The most common form of back pain is associated with occupational and postural habits. Poor posture while sitting at the desk, lifting objects improperly, contact sports, and carrying an overloaded backpack daily, are examples of activities that can cause repetitive stress on your back muscles. This muscle strain can affect both the upper and lower parts of your back, and the higher the pain is in the back, the more serious the potential problems can become.
Most back pain is minor, with patients suffering mild pain. This is precipitated by unaccustomed load bearing, aggravated by bending, worst in the morning but gets better in the day. So, how to get rid of back pain? Here are 3 most effective ways to alleviate back pain before it worsens.
Attention to posture
Good posture while at work and at play is important as it lowers stress and tension on the disks and vertebra in your spine. It can also improve circulation, digestion, respiration, and flexibility. To improve your posture, here are some ways that promote better posture.
- Do not slouch: It puts a strain on your bones, muscles, and joints to support your backbone.
- Straighten your back: By pulling your shoulders back, knees straight, and belly tucked in.
- Stretch your neck to avoid “text neck”: This happens when you tilt your head down to check messages.
- Proper sleep posture: Lay a pillow under your head so it is level with your spine. This is to ensure that the pillow supports the natural curve of your neck while keeping the neck aligned with the chest and lower back.
Reduce sitting while working
Either in the office or while working from home – Sitting for long periods of time increases the chance of a slouched or hunched over position that will put more strain on the discs, which are the fluid-filled cushions that protect the vertebrae from rubbing together. People who sit a lot every day are also prone to the increased risk of diabetes, heart disease and early death. Additionally, it has been linked to weight gain and obesity.
Standing also helps us to keep bones and joints in correct alignment. By standing, it distributes your body weight evenly, which may help to alleviate muscle tension.
Preconditioning before sports/exercises
Preconditioning is the strategy of warming up before doing sports or exercising. They enhance the performance during these activities and also ensure that their athletes’ training and recovery treatments go well. These strategies include:
- Prior warm-ups and stretching: These exercises of repeated muscle contractions help to strengthen and increase the flexibility of your back.
- Wall squats: Stand with your back against a wall with your feet (a shoulder width apart), squat approximately half of the way down, make sure your knees do not go past your toes. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat 10 times.
- Bridging: Lie on your back with both knees bent. Contract your buttocks together then slowly lift your buttocks off the table, keeping your stomach tight and buttocks contracted. Slowly lower and release to the starting position. Hold 5 seconds and repeat 10 times.
Most back pains heal without any need for surgery, but only a proper assessment can deduce whether the patient needs surgery or not, as there are so many different causes of back pain.
Singapore Sports and Orthopaedic Clinic is home to back specialists and surgeons with over 20 years of experience in managing and treating back pain and problems. Book a consultation appointment with our orthopaedic specialists to receive the right diagnosis and treatment for your medical condition.
If your back pain is not treated properly, it will recur with increasingly greater frequency as the years go by and might turn serious. Serious back pain is associated with fever, loss of urinary or bowel control, which also wakes you up during sleep. Although back pain is common, you should seek professional consultation as soon as possible, to prevent it from becoming worse.
