Three Common Ways To Prevent Chronic Back Pain

You can develop back problems in any stage of your life and is very common. It can be from a sprain or over stretch of a ligament or muscle. In other cases the cause could be from a disc between two vertebrae, or a minor problem with a small facet joint between two vertebrae. There maybe a major problem in the structure and tissues of the lower back that result in pain.

Some of the common ways people develop back problems is by injury or overuse. It can be from sprains or strains of soft tissues such as ligaments and muscles. I think in my friend Michael who was a football player, he had a serious injury in his back when he fall fracturing a vertebra with great force. This is a high impact game and many football players when they age are victim of all sorts of pains because when they play this sport they are constantly falling and using great force.

Older people that suffered from arthritis, weak bone density, their body changes loosing posture and they suffer of Osteoarthritis that affects the small joints in the spine, and as a result back pain as they loose flexibility and creating pressure on the nerve roots. My grandmother was a good example, she carried her body forward and she used to slide her feet making a nose, like skating and every time she sat down she will fall down hard and shout: "Hay! Indicating exhaustion. A simple walk around the house was like being in a marathon.

Another common way of developing back problems is suffering of a disease and I will include myself in this category. I was diagnosed of having scoliosis during my 4th year of elementary school. Scoliosis is very common approximately 2% to 3% of Americans at age 16 have scoliosis. Less than 0.1% has spinal curvatures measuring greater than 40 degrees. Congenital scoliosis caused by a bone abnormality present at birth, neuromuscular scoliosis is a result of abnormal muscles or nerves and idiopathic scoliosis is the one I have and is hereditary in my case. My mother has scoliosis, my aunts have scoliosis, my grandma has scoliosis but they all had it minor. In my case my scoliosis did not stop and went from minor to severe. In my first year of high school I had to do my homework in bed and after two years of wearing the Charlestown brace I was told that it did not stop my curvature that increased to an alarming 48 degrees. That is why I was schedule for spinal fusion surgery.

One of the three common ways to prevent chronic back pain:
To ensure that you don't experience back pain you must keep your back muscles strong. You need to do back-strengthening and stretching exercises at least 2 or 3 times a week. Stand and sit up straight, avoid heavy lifting and not to be overweight because lose weight will help to lower the strain in your back.

One of the most important ways to ensure that you do not experience chronic back pain in the future is to keep an active life and strengthen your abs. The most important muscle to strengthen to avoid back pain is the abdominals. . You need to maintain your muscles flexible and to do back-strengthening and stretching exercises at least 2 or 3 times a week. When I was preparing for my Spinal fusion surgery my doctor recommended an exercise program to maintain flexibility and to strengthen my core. My mother got me a trainer that had experience with cases like mine. He focused in abdominals with balance exercises and using different machines at the gym to strengthen my upper and lower body.

Another way to ensure a healthy back is to keep yourself in a good and healthy weight and maintain a healthy weight is an excellent way to prevent compression and discomfort in your spine. I hear so often that people that are obese suffer of chronic back pain because they don't understand that they put so much strain in their back with the extra weight. The heavy load is very damaging to your spine and that is why so many people that are overweight suffer of lower chronic back pain.

Lift Safety is other important way to prevent chronic back pain. You need to learn how to use your legs to spare your back. When you bend is important to bend your knees and lighten the abdominal muscles. You have to stand straight and keep the object that you are lifting closer to your body. You need to avoid positions that will cause strain in your back. For example, my aunt Carol was critically injured after she lifted a large ceramic pot in her backyard. She ended having two major surgeries after suffering of severe back pain. She lifted something way too heavy and not only that she did not bend her knees. As a result some of her disc in her spine were damaged and that cause severe lower back pain.

Three methods chiropractors use:

Spinal manipulation of the spine (SMT) is the primary use for Chiropractors. This includes a massage to "adjust" the spine and the tissues. The manipulation can be manual or mechanically assisted. Some chiropractors use a small metal tool to apply force directly to one vertebra. The Graston Technique

The Cold Laser Theraphy or Low level Laser Therapy (LLT) utilizes specific wavelengths of light to interact with tissue and accelerate the healing process.

The Spinal Decompression that involves stretching the spine using a traction table or similar motorized device to relieve back pain or leg pain. My aunt Carol and my aunt Rosille both have used this method to relieve pain in their back.