Your West Vancouver Chiropractor can help you understand the cause of your back pain. Sometimes, back pain can be a difficult thing to pin down. Diagnosing what exactly is causing your back to hurt can be difficult. We can generalize this into two basic categories; Non-specific Back Pain and Mechanical Back Pain. The first type is known as “non-specific” back pain, where there is no apparent cause. “Mechanical” pain is usually pain in your bones, joints, and soft-tissue like muscles, ligaments, and tendons.
Here at Ambleside Chiropractic in West Vancouver, we’ve dealt with all sorts of back pain and similar conditions over the years. There’s almost nothing we haven’t seen. These are the most common causes of back pain, along with the symptoms and how you can home remedy some common types of back pain.
Signs of Back Pain
There are several common types of signs for back pain.
You might get a sudden pain in your back for no real reason. Some might be associated with a feeling generally of being “run down.” Some might even cause you to feel worse when you’re moving. You might also get a pain in your mid-back when you get up in the morning. There are numerous signs of back pain that your West Vancouver Chiropractor can help you understand and identify.
Different body positions like sitting, standing, or lying down can also affect the sort of pain you’re feeling.
Though nowadays, doctors and therapists will recommend that you try and move around enough to keep your back stretched and flexible. However, do not overload it with poor posture, repetitive work, or carrying heavy loads. You might even notice pain after a minor injury at work or during sports – this is commonly a sprain or strain (ligament or muscle).
You might also feel numbness, tingling, and sharp or dull pain in your legs, feet, arms, or hands. This type of symptom can also mean a different cause of back pain like a bulging or herniated disc. Your West Vancouver Chiropractor can often assess what is likely causing your back pain from just hearing about your symptoms and performing a thorough exam on you.
Most Likely Causes of Back Pain
Sometimes it can be challenging to pin down what exactly is causing your back pain.
However, your West Vancouver Chiropractor can offer a proper diagnosis better after an appropriate exam and check-up.
Work injuries are prevalent. Heavy lifting, repetitive and consistent strain on your back over long workdays are almost bound to cause some pain in your back. At our West Vancouver Chiropractic Clinic, we often hear about people who are suffering from sprains and strains because of small but repetitive injuries.
Likewise, sports injuries often cause back issues. These are usually not too severe, but on occasion, you can hurt yourself quite badly. If you feel like your back is hurting a lot more than usual after sports or exercise, you might want to consider calling our Ambleside Chiropractic Clinic in West Vancouver. Or if the pain is quite uncomfortable and consistent; we recommend you talk to your West Vancouver Chiropractor right away.
Lastly, spine-related conditions can cause back pain. Bulging or herniated discs and sciatica also needs to be ruled out as a possible cause as well. If this is the case, it can also cause sensations of tingling, pain, numbness, and even weakness to your limbs. Because of the complicated nature of the human spine, you should have your back professionally checked out by your West Vancouver Chiropractor.
Home Remedies for Back Pain – Before You Contact your West Vancouver Chiropractor
For mild back pain that seems inconsistent and sudden, it’s best to try out some of these home remedies before heading into your chiropractor’s clinic.
First up, simple home remedies for back pain like rest, pain relievers and muscle relaxants will often provide you some degree of relief. These types of over the counter medications will help with the initial inflammation, and pain. If it still hurts (a lot) it’s time to contact your West Vancouver Chiropractor. You should be able to tell for yourself when it’s necessary to see a professional.
If the pain does subside, try a heating pack to relax muscles and help damaged tissue to heal itself. Make sure to keep moving and stretching your back while going through the recovery process.
Chronic Back Pain
Chronic back pain is the most debilitating and frustrating type of pain to experience. It’s constant and can have a significant negative impact on your day-to-day life and activities.
Some home remedies for chronic back pain include tried-and-tested back stretches and keeping an eye on your posture.
Depending on your body size, type and back pain, different types of mattresses may help. The defacto mattress type for the majority of people is a mattress that has a medium-firm consistency.
When to Call a Chiropractor
Our West Vancouver Chiropractic Clinic deals with many types of back pain, from mild back pain due to bad posture, to more severe pain from disc injuries. You may well need the advice of a specialist, or a series of chiropractic sessions to help relieve the pain.
Chiropractors are trained to handle a variety of different types of musculoskeletal pain, such as muscle pain, spasms, headaches, and pain related to pregnancy. Back pain is not always the main reason why people see Chiropractors. Please call us at Ambleside Chiropractic anytime your back is sore or if you are not sure what the cause of back pain is. Our West Vancouver Chiropractor is always happy to help you.
