Reflexology Relieves Back Pain

Reflexology is an ancient healing technique which uses reflex pressure points in the foot and hands to treat various health problems associated with the body. One such medical condition where Reflexology is being used is back pain, both acute and chronic. Reflexology helps treat back conditions on its own or in conjunction with other treatment methods. Determining the exact cause of back pain is very essential for proper treatment using Reflexology. Back ache in individuals may be due to physical or emotional imbalances. A Reflexologist often looks to minimize stress and ease out the painful back symptoms

Back pain caused due to physical imbalance: Physical imbalance like misalignment of the spine or hips in the body causes stress on the back and creates pain. Such medical conditions are difficult to treat using Reflexology but it can definitely help to pinpoint the source of imbalance in an effective manner.

Back pain caused due to emotional imbalance: Emotional imbalances often manifest in to physical pain and in most cases as severe back pains. Reflexology therapy is highly effective in treating back problems caused by emotional distress.

Back Pain caused by Muscle Spasm: You bend over to pick something up from the floor, and suddenly you are filled with a searing pain in your back. Sometimes this can immobilize a person for days or even weeks. Reflexology can help to relax the muscles and release the spasm, and help you become mobile again quite quickly.

A Reflexologist applies pressure on specific areas of the foot that corresponds to one's back discomfort. Reflex points in the foot for treating back aches includes the heel, which links to the lower back, tail bone and sciatic nerve.

Reflexology is known to trigger the body's natural pain killing chemical called endorphins. This pain killing chemical enters the blood stream and relieves back pain to provide a sense of wellbeing to the individual. Also, Reflexology is very relaxing and increases blood circulation which provides essential nutrients and oxygen to the body and tissues thereby boosting the body's natural healing system.

Reflexology, unlike other conventional medicine is a natural therapy that has very little or no side effects associated with them. It not only helps to relieve the symptoms of uncomfortable back aches and pains but also acts as a great stress reliever.

Reflexology can be considered as one of the best solutions to overcome chronic back problems caused by stress and help people live a pain free life.

Lauren Slade has over 30 years experience as a practicing health care practitioner as a Reflexologist and Master Herbalist. She is the Principal and Founder of the Universal College of Reflexology, established since 1991. Lauren has pioneered ways of bringing high quality Reflexology education to students where ever they may live in the world, believing that everyone has the right to practice and experience the healing powers of Reflexology. Lauren is a sought after mentor, lecturer and educator.

For more information visit our Reflexology Training & Certification website at http://www.iReflexology.com

3 Ways to Relieve Back Pain

When you're suffering from back pain, it can really slow you down. Concentrating can be difficult and even things as simple as getting through a day at work can be a real struggle. But what can you do to help deal with back pain and help you get back to your life as soon as possible?

Correct Bad Habits - The first thing you can do to take care of your back pain is to notice and stop bad habits that are contributing to your back pain. Maybe you keep your wallet in your back pocket all day while you're sitting at your desk. Maybe you have a habit of carrying a backpack on one shoulder. Maybe your posture needs improvement.

No matter what bad habits you may have, it is important to correct them if back pain is something that you are struggling with. Basically a "bad habit" is any way that you hold your body or carry yourself that takes your back out of symmetry. If you find that your back is leaning to one side or another, that is a big clue that there is going to be pain ahead.

Get Some Exercise - The main reason why people develop back pain is because they are not active enough. Too much time spent sitting at a desk for work followed by too much time spent driving in a car and too much time spent sitting in front of the television at home. The modern sedentary lifestyle is, no doubt, responsible for a good share of back problems.

I understand that everyone is busy these days between work, errands, and spending time with friends and family. But you simply need to make sure you make the time to get in some physical activity. This will give your muscles the use that they need to stay flexible, limber, and healthy.

Even a little bit of exercise can help. By simply breaking the sedentary cycle and doing something like standing up from your desk every few hours to go for a short walk or going to the gym to exercise after work a few days a week can be immensely helpful. Not only will exercise help to get your body out of the sitting position, but even light exercise will help to warm up your muscles and help them relax

Even Out Muscle Imbalances - Most cases of back pain are caused by muscle imbalances. This means that there is one muscle ground in or near the back that is either too strong or too weak. As a result the back is forced out of alignment and pressure is placed on the spinal nerves.

