back pain

General Causes of Back Pain #10

clothes-for-winter-travelWeather can be another source of back pain for some.  Many people are not aware of the effects that weather has on their bodies.  Cold weather, in particular, can aggravate a back problem since the muscles tend to constrict in cold weather.  Drafts and dampness can also be detrimental to a bad back.  Be sure to keep yourself warm and dry during cold weather.  Layering your clothes on these days can be helpful.

Information taken from The Bum Back Book by Michael Reed Gach.

General Causes of Back Pain #9

Restrictive clothing and high heels can contribute to many back problems.  Any clothing that restricts or inhibits high heel shoesyou from moving freely should be avoided.  For example, rigid leather belts can contribute to back problems.  If you wear one regularly and have a back problem, experiment with wearing a cloth or an elastic belt for a month and see what happens.  

And, ladies, I know that high heels make your legs look sexier and we all want that, but try to keep wearing them at a minimum.  Wear them for shorter periods of time and on special occasions like weddings, church, the opera, a special dinner date, etc.  And make sure that on a daily basis your shoes are low heeled, comfortable, and that they cushion your step.  If you must wear high heels for work, at least bring them in a bag and put them on once you get there; and wear comf0rtable shoes on the way to and from and when you get home.

This will minimize the strain on your back from walking on your toes all day.

Information taken from The Bum Back Book by Michael Reed Gach.

General Causes of Back Pain #8

A significant number of back problems arise from sudden forces applied to a flexed, bent-over spine.  This can occursneezing with apparently simple forces, such as coughing or sneezing while reaching for or lifting heavy objects.  

If the force is great enough, a disc could rupture and exert pressure on the nerves where they exit the spinal column.  A large ruptured disc is one cause of sciatica, a condition where pain radiates down the buttock and leg and can be accompanied by numbness, tingling, and muscle weakness on the affected side.

Many clients come to me after this kind of injury has happened.  It really didn’t take much, especially if they were dehydrated to start with.  Bowen Therapy can quickly help realign the spine and relax the muscles that got strained when you sneezed, coughed, or did some other abrupt type of movement while twisting the spine or lifting an object.

So, here’s what to do.  If you are reaching over to get an object or bending over to pick something up and you get the urge to cough or sneeze, abort that effort and wait until the cough or sneeze is over.  Then go back and pick up your object.  Hopefully, this will eliminate the possible muscle strain.

Call 972-930-0260 to book your appointment for a Bowen Therapy session which will give you quick, profound and long-lasting recovery from your pain.

Information taken from The Bum Back Book by Michael Reed Gach.

General Causes of Back Pain #7

Improper Lifting is a major cause of back pain.  We all know that we should bend our knees and let the knees and improper liftingglutes do most of the work, but do we really think about this when we go to pick up something heavy? Usually not, unless we have already strained our back doing this in the past.  

I want to encourage you to think about doing this properly BEFORE you have to learn it the hard way.  Many problems occur when people bend over from the waist and use only their back muscles to lift an object as they straighten to a standing position.  It is important to bend your knees as you reach for the object and to keep your back straight as you return to an upright position.  This allows the muscles of your legs to do most of the lifting and avoids straining, twisting, or pulling your back out of alignment.

If you have already had an injury from improper lifting or from anything else, Bowen Therapy and LED Light Therapy are excellent therapies to release the muscle tension and pain and to return your musculature to balance and proper spinal alignment. Bowen Therapy tends to last longer than many approaches to pain relief.

Call Brenda Briscoe to find out more about Bowen Therapy or LED Light Therapy at 214-679-4618. Or call our front desk to schedule your appointment at 972-930-0260. Find out more about Bowen Therapy at bowentherapyindallas.com.

Information taken from The Bum Back Book.

General Causes of Back Pain #6

Prolonged, strenuous or unaccustomed exercise can strain the back muscles.  This strain can lead to soreness and tightness.  gym workout

For example, most of us have made a New Year’s resolution at the beginning of January to become more fit.  We go back to the gym after a long period of little or no exercise for months, and we overdo it to the point where we are sore for days afterwards.  Instead of going all out, we should ramp up the weight and reps gradually so that we don’t suffer so much or don’t get discouraged.

How about those holidays where the guys get outside and play football on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day?  They’ve waited all year long to do this ritual with family and friends, but they want to go all out and really play hard once or twice a year.  They are going to suffer.  

Stretching before and after exercise can help with the soreness, as well as icing the sore areas afterwards.  LED Light Therapy and Bowen Therapy are two good therapies to receive after a workout like this.  Both will help speed recovery along tremendously. 

To make an appointment for either of these therapies, call our front office at 972-930-0260.

Some of this information was taken from The Bum Back Book.

General Causes of Back Pain #5

internal organsBoth Western and Oriental medical systems relate malfunctioning of the internal organs to pain in the back.  Both authorities state that this occurs via nerve connections in the spinal cord.  Therefore, a chronic problem in an internal organ may trigger an ache or pain in the back.  

This information is taken from The Bum Back Book by Michael Reed Gach.

