The annoying back pain that keeps rearing its ugly head might have you reaching for the Tylenol or aspirin, or might leave you entertaining thoughts of more radical treatment methods like surgery or injections. Before you let your achy back call all the shots, consider these other approaches to pain relief FIRST. Because the pain you are experiencing is probably more within your control than you may believe.
Why Should You Look for Alternative Treatment Methods for Back Pain?
Given that back pain affects most Americans to some extent, leading to multiple medical visits, it is often overtreated. As a matter of fact, it seems that many American adults get addicted to one or more types of painkillers while trying anything that might reduce their discomfort. Moreover, those who are desperately seeking the best remedy for their lower back pain may also be exposed to a series of side-effects linked to their treatment plan, including the dissatisfying results of ineffective procedures, such as surgery or steroid injections, or stomach ulcers and bleeding caused by common anti-inflammatory medications.
What Works Best When It Comes To Alleviating Back Pain?
If you are a fervent supporter of the Movement Is Medicine system, then you are probably wondering if practicing yoga is enough to help you overcome persistent back pain. In some cases, you may need more than a few yoga lessons to reach your goal; it all depends on what’s causing the pain that is disrupting your balance and daily activities. For example, if your body is misaligned as a result of an injury, yoga may not manage to provide the most effective solution to your problem.
On the other hand, regardless of its underlying causes, back pain can be alleviated through a combination of natural remedies, including quality chiropractic care, stretching via the Egoscue Method, strength training, osteopathic manipulation, better stress management tactics, meditation, massage, and acupuncture. To begin with, you may want to schedule your first appointment with a chiropractor who could help you treat musculoskeletal pain through a series of gentle spinal adjustments. Stretching (especially Egoscue) contributes to a correct skeletal alignment and reestablishes your lost muscular balance, offering you a longer-lasting pain relief. Strength training leads to stronger core muscles, which play an important part in preventing injuries and reducing pain.
Believe it or not, even less conventional options, such as meditation, acupuncture, and massage, can lead to major signs of improvement, as long as they are associated with other key elements, such as chiropractic sessions and a moderate workout. For instance, meditation may act as a potent pain reliever, allowing people to decrease the intensity of their discomfort and gain more control over their mind and body. Through a relaxing massage session, you could release endorphins, stimulating your body to relax and relieve pain. At the end of the day, it is your duty to test all the pain-banishing factors listed above and recreate the combination that works best for your body.
What are the Back Pain Benefits of Yoga?
A regular Yoga practice ensures better stress management and allows you to achieve a longer-lasting balance between body, mind, and spirit. Yoga enables you to achieve a state of serenity, banish daily problems and concerns, and focus on movements that put your muscles to work in ways that benefit your back. Finding significant pain relief is a complex process that usually involves a trial and error system; however, each yoga session will give you the chance to stay active, boost core muscle strength and increase your flexibility. Quite often, patients that practice yoga at least once a week feel better than the ones who receive physical therapy and medication to improve their physical condition and win the battle with chronic back pain. There are several specific poses that you should master to reduce the discomfort that you’re experiencing, including Bird Dog, Boat, Cow Face Pose and Forearm Plank. All poses will tone several parts of your body, promoting mobility, improving your mood and stimulating you to stay active. For instance, the Cow Face Pose can stretch out your buttocks, hips, upper back and shoulders, letting you work on different key areas to strengthen your body and develop stronger pain coping capabilities.
Quite often, patients who practice yoga at least once a week feel better than those who utilize physical therapy and medication alone to relieve chronic back pain. A couple of Yoga poses to consider for stretching tight muscles and ligaments as well as for building balanced muscle strength, include:
- Bird Dog Pose– starting on your hands and knees (on all fours) extend one arm out straight in front of you, and the opposite leg out straight behind you. Repeat on the opposite side.
- Boat Pose– balancing on your behind, create a 45-degree angle between your upper body and lower body and hold. At first, you may not be able to straighten your legs, and that is ok.
- Cow Face Pose– Sitting with legs crossed, one over the other, and arms linked behind the back.
- Forearm Plank– In a plank position on the floor, with your arms bent so your weight is resting on your forearms and your toes.
All poses will tone several parts of your body, promoting mobility, improving your mood and stimulating you to stay active. Yoga, meditation, and regular chiropractic adjustments are a powerful combination for not only reducing the debilitating effects of chronic pain in the back but also for promoting flexibility and strength. This approach goes beyond just eliminating pain, to promoting an overall state of health and wellbeing.
