The good news if you suffer from low back pain: it regresses most often in a few days. In the meantime, what can be done to reduce pain without the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and regain mobility? Staten Island massage therapist, osteopathy, chiropractic, plants ... the point on the natural solutions of a back pain.
You go down to lift a child or take a suitcase out of a chest ... And here it stuck. Your back is blocked. "We do not know exactly what is happening at that time," says Dr. Jean-Yves Maigne, head of the department of physical medicine at the hospital of the Hotel-Dieu (Paris), but we have good arguments to think that there is a tear at the level of an intervertebral disc. This disc is composed of a fibrous ring which has the same structure as a ligament. During a false movement or repeated efforts, this ring can tear. It's the same mechanism as a sprain. "
1. Do not rest
No question of staying in bed, unless the pain is too strong. Complete rest would only increase ankylosis without solving the problem. "Avoid sitting too long," says Dr. Maigne. On the contrary, it is recommended to continue one's personal and professional activities, avoiding the most painful postures. Staying in motion is the best remedy for low back pain, it is also the key to recover faster and prevent a relapse.
2. Consult the osteopath or chiropractor
"For acute low back pain, this is the right indication," says Dr. Maigne. For Thibault Dubois, osteopath, "these manipulations should not be painful. Some 80% of patients are relieved in one session. For others, a second session is recommended, three weeks to a month later.
3. Apply warm
A hot water bottle or a blanket on the painful area provide a feeling of relaxation. But, the effect is brief.
4. Get massaged
"Anyone can do it," says Dr. Maigne. Just focus on the muscles on each side of the spine and perform a slow friction movement, more or less supported. "
5. Move on a big ball
It is repeated: avoid immobilization and maintain physical activity as much as possible. "Sitting on a big ball (to buy in sports shops), print a slight rotational movement on the ground using your feet, according to a fictional circle of about ten centimeters in diameter, says Thibault Dubois. Gentle and slow, the movement mobilizes the pelvis and relaxes the paravertebral muscles. "
6. Use the harpagophytum, a beneficial plant
Also known as "devil's claw", harpagophytum has powerful anti-inflammatory properties. The World Health Organization recognizes its effectiveness in relieving joint and muscular pain. To use in gel, tablets or ampoules.