Do you have pain after sitting or standing too long?
Do you feel stiff and achy in the mornings or have trouble straightening up after getting out of bed?
You aren’t alone. Studies show that 80% of Americans will have an episode of back pain in their lifetime.1 In fact, back pain is one of the most common reasons for missed work.
The good news is that there are things you can do to ease and actually eliminate your back pain besides taking pain medication. Pain medication is a temporary fix at best, and what we want is to actually help your body heal and eliminate the cause of your pain. Many people hear the diagnosis of a disc bulge or herniation and their first thought is that they will need surgery. This is not the case. We work with many great doctors and surgeons and they only perform surgery when all other conservative treatments fail or patients experience the flags warranting immediate intervention including loss of bowel and bladder control.
It was once thought that once you had a disc herniation, it would always be there, but research is showing that this is not the case. A study published in Pain Physician found that almost 2/3 of people that had disc injuries on their MRI experienced disc reabsorption with conservative care.2
So now that you know some facts about back pain and the new research showing the body’s amazing ability to help heal itself, we are going to share with you 3 simple tips to speed up your recovery if you do experience and episode of back pain.
1. Get Moving Before Getting Out of Bed
Staying in one position for too long is never good for back pain, and we have just spent the entire night lying on our back or our side. This is why getting out of bed in the mornings tends to be one of the most dreaded tasks of the day for someone experiencing back pain. The easiest way to make getting out of bed in the morning a little more bearable is to begin gentle movement while your lying down. There are a few different ways to do this, but one of the easiest is to gently bring your knees back and forth to your chest, one at a time. Keep the motion pain-free and perform it for a few minutes to introduce some movement into your spine before you stand and start fighting gravity.
2. Stay Active
Out of fear, many people tend to think bed rest and not moving to protect their back is the best thing for them. Even though it may be frightening to someone that is just experiencing back pain, the best medicine is to move.
- Change positions often
- Go for a walk
- Ride a stationary bike
This doesn’t mean that you should continuing doing a strenuous work out that generates more pain, but find something that is less intense and still gets your heart rate up.
3. Have a Positive Outlook
It may sound a little “out there” but your attitude does affect your recovery. There is more and more research coming out in the field of Pain Science that promotes having a positive attitude toward your injury will promote a quicker recovery. As mentioned above, the majority of people respond well to conservative care, and if you keep that in mind and know that you will overcome your injury, chances are YOU WILL!
For more ways and advice to ease neck and shoulder pain, go here next to collect your free tips report: