11 Non-surgical options for Back Pain Relief

QI Spine Clinic, 4 years ago

Are you suffering from back pain and searching for back pain treatment options? You need not worry much as back pain usually improves within a few weeks. Read on to know about the various back pain treatment options that you can do at home. Below are the non-surgical options for back pain relief.  

• Back Pain Treatment Options – Exercises, Medications, Therapy

One of the important back pain treatment options that you have weight loss, an anti-inflammatory diet, good/healthy/correct posture, and can do right from the comfort of your home is move, move a lot, keep moving and continue with our daily activities. Generally, people think taking rest or bed rest can relieve back pain but actually, it doesn’t help. Those people who continue to remain active are more likely to recover quickly. Hence, the key to back pain treatment is keeping you active. You may find it a bit difficult initially but once you get started, you will notice that your pain starts to improve eventually. So, don’t get discouraged at first, instead consider taking pills for pain relief and then continue your regular activities.  

• Pain Medications

A wide range of over-the-counter medications is available as one of the back pain treatment options. Medicines are used to treat both acute and chronic back pain. Analgesic medications are specifically formulated in order to provide you back pain relief. The most common painkillers used as a back pain treatment option are aspirin, ibuprofen, and acetaminophen. Back pain that doesn’t get resolved by over-the-counter medication needs prescription medicines. Sometimes, opioids such as codeine, oxycodone, hydrocodone, and morphine are also prescribed. NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) have been used for back pain treatment to relieve pain and inflammation. Examples include ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and naproxen sodium. NSAIDs don’t suit everyone, so check whether you can take the medicine. Alternatively, there are many topical creams or sprays available as back pain treatment options; that can dull or soothe back pain. Such creams can be applied to the skin, which stimulates nerves to dull the sensation of pain. Topical analgesics such as creams, gels, ointments, or patches helps in reducing inflammation and increases blood flow. Other back pain treatment options include muscle relaxants which tend to make you sleepy. For instance – if you take diazepam, do not drive or operate machinery as it can make you drowsy or dizzy or cause blurred vision.  

• Hot & Cold Therapy

One of the easiest back pain treatment options is to apply ice or heat to the painful area. Applying a cold pack can help mitigate your back pain. You can also relieve your back pain by choosing a heat pack over the affected area. For some people, alternating between both cold and heat application works the best. Heat or Ice application helps in reducing inflammation and relieves back pain, thereby improving your mobility.  

• Physical Therapy

If the above simple, easy self-care measures don’t provide you the much-needed pain relief, then let’s try on other back pain treatment options. You should consider physical therapy to relieve back pain. Take consultation from a physical therapist or spine specialist who can teach you specialized exercises to increase your flexibility, strengthen your back and abdominal muscles, and also correct your posture. Using these regularly can prevent back pain recurrence. You will also understand how to modify your movements during a back pain episode to avoid flaring pain symptoms while staying active. For instance – if prolonged sitting worsens the pain, then set up a timer to get up every 20 mins and stretch gently or walk around. Minimize or avoid positions, movements, and activities that flare up your symptoms to reduce or prevent back pain and this allows better healing. A combination of low-impact aerobics, stretching, and strengthening exercises will help in relieving tension and also strengthen your weaker areas to avoid back pain recurrence.  

• Injections

A spinal injection is another option for back pain treatment. Those trigger point that causes back pain can be targeted and trigger point injections administered helps in relaxing knotted muscles. Often, a local anaesthetic or corticosteroid drugs can lessen the pain. Cortisone is an anti-inflammatory drug that helps in reducing inflammation. Cortisone injections may be injected into the epidural space around the spinal cord, to numb the painful areas and it also helps in decreasing the inflammation but pain relief lasts only a month or so. As per some studies, botox (botulism toxin) is thought to reduce pain by paralyzing sprained muscles.  

