Back pain

[Jeffrey of Troy]

This article was on SOTT, The new science of treating lower back pain.

As I posted on my blog a few years ago, a simple realization helped me reduce my back pain almost completely:
How to Prevent Back Pain in Four Easy Steps

Short Answer: You stand up wrong.

Longer Answer:
There are many explanations for why so many people in our society have low back pain; the most popular is that all the time spent sitting is “killing” (some people say “ruining”) your low back. A related meme/theme is that you need to practice better posture when sitting and/or standing.

The remedy is said to be standing more, with some even proposing the “standing desk”.

Well, that just smacks of the same condescending, Puritanical stuff as the “lazy gluttons” explanation for the Obesity Epidemic – it is the blamer indulging himself in feeling superior.

I say the problem isn't how much time you spend sitting, it's how you stand up from a sitting position.

How You Stand Up

1. You are sitting all the way back in the chair (or couch), your back supported by the back of the chair.
2. You lean forward from where you are – the weight of your body behind your feet – and , with your back extended, pull/push your way up into a standing position.

Every time you get up that way, you hurt your low back by making it do work in the extended position.

How You Should Stand Up

1. You are sitting all the way back in the chair (or couch), your back supported by the back of the chair.
2. You use your hands and feet to scoot your rear end to the edge of the chair.
3. Inhale as you pull your feet back to you (if necessary) and lean forward
4. Exhale as you stand straight up in one swift, fluid motion

The Operative Principle

The operative principle here is to get the weight of your torso directly over your heels before you stand up. Also, try to minimize the time spent between the sitting and standing positions.

In this way, you stop damaging your low back every time you get up from a sitting position, thereby giving your back a chance to heal.

Try it today, and you could start seeing results as early as immediately, all for the low low price of zero dollars!

 

[Uperios]

Resolving Lower Back Pain for Good With NST​

Story at a glance:

• Neurostructural Integration Technique (NST) is a powerful technique that can ease muscle aches and pain by stimulating the central and peripheral autonomic nervous systems
• The main objective of NST is to remove pain and dysfunctional physiological conditions by restoring the structural integrity of the body; NST helps your body reintegrate on many levels, and thus return to and maintain normal homeostatic limits on a daily basis
• Approximately 80% of the world’s population will suffer from lower back pain (LBP) at some point in their lives, and LBP is the world’s leading cause of disability
• Barring instances when the LBP is caused by direct impact injury, the pain and its location are typically a manifestation resulting from systematic imbalances that have been in place far longer than the LBP
• As an example, patients will often present with debilitating LBP and chronic TMJ or TMD (temporomandibular joint dysfunction) that they, their doctor and/or health care practitioners have overlooked, discounted as insignificant or simply not understood, let alone associate with the LBP condition

 

[PerfectCircle]

Doing back exercises with stretching helps a lot in the long run, as they strengthen your back muscles.
It doesn't need to take long, only 15 minutes per day might help if your job involves a lot of sitting in front of computer.

 

[RAFL]

In my job, I'm in front of a computer most of the day. I have also suffered from back pain a few times.
I tried different exercises, massages, fascial therapy... None of them helped for long.
Then I changed my sleeping position. The idea was simple: If you sit all day, why not "stand" all night?

I started, and it wasn't easy, sleeping straight on my back. First without a pillow, then with a very small pillow. The biggest challenge is to stop automatically turning to the side and going into the foetal position. This is the same body position as when you are sitting up.

I have been doing this for over a year now and the following effects have been seen:
- Gradually, I sit up straight more and more often, automatically, as if from nowhere.
- Tension, that would normally cause pain for a few days, disappears as quickly as it appears.
- A more conscious awareness of my body.

This is just a subjective experience report. But perhaps a physiotherapist can add their two cents.

 

[PopHistorian]

I had issues with lower back pain starting at age 17, as it runs in the family. Exercise helps but what worked for me decisively was, years ago, changing to non-inflammatory foods. Simply avoiding inflammatory foods did it.

I've recommended this to others suffering with lower back pain, and those who have tried it report relief. One acquaintance (with a diet of almost 100% restaurant or processed food because they do not cook) spent three days sick and couldn't eat, so, an involuntary fast, but back pain went away. Would expect that it helps for all joint pain.

 

[Uperios]

The Good News and Bad if You Suffer From Back Pain​

Story at a glance:

• Back pain is one of the most common health complaints across the globe, with an estimated 80% of people experiencing back pain at some point in their life. It’s also the No. 1 cause of job disability
• According to a recent systematic review and meta-analysis, a majority of people who experience back pain do recover, even if the pain persists for a couple of months. The bad news is that the longer the pain persists, the lower your chances of a full recovery
• In practical terms this means that if pain persists after an injury has healed, you need to switch up your treatment strategy. Once the injury has healed, ongoing pain is typically due to pain system hypersensitivity, and that requires an approach that includes retraining your brain to perceive pain appropriately
• Avoid opioids, as they tend to augment pain sensitivity. Research has also shown opioids (including morphine, Vicodin, oxycodone and fentanyl) fail to control moderate to severe pain any better than over-the-counter (OTC) drugs such as acetaminophen, ibuprofen and naproxen
• Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) has been shown to successfully reverse chronic back pain by rewiring neural pathways so that your brain can respond to signals more appropriately. The goal is to reduce your fear of movements associated with pain, so that when you move, you can be confident that it’s not going to hurt. Several other treatment strategies are also reviewed

 

[loreta]

I've always had a bad back, partly because I've always had a bag full of books. What helped me a lot was doing exercise, in the early days Jazz-exercise, which was all the rage at the time. Then gym, with weights. And finally, Yoga, which for me is the best thing for my back.

I'm going to pay attention to the food I eat to see if there's a link between food and back pain. But as all the problems we have with our bodies are also linked to our emotions.

Strengthening the legs and especially the hips is essential for the back. As my yoga teacher says, the hips are the pillars that support everything!