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Low Back Pain: The Gift that Keeps on Giving


 As we enter the holiday season, one item on many of our “to do” lists will be to retrieve the heavy boxes of decorations from upper shelves and attic storage nooks. Many of us will be hoisting bulky Christmas trees and hunching over toys that need assembling. But performing these simple tasks incorrectly could result in a seasonal gift that stays with you into the New Year and beyond. 

Low back pain is one of the most common complaints healthcare workers hear, and few people know that simple modifications can prevent the injuries that cause it. The spine consists of 33 vertebrae (bones) stacked upon one another like building blocks. The many segments allow for plenty of movement, and discs and ligaments between most of the vertebrae help stabilize the spine. Unfortunately, each disc is susceptible to injury.  Muscles also help stabilize the spine, but if they aren’t used properly, imbalances in length and strength can occur over time, and that can hinder normal spine function.    

Research shows that when you injure your back, deep stabilizing muscles atrophy, or waste away, and this can instigate a vicious cycle of muscle wasting, improper movement, and re-injury, which often includes pain. Fortunately, exercise can help restore many muscles to their normal strength and function. 

Some muscles, particularly one called the multifdus, stabilize the spine from the sides and back. The abdominal muscles stabilize the spine from the sides and the front.  Because so many muscles are involved in this process, their strength and activation must be balanced to prevent them from overpowering one another.  Proper balance, especially between the abdominal and multifidus muscles, can help to prevent injury.   

In addition to making sure your muscles are functioning properly, you can make these simple modifications to reduce stress on the spine while performing tasks such as lifting. These include: 1) bending at the knees and hips when lifting, while maintaining the normal curve of the low back, 2) keeping the object close to your body when you lift it, 3) avoiding twisting of the spine while lifting and pivoting with the feet instead and, 4) keeping the abdominals and multifidus muscles taut by actively contracting during lifting, which will provide support much like a back brace.

 A physical therapist can help prescribe exercises to strengthen these muscles, improve their activation/coordination and improve the flexibility of the spine. A therapist can also perform manual therapy techniques to stretch and strengthen tight muscles and joints. More importantly, your therapist can help you re-train the back to move properly, a skill it loses more and more with each injury.  And a physical therapist can show you the proper way of sitting, standing, sleeping,  and moving to reduce stress through your low back.

 If you have low back pain, have had it in the past, or would like to prevent future injury, why not give your back a gift.  Retrain those muscles and begin moving the way you were intended to move.  Contact First Coast Rehabilitation at 829-3411, where patient care comes first.

 Jim Viti has been treating patients with low back pain for over 25 years.  He is board certified in orthopaedic physical therapy and lectures to physical therapists throughout the United States regarding low back mechanics, injury and treatment.