How To Heal Lower Back Muscle Pain

Remedies To Relieve Lower Back Pain Fast

by North Texas Medical Center | Jan 28, 2020 | Physical Therapy

We all want to know the best way to relieve lower back pain fast. At best, backache can be frustrating, perhaps draining. At its worst, this kind of discomfort can be utterly debilitating. If you have ever awakened with a terrible backache, you may have also learned how quickly such an ailment can derail your day, your week, or even several months or years.

Fortunately, there are remedies to combat that ache. From exercising to getting better sleep to reducing your stress levels, you can choose from a variety of strategies. The next time you have a backache , consider the following methods of back pain relief. Remember to discuss at-home back pain remedies with your doctor before you make use of them.

What Causes Lumbar Strain

Injury can damage the tendons and muscles in the lower back. Pushing and pulling sports, such as weight lifting or football, can lead to a lumbar strain. In addition, sports that require sudden twisting of the lower back, such as in tennis, basketball, baseball, and golf, can lead to this injury. Certain risk factors, such as excessive lower back curvature, forward-tilted pelvis, weak back, or abdominal muscles, and tight hamstrings, can increase the risk for this injury.

Low Back Pain Diagnosis

Getting diagnosed with a specific cause of low back pain is the first step to getting treatment. If you land in your doctors office hoping for back pain relief, theyll use a variety of diagnostic tools and methods, such as:

• A thorough medical history including any recent injuries, other diagnoses, family history of disease, and your job, activities and other lifestyle considerations

• Physical exams, which may include manipulating the painful area or reflex or other neurological tests

• Electromyography, which measures muscle and nerve function

• ImagingX-rays can show bone spurs and damage to bone, while CT scans and MRIs can depict damage to soft tissue like discs or ligaments

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Treatment Of Low Back Pain In Athletes

There are numerous treatments for athletes with low back pain, many of them being non-invasive. Ranging from therapists to medications, athletes can feel relief and go back to their daily and physical activities with the right treatment. Below are the most beneficial treatments for athletes with low back pain.

Spasms From Nerve Pressure Or Piriformis Syndrome

This type of spasm is from direct nervepressure. Any treatment directed at immediate relief will be verylimited and short term. Ice will be the primary treatment. Howeverâ¦

With piriformis syndrome your efforts should be directed at relieving the pressure as soon aspossible and then taking the necessary steps to correct the cause ofthe piriformis syndrome and prevent recurrences.

Spasm from nerve pressure or inflammation will most likely not respond to stretching or massage. In fact these methods may actually be irritants and result in more pain and spasm.

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How Are Back Sprains And Strains Diagnosed

Mild strains and sprains can usually be diagnosed based on a medical historyincluding a review of the symptoms and how the injury occurredand a physical examination by a healthcare provider. In cases of more severe strains and sprains, especially when there is weakness or loss of function, an X-ray may be taken to rule out a fractured or herniated disc as the cause of the back pain.

When Should I Call My Healthcare Provider

• Youre unable to stand or walk.
• You have a temperature over 101.0°F
• You have frequent, painful, or bloody urination.
• You have severe abdominal pain.
• You have a sharp, stabbing pain.
• Your pain is constant.
• You have pain or numbness in your leg.
• You feel pain in a new area of your back.
• You notice that the pain isnt decreasing after more than a week.

Contact your healthcare provider immediately for the following:

• Pain radiating down the leg
• Pain that is accompanied by fever, weakness in the leg, or loss of control of the bladder or bowels

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How Can I Prevent Low Back Strain

Here are some tips to help you avoid low back strain:

• If you feel any low back pain during physical activity, stop.
• If you feel low back pain within a day of stepping up your workout, take it easy for a few days.
• Get your back in shape. Exercise and stretch your back muscles regularly.
• Avoid sleeping on your stomach. Sleep on your back or your side, and wedge a pillow under or beneath your legs.
• When picking up something heavy, bend at the knees, not at the waist.
• Lose weight if you are overweight.
• Adopt good posture. Sit straight in chairs, with your back against the chair’s back.

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Causes Of Low Back Pain In Athletes

One of the most common causes of low back pain is muscle strain. A violent or jerking motion, or an over-extension of the back muscles usually causes back muscle strains. This causes one or more back muscles, tendons or ligaments to stretch or tear. If this is not treated or fully rehabilitated, it can eventually lead to chronic lower back pain. Another common cause of low back pain is a herniated disc. A herniated disc puts pressure on the discs outer fiber causing it to rip and the nucleus to rupture, resulting in symptoms of numbness and changes in reflexes.

