How To Treat Chronic Lower Back Pain

Here's a list of 10 principles for successfully treating chronic lower back pain

1. Most back pain is personally generated. It's all based on the law of too much and too little. Just ask yourself what do I do too much of and what do I do too little of that's caused my back pain? It's usually too much sitting down and too little strength and flexibility exercise.

The good news is that if your back pain is personally generated, there's a fair chance you can personally 'ungenerate' it.

2. It's muscles that move bones out of alignment. The good news is you can get muscles to move bones back into alignment - if you do the right exercises.

3. The cause of the pain is rarely at the site of the pain. Rubbing, crunching, heating and vibrating the spot where it hurts won't do as much good as strengthening and loosening the muscles that have allowed you body to move out of alignment.

4. The X-ray tells you what's happened; it doesn't tell you what's caused what's happened. Without the 'why' it's just another useless medical tool.

5. Most people with back pain don't have a regular and systematic strength and flexibility training program. Duh! The likelihood of a doctor or surgeon prescribing a decent strength and flexibility training program to get your body back in alignment is extremely remote.

6. The cheapest and most effective way to get yourself back in alignment would be to join a yoga group and spend at least half an hour a day doing yoga. Most people aren't prepared to do that. Their pain persists. Duh!

7. It's a big task expecting to get better by having someone do something to you - sooner or later you have to do something to yourself. You can't outsource your strength and flexibility training program - nor your sitting posture.

8. If you're prepared to devote a couple of hours a night doing a few simple exercises in front of the TV, you may well find that in a couple of months you feel heaps better. Just remember a good fix is unlikely to be a quick fix. It could take more than a couple of months. It could take a year, but in ten years time you'll have been pain free for nine years.

9. Back pain is a symptom of bones being out of alignment. Treat the cause not the symptom. The cause is usually tight hamstring, buttock and hip flexor muscles that have dragged the pelvis out of alignment. When the pelvis moves the bones above it move stretching ligaments, tendons and muscles beyond their pain threshold. Discs become herniated. If a portion of the disc hits your spinal cord you'll really experience pain. It will hurt to sneeze and cough. If the disc impinges on the sciatic nerve you'll get sciatica.

The solution? Square the pelvis up and the bones above it will go back to where they belong. Pressure taken off ligaments, tendons, muscles, discs, spinal cord and sciatic nerve. Problem fixed. Pain goes away.

10. Don't ask what your doctor, chemist, chiro and physio can do to fix back pain, ask what you can do for yourself.