Working at home without appropriate furniture, lack of physical activity during quarantine and stress, as well as overweight, sleep disturbances and smoking, which are added to a sedentary lifestyle, are the main causes of back pain. Therefore, it is not surprising that the number of people suffering from back pain has increased significantly in recent months. At the Skhidnytsia Medical Center, we offer several ways to alleviate and prevent this ailment, which affects both physical and mental health.
- Therapeutic physical training
Physiotherapists at the Wellness Medical Center, explains that "in most cases, the cause of the problem is a muscle imbalance that causes people to adopt an incorrect posture, which eventually causes back pain. Therapeutic exercise is very helpful in mitigating and preventing it, as it gradually improves muscle tone and balance, which directly affects posture." Of course, these exercises should always be prescribed by a physiotherapist and they should be extremely functional: they are performed slowly and with very controlled ranges of motion to prevent injury, are usually performed without weights or resistance (or with very little), and there is no need to go to the gym because they use things that almost everyone has at home. In addition, it is important that the exercises include a lot of motor control to avoid compensation. If your upper back hurts, the expert advises "doing exercises that improve balance and tone of certain muscles, such as the rhomboids, lower trapezius, anterior or deep neck flexors. A very effective way to strengthen your neck is to lie back on the floor or bed and lift your head, slightly tucking your chin. This works the muscles in the front and side of the neck.
- Yoga
Our specialists warn that "although we usually feel pain in the lower back and neck, these are areas with a small range of motion, while in areas such as the thoracic and spinal cord, tension is created. To open up the entire chest and stretch the spine, experts recommend lying face up on the floor, which serves as a reference point, alternating between asymmetrical and symmetrical postures and moving your arms in harmony with your breathing: raising them when you inhale and lowering them when you exhale. In addition, seeing yourself in the mirror can be very helpful, as you can visually see any imbalances, for example, if you have more strength in your right shoulder or if your left hip is slightly raised. This way you can become aware of the problems that cause your back pain and start to address them."
- Physiotherapy procedures and rehabilitation programs
Physiotherapy is an excellent alternative to medication, which has no side effects and usually has a stronger therapeutic effect. Physiotherapy has earned such trust due to its mild effect, because all physiotherapy procedures involve the use of small doses of a particular physical factor. This eliminates the possibility of overdose or negative effects on organs and systems. In addition, in cases where medications cannot be used due to contraindications, physiotherapy is used without fear and risk.
It would seem that the formula is simple: back pain - take a painkiller and everything will go away. Sometimes it helps, but if such pain is associated with a serious disease such as a hernia, which causes pinched nerves, or rather the nerve roots that form it, and also causes their inflammation, then no painkillers, even very strong ones, will help or will help temporarily. Until you directly affect the very cause that causes pain in the lumbar spine or back, there will be no sense.
In such situations, treatment will be effective if you use a technique such as manual therapy. Medications and physiotherapy can also be used together, as physiotherapy potentiates the effect of medications, which can significantly reduce their doses. But it is also possible to replace the use of drugs with the methods offered by physiotherapy.