Ditch the High Heels
Posted on September 28, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
Ditch the High Heels. I have a theory that high heels were invented to keep women subjugated. You cant run in them and sometimes it seems you can barely walk in them. But worse of all they can actually throw your spine out of alignment. They cause an unnatural curve of the spine and can put pressure on the back muscles. Eventually, back pain will begin and it often starts in the neck. Ive known women who found freedom from back pain within a couple of weeks after ditching the high heels. Your shoes can make a big difference to the health of your back. Your body is a system and everything is connected. Your shoes should provide good support for the arches and the toe area should not squeeze your toes. Your shoes should be stable too. High heels can be very unstable and cause the muscles in your lower back to work hard to keep you balanced. If you wear high heels and experience back pain, I suggest you consider wearing a lower heel for a while to find out if your neck or back pain disappears.
Ditch the High Heels
Posted on September 14, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
Ditch the High Heels. I have a theory that high heels were invented to keep women subjugated. You cant run in them and sometimes it seems you can barely walk in them. But worse of all they can actually throw your spine out of alignment. They cause an unnatural curve of the spine and can put pressure on the back muscles. Eventually, back pain will begin and it often starts in the neck. Ive known women who found freedom from back pain within a couple of weeks after ditching the high heels. Your shoes can make a big difference to the health of your back. Your body is a system and everything is connected. Your shoes should provide good support for the arches and the toe area should not squeeze your toes. Your shoes should be stable too. High heels can be very unstable and cause the muscles in your lower back to work hard to keep you balanced. If you wear high heels and experience back pain, I suggest you consider wearing a lower heel for a while to find out if your neck or back pain disappears.
How Do I Know When Surgery is the Answer
Posted on August 20, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
How Do I Know When Surgery is the Answer. Most back pain isnt treated with surgery as much anymore. Surgery is too risky. But if you are considering whether to have surgery, you should make sure youve tried everything else first. Spine surgery should always be a last choice and not a first option. That means you might have to aggressively let your doctor know he or she should try everything in their arsenal of treatments before recommending surgery. Also, the doctor should be able to tell you with certainty that surgery has a good chance of fixing whats causing the pain. That right there tells you why the number of spinal surgeries are declining. Its really hard to say with any certainty that surgery will fix a back pain problem. You dont want to be a guinea pig, but its up to you to tell the doctor. I would see at least 2 and probably 3 different doctors before Id agree to surgery.
More Pain in the You-Know-What
Posted on August 14, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
More Pain in the You-Know-What. Theres a diagnosis called Lumbar Spinal Stenosis. Its a fancy name for a spine that has a narrowing channel which squeezes the nerves. These nerves lead to your butt and your legs, so there can be considerable pain. Theres lot of reasons why the spinal canal can be too narrow. For one thing, you can be born that way. Or it can simply be due to wear and tear over the years. Disc bulges are another culprit. When a disc bulges and the vertebrae shift, the shape of the spinal canal can change. This diagnosis isnt life threatening, but it means you probably have pain in your rear which makes it hard to walk for any distance. Leaning at the waist usually relieves the pain, but its an uncomfortable position. The normal treatment suggestions for this diagnosis include exercise, steroid injections or even surgery. Surgery is always an absolute last choice though.
Getting Some Sleep Finally
Posted on June 28, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
Getting Some Sleep Finally. I can be so hard to get a full nights sleep with back pain. As expected, it hurts so much it becomes impossible to stay asleep even if you manage to fall asleep. Of course, trying to get out of bed with back pain just makes the whole experience worse. There are some tips you can follow to make lying in bed less painful. Hopefully, if you follow the tips you can get some decent rest. One of the best sleeping positions for the body with back pain is on your side with your knees bent at 90 degrees. This relieves some of the pressure on the spine. If your hips or back hurt in this position, you can place a pillow between your knees to keep the hip joint level and the lower back straight. When getting out of bed, dont even dare trying quick movements. Instead, you should slowly edge your way to the side of the bed and then push yourself up with your arms. That way you dont use your back muscles as much.
