We have all experienced back pain at least once in our lives. And if it is possible to determine the cause of pain, for example, in the throat, then everything is much more complicated here.
Back pain: cause and effect
With the appearance of pain in the back or lower back, many immediately begin to rub various ointments. But there is no desired effect. And all because the problem can even hide where it hurts. For example, pain in the lumbar region can occur if an injury to the coccyx spine has preceded it. A person has long forgotten her, but she took it and remembered herself in such an unpleasant way. Therefore, in this case, the impact on the pain zone is absolutely useless. Therefore, you need to look for the real cause of the pain.
The human body is a very complex mechanism in which all organs and systems - from muscles and spine to nerves and ligaments - are connected. Therefore, many factors can affect back health, including the proper distribution of load on the spine and the presence of a history of injury. The body has the ability to heal and adapt itself, and the job of the spine is to compensate for the effects of damage. If necessary, it can be slightly twisted, bent, and all this can be done to give the body the most vertical position. Negative changes can only occur in the spine itself. One of them is a protrusion of the intervertebral disc. This is how the spine tries to adapt to mechanical damage in the body - it creates additional support for itself. Most often, such injuries occur in the sacrum and coccyx. In this respect, drugs on the spine or tense muscles only temporarily help against back pain in the event of a herniated disc. After all, its main cause has not been eliminated!
Another of the most common causes of back pain is excessive tension in the muscles and ligaments. In most cases, this occurs as a result of overloads associated with the need to maintain a vertical body position during scoliosis or after an injury. In addition, back pain can occur due to stress, excessive physical exertion and a sedentary lifestyle.
In some cases, back pain is not associated with muscle spasms or problems with the spine, but with diseases of the internal organs. This pain is called referred pain. For example, with cholelithiasis, the pain radiates to the area between the shoulder blades. And pain in the thoracic spine can appear as a result of the development of myocardial infarction. A sign of referred pain is the lack of a sensation of muscle stiffness with physical exertion and the constant nature of the pain, regardless of body position.
The best way to get rid of pain is to see a doctor. But if for some reason this is not possible, you can try to help yourself (if the pain is not reflected). How to do this, we will tell further.
Treatment and prevention of back pain
The first thing to do when experiencing back or lower back pain is to make sure they rest for at least three days. You should not strain your back and move to overcome pain. In some cases, these precautions are enough and after a few days, the back pain will disappear.
Due to the fact that severe pain in most cases occurs due to muscle tension, you should try to relax the spasmodic muscles to get rid of them. In this case, warming procedures can help. It is not necessary to warm only the back, although this also has a good effect. It is better to warm the body completely, then the pain will pass faster. A good option is a bath or sauna, only with acute pain at high temperatures, as well as its sharp drop, it is better to avoid them. For at least a couple of months, you need to postpone dousing with cold water.
Another good option is a warm bath with sea salt. 10-15 minutes of such a procedure every evening will only benefit.
A very important condition for getting rid of pain is not to miss the heat after warming procedures. Therefore, upon completion, you need to put on warm pajamas and cover yourself with a blanket. You can also drink hot tea, this will help warm the body not only from the outside, but also from the inside. It is desirable to repeat the procedure for three days. If the cause of the pain is not nerve ending injury, then the discomfort will soon go away.
At the end of the period of exacerbation, it is recommended to make exercises to relax the muscles of the spine a rule every day. This takes no more than 15 minutes, while improving blood flow through such warm-up exercises helps reduce pain.
A good way to prevent back pain is to take daily walks. This contributes to the gentle involvement of every muscle, joint and ligament in the work, thereby beginning the process of self-massage in the human body.
Help from the doctor: what pain should you call an ambulance for?
An ambulance should be called if:
- back pain as a result of a fall or a strong blow;
- Pain is very strong, accompanied by high fever or loss of consciousness.
In addition, you should not self-medicate, and most importantly, prescribe medication while carrying a child. Call an ambulance if your child has back pain.
In other cases, when it was possible to stop a strong attack of pain and emergency medical care is not required, it is still advisable to consult a doctor. Don't hope that the problem will solve itself. So maybe it's better not to wait for a new attack?
If the pain is not very severe, then it makes sense to see a therapist. If necessary, this doctor will refer the patient to close specialists for examination and appropriate treatment.
With severe pain, the therapist refers the patient to narrow specialists who deal specifically with the treatment of diseases of the spine, for example, a neurologist. In some cases, the help of a neurosurgeon may be needed.