How to Avoid Back Pain and Improve Your Spine Health
Are you tired of living with back pain? Are you searching for back pain relief in Victoria? For some people, it seems like their pain worsens each morning. The severity of back pain can range from minor dull aches to sharp stabbing pains and range from making it difficult to stand for more than 10 minutes or walking long distances. Regardless of what kind of back pain you’re dealing with, Jenna Howe in Victoria, BC can help!
Low-back pain is one of the most common and costly musculoskeletal problems worldwide. Studies indicate around 80% of the population will sometimes experience low-back pain. Fortunately, your back pain can be avoided and resolved by improving your spinal health with our osteopathic treatments.
To learn more about how your spine’s health influences your back pain, call Jenna Howe in Victoria, British Columbia today to hear more about the benefits of osteopathic care for managing back pain!
The importance of spine health for preventing back pain
When we think of health, we typically focus on nutrition, exercise, and heart health. Still, knowing that your spine is essential for your overall health and well-being is important. Your spine protects your spinal cord, allows you to breathe correctly, and allows your body to move. Almost every function in your body is directly connected to the health of your spine.
You know how limiting it can be for those living with acute or chronic back pain. It’s essential to address the following to make sure your spine is at its optimum health:
- Proper posture
- Strong muscles (i.e., core, hip/pelvis, and lower back)
- Full mobility throughout the spine (i.e., bending forward and backward, rotating and side bending)
- Proper nutrition and adequate sleep
The good news is that the osteopathic team at Jenna Howe can help you achieve better spine health and back pain relief in Victoria, BC!
Steps to improve your spine health
Our spine is a complicated structure of vertebrae, discs, joints, ligaments, tendons, muscles, and nerves. It takes a delicate balance to ensure it is at its peak level of health and function. Of course, much like anything else, taking care of your spine health requires your participation.
Osteopathic care involves a multifaceted approach, including osteopathic manipulative treatment, self-management advice, and strengthening exercises to effectively address acute and chronic back pain. The best practice is a comprehensive program where you do everything you can to ensure the health and function of your spine.
Below are ways to improve the health of your spine:
Get adequate sleep: Adequate rest in a comfortable position while sleeping helps you maintain a healthy spine. In general, the best position is a neutral spine position. This position is achieved when the spine joints are properly aligned. You can use pillows and blankets to support your body in attaining these positions. A neutral position is easily found lying on either side of your back.
Regarding the ideal mattress, medium firmness helps more people get good rest than either too soft or too firm. Although there are a lot of anecdotal stories about the “best” firmness, research shows that it is a personal preference, and most people choose medium firmness for proper rest.
Maintain proper posture: Sit tall and use lumbar support when sitting at a desk or driving a car. Avoid sitting slouched for prolonged periods, and change positions as soon as you notice tightness or pain, no matter how you sit!
Maintain mobility and strength in your spine: Your body is meant to move – this is the most important purpose of the spine. A general routine where you take your entire spine through various movements and positions (stretches) can help keep your spine healthy.
You can ensure your spine remains mobile by stretching for as little as 10 minutes daily. Remember, it is also essential to move around when possible at work.
Strengthening is essential for the health of your spine; start with exercising 3-4 days a week. Performing core exercises (i.e., abdominal, back, and hip/pelvis muscles) will help keep your spine strong and prevent future pain and/or injuries.
When lifting, keep your spine in a neutral position and use your legs to lift the weight/object. Ideally, you will maintain an arch (lordosis) throughout the movement. Avoid bending forward and especially bending with twisting-type movements.
How osteopathic care at Jenna Howe can help improve spine health
Osteopaths specialize in diagnosing and treating spinal disorders using various techniques to improve spinal health for your overall health and well-being. An osteopath at Jenna Howe in Victoria, BC will be able to assess your spinal health and any joint pain or injury related to the functioning of your spine.
After asking you health-related questions and performing a complete evaluation of your body and movement abilities, they will be able to determine what techniques would be the best fit for you.
We emphasize the importance of education to help you understand what is causing your pain and how to resolve it. Your osteopath may employ osteopathic manipulative treatment, manual therapy, and other highly effective treatments. Your osteopath may also recommend making changes at home and doing specific exercises or changes to your nutrition to reduce pain and inflammation.
We can help you resolve your back pain, so it doesn’t become chronic. Don’t live with back pain limits – improve your spine health with one of our osteopaths today!
Request an appointment today!
If you have been living with back pain, want to avoid potential back pain, or are looking for back pain relief in Victoria, don’t hesitate to contact Jenna Howe today.
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229920318835
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2777527