To help fix this problem, it is important to take the time to even out the strength of the muscles in your back. This, of course, is much easier said than done. To do this you will need to determine which muscles are in need of balancing and then doing appropriate exercises to strengthen the weak muscles. On top of that, you need to have to motivation to continue doing these exercises on a regular basis.

Instead of trying to pinpoint exactly which muscles need work, I find it better to focus on the whole body. Taking u a practice like yoga can help to increase flexibility in your entire body and open up tense or tight areas. Plus yoga has an immensely calming effect on the body too, which will help relax away all the stress in your body that often gets stored in your muscles.

Back pain can be a real challenge to deal with. It can not only rob you of the comfort to get through the day, but it can make even simple tasks excruciatingly painful. Try these 3 small and simple steps to help make your back pain a little easier.

If you found this helpful and you'd like to learn more about sciatica pain relief please check out my website Sciatic Nerve Help.

Leroy Lombard used to suffer from sciatica brought on by Piriformis Syndrome. After studying the causes and cures for sciatic nerve pain and finding lasting relief himself, he enjoys sharing his knowledge with others.

How To Do Effective Weight Loss Exercises That Will Relieve Back Pain

I want to start off saying that I have done every kind of fat burning exercise that took commitment, effort, and a certain amount of pain. But when I injured my back I was introduced to the best fat burning exercise without the pain and some great lower back pain exercises.

My therapist came up with a program to strengthen my back as well as my legs, inner thighs, and abs. A month later I am more curvy and lost a few inches! What ever you do, don't stop exercising because of the back pain. You need to strengthen your body to ward off the pain. Pain-killers will hurt your body in the long run. Prevent the need for them by getting your body back in shape.

Exercise Ball Workout. Press Replay! Yes I said "Exercise Ball Workout"! I always thought that the balls were not a strong enough training to get in shape.But I was so wrong.

My therapist whipped me back in shape. Flattened my abs and back without all the pain and fuss!However you will still have to do some cardio or more extensive workout to burn body fat.

Even seniors can do some of these exercises without hurting themselves.

You will have to use at lease three size balls for a full workout.

Exercise Inner thighs, Lower Back Exercises, and Love handles.

A small exercise ball two hold between your knees while laying on the floor, on your back. Your shoulders should be flat at all times on the floor.

You will then move your legs as far as you can to the left, hold for 5 seconds. Then to the right and hold for 5 seconds.

This will strengthen your back and exercise your waist as well as tighten your inner thighs! How great is that?!

Do 2 sets of 10 to start off! Take it easy your first time. The exercise was so easy I went home and over did it. I paid for it in the morning. This will really loosen your spine.

Small and Large Exercise Ball To Tighten Abs, Strengthen Lower Back, and Inner Thighs.

Now when I did this next exercise, I was sorry for all the unnecessary pain to my back using the old school sit ups.

Continued to lay on the floor with the small ball.
Now holding a larger ball that is about two feet or so wide.
Keep arms straight while placing arms above your head touching the floor.
Then lifting arms until the bigger ball touched the smaller ball.

This counted as one. Do 2 sets of 10.

Now the important task is to keep your back touching the floor without raising up. When I touched the ball to the floor above my head! The resistance and tension was felt in my abs right away!

And let's not forget about the ball being held between my legs tightening up my inner thighs! I Could not believe I was getting my workout from some exercise balls.

Extra Large Exercise Ball To Strengthen Thigh and Leg Muscles

Exercise Ball Squats

This exercise is done standing up with an extra-large exercise ball on the wall.

Leaning on the ball for support with ball on your lower back and rolling downward until legs are bent almost to an upside down L. That was counted as one. Roll up and down on the large ball. Do two sets of 20.

These were the most relaxed and comfortable squats I ever did. I just wanted to tell other who are skeptical by working out with exercise balls.

This is safe for seniors, pregnant women, and people healing from injuries. But why not just do them because they are the best fat burning exercise without the pain! I rather do them than hurt myself on some extreme workout video any day.

P.S. I personally would buy a cheaper child's ball to hold between my knees but not skimp on the ball you have to place your body weight on. And always see you doctor first!

Well I do enjoy extreme, but not all the time! lol!

I hope you enjoyed these exercises. Please click through to enjoy even more effective and easy weight loss solutions.

Relieve Back Pain While You Sleep

Like many people, I have a bad back. I think it comes with the territory these days. We all sit hunched over desks and computers and then we come home and slump down on the couch. We don't stretch; we don't exercise and so we have bad backs. My sciatica used to be so bad that I'd miss a week of work a few times a year. Shooting pains down to my ankle, hurt to sit, or stand or lay down.