• Yoga

If you are looking for a holistic approach then yoga is the ideal back pain treatment option. Yoga involves specific asanas or poses, movements, and breathing exercises. Some of the movements or asanas might help you relieve pain but one must exercise caution while doing them in order to not worsen your pain. Check with your spine specialist to know which movements or exercises are safe to do and not aggravate your pain. Practice meditation regularly.  

• Acupuncture

Acupuncture is traditional Chinese medicine and is one of the back pain treatment options that you can try as an alternative therapy. It provides moderate pain relief. Acupuncture involves the insertion of thin needles into precise points all over the body and stimulating them by twisting to passing a low-volt electric current through them. This causes the body to release natural painkillers in the body like endorphins, serotonin, and acetylcholine. Acupuncture also helps in stimulating nerve and muscle tissue.  

• Chiropractic Care

It is a spinal manipulation approach for back pain treatment wherein doctors use their hands to mobilize, adjust, massage, or stimulate the spine and nearby tissues. This technique may provide short-term back pain relief but the technique isn’t appropriate if a person suffers from an underlying condition that causes back pain such as arthritis, osteoporosis, etc. It is done by chiropractors whose main focus is on the spine.  

• Massage Therapy

Therapeutic massage or massage therapy is believed to improve blood flow and decrease muscle stiffness. As per the American Massage Therapy Association; massage therapy provides many health benefits like improves blood circulation, relaxes muscles for enhanced range of motion, and increases endorphin levels.  

• Exercises for Back Pain

Although it may seem to be difficult to live with back pain, movement or exercise is one of the best back pain treatment options that one can offer you. Research also suggests that exercises that strengthen your back and neck muscles can help in alleviating back pain. Low impact aerobic exercises increase blood flow and enhance healing. People who regularly perform low impact aerobics are more likely to remain active when pain flares. Stretching your lower back, buttocks, hips, and leg muscles support the body weight. The more mobile these muscles are, the more the back can move easily. Strengthening your core muscles (abdominal, hip, and gluteus) also helps in relieving back pain. When your spine is unused for too long, stiffness and discomfort begin and can worsen. Hence, regular physical activity is quite important for a healthy and flexible spine.  

• Lifestyle Habits

Our lifestyle is also a significant contributor to back pain. Hence, modification or altering our lifestyle habits like weight loss, anti-inflammatory diet, healthy posture, quitting smoking, etc is the key to long-lasting back pain treatment. Lifestyle changes made and adopted regularly can reduce back pain.

• Avoid wearing high heeled sandals, pumps, and stilettos as they might be fashionable but not good for your back.
• At times, incorrect or wrong posture might contribute to back pain; so taking the right steps to correct your posture and maintaining a healthy posture will provide pain relief and might help you a back pain recurrence.
• Smoking inhibits blood flow and deprives tissues of receiving oxygen and nutrients which results in weaker back and spine muscles. Therefore, quit smoking to relieve back pain.
• Get rid of stress to ease your back pain as stress tenses muscles which result in back pain or contributes to existing back pain. People who face a high level of stress should meditate regularly to relieve stress and anxiety.
• Maintain a healthy body weight as being obese adds an extra risk for back pain. Excess weight can significantly strain your back muscles and spine.
• Eat a healthy and nutritious, anti-inflammatory diet to help ease out your back pain. Studies suggest an anti-inflammatory diet can be effective in treating back pain. Examples of anti-inflammatory foods are green, leafy vegetables (spinach, kale), fatty fish (salmon, sardines), brightly coloured fruits (blueberries, oranges strawberries) and vegetables (carrots, beets sweet potatoes), nuts (almonds, walnuts), and seeds (chia, pumpkin, and sunflower). Also, avoid foods (fast foods, saturated fats & refined carbs) that promote inflammation.
• Calcium is another essential element for strong bones, hence ensure you get enough of it. Include calcium-rich foods such as green, leafy vegetables, soybeans, tofu, yogurt, milk, cheese, and sardines in your diet.