What Type of Back Pain Are You Experiencing?
As people age, they tend to experience sharp and dull pain in their back causing pain. Knowing the causes of back pain can be overlooked a lot of the time, but can be corrected by making adjustments to your lifestyle.
Back pain can be acute or chronic depending on how severe and frequent it is:
- Acute back pain is often caused by muscle strains from lifting heavy objects or overexerting your back based on your physical capacity.
- Chronic back pain is when the pain has lasted longer than 72 hours and occurs longer than a few months.
Let’s look at a few of the causes of back pain that some people might not be aware of!
Poor Posture
If you feel aches, pressure, or sharp pain in your back, it might be from constant slouching! You may be doing activities that cause you to slouch and you don’t even know it.
Do any of these sound familiar?
- Slouching or slumping in front of a computer or TV
- Leaning your head forward while washing the dishes
- Hunching over while eating
All of those put constant pressure on the muscles, discs, and tissues along your spine, causing weakening and stress. You can fix your posture by getting active, walking tall, or sitting with support.
Sitting for Long Periods of Time
When you sit for long periods, you may be slouching forward with your head over your body, causing mechanical pressure on the back muscles. Sitting also doesn’t allow you to regularly use your back muscles, which may cause them to weaken over time.
Our bodies weren’t made to sit still for hours at a time! Movement is the best thing you can do to keep your muscles moving to prevent back pain. Try taking breaks throughout the day to loosen the muscles in your back.
Therapeutic massage therapy is another way to loosen up knots and reduce aches and pain.
Lack of Exercise
You might think that overworking your back would cause pain (and it can), but sedentary lifestyles are one of the most overlooked causes of back pain.
Exercise, especially cardio, strengthens your back and abdominal muscles, preventing your spine from becoming misaligned. When you are sitting, your back has the strength to have a better posture instead of slouching over.
You can try incorporating activities that get your body moving, even if it’s just walking or deep stretching. The goal is to continue using your muscles and not letting them tire or weaken.
Overexertion or Strenuous Activity
This cause of back pain is the opposite of sitting around all day! Activities involving intense sports training or heavy lifting can overexert your back muscles. This is common among anyone recovering from injury and attempting to return to their usual activity before their muscles have a chance to heal and strengthen.
If you don’t address these pains, you risk causing more pain and less ability to enjoy daily activities. Working with an experienced chiropractor can help you get to the root of your injury, relieve back pain, and offer treatments that can help prevent injuries in the future.
Stress and Anxiety
Many physical factors can cause back pain, but the stress and anxiety of everyday life also play a role. When your brain perceives an event as stressful or threatening, it sends signals to the rest of your body to tense your muscles. Unfortunately, tense, locked-up muscles lead to stiffness and back pain.
Being more aware of your stressors and taking advantage of things like acupuncture can help you target any pain in the body caused by external events.
Diagnose Your Back Pain | Visit Upstate Spine & Sport
The right techniques and tools can help relieve back pain. Our approach to pain here at Upstate Spine & Sport combines chiropractic physical medicine, soft-tissue techniques, therapeutic rehabilitation, acupuncture, and massage therapies to offer fast pain relief and care. We provide patients with personalized care that treats the root of the problem and encourages healthier happier living.
If your back pain prevents you from enjoying daily activities, then work with us to get to the bottom of your causes of back pain. Contact our team at (864) 400-8005 to schedule an appointment with our innovative chiropractor in Greenville, SC.
