Lower back pains? 10 ways to help

If you live with chronic back pain, you know the cycles you experience. Some days are better than others, some days you hurt, and other days, if you've exasparated your injury somehow, you can't think about much else.

Here are ten simple tips to use to get you through the toughest of days:

1. When you are really hurting, nothing is better than ICE. Use an ice pack, a bag of frozen vegetables- I''ve even put a whole bag of ice behind me on road trips! Use Ice for about 20 minutes at a time, and use it as frequently as necessary.

2. After about 48 hours, switch to HEAT to stimulate the blood flow to the area and help relax muscles. If you have a moist heat heating pad, use it. If not, take a towel, dip in some warm/hot water and wring it out. Have someone put it on your back for you, then cover the towel with plastic wrap, and lay a heating pad on top of the plastic wrap. You can also use a sock filled with rice as a heating pad- just put it in the microwave for 1 minute or so and it will stay hot for a good while. Great for traveling.

3. When lying down, sleep either on your back, with a pillow under your knees to relieve back stain, or on your side, with a pillow between your knees.

4. Upon waking in the morning, before you get out of bed, slowly pull one knee at a time to your chest. Exhale as you pull your knee in, inhale as you straighten your arms again placing knee perpendicular to the hip. Do this slowly 3 times on each side.

5. Most people are "torqued" the same way. Physical therapists don't know why, although some suspect it is because of the movement in the pelvis caused by driving; i.e. braking pushing on the gas, using a manual stick shift. The "universal" rotation is pelvis rotated left, lumbar rotated right, thoracic left. To counter these rotations, a " Universal Pattern Twist" is a great stretch:

Beginning on your back, bring your knees up and then over to your left side.

Position your knees so that they are at hip level or even a little below hip level..Your hips should be twisted left, while your upper body stays on the floor. This will isolate your lumbar spine and help to counter rotate it.

Finally bring your knees up even with mid spine , only this time, with your hips rotated left again, you twist your upper body around to the right, so that your face and upper body is against the floor. This movement will isolate the thoracic spine and rotate it back to it's neutral position.

6. Women, get a smaller purse! Seriously, you know how heavy we tend to pack them, especially the huge ones that are so "in" right now. Forget it. Get a small, efficient purse or wallet and leave the rest at home. Your back will thank you.

7. Take calcium and magnesium every day . These mineral supplements help calm and relax muscle fibers. Take about a 1,000mg of calcium a day and 500 mg of magnesium. Many back pain sufferers have spinal stenosis, which is a deterioration of the spine. Calcium will strengthen and help slow progression. Fish oil is another supplement to take for all over health, and also because it is a terrific anti-inflammatory for back pain.

8. Don't take it for granted that you have mastered the best posture for your back pain. You have compensated for a long time with everything from the position of your feet, to the way you move your hips and hold your head. So experiment walking and standing with a slightly different posture. Tilt your pelvis forward, and see if that doesn't feel more stabilizing. Also, be aware of how you stand on your feet. Is your weight distributed evenly between the balls of your feet and your heels? Are you leaning toward the outer or inner edge of your foot? Try to think of your head, neck and shoulders being in a neutral position as well. Think of a string being attatched to the top of your head and pulling upward. This is the correct position for your head. Your shoulders should be relaxed and not hunching. Just being aware of some of these adjustments will help your body better align itself as your go throughout your day.

9. If sitting for long periods at a desk or in a car, do some pelvic rotations; forward, backward, left and right. You may hear some popping , but it will help relieve and realign the pelvis and lumbar. And don't sit for longer than 2 hours. Get up, walk around, do a few stretches.

10. Walk. Every day. Move the body. Don't lay there, even on your worst days. The body is in the business of healing and adjusting itself . So if you are out of alignment and hurting, the best thing you can do is go for a long walk, breathing deeply and regularly. The exaggerated motion of the rib cage when you are breathing hard helps ribs shift back into place.(Ribs are regularly out of place when your back is out of alignment) Warming up the muscles helps allow bones to shift back into balance.

I have purposefully left out using anti-inflammatory over the counter medications, like ibuprofen or aleve, which are necessary, but if you find yourself taking them several times a day or more than the suggested dosage, it's time to try something else. They are hard on your stomach lining , kidneys, liver, and can exasparate acid reflux and ulcers. And if you are taking them, drink a lot of water. Muscle relaxers are the same, take it from someone who lived on Flexiril for a long time; if you are overusing or taking them in the daytime, just to get through the day, you need to dig deeper and find some proactive things you can do for your back that don't just deal with symptoms, but get to the root of the problem. Whether that is a physical therapist, yoga exercises, or acupuncture .

If you suffer from chronic back or muscle pain, read about " fascia and myofascial release" in this article http://grinnin1.hubpages.com/_1f0tbzjtr9ejm/hub/What-is-fascia-and-myofascial-release

Keep at it! Don't give up! Chronic back pain is the pits but you can get better, you can improve your quality of life, and you can feel more like yourself again.