N E W S L E T T E R
Don’t Ignore Your Back Pain Injuries are a real pain in the back.
See Inside • Getting to the Bottom of Your Back Pain • Patient Success Spotlight • Exercise Essentials • Healthy Recipe The back is one of the most vulnerable parts of the body. You rely on it so heavily — whether it is to shoulder your emotional stresses or to physically lift something that you need to carry with you. Your back isconstantlyatrisk. It isatriskwhenyoudrive, being one of the body parts likely to take the biggest impact in case of an accident. It is at risk when you are safely at home on your couch or at the office, where you are likely scrunched over and not caring one bit about your posture. It is at risk when you run, when you play sports, and even when you find yourself sick and are coughing so heavily that your back begins to hurt. It is no wonder that so many people experience back injuries every year. What is a big wonder is that so many people choose to ignore their back injuries year after year! When you break an arm or get a cut on your leg, you are likely to do something about it right away. The sight of blood leaving your body or the realization that a bone isn’t sitting right is something that not manypeoplearegoingtodealwith fortoo longbefore seeking medical attention. Yet when pain begins in the back, it is almost normal to ignore it. Everyone develops back pain, time to time, right? There is no reason to stress about it or overreact, right? Absolutely wrong!
Understanding Back Pain Back pain may be common, but it is absolutely not normal.Thereareactuallya lotofseriousconditions that can cause your back to begin to hurt, and it is smart to have your back looked at by a physician early on so that you know exactly what is going on with your body from the get-go. Once the cause of your back pain is determined, your physical therapist will be able to identify the best treatment options for your body’s needs. A FOUR PHASE system of movement management is recommendedasanapproachforpain-freemovement. This will likely include the following: • Phase 1: The goal of this phase is to focus on calming your movement system. This is accomplishedbytreatmentofsymptomsthrough movementbasedormanualmethods.Atthislevel, you are at the lowest level of function and often speakofacutepainandmusclespasms.Treatment at this point centers on reducing tissue and joint loading along with strain. • Phase2: Thegoalofthisphase istorestoremuch needed motor control in an effort to move closer tooptimal functionalmovement.Atthispointyou wouldhaveanunderstandingofyoursymptomsas wellaswhat triggersyourpain.Youare learning how to properly perform essential corrective
movements inanefforttoreducethesesymptoms. • Phase 3: At this point you have nearly full, pain- freemotion, improvedmotorcontrolandareable toperformspecifictypesofmovementsproperly yet still require some level of supervision. The goal is to improve functional capacity, activity tolerance and endurance. You will be monitored andprogressedbyyourtreatmentteamtoensure you maintain your optimal level of movement. • Phase 4: The Wellness Phase, marks the point in the journey where the you’re able to resume yournormaldailyactivities.Youwillbepresented with the option of beginning a total body fitness program.Remainingorbecomingmorephysically active will help ensure an improved quality of health and life. Attempting to undertake any of these changes on your own after you’ve experienced a back injury is bothdangerousandnotrecommended.Workingwith a licensed and experienced physical therapist can provide you with the guidance and ongoing support that you need to ensure that you do not experience any further injury as you attempt to heal the cause of your back pain.
ARE YOU LETTING BACK PAIN HAVE A SAY IN YOUR DAY? CALL TO SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENT OR FREE CONSULTATION TODAY!
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