December, 2019
ENJOY THE HOLIDAYSWITHOUT BACK PAIN NEWSLETTER Health & Wellness Newsletter
INSIDE: • Is My Neck Causing My Back Pain? • Relieve Back Pain In Minutes • Patient Success Spotlight • Healthy Recipe
Whether you have pain or have been suffering for a long time, seeing a physical therapist at Performance Therapy Institute can help you return to a more active and pain-free life. Give us a call today:
• FRANKLIN (615) 465-6810 • NASHVILLE (615) 375-9091
Yourspine isacomplexpartofyourbody– it requiresproperposture,flexibility,coordination, and strength, in order to do its job correctly. When one of these elements is altered, your spinecanemitpainful responses thatcansettle inothernearbypartsof thebody.According to the National Institute of Health, approximately 80% of adults will experience lower back painatsomepoint in their lives.Backpain isactually themostcommonly reported location of pain across the globe. But how often is the source actually another part of your body? Pain is usually connected: Your spine is a lengthy structure, and pain can travel along it. Let’s say you areprone toneckpain – perhaps you haveaslouched posture from sitting at adeskalldayand thepressure radiates inyourshoulders.Or,maybeyou’vehadaprevious injury,suchaswhiplash, thatstillelicitspainfulstingseverynowand then.Now, let’ssayyou begin feeling pain in your lower back in addition to your neck pain. Why does this happen? Basically, the pains are connected to each other. Your head weighs about 10-12 pounds, which is roughly the weight of a bowling ball. When you slouch, or compensate pain by realigningyourbody,yourbackmuscleshave toworkextrahard tokeepyou from toppling forward. Have you ever been so tired that your head begins to bob and it jolts you awake? That’sbecauseyourhead isheavy!Theweight from themotionwakesyoubackupbecause your body isn’t used to carrying it in that way.This is also why pain in your lower back may occur as a result. Your back muscles are working in overdrive and may be constricting to
try and hold you up. If you notice neck and back pain at the same time as oneanother, trysittingupstraighter– itshouldhelpeasesomeof thestress! Is your neck the culprit? The most common combination of pain is in the neck and the back. If you are experiencing both, it is most likely stemming from the neck. We don’t typically think about it, but we use our necks for a lot of our daily activities. Even simple things, such as turning to grab something out of thecupboard or looking over your shoulder when backing outofadriveway,usea lotofneckmuscles.Whenyoudosimple taskssuch as these, do you find yourself turning your entire body, as opposed to just your head? If so, you could experience back pain along with your neck pain. When you have limited motion in your neck, your body compensates by twisting more than it usually would, thus over-rotating your lower back. This could cause a source of pain or general discomfort in the area, due to abnormal overuse. If you are experiencing neck pain, back pain, or a combination of both, our physical therapists would be more than happy to meet with you for a consultation to discuss how they can help. Call us today to talk to an expert about how we can relieve your aches and pains!
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