How to Stop Back Pain...

Dear Dr. Banerjee: I have chronic back pain, please help. I am 30 years old and a mother of two. I work as a project manager with a local corporation. For the past five years I suffered from low back pain that would come from time to time, but the pain always went away after a day or so.

One day in a rush to get the kids to daycare before work, I picked up my 4-year old the same way I have always done. But this time was different. I felt a sharp pain in my back, a pain I never felt before.  The next few days the pain would not go away. I went to my doctor and he gave me anti-inflammation drugs and muscle relaxants. I felt better right away, but I needed to take another couple of pills every couple of hours because the back pain would come right back as soon as the pill wore off.

After a couple of weeks, I was taking more pills more often just to keep the pain away so I could just get on with my life. After two months of taking non-stop pain relief drugs, I realized I was no better off. And I just don't feel like the same pleasant person I have been. Out of desperation, I went to my doctor a few more times. But all he would do is give me stronger pain relievers and muscle relaxants. I also went through physical therapy and had nerve blocks done. My life is a wreck and I don’t want surgery. Will I ever get better? - Jennifer L. Memphis, TN

Dear Jennifer: I understand what you are going through, and how discouraging it can be when you are doing your best to follow your doctor’s orders but nothing seems to work. Back pain is often mistreated and it affects the lives of millions of people each year. That's the bad news. The good news is that you may not have to continue suffering.

The Shocking Truth About Over-the Counter Drugs And Why They Don’t Really Get Rid Of Low Back Pain

Most doctors will give you the pain relievers and muscle relaxants for the pain and spasms. But what many drug companies don't want you to know is that drugs do not cure you of what causes low back pain.

You see, the way these drugs work is to disable, for a short time, your brain's ability to feel the sensation of pain coming from your back. The pain is still there, you just can't feel it! It's just like sweeping dirt under a rug. Just because you can't feel it, doesn't mean it's not there!

Also most doctors lack the training and experience to effectively treat YOUR low back pain! Most doctors are never trained to detect or diagnose the real cause of back pain. In fact, most doctors have no idea how to treat someone with low back pain. It's just not their specialty. And since they have no background in this area, they make improper diagnoses and then deliver improper treatments that just plain don’t work.

You see, a large cause of back pain, especially in the low back, is due to a misalignment of the spine which can cause chronic degeneration. Even if only one bone is just slightly out of whack, that can cause the nerves in your spine to become compressed. The result is more pain. Most doctors are trained to relieve symptoms, to sweep your pain under the rug. All the while, the REAL cause of your pain is still there.

Unless the real cause of your pain is treated, you will never get better! Back pain can be managed safely and, in most cases, inexpensively. Keep reading to find out how.

One of the most important steps to fix your back pain is to drink more water. The disc in the lower back that separate the spinal bones are designed to absorb stress and help with movement. They are able to act as cushion because of the water content. When pressure is relieved, a vacuum is created inside the disc which lets water flow in.

The water re-hydrates and cushions the vertebrae. If the disc does not re-hydrate the disc will flatten and slip out of alignment, which can cause acute and chronic pain.

But getting out of chronic back pain won't happen by simply drinking several glasses of water at one time. You body won’t be able to really absorb water if you drink it that way. And if you are under chronic pain, your body has probably been dehydrated for quite some time. You may have to drink more water for several weeks to feel the difference. The best way to drink water is to carry a water bottle with you everywhere you go and just take a sip from it all through the day. You may want to sip up to 10 or 12 glasses of water every day.

Minimize Stress on Your Back

There are certain positions and postures that will keep your back healthy. Good posture is when your head is up, stomach pulled in, and neck, shoulders, and pelvis are in a straight line. If you have to stand for a long period of time make sure you rest one foot on a low stool. This will help take the pressure off your lower back.

Sitting puts a tremendous pressure on your back. Some tips on sitting: use a straight-back chair, and keep your hips slightly higher than your hips. You can also use a lumbar cushion to support your back while sitting or driving. If you have to sit for a long time, be sure to get up and stretch often.

Back Strengthening Exercises

Many doctors tell their patients to rest in bed when their back flares up. But bed rest is actually one of the worst things you can do. First it weakens your back muscles and second, it slows down your recovery. Just remember "movement is life."

Here are some simple excises you can do to relieve pain and strengthen your back:

1. During recovery from a spasm or pain, lie on the floor face up. Have a pillow supporting your head and a few pillows under your knees to elevate your hips and legs. Rest your arms along your sides. Do some deep breathing and start the process of relaxation.
   
   
2. This exercise will help you stretch and strengthen your back muscles. Lie on your back with your knees bent. Then raise the right knee toward your chest using your hands to guide it. Start to press your lower back flat against the floor and hold this for seven seconds. Return to the resting position and repeat this with your left knee. Try to do this about 10 times on each leg, switching legs each time.
   
   
3. Regular exercise is very important, even if it's just walking. But remember, if there is pain, then either stop what you are doing or go to the point where the pain starts and build from there.

Discover Underlying and Hidden Inflammation in Your Body and Eliminate Back Pain

Helping hundreds of patients with chronic pain has taught me that if you can reduce the inflammation in your body the chronic pain will start to dissolve and your body will have a chance to heal. The most common cause of chronic inflammation in your body comes from the gut.

When your gut gets inflamed from food or from infections from parasites or then you are going to get blotting. Your tummy is going to be pouching out. Chronic low grade inflammation is going to be reflective in blotting in your body. Heart burn, indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, and pain. All those things are underlying reflection of inflammation in the body.

One way you can get control over inflammation in your body is by testing the gut and fixing the digestive tract. That reduces the inflammation within the digestive tract and allows your body a chance to heal as far as inflammation in other parts of your body.

Chronic Pain Will Elevate Your Stress Hormone

Pain is one of the major things that will elevate your stress hormone. When you are in pain your cortisol levels will surge up. And then your adrenal gland will burn out from exhaustion from dealing with the chronic pain. So another thing you want to do is test and measure your stress hormone and fix them to pull you out of that cycle.

Try Chiropractic Treatment

Chiropractic treatments are one of the best things you can do for your spine and for your back pain. It works and is also considered less expensive than conventional therapies. A study in the Journal of Occupational Medicine was done with people injured at work. The interesting thing that was found in the study was that by using chiropractic they were able to reduce the cost by 90% and people got better much faster.  If you want to see if Chiropractic care can help your back pain and you live in the area call my office for an appointment.