Two things I did have helped me and I want to share them with you. The first is so obvious I shouldn't have to say it: I lost some weight. I shed about 25 pounds and I feel worlds better. But what really helped my sciatica is change number 2 -- I got a memory foam bed.

I did not think it would be such a dramatic difference but it was. It took about a week of sleeping on the new mattress before I started waking up feeling energized and ready to meet the world. I think it is the best $1,200 I ever spent. You probably just gasped at the dollar amount I named. Yes, it was expensive, but worth it.

I like a queen mattress. I like the size; it is big but not huge. So you have to spend a bit more if you are buying a larger mattress. Of course a full or twin is loads cheaper, just like with sheets. If you need to look at a cheaper alternative, a memory foam mattress pad is the way to go. You get the benefits of sleeping on a foam pad without the hefty price tag. A queen sized pad of memory foam will set you back at least a hundred dollars and for good quality, you might want to bump that up to $200.

How does it work and why is it so great for back pain? Memory foam is also called visco elastic foam and what that means is that the foam reacts to heat and weight. It becomes supple when heat is applied. And when weight is applied, the foam cells settle down and compress, instead of trying to spring back. The reason it is a god-send to bad back sufferers is the visco part. The foam reacts to your body temperature as you sleep and where you body is in contact with the mattress, the mattress conforms to your body. This relives pressure points. So you sleep in full support. Once NASA released memory foam into the commercial market, one of the first products was a mattress designed to eliminate bedsores.

So if you are waking up every morning in pain, you probably need a new mattress. Buying a memory foam mattress or topper should give you a great night's sleep, but don't take my word for it.

If you want to know more about how memory foam works, click here. To learn more about queen mattress toppers go here.

Relieving Back Pain Above The Tailbone

Back pain above the tailbone is about as welcome as a skunk at a lawn party! Tailbone pain comes under the broader category of pelvic floor disorders. But what is a pelvic floor disorder and why do the medical establishment have trouble diagnosing such problems?

You may have had some trouble finding any useful information about PF disorders. This is mainly because people don't like talking about burning or itching in the genital region, painful sex or bladder problems. In reality, millions suffer with these disorders, from couch potatoes to world-class athletes!

The majority of sufferers are female. Due to mis-diagnoses it is estimated that over 9 million women suffer with pelvic floor disorder but are unaware of it. It is estimated that there is at least a 5% chance of suffering chronic pelvic pain if you are female.

You may not have even heard of the pelvic floor, so what is it? Well it comprises all the muscles and the nerves controlling those muscles plus the tissues connecting the whole caboodle together. It includes the ligaments linking bones together along with everything attached to the front, back and sides of the pelvis from the tailbone at the back to the pubic bone at the front of the body.

So it's vitally important to keep your pelvic floor healthy. If you experience any pain in this area and especially your tailbone it could be a warning that there is something wrong.

There are plenty of exercises you can do in order to strengthen your pelvic floor and thus reduce the risk of experiencing pain in this area. It is beyond the scope of this article to go into to any detail but I can certainly recommend a book available on Amazon. You definitely want to check out a publication by Amy Stein entitled "Heal Pelvic Pain". She has some excellent exercises documented in her book.

To find out more about tailbone back pain check out this page.

Practical Ways to Relieve Back Pain

Everyday millions of people are affected by back pain. Of these millions, the ones who suffer from stiff, sore, traumatized muscles or disc pain can find themselves in a debilitating situation. Our backs are very complicated and are the center of movement for our bodies. For this reason there are many different things that can cause back pain. Poor posture, weak stomach muscles, out of line backbone, not enough desk chair support whenever sitting, un-supportive mattress or pillow, and obviously anxiety and stress which usually becomes localized within the back. It doesn't matter what causes you're lower back to become persistently painful, you need pain relief, at the very least some thing that will enable you to cope with another day.

Whether you know it or not, help is available from many different sources. Experts in the field consistently rank exercise as the top preventive measure to reduce the lower back ache. For many people it could be weight bearing exercise routines for example going for a walk, jogging, or maybe playing tennis - other people might benefit from going swimming, using a rowing machine (utilizing correct technique), or perhaps stair stepping using a fitness machine. Stretches along with abdominal conditioning exercises, will concentrate your body's attention upon area support to get back pain relief.

