, a seasoned chiropractor can make recommendations on the best mattresses for meeting your needs.
Common Causes of Back Pain and How to Deal With Them
Many chiropractic patients are surprised to discover that their back pain is actually caused by problems in other areas of their bodies. For instance, if your quadriceps muscles are overly tight, you may be using your lower back more than the average person when bending, lifting, or engaging in other movements. When this is the case, simple stretches for lengthening, loosening, and elongating the muscles at the front of your thighs can promote immediate improvements in comfort, balance, range of motion, flexibility, and other areas. Back pain can also be the result of under-performing core muscles. Your core or abdominal muscles both oppose and support your spine.
If you lack abdominal strength but have been attempting to engage in new forms of exercise, you may have placed undue strain on your back. Push-ups, planks, and even jumping, twisting movements can lead to back pain whenever the spine is not properly supported. Patients who suffer from back pain due to under-performing core muscles are given a series of stretching and strength-building exercises that are capable of providing both immediate and ongoing improvements.
Whether caused by tight quadriceps or lack of abdominal strength, back pain can also be alleviated with:
- Inversion table therapy
- Therapeutic massage
- Hot and cold therapy
- Hydro-therapy
- Ultrasound therapy
- Acupuncture or acupressure
among many other treatments. People frequently experience back pain as the result of too much standing or too much sitting while on the job. Repetitive motion activities and poor posture when working on tablets, computers, laptops, or other screens are all factors that can cause tension and soreness in this area. At best, buying a new mattress without identifying the life habits that are responsible for the problem will only provide limited and short-term relief.
If you’ve recently slipped or tripped and fallen, or have been in a car accident, your discomfort may be the result of changes in the alignment of your spine. When the spine isn’t properly aligned, people can contend with nerve pain, muscle spasms, muscle tension, and changes in their overall range of motion. Computer-assisted or manual-adjustments can be used to gradually shift displaced structures into their rightful positions. With each session, these treatments can alleviate swelling and inflammation, reduce pressure and stress on surrounding muscle groups, and provide relief.
Back pain has myriad causes. Although pain pills and bed rest can keep you from adding to your discomfort, hands-on, chiropractic therapies can assist your body in repairing itself. It can also expedite the healing process. During your initial visit, your chiropractor will ask questions about your lifestyle, your everyday activities and movements, your medical history, and your history of jarring, impact events. Various diagnostic tools will be leveraged as well to gain a clear picture of your spine’s alignment, and its all-around well-being and health. All of this information will be used to establish a comprehensive and needs-specific plan for helping you reach your goals. In some instances, investing in things like ergonomic work equipment, a better pillow, or even a better mattress may be advised. If you’ve been struggling with back pain and want to identify and directly target its source, we can help. Call us today at 205-637-1363.