Past injuries that have not healed, incorrect posture and poor physical conditioning can also cause mechanical lower back pain. This type of injury is a frequent condition athletes experience, causing them to have general back pain, stiffness and a restricted range of motion. Because of the pain, athletes will unconsciously not engage their back muscles to perform activities or certain exercises, making the condition even worse without them knowing it.

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Fall Asleep Faster And Sleep Longer

When you have a restful nights sleep, your back will feel less sore during the day.7 A night of restorative sleep can have healing benefits and make you feel refreshed, rejuvenated, and less stressed.

Watch Video: 11 Unconventional Sleep Tips: How to Get to Sleep and Stay Asleep

Try these natural sleep aids, one at a time, to see which one works best for you:

• Vitamins C and B6. The natural steroids in your body control your metabolism and promote good sleep.8,9 Supplements of vitamins C10 and B611 are known to help the body produce and regulate natural steroid hormones.
• Melatonin. Your natural sleep hormone, melatonin can be taken as a supplement to improve your sleep cycle.
• L-theanine. An amino acid found in tea leaves, L-theanine may help some people feel relaxed and get better sleep.
• Valerian. Supplements made from the root of the valerian plant may help you sleep faster and stay asleep longer.

Another option is cherry juice or cherry extractscherries contain certain enzymes that help promote better sleep.4

See Natural Remedies and Herbal Supplements as Sleep Aids

What Are The Symptoms Of Lower Back Pain

Symptoms of lower back pain can come on suddenly or appear gradually. Sometimes, pain occurs after a specific event, such as bending to pick something up. Other times, you may not know what caused the pain.

Pain may be sharp or dull and achy, and it may radiate to your bottom or down the back of your legs . If you strain your back during an activity, you may hear a pop when it happened. Pain is often worse in certain positions and gets better when you lie down.

Other symptoms of lower back pain include:

• Stiffness: It may be tough to move or straighten your back. Getting up from a seated position may take a while, and you might feel like you need to walk or stretch to loosen up. You may notice decreased range of motion.
• Posture problems: Many people with back pain find it hard to stand up straight. You may stand crooked or bent, with your torso off to the side rather than aligned with your spine. Your lower back may look flat instead of curved.
• Muscle spasms: After a strain, muscles in the lower back can spasm or contract uncontrollably. Muscle spasms can cause extreme pain and make it difficult or impossible to stand, walk or move.

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What Can Cause Lower Back Pain

Most acute low back pain is mechanical in nature, meaning that there is a disruption in the way the components of the back fit together and move. Some examples of mechanical causes of low back pain include:

Congenital

• Skeletal irregularities such as scoliosis , lordosis , kyphosis , and other congenital anomalies of the spine.
• Spina bifida which involves the incomplete development of the spinal cord and/or its protective covering and can cause problems involving malformation of vertebrae and abnormal sensations and even paralysis.

Injuries

• Sprains , strains , and spasms
• Traumatic Injury such as from playing sports, car accidents, or a fall that can injure tendons, ligaments, or muscle causing the pain, as well as compress the spine and cause discs to rupture or herniate.

Degenerative problems

• Intervertebral disc degeneration which occurs when the usually rubbery discs wear down as a normal process of aging and lose their cushioning ability.
• Spondylosis the general degeneration of the spine associated with normal wear and tear that occurs in the joints, discs, and bones of the spine as people get older.
• Arthritis or other inflammatory disease in the spine, including osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis as well as spondylitis, an inflammation of the vertebrae.

Nerve and spinal cord problems

Non-spine sources

Avoid Prolonged Static Posture

It is important to pay attention to the joints and muscles of your spine and hip. Prevent fatigue and stresses on these joints by following simple tips, such as:

• Avoid excessive sitting or consider using a standing desk while you work. When you sit for a long duration, the pressure on your spinal discs increase. Aim to get up every hour and walk a short distance to take the load off your discs.

When you have a flare-up of symptoms, consider less exertive activities, such as reading a book, listening to music, or crafting. These activities can help divert your mind from the pain and let your back rest at the same time.

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What Is A Good Treatment For Sore Lower Back Muscles

Oh that achin’ back! Those lower back muscles seem to complain more than any part of the body. They don’t like us sitting at a desk. They don’t like us shoveling snow. They don’t like us exercising. And they don’t even like it when we stay in bed to rest them. Just what is their problem? Could be a few different things, but the treatment is pretty much the same whatever the case.

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If the sensation is a generalized discomfort or tenderness in the muscles, the cause is likely Delayed Onset Muscle Syndrome, or DOMS, which is temporary inflammation caused by small tears in the muscle fiber.