An additional popular resource involves professional help - physical therapists, chiropractic specialists, massage therapists, and the practice of Acupuncture all have unique strategies for approaching chronic back pain. Even though all possess advantages, you need to think about all of them in diverse styles as being a precise approach or possibly a blend might be precisely what you require.

Back pain relief devices are also a viable alternative that may be prescribed by your health care professional. Inversion tables, traction devices such as the Nubax Trio or TENS units can be used in conjunction with other therapies in order to better alleviate the pain in your lower back.

An option for many people with severe pain is medication. This can be common pain relieving medicines that are available over the counter or maybe prescription medication. A few sleeping pills can provide the side benefit of helping to loosen your muscles merely enough to produce reliable back pain relief. Talk to your mental health specialist or health care provider to get more detail.

Long-term back pain need not become a permanent condition in your daily life. Even though lumbar imbalance or maybe years of lousy posture might restrict the actual improvements you can make, some relief is certainly attainable. Through the application of constant exercise, seeking professional help, or maybe even use of medication, some relief of the pain in your back is possible.

Selecting the best TENS unit can be complicated. Reading our TENS unit reviews can help you find the one that is right for you.

Benefits of Using a Chiropractor for Relieving Back Pain

There are people who experience back pain on a regular basis due to lifestyle factors such as the type of work that they do. For relief, they may use painkillers and/or just lay down until the pain subsides. While this can be a good solution, unfortunately, they may experience the same situation the very next day. For persons like those who have on-going back pains, it is advised that they visit a chiropractor.

The chiropractor uses a variety of techniques to treat patients including manipulating the spine with his hands. Their studies specifically focus on the spinal column, central nervous system and the body's bone structure. They are more informed as it relates to therapeutic and rehabilitative techniques as opposed to a General Practioner who uses a more general approach to ailments. They use a range of tools such as MRI's, X-rays, ultrasounds, etc., to ensure proper diagnosis. A visit to a chiropractor can help you feel better without the use of medication or having surgery. Medication and surgery should be a last resort as the work that a chiropractor does can help the body to heal naturally.

The chiropractor will sooth your back pain while helping to relieve stress on bones, joints, muscles, ligaments and cartilage. You can also benefit if you have an injury caused by falling or repetitive motions. You may realize that the process takes time especially if you have a job that requires you to repeatedly injure yourself.

Let's focus on some of the specific symptoms that one may suffer where a chiropractor would be beneficial.


Headaches - Whether it's a dull pain or a sharp pain, a headache caused by being sensitive to light or having restricted neck motion.
Herniated Disk - This may result in pains in the lower back, a leg or numbness in the back, arm, leg or muscle spasms.
Joint Pain - Whether your joints are stiff, swollen or tender.
Pinched Nerve
Sciatica - This is a sharp pain that moves from your buttocks to legs.
Fibromyalgia - This is a condition where you may experience fatigue in muscles and tendons, tender spots on the body, morning stiffness, insomnia, etc. It has a tendency to last longer than three months.
Scoliosis - This is a condition where the spine curves to one side. As a result, the head may not be centered directly over the torso and sufferers may experience pain.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Sufferers may experience tingling, burning, pain, numbness of the fingers, palm, wrist or forearm. They may also have finger stiffness in the morning or have a weak grasp.

If some of these conditions go untreated, they have the potential of getting in the way of neurological communication between the brain, tissues and organs. Not to mention the pain which the sufferer may experience. A good chiropractor will restore your well-being with effective, painless and drug-free therapy.

In the end, what it really comes down to is making sure that our bodies are balanced with the aid of a healthy, nutritional and active lifestyle. Pains will only throw the body out of balance so take the time to find a reputable chiropractor who not only offers great service but sound advice and a variety of techniques to asses your condition as well.

If you are looking for back pain relief in Walnut Creek area then check out the Center for Neck and Back Pain: http://centerforneckandbackpain.com
Quality chiropractor who can help give you back pain relief. Massage therapy also.

Relieving Back Pain Through Hypnotherapy

What we see around us today are millions of human bodies floating with time and running here and there for many reasons (that are obviously not important to be mentioned here). Due to such hectic life, the relationship between humans and pain have become just like peanut-butter and jelly.