Okay, I’ve Chosen Surgery
Posted on May 14, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
Okay, Ive Chosen Surgery. Deciding whether to have back surgery can be a major decision. Everyones heard the war stories about surgeries gone wrong or surgeries that dont result in less back pain. But the fact is that surgery is probably one of the best choices for permanent pain reduction when its clear what is causing the pain. You dont ever have to feel forced to choose surgery unless theres a chance of paralysis if you dont have it. In that case, I cant imagine choosing to avoid surgery. The good news is that by the time you decide to have surgery, youve probably been through a complete battery of tests and have tried numerous other approaches to relieving your back pain. That means surgery has become the last alternative and appears to be the one that will work in your situation. I highly advise you to get a second opinion though no matter how good you think your doctor may be. The reason is because the cause of back pain can be so elusive. You certainly want to avoid surgery if it seems more like a guesswork solution.
Explain the Difference
Posted on April 14, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
Explain the Difference. Theres a difference between a bulging disc and a herniated disc. The disc, if you remember, is the cushion between vertebrae in your spine. A bulging disc is a disc that pushes out but doesnt actually rupture the wall of the disc. A herniated disc is a disc that bulges toward the back of the spine and it does break through the disc wall. The outside wall of the disc is called the annulus fibrosis. The back pain you feel with a herniated disc is due to the disc pressing on a nerve. You can actually feel the pain in your legs if its a lower back vertebrae that presses on the nerves that runs down your legs. Most herniated discs happen in the lower spine or lower back. When the sciatica nerve is pressured by a herniated disc, the pain can be intense all the way down the leg. There are lots of things the doctor can potentially recommend you do to relieve the pain. You can do exercises to strengthen the back, take anti-inflammatory medications or get steroid injections for example.
I Finally Feel Relaxed
Posted on April 7, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
I Finally Feel Relaxed. A common medication prescription given for back pain is for muscle relaxants. Muscle relaxants work well when your muscles are so tense they cause back pain. What I didnt realize is that science doesnt know for sure how muscle relaxants work on the muscles. They just know they can calm your nerves and make your brain send nice messages to your muscles instead of tense messages. The problem with muscle relaxants is they can be addicting if you take them too long. In essence they make you feel good and who doesnt like feeling good? If your back pain has been due to tense muscles causing muscle spasms, the muscle relaxants can help you learn to relax long enough for the muscles to calm down. But you shouldnt take this medication for longer than 2 or 3 weeks. They dont cure anything and you should learn to relax without drugs. Muscle relaxants are just a way to get some temporary relief.
I Finally Feel Relaxed
Posted on March 20, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
I Finally Feel Relaxed. A common medication prescription given for back pain is for muscle relaxants. Muscle relaxants work well when your muscles are so tense they cause back pain. What I didnt realize is that science doesnt know for sure how muscle relaxants work on the muscles. They just know they can calm your nerves and make your brain send nice messages to your muscles instead of tense messages. The problem with muscle relaxants is they can be addicting if you take them too long. In essence they make you feel good and who doesnt like feeling good? If your back pain has been due to tense muscles causing muscle spasms, the muscle relaxants can help you learn to relax long enough for the muscles to calm down. But you shouldnt take this medication for longer than 2 or 3 weeks. They dont cure anything and you should learn to relax without drugs. Muscle relaxants are just a way to get some temporary relief.
It Hurts When I Work
Posted on March 14, 2008
Filed Under back pain | Leave a Comment
It Hurts When I Work. The world doesnt stop for back pain. That means you may get a few days off because of back pain, but eventually you have to go to work. The best thing to do is learn some office moves and positions that will keep your spine muscles from tightening and your spine from compressing. You also want to prevent back pain as much as possible of course. When youre at work try doing some light spine stretching exercises throughout the day. You dont have to make a big scene. You just need to do some things like forward stretches, neck rolls and some twisting moves. You should do these exercises gently though and dont go overboard with the twisting moves. The goal is to keep the back limber so it doesnt tense up. If you need a new chair that gives low back support, you should show your boss proof you have a back problem. Most companies go out of their way today to accommodate health problems.