When coping with back pain there are several things to consider:

1. What are you willing to change in your life to stop having back pain?
2. Are you willing to strengthen muscles associated with back pain?
3. Are you hydrated with enough water?

Signs and symptoms of back pain can include:

• Muscle ache
• Shooting or stabbing pain
• Pain that radiates down your leg
• Pain that worsens with bending, lifting, standing or walking
• Pain that improves with reclining

In rare cases, back pain can signal a serious medical problem. Seek immediate care if your back pain:

• Causes new bowel or bladder problems
• Is accompanied by fever
• Follows a fall, blow to your back or other injury
• Is severe and doesn’t improve with rest
• Spreads down one or both legs, especially if the pain extends below the knee
• Causes weakness, numbness or tingling in one or both legs
• Is accompanied by unexplained weight loss

Also, see your doctor if you start having back pain for the first time after age 50, or if you have a history of cancer, osteoporosis, steroid use, or excessive drug or alcohol use.

More immediate ways to work toward resolving back pain are:

• Get out of bed, get moving instead of staying in bed. When you are injured, the goal is to get you active as soon as you’re able. Laying in bed more than 3 days is only going to cause more long-term pain and not help at all.
• Slow stretches, SLOW… you’re not in a hurry. Go to the point of pain then hold yourself there for about 30 seconds then back off. Stretch again, see if you can’t move further. Activity is the best thing to assist you in resolving and avoiding back pain.
• Consider a 30 minute walk each day. Your health improves, your attitude improves, you feel better and you’re not just sitting around getting sore.
• Stay flexible. Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, swim, touch your toes! Stop sitting so long. Get up and move. You can do stretches while you watch that next TV show.

Strengthen your core muscles. Mostly, its your Psoas muscle group that causes the back pain. Crunches help to build these muscles to keep them from causing you pain. However, the realities are that it’s the sitting for long periods of time that cause them to act up.  I see so many people that work at computers or drive for a living that have far more low back issues than anyone doing heavy labor. You stand, lift, turn all at once and there go the Psoas muscles and there goes your back.

Muscle spasms: use heat / ice exchanging them in 1-minute heat 3-minute cold intervals 3 times to break a spasm cycle.  Inflammation is present to assist you in healing, yet too much inflammation causes pain. Use something cooler than body temperature to reduce the inflammation and get the pain under control.   Heat can relax muscles but must be used sparingly. Moist heat using Castor Oil is exceptional. Rub the castor oil on the injured area. I’d put a piece of saran wrap over the oil to stop the towel you’re going to use from absorbing the oil.  Put a heating pad in a moist towel. NOT SOAKED, just moist… apply over the saran wrap. 10 minutes take it off!  If you don’t have a heating pad, get a hand towel moist and warm it up in the microwave. NOT so hot you burn yourself! USE common sense and oven mitts! Put that hot moist towel into a dry towel, and fold it over, put it on the oiled area.  Let it stay until its not hot anymore.

Get body work.  Myofascial release will alleviate adhesions that cause the muscles to tighten. Massage will move fluids & reduce stress in the muscles. Myofascial release of the abdominals and psoas muscles can resolve many of the pains and symptoms associated with low back pain, such as tingling, difficulty rising or walking, feeling you must stay bent over to move at all or can’t lie down flat.

Acupuncture opens areas that are limited in many ways across your body that cause pain.  An Acupuncturist will look at how your energy is moving, where you are physically restricted and how you are emotionally. That Acupuncturist will then know which meridians to use to assist you in relieving pain.

Meditation, Pilates, Tai Chi, Qi Gong…these all help your body be active, calm, strengthened and healthy. They put the mind at ease.

ProloOzone Injections. Ozone Therapy uses a combination of vitamins, an anaesthetic and ozone, injections are placed where needed to relieve pain. Long term use of this procedure can heal ligaments and tendons, without adverse side effects such as presented by cortisone shots or steroids.

Talk to someone. A therapist or a friend.  Someone that can help you look at your emotional wellbeing, as your emotional state has much to do with the pain you feel. Often with chronic pain, seeing a mental health coach along with a physician will help resolve not only the cause of the pain but the emotions associated with that pain.

Get hydrated!!! Water truly is the fountain of youth, the miracle cure! Your muscles have a high level of water keeping them moving properly. Your blood is 80% water. When you’re dehydrated the blood can’t move properly, it clogs up much like the sink does… NOT a pretty sight nor does it feel good.  Muscles get stuck. Fascia becomes more of a super glue.  Your brain gets into a fog, that becomes a headache when you’re dehydrated. Your blood pressure rises. Your pulse quickens. You set yourself up for a stroke or heart attack. YOUR body NEEDS water!  There was an article about the adrenal glands proving that water wasn’t necessary, that any fluid would do. That was ONLY for the adrenal glands. The rest of your body requires water.  The rule is ½ your body weight, but in ounces. If you weigh 140 lbs., you require 70 ounces of water. 100 ounces should be the maximum one should drink unless sweating profusely, in which case drink more water. Perhaps add lemon juice, lime juice, cucumber, mint, some essential oil you like to make the water more exciting. Just do it and drink it!

Author:  Zachary M. Saber

Referrals in the Tucson area:

Dr. DeeAnn Saber Naturopathic Physician info@TFMND.com

Dr. Jo Ruddy  jrud1962@gmail.com   She specializes in metaphysical therapies.

Norma Redhouse Massage Therapist crawlwalkdance@gmail.com

Zach Saber MFR Myofascial Release  Zach@TFMND.com

Jamie Szybala, Acupuncturist Thrivefamilyacupuncture@gmail.com