Of course, it is a part of your everyday life, especially the back pain. However, it is not bound to be with you forever. There are many ways to overcome this problem. You may start with medication, physiotherapy or even surgery. No, you need not force or subject your body to such harsh treatments. One of the best alternatives available is hypnotherapy. It is a process that considers your physical as well as mental conditions and cures your problems. Indeed, it is way safe than any of the above-stated methods.

Your brain is the best computer that can truly cure many of the problems without any drugs or medication at all. It is just that in a conscious mind, you are not aware of your potential. Hypnotherapy helps you in exploring the inner horizons and overcome certain physical ailments, including back pain.

In simple terms, it helps in telling the brain to terminate those signals that intensify pain. Pain is a way of informing you that something is wrong with your body. However, not every pain is a result of physical malfunctioning. Under such condition, one can opt for hypnotherapy that is very effective, faster and risk-free as compared to other means of treatments.

Exercises for Back Pain - Effective Ways to Relieve Back Pain

There are various exercises for back pain that are being promoted out there; but although many of them can be helpful, it would be good to note that exercise can be harmful if not executed properly. Hence, when you are choosing an exercise for your back, it is essential that safety and efficiency should be the first priority.

One of the exercises for back pain that you can do is yoga. There are various yoga classes that you can participate in. Make sure that you determine the credentials of the instructors. Yoga is a meridian treatment that has long been used as an alternative therapy for healing the body as well as for promoting positive energy.

The exercises vary from the simple to the complicated and are done on a regular interval. The exercises are usually accompanied by meditation, which helps in calming the mind as well. Thus, only a well-trained instructor can teach you how to do the exercises properly.

You can also do physiotherapy exercises for back pain if you do not want to do yoga. A physiotherapist will teach you how to refocus the muscles in your body and allow them to work as they should. He has the necessary skills and knowledge to manage the pain that you feel in your back. The goal of physiotherapy exercises is to increase the flow of blood that is going to your lumbar or back area. This results in the reduction of the pain and in the faster formation of bones. The exercises are often accompanied by pills which help in reducing the pain.

Although not exercises, aromatherapy and herbal remedies that have been shown to help with the pain which you can use as well. In performing exercises for back pain, choose those that you particularly enjoy. This will allow you to stick to your regimen better.

Stop suffering, there are many exercises that can help give you the back pain relief you need. Find out more by getting our free report on beating back pain today. Get your free copy by Clicking Here.

7 Ways to Relieve Back Pain in Ergonomic Chairs Using a Towel

It is very easy to sit in a chair, but to sit in a chair for a long time with comfort is difficult.

If you are sitting at a computer all day, then I would suggest try bringing a small or medium sized towel to your work area. You will be amazed at how much this piece of equipment will aid your comfort level throughout the day.

The beauty about a towel is that it can be changed to whatever size that you need. If you then roll up the towel and place a few rubber bands around it, the towel will remain in a rolled up state.

Now you can try various ways to aid your comfort level:

1. Place the towel just behind your pelvic bones, at the back of the chair. This will help you to sit firmly on your pelvic bones and allow your back to lean back, becoming more erect as you sit on your pelvic bones.

2. A rolled-up towel will help any intense pain in the back by positioning the towel just below the painful area. This will try to support the pain location site, in order to relieve the problem.

3. A rolled-up towel that is placed between your legs will help to aid relaxation in your legs from tension that can build up throughout the day. Your legs will lean against the towel and feel more comfortable resting. (For ladies also wanting to increase pelvic floor strength, squeezing the towel tightly for up to 5 seconds between your legs is another useful exercise with the towel).

4. Your feet will enjoy the pleasure of a rolled up top, by placing your stocking feet on the towel. Your feet can then have fun rolling the towel around as you work. This movement in the feet will help to move your pelvic bones for prolonged sitting.

5. If you have a head rest, then a rolled-up towel behind the neck will help to soothe those tired muscles in the neck.

6. A rolled-up towel resting on the foot stand will allow you're stocking feet to rest on the stand in comfort, for an alternative position for your sitting position.

7. Now take one end of the towel and place your hand behind your head, then take the opposite hand and reach back, so you are internally rotating the shoulder joint to collect the towel. This is a good exercise for internal and external rotation of the shoulder, which we hardly ever perform; but your back and shoulders will like the movements for lubricating the joints for flexibility and movement.

A small or larger towel, whichever your preference can be a useful item to have around your ergonomic chair; for aiding your comfort in prolonged sitting. There may be other ways that you may consider better and if so, I would appreciate an email, so that I can correlate all these ideas together for another article. Your name will be mentioned, I will not plagiarize ideas!

