Back Pain Myths

Back pain is common and so are back pain myths. If you suffer from back pain then you’ve heard people say “try sitting up straight” or “get some bed rest”. Not everything you hear is true. There are some common back pain myths that may surprise you from WebMD.

Sit up straight: While having good posture is good for you, sitting up straight for extended periods of times is not. When you sit for extended periods of time with a stiff, straight back, it can add strain. You want to lean a bit back in your chair with your feet flat on the ground while maintain the natural “S” curve in your back.

Don’t Life Heavy Objects: It’s not how much you lift, it’s how you lift it, form is everything. You want to life from your legs, not your back. Never lift anything that is too heavy for your body of course. When you are lifting something remember to squat close to the item, keep your back straight and head up.

Back Pain is Caused by an Injury: Not all back pain is created equal. While some back pain may be cause by injury, some are not. Disc degeneration and other inherited conditions can cause back pain.

Exercise is Bad for Back Pain: This could not be any further from the truth! Regular exercise actually prevents back pain. For people suffering from acute injury resulting in lower back pain, a doctor will most likely recommend a gentile exercise program.

If you are one of the many people suffering from back pain, don’t be fooled by the myths. Always speak with your pain med consultant if you are suffering from back pain. Remember, life is full of pain, suffering is optional. 

Stand Up!

Sitting down for extended periods of time can put extra stress on your back. If you’re already suffering from back pain, you want to avoid sitting down as much as possible. There are some simple steps, recommended by health.com, that you can take in your everyday life to help you sit less!

Pace on the Phone

Invest in a portable phone, or headset, or even a long cord, this way you can stand up and pace on the phone. Even if you aren’t walking in circles, simply standing will make a difference.

After Lunch Walk

After you eat a meal, take a quick stroll. Whether it’s just around the parking lot or the office or all the way around the block, just get moving!  Not only will you feel better, but walking after you eat will speed up your metabolism.

Grab the Bar Seats

When you go into a restaurant opt for the bar seats instead of a table. Try to position yourself with you feet a little more then hip width apart and tilt your hips slightly forward. This will allow your back to maintain the natural “S” curve in your spine.

Forget the Beach Chairs

If you’re going to the beach, or a lawn concert, or what have you, leave the chairs at home! If you don’t have one you’ll most likely spend more time walking around or just standing.

Walk to Their Desk

If  you have to communicate with a co-worker, don’t pick up the phone, don’t email them, simply walk over to their desk and tell them!

Easy enough, right? These are five simple steps you can rotate into your daily life to help you get up and move more. It also would be a good idea to have designated “stretch” or “walk” times in addition to these suggestions. Do your back a favor, and get up!  Life is full of pain, suffering is optional.

Lower Back Pain Relief NOW!

Back pain is no joke! According to the National Institutes of Health, 8 out of 10 people will suffer from back pain at one point or another in their lifetime.  Something minuscule can trigger the back pain. Below are six quick remedy’s to help your lower back suggested by health.com.

1. The Office Chair- Even if you invest in the most expensive, “supportive” chair, it is still not enough to avoid lower back pain. Sitting reduces the flow of blood to your supportive discs and can add 30% more pressure to your back as opposed to standing. So get up, move around, stretch out! Do this at least once an hour. Also, while your sitting, make sure your posture is correct. Head straight, shoulders back and keep your feet firmly planted on the floor.
2. Change Your Shoes- Stilettos are not ideal, they can put stress on your knees, hips and back. Trying wearing heals that are less then 3 inches high.  Also, avoid backless shoes, with your heal flopping around you are losing support. Your shoe should hold your foot firmly in place!
3. Weight Loss- Shedding some excess pounds will help lighten the load. When you carry extra weight in your mid section it propels your pelvic forward, throwing off the alignment of your spine.  If  weight is your problem, consider making a healthy lifestyle change, like exercising and eating right.
4. Bras- If you are a women with larger breasts make sure you are wearing a supportive bra! The weight in your breasts can cause you to hunch forward putting strain on your shoulders and neck.  Get fitted by a professional, it will make all the difference!
5. Technology- We know you love your iPhone or tablet or that fancy new laptop, but they have not been so kind to us in return- or at least not on our backs. The head down position strains our necks and our backs. Try looking at your smart phones or laptops  head on instead.
6. Your Hectic Life- Stress can be a large contributor to back pain. Muscles start to tense up when you are stressed.  So relax! Lighter aerobic exercises like walking can help reduce your back pain and relieve stress, or try yoga!

Take a minute to examine your everyday life. These are quick fixes most people can stand to make. If you are seriously suffering from back pain and these simple changes don’t help, contact your pain med consultant. Life is Full of Pain, Suffering is Optional!

Disc Decompression- Is it Right for You?

If you are suffering from back pain, a herniated disc, bulging disc, or other back related injuries, you may want to consider Disc Decompression as a treatment option. Disc Decompression is a fairly new and advanced non-surgical way to reduce back pain. That’s right, non-surgical! When it comes to the spine, many people are hesitant to have surgery, and we understand. This is a great non-surgical alternative.

It is a minimally invasive procedure. You are first given a local anesthetic. Then your pain med consultant will insert a needle into your spine. The needle is placed right in the center of the bulging disc.  What your doctor is doing is removing the intradiscal material or nucleus pulposus, from your spine. The pressure on your disc and nerves will almost instantly be relieved.

Another perk of this non-surgical procedure is the recovery time, or lack there of. The recovery time is relatively quick, very similar to that of an epidural steroid injection.  Also, there is no back brace needed! You will be up and about with no problem.

If you are suffer from a bulging or herniated disc, consider a Disc Decompression surgery.  Make sure you talk to your pain med consultant about your treatment options before you decide. Life is full of pain, suffering is optional!

