Treat Your Own Back

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nTY p1ain that they lies such as ribute such pains mity we sit and Ince we feel the to the activity that sider the likelihood osture we have The exercises described the muscles of your bac pain and return you to I the normal course of ev These exercises are d that may have develope He then proceeded to explain disc bulges and herniations, and noted that these can also cause serious pain. He suggested a new term for this type of pain as well: Derangement Syndrome. n, you should do Ner pain arises ~ poorly. Each is movement Ire sure that nned to the ~ degree, Ihe extreme of

ble for you. l to the postural 7alking, d self­ rcises 5 and 6­ nd Flexion in Ie fustweek e 5 at regular per session and When you ntwith this ~ercise 6 in i must follow ne with the ~rciseslid you ignore the warning dinue to overstretch, ~ will occur. Of course, the lI1ling tells you to stop over­ ing, and when you do so, 0. ceases immediately. No ~ will have occurred to your md the pain will have gone. lISting problems will arise ) take note of the pain

d domestic seating con­ J'S available rarely give •a conscious effort is xrl to sit badly (Fig. 3.6). lreal:ment table. the patient. \Vithout ~ dinical staff, he Jay fa! ~rstretched for SOIII eommence his treatm lying in what at that Ii position. On enqu.iri.uj IIim say that this was t Lad disappeared from Lad moved from the I he could now bend .. ''''hen Mr. Smith 31 upright and he remaiJ placed him in the S3III in complete resolutio look after your own er one is now offered. ryou how to put your put it out; and in e to avoid recurrence. y this book for first­ rides the most benefit 15. Our research also f, percent of the rience recurrence or WHO CAN PERFORM SELF-TREATMENT? Most people will benefit from the advice given in this book and can rommence the exercise programme, provided the recommended precautions are taken. Once you have started the exercises, carefully watch your pain pattern. If your pains were worsening before you started the exercises and they do not subside after the 6rst two days, you should seek advice from your health professional. Similarly, if your symptoms consistently increase immediately fOllowing the exercises and you remain worse over the following two days, you should discontinue the exercises and seek advice from }'Our health provider. In any of the following situations you should not commence the exercise programme without first consulting your health professional: The main theme of this chapter is that pain of postural origin will not occur if you avoid prolonged overstretching. Should pain develop, it is an almost certain indication that you have fallen into a poor position and immediate steps must be taken to correct your posture. Once the nature of your postural problem has been identified and you become aware of the steps you must take to correct it, you should not have to seek assistance whenever postural pain arises. SIXTEEN

correct posture and . It may take up to a •pain of postural [lroves, and you will JSI:ure. The pain 'will l allow yourself to in completely painfree never again should

I turned to this book in desperation. After birthing five children, carrying toddlers hither and yon, running for more than twenty years and subjecting my spine to various daily abuses of lifting, pushing and pulling, I was the proud owner of a herniated disc, some spinal stenosis, age appropriate degeneration and arthritis plus sciatica. I gave up running, I worked with a physical therapist/chiropractor and had two rounds of injections into my spine. Nothing worked for long. Next up would be surgery and because of my scoliosis I am not a good candidate for that. I also just did not want surgery if I could avoid it. llesides the postural c die exercises requ:irec: p1IShmll correction. "[ ..I increase of functi So that you mayaVl prolonged poor sit:tint 'iaterrupt prolonged s A severe, acute attac all times regardless c:: performed. It is mad and by bending fONi attempting to stand 4 fully, it may not be p only alternative. Recent research b the treatment of acu no more than two ru however, will perhCl{ experience a severe In my experience, require longer than possible. Neverthe1f desirable for those' to stand upright sho once each day. Bring both your knees up toward your chest, keeping your tailbone down on the ground. Hold for 2 seconds. Return to starting position. As mentio we experic only by ill are no me common 1 be taken v Certain inflamma1 useful for than somE been reco AgencyfoAre you generally better when walking? • Are you generally better when lyingface down? When testing this you may feel worse for the first few minutes after which time the pain subsides: in this case the answer to the question is yes. Slowly straighten your arms to lift your upper body. Hold for 2 seconds. Return to starting position. we can in rpostures lelaying res or at you may cises may nsean JU experience. IOU usually [>toms will ; and finally lIS you can, using lIlt that you keep ~ maintained this o the starting rrcle, you should try [ldyouhave ion. rpain over the past ;, you are an ideal rtlined in this book. estions, your chances II should commence dy three or fewer flent may be cler trained or