Gail McGonigal is a qualified Occupational Therapist who is not practicing because she has her own business helping people who want to buy an ergonomic chair be comfortable in sitting. http://www.activelivingsolutions.net She is targeting the Big and Tall because they have the most difficulty in functional movements. http://www.activelivingsolutions.net/big-and-tall-chairs.html
Gail is tall and has postural scoliosis in her back. She has experienced all the problems that everyone has had with back pain and functional discomforts in daily living.
Gail wants to help people with her free 'Therapeutic Active Living Plan' which is free with each chair purchased. Gail has overcome her back problems and wants to help you individually overcome your problems also with her easy solutions for relieving back discomfort that make life safer, happier and more active in daily living

Flexibility and Strength Exercises Can Help Relieve Back Pain

If you have ever had a serious backache, you understand just how important your back is - even for things you think don't involve the back so much. For instance, squeezing a tennis ball involves a lot more than your hand; the latissimus dorsi and other back muscles come into play during this motion.

The latissimus dorsi or "lats" for short, are the large muscles on one's side - in men these produce the "triangle shape" when well defined. Try squeezing a tennis ball as an exercise - do you feel it? You will experience a tensing of these muscles on the same side of your body as the arm used to squeeze the ball. If you have back pain, you can't miss this.

Strong back muscles are key to playing any sport. They are used for coordination, balance and speed, as well as making a strong foundation for the movement of your limbs.

Following are a few simple exercises which you can use to improve the strength and flexibility of these important muscles. You will get the most benefit out of these exercises when they are done on a firm (not hard, just firm) surface. A hard surface will cause unnecessary discomfort on bony parts while doing these exercises.

Knee to Chest

While lying on your back, clasp both hands behind one thigh. Pull your thigh towards your chest slowly while making sure to keep your other leg flat. Flex your ankle as you do this - alternate between pointing your toe and pulling it back towards your knee while stretching your leg. Hold each position for about five seconds, switch legs and do it over again. Do ten repetitions of this exercise.

Rotations

Do this one while lying back with your feet flat on the floor, knees together and raised. Extend your arms but keep them close to your body and keep your palms flat on the floor as well. Lift your feet just slightly off the ground and by moving your knee, rotate your torso. Move your knees a little to the left, then right. Alternate the exercise by crossing your arms over your chest, then repeat.

As you continue to practice this exercise, you will build flexibility and will be able to have a wider range of motion with this exercise. Eventually, you'll be able to touch your knee to the floor.

Pelvic Press

While lying on your back, knees raised and feet on the floor, push the small of your back into the floor - you should feel your lower abdomen tense. Do this exercise with your feet together, then apart. Hold each press for about five seconds while continuing to breathe normally.

Pelvic Lift

Again, lie on your back with feet flat on the ground, knees raised. Cross your arms over your chest and legs and knees together. Raise your buttocks slightly off the floor and hold this position for five seconds. Lower them slowly back to the floor, count to two and repeat. Breathe slowly and normally while doing this exercise.

Dog Stretches

Starting position for this exercise is on all fours with your head raised - look forward to achieve proper posture for this exercise. Lowering your arms, arch your back and hold this position for two seconds before returning to your starting position. Extend one leg, parallel to the floor (or as close to parallel as possible). Hold this position for three seconds, then return to starting position again. This exercise can cause hip, leg or back pain in some - if it does this for you, stop this exercise immediately.

Repeat this exercise with the other leg. You can mix it up by extending your leg with toe pointed, then flex your ankle in a perpendicular direction to the leg; hold this position for two seconds, then repeat. You should do ten reps of this exercise for each leg.

If you experience pain while doing these exercises, discontinue immediately. While some mild discomfort is normal, pain is not and you should talk to your doctor if this occurs.

Back pain is a real problem in our world today. It can be a seriously debilitating condition, and it's not always easy to treat. Learn more about what causes back pain and what the options are in back pain treatments, including back pain relief exercises, at the Back Pain Relief site.

Muscle Relaxation to Relieve Back Pain

If you've ever had a sore back, you know what a pain it can be. There's the literal pain, but there's also the frustration of being unable to get comfortable in any position. That stress can actually cause your muscles to tighten and sort of lock up. That can create even more pain, unless you break the cycle.

