Managing lower back pain is inconvenient at best and debilitating at worst. You may find yourself struggling with basic tasks, like standing or sitting, lifting light objects, or being unable to walk long distances. Many patients discuss trouble sleeping, plus depression, loss of work productivity, and even limitations to see family and friends or keep up with household chores.
Taking medications or relying on others to get through your day isn’t ideal. The good news is that common causes of lower back pain can be prevented, and lower back injuries can be treated with experienced chiropractors at Elite Chiropractic and Sport in Columbia, MD.
Common Causes of Lower Back Pain
Poor Posture
One of the number one reasons we see low back pain in patients is due to bad posture. This can be from sitting at your desk, driving, watching TV, playing video games, or participating in hobbies.
Poor posture is usually held for hours at a time, further straining the muscles and making them tight, tired, and overworked. When we’re hunched forward or crunched, our back is bent at an unusual angle. This is the stiffness, irritation, and pain we feel when we stand or move.
To treat low back pain caused by poor posture, work with a chiropractor to strengthen your muscles and release tension. Poor posture can be the result of bad habits, tired or weak muscles, or even tight muscles pulling the spine.
Chiropractors at Elite can treat low back pain with hands-on adjustments and pain-relief techniques, followed by exercises to do at home that target specific areas giving you issues. These may be hips, back, spine, shoulders, or even the neck.
Work Ergonomics
We’re at work 8 or more hours a day, holding positions on our feet, at desks, or in unusual positions. Manual labor, office work, and other contributing factors can cause low back pain due to time on the job.
Nowadays, there are many resources that highlight how to improve ergonomics on the job. Supporting the lower back while sitting, taking frequent breaks, standing and stretching, and doing light twists of the spine and hips can help release tight muscles.
If you think your job is contributing to your low back pain, contact a chiropractor for a hands-on assessment and work adjustments that can help. With professional input, you will know exactly why low back pain is keeping you distracted on the job and at home and how to work better, healthier, and more comfortably.
Sleep Positions
Did you know your sleeping habits could be the cause of your low back pain? Most sleeping positions cause the spine to twist unnaturally, causing strain anywhere from your neck to your hips. This twist affects your entire spine and is the cause of your low back pain.
You might need to change your sleeping habits if you notice your back pain is worse in the morning, gets better throughout the day, or is nonexistent at night. You may also wake up in the middle of the night, find your bedding uncomfortable, or wake up in uncomfortable positions.
To treat low back pain from poor sleeping positions, your chiropractor will discuss options like supportive pillows specifically for the spine, knees, or neck, physical therapy routines to do in the morning, and stretches to help alleviate the tension and release tightness.
Sedentary Habits
Small habits, even walking, are a great cure for low back pain. A sedentary day, whether due to work, stress, old injuries, or habit, can quickly cause persistent low back pain. Treating chronic low back pain due to a sedentary lifestyle starts with a few small changes.
Sitting all day with minimal movement causes muscles to get tight, weak, and out of balance. The core and glutes, which help stabilize the spine, are inactive when sitting or immobile, causing the spine and lower back to slump. This slump stacks the spine and curves it out of natural alignment, which quickly causes chronic low back pain.
To treat low back pain at home, start by getting up every 30-60 minutes. You want to stand, stretch your arms, twist your back, and shake your legs. Even if only 30 seconds, these movements will build consistent good habits.
A chiropractor at Elite Chiropractic can advise on easy ab strengthening exercises to do throughout your day; when your abs are supported, your low back pain will ease. You’ll be surprised how little movements decrease pain for a better overall life.
Muscle Strain, Overexertion, and Repetitive Movements
Low back pain can also be caused by overexertion, repetitive movements, and muscle strain. This happens most frequently in manual labor, but is also due to sports or hobbies that require being bent or hunched over, keep the body moving in one way for a long period of time, or stress the back.
Low back pain can sometimes be due to referred pain, like straining the shoulder, hips, neck, or other body parts. The lower back, abs, and hips make up the trunk of the body, and when these start to get out of alignment, everything can affect the lower back.
To treat low back pain from manual labor or repetitive motions, discuss your work and hobbies with your chiropractor. You will get hands-on treatment and recommendations for easy exercises to help balance out the body.
Not Your Lifestyle? Get a Diagnosis for Low Back Pain
Common causes of low back pain in everyday life can be found in anything from our commute, desk job, manual labor, or how we relax. However, low back pain can also have a medical onset, like inflammation, scoliosis, a pinched nerve, disc problems, or sciatica.
Any time you feel low back pain that interferes with your life, contact a chiropractor ASAP. At Elite Chiropractic and Sport, our focus is on finding the underlying cause of your back pain. We don’t just provide chiropractic adjustments; we offer total body treatment services, including exercises, movement assessments, and more.
Find out what’s really going on with your low back pain. Call Elite Chiropractic and Sport in Columbia, MD today for chronic low back pain treatment.
About the Author
Dr. Bross is the owner of Elite Chiropractic and Sport. He serves as a Certified Chiropractic Sports Practitioner (CCSP) and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. His unique approach to individualized patient care is based on the evaluation and treatment of the “whole” person.
Dr. Bross is a leader in the promotion of health and wellness. He has accumulated an extensive knowledge of the musculoskeletal and nutritional components of the human body. He is skilled in the Graston Technique, Active Release Technique, and Sports Medicine.
