Understanding What Usually Causes Back Pain

When an episode of back pain comes on, people often try to associate it with one injury or trauma that occurred recently or in the past. While this may be true, it is usually not the cause of most back problems. What people often overlook is that back pain is often brought on slowly and may be caused from a series of events rather than one.

Back pain is rarely brought on by a specific injury or event. You may have felt twinges in your back when you bend over to pick up a pencil, stand at the bathroom sink, getting in or out of your car or performing other simple tasks. You may have noticed that the twinges you feel performing tasks seem to get worse over time. The pain may worsen over a couple days, go away and then return several months later.

This is often the result of repetitive stress on the joints that occur gradually over time. The ligaments around the spine undergo small micro tears that occur over the years. These can occur with improper lifting, bad posture or falls. Being overweight can cause extra weight and pressure on the joints. In time the ligaments become stretched allowing the vertebra or bones of the spine to become misaligned. The delicate nerves in and around the spine become irritated resulting in discomfort.

When the ligaments of the spine are stretched and torn, the repair mechanism creates scar tissue. The scar tissue is less elastic than before. This causes the joints to be vulnerable to becoming injured again in the future. It also results is reduced motion of the joints of the spine. Chiropractors are specially trained to detect these types of problems in the spine. They may use X-rays, palpation and other tests to locate the problem.

Chiropractors perform spinal manipulation using hands on techniques or instrumentation to correct the misaligned bones. This helps to remove the nerve irritation and restore normal motion to the joints of the spine. If the misaligned bones are left uncorrected, premature spinal degeneration can develop which leads to arthritis of the spine. This can result in chronic back pain and nerve damage.

When people have misaligned spinal bones, they often feel off balance because the bones of the spine are not symmetrical. Many people report feeling straighter and walking better following chiropractic adjustments. They report that the back twinges they had before are gone away. They are better able to move, sit, bend, stand, sleep and walk without the pain they had before. They are able to enjoy a better quality of life and do the things they enjoy without the pain.