Exercises for Sciatica

In order to understand what exercises are appropriate for sciatica, it is important to first understand what sciatica is. As defined be WebMD, sciatica is a pain, numbness or tingling produced by the irritation of the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve. You can feel the pain from sciatica all the way from your lower back down to your foot. The most common cause of sciatica is a herniated disc in your spine pressing against the sciatic nerve roots. Sitting for long periods of time can cause more stress to your sciatica, so our first exercise recommendation is walking.

Walking

Walking for a short period of time can help loosen and stretch out your legs. Be sure to start in small incriminates and work your way up.

Stretching

This is probably the most important exercise you can do to relieve your sciatica pain. One great stretch is to lay flat on your back and pull your knee into your chest, one leg at a time. Hold this stretch for at least 30 seconds at a time. Afterwords, bring both legs together and pull into your chest and hold. This stretch will help relieve the tension in your lower back.  Another great stretch that will relieve pain in your quadriceps is to start by laying flat on your stomach. Then, bring both of your legs up to your buttocks and grab on to your feet with your hands. Try holding for 10-20 seconds or until you start to feel pain. Child’s pose is also a  great stretch to help loosen and relieve your lower back pain.

It is important to keep you back flat when doing any of these stretches.

Core Strength

Crunches are a great way to help build up your core to help support your lower back. You need to be careful when doing crunches. If you feel any pain at all, stop.

Trying these light exercises and stretches will help reduce your pain and get you on the right track to recovery. Remember to start out slow when exercising with sciatica and always consult your pain med specialist.

7 Exercises to Help Reduce Your Pain

We understand that if you suffer from chronic pain the last thing you want to do is exercise.  But exercise is a great way to help reduce your pain and improve your overall quality of life.  Don’t worry – there is something for everyone, we’re certainly not suggesting you sign up for an iron man! Remember to start out slow, and pace yourself. You should always talk to your pain med consultant before you take on a new physical challenge.  Here are our favorite 7 exercises based on an advice article from Health.com:

• Walking: Walking is a great place to start! It is a low impact activity that you can do virtually anywhere. No matter where you live or what the weather conditions are- walking is always a possibility.
• Swimming: Swimming is great for those who suffer with osteoarthritis or joint and impact issues.  This is also a low impact exercise, that’s easy on the joints.
• Yoga: Stretching is great for chronic pain, but just as important are the breathing exercises.  You want to make sure you keep to what you are comfortable with because some yoga poses tend to be a bit extreme and tougher on your joints.
• Tai Chi: Like yoga, it incorporates breathing and movement. Tai chi has more fluid movements and can be done by people of all ages. No one is too old to start tai chi.  A New England Journal of Medicine study found that if you do tai chi at least twice a week it reduces pain, stiffness and fatigue in fibromyalgia patients.
• Pilates: Pilates helps build up your core strength. People with back pain can benefit the most from Pilates.
• Stretching: Stretching can be done anywhere at any time – whether you’re in your office, your car or waiting in line. It’s important to get your body parts in a full range of motion for at least 15 minutes a day.
• Weight and Strength Training: Weight training is important for those suffering with arthritis. It helps build muscle and helps take stress off of joints that may be giving you problems. When working with weights it is important to pace yourself and start out light.

Like we said, we know exercise is last thing you want to do when you’re in pain, but the benefits are worth the effort.  There is something for everyone, no matter what your fitness level.

Do I Need an Epidural Steroid Injection?

If you are one of many suffering from pain in your lower back, leg, neck, and/or mid spine, you may want to consider an Epidural Steroid Injection. This is a non-surgical treatment option solely for pain relief. Often it is used in conjunction with patients in a rehabilitation program to allow additional benefits in recovery.

The effects of this injection are temporary. It can provide pain relief for one week up to one year.  This treatment can be very beneficial to those patients with an acute episode of back or leg pain. If the first injection is a success, the patient may have up to three in a year.  According to an article from Spine-Health.com, more than 50 percent of patients felt significant pain relief from the epidural steroid injections.

An epidural steroid injection is a great treatment option in comparison to others like, painkillers and oral steroids. These other methods may have unwanted side effects. Unlike painkillers and oral steroids, an epidural steroid injection is not only able to stop the pain but it can help control local inflammation as well.

If you are considering this treatment option, make sure you talk to your pain specialist to see if it is right for you. Life is full of pain, suffering is optional.

Preventing Pain While at Work

If you work long hours sitting down, chances are you are experiencing pain by the end of the day. It’s uncomfortable and inconvenient especially when it comes to productivity. Your mind is just too distracted by the pain to do a good job.  Fortunately there are options to prevent the pain and have a productive work day by doing a few simple exercises. There’s no reason to go through your work day in pain.

Ready for those options?  Here are three to start:

Option 1. Get up and walk around for about 10 minutes every hour. This helps to get the blood flowing and keep the muscles warm to prevent the pain.

Option 2. Sitting in an upright position (no slouching or leaning back), take your right arm and reach behind your right hip. If you need a deeper stretch, reach over to your right with your left hand. Do not bounce or twist back and forth. Hold the stretch for up to 30 seconds and then switch sides.

Option 3. Put your hands together straight out in front of you with your fingers interlocked, turn your hands so that your palms are facing away from you with your fingers still interlocked.  Then place your head down.  Push your palms forward while you arch your upper back. You’ll feel the stretch in your upper back. Hold this stretch for up to 30 seconds.

Try to repeat these stretching exercises at least twice a day and you’ll feel a lot better by the time you head home from the office. If you are experiencing chronic pain, make sure to make an appointment with us at Pain Med Consultants for results you can count on. You don’t have to live in pain; call us at (877) 388-PAIN or visit us online!