There are few things in life that are more annoying and disabling than acute lower back pain. Often you are in too much pain to sit, stand, drive, walk, sleep, look after your kids, play sport, go to work… the list goes on.
Here are six things that you can do to help alleviate your lower back pain.
- Schedule an appointment with your physiotherapist!
We may be a tad bit biased, but physiotherapists are the best at taking care of back pain. A physiotherapist will conduct a detailed and thorough investigation to get to the root cause of your back pain. Your physiotherapist will develop a tailored rehabilitation program to strengthen weak muscles, stretch tight muscles and loosen stiff joints to eliminate your back pain.
- Get that wheat bag in the microwave.
A common question we often get asked is, “should I put ice or heat on my back?”
Heat is a great option for pain relief when suffering from acute lower back pain. Placing a wheat bag on your lower back will help to reduce muscle spasms by increasing circulation into the area. It is even more beneficial on cold mornings, when your back muscles and joints are more likely to be stiff and tight.
- Gentle movements.
When suffering from acute lower back pain, your surrounding lower back muscles will tighten and shorten in an effort to protect your spine and this is part of the reason why you get pain. There is also a surge of inflammation which contributes to pain and stiffness.
Gentle movements such as lying on your back and doing some gentle knee rocking side to side or small back extensions in standing will help disperse the inflammation and also help to settle muscle spasms.
- Avoid lying on the couch or on your recliner chair.
It seems that a favourite thing to do when suffering acute lower back pain is to lie on the couch or recliner chair. On the contrary, while lying on the couch or recliner chair for hours at a time will give you temporary pain relief, it is actually placing your spine in a prolonged awkward posture. Moving frequently, for example getting up from the chair and going for a short walk around the house (every hour) is recommended.
- Place a rolled up towel at the base of your car seat when driving.
Placing a rolled towel at the base of your car seat will help to maintain the natural curvature of your spine. This may help to alleviate your back pain.
- Try to move and go on with your daily activities as normally as you can.
As tempting as it may be to just curl up in bed or sit in a chair and never leave until your back pain resolves, this can do more harm than good.
In the past doctors would prescribe bed rest and pills, however recent evidence suggest that rest slows down recovery and that in actual fact movement and exercise is among the rest remedies for back pain as it is able to reduce pain and improve mobility.
Julie is a Certified Mulligans Practitioner and physiotherapist with an interest in spinal rehabilitation and general musculoskeletal issues. Julie is one of our Vestibular trained Physiotherapists and is based at our Blacktown practice
References:
- Christopher M, Jane L, Kathryn R. Prescription of activity for low back pain: What works? Australian Journal of Physiotherapy. 1999: 45: 121-132.
- French S, Cameron M, Walker B, Reggars J, Esterman A. Superficial heat or cold for low back pain.Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2006, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD004750. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004750.pub2.
