Are you suffering from back pain? This is not a serious problem to worry all time. Don’t bother about it. Back pain is one of the most common medical problems, which almost everyone should experience in their lifetime.
Fortunately, you can take some preventive measures to avoid it. If prevention fails, you can easily recover from it with the help of simple steps that I have listed below.
First of all, you have to identify that which type of pain you are suffering from? I.e. Acute pain or chronic pain.
This is simple, if you suffer from back pain for more than 12 weeks, that is the chronic pain (long-term back pain) and if you have back pain for less than 3 weeks that is the acute pain (short-term back pain).
In most cases, the pain gets better on its own and no need to consult with a doctor. Both types of pain are easy to cure and no need to worry. Rarely, surgery is needed to recover from back pain.
First of all, you have to know about the Causes and Symptoms of back pain. Since this will help you in a quick healing process.
Here I give you some of the home remedies to be followed to recover from short-term back pain at home. For long-term back pain, you can see the bottom section of this post.
1. Apply heat or ice to the painful area
The Heat and Ice are the best pain relievers in the world. They reduce the pain which worsens, you.
Ice is the best treatment in the first 24 to 48 hours after an injury. Since it reduces inflammation in the affected area.
You can go for heat treatment after 48 hours of an injury.
You can prefer Heat or Ice treatment as per your convenience. I covered more about how to apply Ice and heat healing methods already.
Note:
• Excessive use of Ice can cause damage to the tissue.
• Keep yourself away from direct contact with heating devices.
• Pregnant women should avoid hot tub or hot bath for too long. Because raising the body temperature over 100 °F for long periods may cause miscarriage or birth defects. If you are pregnant, consult with your doctor before trying a hot bath.
2. Do Stretching
Stretching always yields good results for all types of pains. Stretching simply improves the flexibility of muscles. In your workplace or home, get up every 30 minutes and stretch your body and legs.
There are several stretching exercises is there to relieve pain. But here I recommend the following 4 stretches to get instant back pain relief.
- Standing Cat-Camel
- Standing bird dog.
- Supine Spine Twist
- Child’s Pose
The above image explains to you how to do these stretches. These stretches are very simple and easy to do.
Tips
- Hold a stretch to get the maximum benefit.
- Don’t hold stretch until it hurts.
3. Maintain good posture
Good posture keeps the spinal cord in the normal shape. Good posture is important to maintain good body shape and relieve from most pains.
The spine has three curves
- Cervical curve
- The thoracic curve
- The lumbar curve.
The above three curves give, “S” shape to the spinal cord.
You have to maintain good posture when you are standing, sitting, walking, sleeping, running or lifting.
While Standing
- Try to reduce your overall weight by place one foot on a low height stool.
- Don’t stand in bending position
While Sitting
- Use lumbar support chairs
- Place a pillow or rolled towel at your lower back.
While Lifting and Carrying weights
- Don’t lift weight while standing.
- Keep your back straight and lift heavy weights.
While Walking or Running
- Maintain Straight spine with not too much bend and straightness.
While Sleeping
- Avoid poor Sleeping positions to get rid of the neck, shoulder and back pains.
While Driving
- Use lumbar support chairs.
4. Yoga
Yoga has several stretching methods, breathing exercises and relaxing methods to heal you from back pain.
Yoga improves your muscles flexibility. It strengths your back muscles.
According to the research paper published in the JAMA Internal Medicine[1],those who perform yoga and stretching can get two times faster relief from pain than others.
Here I list you 5 yoga practices for better pain relief.
- Lengthening the Spine
- Twisting the Spine to Right and Left
- Bending the Spine Right and Left
- Bending the Spine Forward and Backward
- Twisting the Spine From Side-to-Side
The art of living provides you more details about these 5 yoga poses.
5. Massage
Massaging your painful area helps in reducing pain.
a.Use Camphor
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved camphor as a painkiller.
- Mix camphor in coconut oil and boil it for 5 minutes
- Take 150 ml of coconut oil
- Pour solid or powdered Camphor in it.
- Then boil it for 5 minutes.
- Then cool it.
Gently rub your lower back with this mixture twice in a week before you going to sleeping.
b. Use Mustard Oil
- Take 150 ml of Mustard oil.
- Massage your back with Mustard Oil.
- Take hot shower or bath after 30 minutes of massage.
c. Use Herbal oils
Note: You can use Herbal oils such as Eucalyptus oil, Lavender oil, Olive oil or Almond Oil.
- Take 100 ml of any herbal oil listed above.
- Mix camphor with it and boil for 10 minutes.
- Rub your lower back with this mixture twice per day.
6. Relax
Most back pain is caused by muscle tightness. Use some relaxation practices for quick healing.
Relaxation Techniques:
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Practice tai-chi
- Listen to songs.
- Laugh Out Loud
- Practice some Hypnosis
- Close your eyes and do Deep and slow breathing for 10 minutes.
- Close your eyes and count backward from 100 to 1.
- Do what you like
7. Pain Killers
You can take some pain killers for instant relief.
- Paracetamol
- Ibuprofen
- Acetaminophen
- Diazepam (Muscle Relaxant)
Note: Continuous using of painkillers may cause side effects depending upon your medical history. Please read about their side effects before using.
8. Regular Exercise
If your back pain is caused by overweight, then you should do regular exercises.
You can do anyone of the following methods regularly.
- Walking
- Running
- Swimming
- Stretching
- Simple workouts
9. Quit Smoking
Smoking not only damages the lungs but also causes back pain.
A study in The American Journal of Medicine, [2],proves that the smokers are more likely to get back pain than those who never have the habit of smoking.
In another study published in The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery [3],it is proved that those who quit smoking feel better reductions in pain than the current smokers.
So here I strongly recommend you to quit smoking to get faster relief from back pain.
10. Reduce your weight
Overweight or Obesity is one of the major cause for most of the health problems. Overweight puts excess stress on your spinal cord and thereby increases back pain. So keep watching your weight always.
You can reduce your weight by following these 10 weight loss tips. And also I recommend that you should burn your excess fat.
11. Alternative Treatments
- Chiropractic care
- Acupuncture
Home Remedies for Chronic back pain
For Chronic back pain, I strongly suggest you consult with your doctor before practicing any remedies listed here. Since Chronic pain may cause the serious problem and can not be easily cured with home remedies. But you can follow the methods listed below to get faster recovery.
1. Exercise
Regular exercises [4],may reduce your back pain to certain level.
2. Yoga
Yoga is best for all type of pains. Yoga will surely reduce your long-term back pain.
A study published in Annals of Internal Medicine[5],proved that those who practice yoga for 12 weeks can heal faster from the chronic back pain than the others.
Yoga poses [6],will stretch your body and give core strength to your spine.
3. Acupuncture
Acupuncture is an ancient treatment method that was originally founded in China. This method uses thin needles to treat disorders. For treating chronic back pain, acupuncture is one of the best methods in the worlds.
4. Alexander Technique
Alexander Technique is also useful for your long-term back pain.
5. Therapy
You can also go for the following therapies to cure chronic back pain.
You can try these above methods without any hesitation. These are scientifically proven methods to get faster back pain relief. Try these methods and tell me about your improvements via comments below.
References:
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3279296/
- http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343%2809%2900713-X/abstract
- http://jbjs.org/content/94/23/2161
- http://greatist.com/move/exercises-to-help-chronic-back-pain
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22041945
- http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2937315/The-eight-healing-positions-yoga-Moves-ease-pain.html