One thing that you could do, with your doctor's advice and permission, is take a muscle relaxant medication. Such medications can loosen up your muscles and relieve pain. However, it's not a good idea to resort to medications unless you really have to.

An alternative to medication is to simply apply heat to your back. A hot water bottle or heating pad can work wonders for relieving muscle tension. In fact, it can relieve all of your general stress and tension, which could have contributed to your back problem in the first place.

Another option is to take a hot bath or shower. Of course, that will depend on exactly how much your back hurts. After all, it can be dangerous to take a bath or shower if you may not be able to get in and out of the tub easily. In fact, even if you think you can handle it, you should have a family member near by, just in case you fall or get stuck in your tub.

As long as you can reduce your muscle tension, your back issue should heal up quickly. If it doesn't, though, call your doctor. Otherwise, you could have a chronic problem on your hands.

David Champley has been writing articles about back pain for the past two years. He also enjoys writing about hobbies, like why to use card shufflers at home and why any shufflers can help speed up the game you are playing.

David Champley

Simple Exercises to Help Relieve Back Pain

Medical research has consistently concluded that most people with a common back pain problem would benefit by undertaking a gentle exercise program that involves a combination of stretching and light exercising such as yoga, pilates or just a gentle walk. The idea behind this concept is that stretching extends and expands your limbs, reducing the compression between the muscles and the joints, which can help to relieve the pain.

Stretching is particularly helpful if the source of the back pain is either a compressed nerve or a compressed disc which are common causes of lower back pain. For the long term relief of lower back pain you need to carry out your stretching and gentle exercise routine about three times a day to fully experience the benefits. By being consistent your body will adapt to the stretching and become suppler as you go on. If you suffer from a more chronic or debilitating form of back pain such as osteoarthritis then certain stretches can actually do more damage than good. However, any type of limited stretching is better than not stretching at all.

If you find that standing up to stretch is too painful consider adapting this by performing your stretches while sitting down in the comfort of your favorite chair. You can begin with ankle roles and stretching your forearms upwards as if you are picking grapes from a branch. Do the stretches in a slow, relaxed manner and try to avoid any quick, jerky movements. Listen to your body as you carry out these stretches and stop if you feel any discomfort or pain.

One particular stretch to focus on is the hamstring which runs down the back of each leg. A tight hamstring muscle can aggravate back pain and by stretching it and making it suppler you can help to alleviate the pain. An effective hamstring stretch exercise is the basic hamstring stretch and the donkey kick.

As I mentioned before you should try and combine a few low impact aerobic exercises that can help make the joints and in particular the lower back stronger. Take it gently and depending on your condition certain yoga poses such as the full shoulder stand maybe too difficult are painful to perform. It is best to try a few of the easier poses like the cat and dog stretch or the knee hug. If you find the yoga poses too uncomfortable then another great exercise is walking. Nothing too strenuous at the start, just 15 minutes a day and then gradually build it up from there each day.

While walking try and keep your back straight and prevent your shoulders from hunching forward. Swing your arms in a relaxed manner and keep your chin level and your eyes looking forward. With each step take a deep breath and exhale.

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These Exercises Might Be Your Key to Scoliosis Relief

Posted by: Sam Davis in: Back Pain

A well-known way of scoliosis treatment popularly known as Schroth Method takes advantage of chosen scoliosis exercises so that it can correct defective curves of a typical spinal column. This helpful style works well on fortifying coupled with stretching muscle groups which may have gotten fatigued by reason of overcompensation by way of different muscular tissues. This can be a non-surgical tactic that may optimize a person’s posture, defend against declining scoliosis problems, and in some cases could even reverse the spinal curves.

This specified method of exercises was envisioned in the 1920's and has grown to be the accepted treatment procedure when it comes to scoliosis patients in several nations. The major intent of such scoliosis exercise routines may be to create equality somewhere between asymmetrical muscles which happen to have come to be not balanced. These kinds of imbalances have proven to be what cause scoliosis as well as trigger it to progress, therefore building any sort of muscle groups that have gotten weak may possibly remove the effects as well as be useful to straighten out your particular back and get rid of pains.

