Back pain comes in many forms and affects 80% of people at some point in their life. The lower back is the most susceptible to pain and injury. This pain can limit your range of motion. This may prevent you from being able to work or engaging in fun activities with your friends and family, such as playing your favorite sports. There are many causes of back pain, some minor and some major, such as nerve damage. You may be able to get some temporary relief from over-the-counter (OTC) solutions such as heating pads and analgesics. However, they do not treat the underlying problem of back pain.

The chiropractic doctor is unique in the health care field in that much of the training in Chiropractic College is specifically aimed at identifying and successfully treating and managing back pain. General medical practitioners generally lack adequate training in this area and have not learned the skills necessary to most effectively identify and treat most back conditions.

When to See a Chiropractor:

With back pain, the connection to a physical source is not always clear. There are people showing no spinal abnormalities on X-ray yet suffer from excruciating back pain. Here are some indicators that you should seek help from a chiropractor:

• If back pain does not improve within 72 hours of OTC treatment
• If the pain is intense, constant, and worse when you lie down
• If the pain begins extending down your legs
• If you have weakness or tingling in your legs
• If you also have a fever or throbbing in your abdomen
• Following any fall or other injury
• If back pain is accompanied by weight loss
• If it is your first episode of back pain since turning 50
• If you have a history of conditions such as osteoporosis
• If you have muscle spasms in your back
• If your spine is sensitive to touch and pressure
• If you have back pain after prolonged inactivity

Types of Back Pain

There are several types of back pain, but the most common types are acute back pain and chronic back pain.

Acute Back Pain: Patients with acute back pain often improve on their own, through self-care, and stay active. If acute back pain persist after four weeks, you can consider non-drug therapies, including Chiropractic manipulation.

Chronic Back Pain: Long-term use of pain medication usually does not improve functioning for patients with chronic back pain. Natural therapies, including spinal manipulation prove more beneficial. Psychological and social factors also contribute to chronic back pain. Most patients with chronic back pain will not become pain-free so treatment should be more focused on improving function and reducing pain.

Causes of Back Pain

There are several possible conditions that can cause back pain and can get more serious if left untreated. This is why it is important to seek professional help from a chiropractor. They can diagnose the cause and determine the proper treatment for your pain.

Herniated Disc: A herniated disc does not always mean that you are going to suffer from back pain. There are people with herniated or bulging disc who don’t suffer from any painful symptoms. However, to some people disc herniation can be a source of intense and excruciating pain that frequently radiates to other parts of the body. Once a disc herniates, they rarely heal completely. Further deterioration of the spine can often be avoided through regular Chiropractic care.

Sprains and Strains: This is the common source of back pain for those people who are generally inactive during the week, but get on high-impact activities around the weekend and push themselves too much. Before the new week begins, they find themselves immobile and lying on their back and finding the nearest Chiropractor. Over-stretching the muscles or ligaments of the low back can lead to small tears in the tissues, resulting in swollen and painful back. These often go away on their own.

Stress: When you are stressed, you become tensed and your blood pressure and heart rate rise, flooding your body with stress hormones and tightening your muscles. When you are constantly stressed, the chronic tension causes your muscles, including your lower back, to become sore, weak and loaded with trigger points. Your chiropractor may recommend relaxation exercises, such as deep breathing, as well as regular exercises to de-stress your mind and body.

Vertebral Subluxation: Vertebral subluxation occurs when there is disruption, misalignment or abnormal biomechanics of the position of the neighboring vertebrae, resulting in debilitating back pain and inflammation. In the lumbar spine, these usually occur at the transition between the lower spine and the sacrum. Because of the relationship between the spinal column, the spinal cord, and the spinal nerves, vertebral subluxations have the potential to impair proper nerve function.

Sciatica: This occurs when an injured disc is pressing on the main nerve and causes pain to shoot down your buttock and the back of your legs.

Arthritis: This condition is common in the lower back and can also affect the spine. It is characterized by inflammation of the joints.

Scoliosis: This, among other spinal irregularities, can lead to back pain.

Osteoporosis: If you have this condition, bones become brittle and porous. This can cause the vertebrae in your spine to have compression fractures.

How We Treat Back Pain

For most people, back pain goes away on its own after a few days or weeks. But for some, it becomes chronic and debilitating and lasts for months or years. It is a challenging condition to diagnose, treat, and study. Our treatments primarily focus on the cause of your problems, which not only results in rapid and effective pain-relief, but most importantly, minimizes the chance of future back problems.

Every patient is different, so the first plan of action when our chiropractor treats your back pain is to use various tests and imaging to determine what is causing your back pain. From there our chiropractors will create a program just for you. Oftentimes we start with the chiropractic adjustment, which restores the biomechanics of the joints. From there, if necessary we can recommend a nutrition plan to help with pain management, as well as guide you through physiotherapy to stabilize the joints through rehabilitation exercises. Our goal is to restore your back to its full function, as well as relieve chronic back pain.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]