Back pain may interrupt your life or disturb all your plans. Remember, it is a common issue for everyone. You may develop this pain during your lifetime. It is not good to ignore back pain because the situation can be worse or out of control.
To resolve back pain, some home remedies can be helpful. It doesn’t mean to avoid medicines. You have to consult your physician before trying any home remedies.
Hot Tub Therapy
Hot water therapy enables you to relieve lower back pain. For this reason, you can buy a swim spa for your home. It is a portable appliance for effective hydrotherapy. These tubs are good for back pain because of the beneficial effects of warm water. This therapy can promote blood circulation and healing efforts.
Hydrotherapy requires you to soak your body in hot water. It proves helpful to reduce the sensory signals of pain sent from the back to your brain. Fortunately, you can enjoy the benefits of hot water therapy without getting approval from a doctor.
Move Muscles with Exercise
When pain in the back strikes, you may find it challenging to move or even get up. A yoga, short walk, low-impact activity or water exercise may help you to alleviate pain in your back. Exercise will help you to release endorphins and loosen tense muscles. Remember, endorphins are natural painkillers.
Swimming in swim spas can be an excellent exercise to alleviate back pain. Feel free to start your day with an exercise program, such as stretching and strength training to keep muscles strong and flexible. Regular exercise will help you to avoid back pain in the future.
Use Cold and Heat
Cold and heat are efficient methods to relieve back pain. You can use ice packs after an injury, including strain. Wrap some ice cubes in a towel and apply them directly to your back to decrease inflammation.
With the use of cold compresses, you can numb the effect of intense and sudden back pain. Specially designed cold packs are available to relieve pain. Feel free to use a bag of frozen vegetables or ice covered with one cloth to avoid frostbite. Make sure to apply ice for almost 20 minutes during a session.
Heating pads may relieve achy and stiff muscles. People must follow instructions written on the pad before using them. Test temperatures carefully because too hot pad can burn your skin. If you don’t have heating pads, a person may use a cloth bag of raw rice or a hot water bottle. Put this bag in a microwave to make it hot.
Stretching
With the help of stretches, you can release back pain. People must hold a stretch for almost 30 seconds to feel comfortable. Here are some useful stretching exercises:
- Cobra Pose: Lie down on your stomach while keeping your hands downward alongside the shoulders. Slowly lift your chest while keeping your head in a pointed position to the ceiling.
- Touching Your Toes: Along with stretching the hamstring, bending forward may help you to reach your toes. It is good to loosen the muscles of the lower back.
- Cat-Cow Pose: Start with your knees and hands and slowly substitute between curving your back toward the dipping and ceiling it to the floor.
- Child’s Pose: Sit on your heels with knees hip-width separately, lean onward to put the head on the ground and stretch both arms out before your head.
Ointments and Oils to Treat Pain
You can get the advantage of several pain ointments and rubs to ease pain by hindering the sensation. For instance, creams contain capsaicin to desensitize different pain channels in affected areas. These creams may have different ingredients, such as:
- Brazilian arnica
- Comfrey
- Cayenne
- Lidoderm (lidocaine)
- Voltaren (diclofenac)
- Dolgit or Nurofen (ibuprofen)
- Diractin (ketoprofen)
The topical drugs are equally beneficial like oral medicines. You may get them in the shape of creams, gels, and patches.
Massage for Tense and Sore Muscles
Gently massage a tense or sore muscle to loosen it up and discharge pain. You can increase the benefits of massage therapy with traditional methods. Massage is competent to:
- Improve the function of the back
- Decrease back pain
- Decrease the use of anti-inflammatory drugs
- Decrease your days in bed
Feel free to choose between structural and relaxation massages. Consider the advice of your doctor before selecting a massage.
Change Shoes
If you are wearing wrong shoes that don’t offer proper support, you will experience muscle strains in neck, legs, and back. Avoid using wrong shoes, exceptionally high heels. These may throw off the alignment of your body and increase the chances of back pain.
Remember, flat shoes may increase strain on your back and feet. Sometimes, switching to perfect shoes can offer maximum support to your feet. Consider the advice of a foot specialist or podiatrist to find the right shoes.
Changes on Workstation
The wrong posture because of straining or slouching at your desk may be the reason for muscle aches or back pain. Using ergonomics for modification of workstation may help you to decrease pain. You have to rectify your poor posture.
The screen of your computer must be at the level of your eyes. With proper ergonomics at the office, you can decrease the chances of injuries and back pain. If your job responsibilities involve any lifting, you must do squat and use your legs instead of back for proper support. Feel free to use trolleys to move heavy objects.
Sufficient Sleep
Lack of sleep can make your situation worse. It can affect the tolerance level of a person to bear the pain. Avoid using an uncomfortable pillow or mattress. They must have the perfect size to provide adequate sleep. For better health, adults must sleep peacefully for almost 7 to 9 hours.
Proper alignment and comfort of the back is vital for the quality of sleep and avoid back pain. You will need a pillow that offers adequate support to your neck and back. If you are addicted to sleeping on the side, put an additional pillow between your knees.
A specialty pillow such as a buckwheat filled neck roll pillow can support your neck during sleep. A buckwheat pillow filler is a breathable material that promotes proper air circulation and body contour. A neck or cervical roll helps keep the neck in a good position as the sleeper lies on the back or side.
Choose high-quality pillows from a reputable pillow store or company. You want to ensure that you’ll only buy and use a pillow made of natural materials, such as 100% buckwheat. In that way, you can avoid health problems like asthma or allergy.
Aside from pillows, you also need to ensure that your mattress is still in good condition. You might suffer from insomnia and back issues sleeping on a poor-quality mattress and pillows that are not giving you enough support. You may consider buying a new one if your old mattress has gone through significant wear and tear.
Takeaway
Back pain can be debilitating, restricting you from performing your routine tasks, pursuing your hobbies, attending social events, and maintaining overall health. Home remedies and other conservative treatments can effectively reduce the severity of back pain. But it’s important to know what’s causing your back pain to determine the best treatment possible. So, consult your doctor if back pain persists despite implementing home remedies.