Back Pain and How To Treat It

Do you suffer from back pain? It can be an uncomfortable and painful condition. But there are ways to relieve some types of back pain by using home remedies and painkillers from your pharmacy.

The spine

Your spine is made up of vertebrae (bones) and they are stacked one on top of the other. They are divided into five different regions.

The neck is the start of the cervical spine which runs into the thoracic region which is the upper spine. Then you have the lumber region which is your lower back, and this runs into your sacrum and your coccyx. Attached to the vertebrae are muscles, ligaments, and nerves.

What causes back pain?

Pulled muscles

Commonly back pain is caused by a muscle injury that comes from a sudden movement or from lifting something heavy or from doing a sport. These types of injuries can lead to lower back pain.

The recovery time for this type of injury is between one and two weeks, but it can be painful for longer depending on the injury.

Slipped disc

A slipped disc is also known as a herniated disc. It occurs when the tissue between the bones in your spine start to push outwards, pressing on nerves in your spine. A slipped disc can cause all types of problems, and these can include a painful lower back, neck pain, and pain in the hips legs and buttocks if the tissue is pressing on a sciatic nerve.

You may also find it difficult to bend or straighten up and feel some muscle weakness and tingling in your shoulders, back, arms, feet, and legs.

Bad posture

Bad posture can cause pain in your upper back in the thoracic region.  Bad posture can be caused by your job, if for example you are working at a till and you are bending for most of the day. Good posture means you need to stand with your shoulders back and your head level. Looking at a mobile phone can create you bad posture over time, as you spend a lot of time with your head tilted.

How to treat back pain

Back pain doesn’t often need to be treated by a doctor. You can usually ease the pain using an over-the-counter painkiller. Ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory and will work better than paracetamol.

If you have pain and swelling use an ice pack (wrapped in a towel) on the swollen area to reduce the pain and swelling. If you have muscle spasms or joint pain, use a hot water bottle on the affected area.

Staying in bed is not a good method of treating back pain. It is better to move about if you can and even try to do some stretching exercises, which will help you.

How to avoid back injury

Back stretches will strengthen your back and help you to avoid injury or relieve pain. Exercises from a pilates or yoga workout are a good idea and easy to do at home.  You can also browse the Back care website which has a lot of useful information about caring for your back with some exercises you can do that help backpain.

After a few weeks your back pain should have improved, if it hasn’t and you are having difficulty getting on with everyday life, then see your doctor.

If you are not sure what kind of treatment you need have a word with a member of staff here at VSM Pharmacy. We can advise you about the best treatments for pain relief.