If the problem is a sharper pain that’s triggered by movement, your back muscles may be in spasm. A strained muscle that’s in spasm may require more aggressive treatment and take a bit longer to resolve. Unless there’s an underlying spinal problem, such as degenerated or bulging lumbar disk, the condition should resolve itself within a few days.

See your health care practitioner if there is severe pain, swelling or numbness, or if it hurts to walk. Otherwise, you can treat the injury at home.

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How Is Back Pain Treated

Acute back pain usually gets better on its own. Acute back pain is usually treated with:

• Medications designed to relieve pain and/or inflammation
• analgesics such as acetaminophen and aspirin
• non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and naproxen may be sold over the counter some NSAIDS are prescribed by a physician
• muscle relaxants are prescription drugs that are used on a short-term basis to relax tight muscles
• topical pain relief such as creams, gels, patches, or sprays applied to the skin stimulate the nerves in the skin to provide feelings of warmth or cold in order to dull the sensation of pain. Common topical medications include capsaicin and lidocaine.

Exercising, bed rest, and surgery are typically not recommended for acute back pain.Chronic back pain is most often treated with a stepped care approach, moving from simple low-cost treatments to more aggressive approaches. Specific treatments may depend on the identified cause of the back pain.

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When Should I See My Healthcare Provider About Lower Back Pain

Lower back pain usually gets better with rest and pain relievers. Back pain that doesnt go away may be a sign of a more serious condition.

See your provider if you have:

• Pain that doesnt get better after about a week of at-home care.
• Tingling, numbness, weakness or pain in your buttocks or legs.
• Severe pain or muscle spasms that interfere with your normal activities.
• Fever, weight loss, bowel or bladder problems or other unexplained symptoms.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Millions of people live with low back pain. Stiffness, pain and limited movement can have a major impact on quality of life. But you may be able to avoid lower back pain by maintaining a healthy weight and staying active. Talk to your provider if back pain doesnt go away or if youre unable to do the activities you enjoy. Several treatments can relieve pain, help you move better and get more out of life.

Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 01/18/2021.

References

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Treating Chronic Back Pain

There are two main types of back pain treatments short-term and long-term. Short-term treatments are like a temporary patch, theyll help you manage your pain for a set period of time, but the pain will eventually return. The goal of long-term back pain treatments is to provide lasting relief. Both types of treatments have their purpose.

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Low Back Pain Shouldnt Sideline You

Explore the common but under treated and misunderstood issues that accompany chronic back pain in our Back Pain Series. Part 1 explains the latest treatments that could relieve that aching back.

Many Penn State alumni fondly remember David K., now 34, as the student who crawled to class. Mired by back pain throughout his four years of college, David saw tons of doctors from top neurosurgeons to psychologists for the pain. Instead of listening to the popular college music of his day like REM, he listened to the soothing sounds of pain expert John E. Sarno, MD, on cassette tapes called Mind Over Back Pain when he drove his Mustang around the college campus.

If you dont have chronic back pain, you cant possibly imagine what it feels like, he says. Its unbearable literally. He says that there were many times he couldnt walk and would have to crawl from his fraternity house all the way to class so he would not miss a midterm or final exam. My fraternity brothers made a lot of fun of me, he says. Still do.

About 80% of Americans or four in five experience low back pain at some point in their lives and understand Davids plight all too well. Many people with chronic low back pain are working age and for them, back pain is the most frequent case of lost productivity. Treatment for back pain costs roughly $100 billion a year, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in Rosemont, Ill.

What Type Of Doctor Should I See For Back Pain

This depends on your condition or symptoms. If you have no obvious injury that would explain your pain, you may want to start by seeing a . This is a specialist in physical medicine who can diagnose back pain and determine whether nonsurgical treatments such as physical therapy may help. Depending on those findings, a physiatrist may also refer you to a , doctor or other type of back specialist, , for additional discussion.

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Look Into Getting A New Mattress

How old is your bed? You may be surprised to learn that the average life span of a mattress is less than 10 years. Theres no hard-and-fast rule, says Sean Mackey, MD, PhD, chief of the division of pain medicine at Stanford University, but if your mattress is sagging significantly or is more than six to eight years old, Id think about getting a new one.

Something else to consider: A firm mattress may not do your back any favors, says Carmen R. Green, MD, a physician at the University of Michigan Back & Pain Center. A number of studies over the years suggest that people with lower back pain who sleep on medium-firm mattresses do better than those with firm beds, she says.

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Ways To Relieve Back Pain Naturally

There are a wide variety of natural remedies to soothe your back, which can help reduce the intake of medications or provide an added benefit to your existing medical treatment.

Take a look at these natural pain-relieving strategies and find out what works best for you:

Read on to learn more about effective pain-relieving strategies for chronic back pain from natural methods.

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