A large number of the exercise routines put to use in this particular tactic are certainly overcorrections. They are going to help to revert the curvatures instead of just basically halting them from declining. A widely used physical activity is usually to stand straight holding a ladder rung and after that lean out to the opposite course the curve travels. Another individual exercise making use of a ladder will be to stand confronting the ladder and then you should squat lower, which can extend the spine and also extend muscle tissues which could be pinched by way of the curves. More workout routines give attention to derotation. As part of one particular patient’s issue, the Schroth Method was implemented in order to help fix a hump on the patient’s shoulder joint. The person would lie with their face aligned downward and reach out to grab the rungs of the ladder, but still put the forearm relating to the side of the hump one rung up. This approach derotates the shoulder blade in order to help stretch as well as extend it.

Each one of these exercise and workout routines have to be carried out with a medical physician or possibly a physical therapist due to the reason that each individual person holds varying back irregularities. This scheme really needs to be customized to every person simply by identifying specifically which muscles have to be worked on and producing a custom made exercise routine to develop those specified muscles. The routines will have to be accomplished one time each day for nearly half an hour, though the hard work generates results at the time when spinal curves begin to fade and soreness is handled. This approach is mostly highly effective for those having mild circumstances, then again it may be effective with very bad instances and mature individuals as well.

All of these scoliosis physical activities are designated to loosen up and also support muscle tissues which happen to have developed to be caved in, weary, or squeezed for the reason that corresponding muscle tissues were more powerful and wielded a more potent strain within the spine. The final result might possibly be reduced ache, reducing advancing of the back curves, or even doing away with some curvatures.

To find out more about scoliosis stretching exercises, head to eScoliosisExercises.com. You will find a great deal of information about scoliosis treatment exercises there.

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This article will tell you how to use physical activity and exercise to transform your whole life.

Posted by: Dr Graeme Teague in: Back Pain

People of all ages need exercise and physical activity daily according to researchers in the health field and doctors. Quality of life improvements are only a small part of the benefits this will cause. This type of exercise also leads to a fit and toned body shape as well as added muscle strength. In addition you’ll enjoy greater bone health and fewer signs of aging in the skin.So you’ll save a lot of money on skin anti-aging products. There are plenty more benefits, some of which will be discussed below.

Whenever you experience stress or stressors, your body works to protect itself with the release of certain hormones. Until you manage to get a handle on your stress, the negative health effects will continue. Exercise is an excellent way to address the physiological impact stress is having on your body. When you develop a regular exercise routine in addition to remaining active during your day it will go a long way to keep stress at bay. By getting rid of the stress you’re allowing your body to stop fighting stress and actually relax a bit. To make you brain more powerful and more efficient you need to be dedicated to maintaining fitness. The reality is perhaps you can say it makes you smarter due to more brainpower. Actually, you will have a greater sense of mental clarity, and your brain performance will become measurably increased. Once again, it is due to the sustained higher levels of blood circulating in your brain. Your brain will have more oxygen and, just like with skin, it will have a higher removal rate of toxins and other free radical chemicals.Your brain will work faster due to the increased brain wave activity.

These can be helpful in naturally treating depression or other emotional problems. You will also notice a compounding effect with exercise and your moods due to a typical increase in other positive feelings that commonly occur with regular workouts. Feeling better emotionally is a benefit you can get from any regular physical activity, even walking.

Pregnant women benefit a lot from regular exercise. Just be sure to consult your doctor for safe exercise. Please do see your doctor before doing any workout routines. It is an established fact that the entire pregnancy including the delivery can benefit from regular exercise. What is commonly experienced are a greater tolerance to pain and the stress of pregnancy. Women who did a fair amount of exercise often received less medication during the delivery. Don’t forget the importance of stretching as you exercise during your pregnancy. Research shoes that if you want to experience the thrill of healthy living and feeling really good, then that is something you can bring with exercise and healthy nutritional habits. It is always important to consider doing something that you like and naturally enjoy for exercise. If you don’t like what you are doing then you have a higher chance of quitting, so it makes sense that people will stick with what they enjoy doing.

Hardly anyone has a valid reason not to get regular physical activity or some form of exercise. If you can’t spare more than a half hour, or even fifteen minutes at a time, that’s still enough to get in a workout. If you make it a priority, you can surely find that amount of time at least a few times every week. If you want to be healthy and live long with fewer complications, then it is certainly worth it to make ten or twenty minutes a day. However much you can manage to do every week is more beneficial than none at all. You should get medical advice if you have any health concerns about starting a fitness program.

Want to find out more on sciatica exercises, then proceed to the Back Pain Advisor for quick and effective ways to receive sciatic nerve pain relief immediately.

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