General Causes of Back Pain #4

Yet another cause of back pain is Arthritis.  The word “arthro” refers to joints and “itis” means inflammation. arthritis painArthritic changes can give rise to bone spurs in the spine.  These spurs occur especially in the cervical (neck) vertebrae, often causing neck pain which radiates to the shoulder, scapular (shoulder blade) region, arm or hands.

There are supplements that can be taken to reduce inflammation, such as Curcumin, Omega 3s, and CBD oil, among others. Certainly an alkalizing diet full of colorful vegetables and fruits helps pull down inflammation.  Also, the LED light therapy that I do at Living Well Dallas is very effective for reducing inflammation due to arthritis.

If you would like help in any of these areas — nutritional coaching, supplementation, or LED light therapy — give us a call at 972-930-0260. We at Living Well Dallas are experts in all these areas and would love to be a part of your health care.

General Causes of Back Pain #1

Did you know that back problems happen with sedentary people just about as much as with those who do a lot of heavy physical labor?  In fact, it’s back painone of the most common ailments in our society and certainly the most common of the health complaints that I see in my practice. Sometimes this pain, stiffness, or tension is acute and incidental, but many have suffered with it for years.

Many elements may contribute to back pain. Often, we try to blame one thing for causing our back pain when, in fact, it may be due to several contributing causes.  It is best to recognize all contributing factors so that their individual and combined effects can be understood.  Many causes will be covered in these blogs, but let’s discuss just one here.

Weak Musculature:  Muscles give needed reinforcement to the bones and the bones act as a support frame for the muscles. This is not unlike the components of a suspension bridge, where the components act on each other to hold the whole bridge steady. The spinal column is like a bridge, connecting our upper and lower halves.

When the muscles don’t support the spine-bridge, it will sag from its correct curvature, resulting in pain. Then we tense up to try to return the spinal column to its proper position. This compensation strains the back. Good muscle tone is needed for proper support. Strengthening exercises, along with stretching to lengthen the spine, can erase the strain and pressure in your back and improve your posture naturally. Effective therapies for the back can speed this process.

One of the best therapies for back pain is Bowen Therapy.  With its precise but gentle moves that create a vibrational effect that penetrates to the cellular level, the brain is given new nerve input for the body to respond to rather than its usual pain response.  Call our office (972-930-0260) to schedule an initial 1-hour consultation. This will give you the opportunity to sample Bowen therapy, as well as LED light therapy, which synergistically magnifies the effects of the Bowen treatment.

Check back to my blog to find out other causes of back pain that will be published soon.

This information comes from a book called “The Bum Back Book.”

When should you come in for a Bowen Therapy Session?

This is a common question people ask themselves.  They get hurt or some kind of imbalance occurs and they think that if they just wait it out, it will go away.  This is usually not the case.  If you wait, several things may happen.  First, the injury or imbalance is screaming, “I need attention . . . help!”  If no help comes, your body begins to compensate for the imbalance or pain by recruiting other muscles to do the job that the injured muscle was doing.  Then, even more imbalance occurs or other areas begin to be painful because of continual contraction of some muscles and continual stretching out of others.  There becomes this pain/spasm/pain cycle for which Bowen Therapy is perfectly suited to break.

If the pain or imbalance is in the lower extremeties, there is splinting of muscles and limping sometimes.  This creates imbalances in the back and posture muscles.  Finally, you either give in to it and bring yourself in for help, or your body decides that this is the new norm and then keeps this imbalance, with the pain subsiding and slipping into the background.  At this point, now you probably are going to need a series of sessions to retrain your body to go back to its original state of balance.  

On the contrary, if you recognize there is a problem from the beginning and get in for a Bowen treatment right away in the first week, one session of Bowen Therapy is usually all that is needed to return to full balance and harmony. So call quickly and get set up for a Bowen appointment once you realize that you have been hurt or have an imbalance.  You will save yourself time, frustration, and money in the long-run.

How do you help relieve your own low back pain?

Brenda Briscoe

Ever wake up with a stiff low back or just a bit of low back pain?  Outside of chronic, severe low back pain, there is a little-known trick that can be of tremendous help.  Do you have access to a treadmill?  Maybe you have one at home, or your friend has one, or you have a membership at a gym or rec center.  If you can somehow get on a treadmill, you’re in luck.

Place the speed at 2.0-2.5 and same with the incline.   This speed is slow enough that you shouldn’t be wobbly and off-balance.  This much of an incline ensures that you are leaning backward just a bit, which changes the way you move – your gait. In other words, because backward walking eliminates the typical heel-strike to the ground (the toe contacts the ground first), it can change the way your pelvis is aligned, alleviating pressure that may be causing the low back pain.  It also puts less strain on your knee joints, making it ideal for those with knee injuries or problems.

Interestingly enough, backward walking has neurological benefits as well.  Some call it “neurobic” activity because it requires brain activity that can help you stay sharp mentally.  When you walk backwards, your heart rate tends to rise higher than it does when walking forward at the same pace, so you can get greater cardiovascular and calorie-burning benefits in a shorter period of time.

Every time I get low back discomfort or pain, I walk backward that day or the next and it goes away the same day.  Works every time!  If you wait too long or the pain is severe, do not hesitate to get it looked at by your physician, or try Bowen Therapy right away to see if that doesn’t eliminate it altogether.

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