Back Pain Relief: The Powerful Mind and Body
Back pain is so common yet can significantly impact your quality of life. While many factors can contribute to back pain; regular movement, stress reduction, and mindset change are key strategies for alleviating symptoms and preventing future discomfort.
Movement and Back Pain
Exercise helps to:
Improve Mobility and Flexibility: Regular movement can increase your range of motion, making everyday activities easier and reducing the risk of injury. Flexibility refers to your joints being passively moved into a stretch while mobility refers to a joint moving through a range without assistance. Both are important for our muscles and joints to function well.
Strengthen Your Trunk: A strong trunk provides support for your spine, reducing the risk of back pain. Not to be confused with “core strength” which usually refers to the lower abdominals. Sometimes trainers over focus on “core strength” rather than the whole trunk being strong and this in turn can cause someone with back pain to “brace” their lower stomach muscles which is not beneficial to their back pain. Instead think about getting the whole body strong.
Reduce Stress and Anxiety: Physical activity releases endorphins, natural mood boosters that can help alleviate stress and pain. If you ‘ve been in pain for some time, your nervous system will be used to a ‘fight or flight’ state and won’t find it easy to let go. This ‘fight or flight’ state can contribute to continuing back pain so it is important to look at ways of relaxing and ‘letting go’.
Boost Circulation: Improved circulation can help deliver oxygen and nutrients to your muscles, promoting healing and reducing inflammation.
The Mind-Body Connection and Back Pain
It's well-established that stress and anxiety can exacerbate back pain. Fear of pain can create a vicious cycle, leading to increased muscle tension and further pain. Relaxation techniques and mindset change can help alleviate tension and promote healing. It is important to understand that your high pain levels are not necessarily linked to serious spinal damage. In fact MRI scans have shown us by scanning the backs of people with high pain levels; there is little correlation to high levels of damage to the spine. The pain is usually associated with an over reactive nervous system response.
Effective Relaxation Techniques:
Meditation: Mindfulness meditation can help reduce stress and improve focus.
Breathing practise: Slow breaths can help calm the nervous system and reduce muscle tension.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation: Tensing and releasing different muscle groups can help relieve tension.
Yoga : Slow, gentle yoga combines physical movement with gentle breathing
Find an app: There are many apps and youtube videos to help guide you towards relaxation
Remember, consult with your healthcare professional before starting any new exercise program, especially if you have chronic back pain.
By incorporating regular gentle movement and relaxation techniques into your daily routine, you can take significant steps towards managing and preventing back pain.
You have the power to heal your body and mind.
