Most people suffer from back pain some time in their lives. It often goes away without any treatment. But sometimes the pain becomes chronic, even after treatment. If you are suffering this way, it needs to stop. There’s help available through a special treatment program tailored to fit your needs.

Some Reasons for Chronic Back Pain

We all experience muscle or ligament strains that may feel like a permanent injury. But with time and sometimes physical therapy, we often recover quickly. But, as we age, most of us experience at least some degeneration of our spine. This is a result of the natural aging process. The jelly-like cushioning in our discs that support our vertebrae begins to dry up.  Our skeletal structure loses minerals, making it brittle and prone to injury. Wear and tear, along with other age-related changes in our spine contribute to back pain. This is why the incidence of back pain increases with age and becomes more difficult to recover from. On top of all this, many of us fail to get proper exercise as we age. Since we don’t keep our core muscles strong, it increases our chance of injury.

Causes of Chronic Back Pain

Chronic back pain can occur because of one condition, or from a combination of conditions. Back pain that begins with what seems to be a simple strain can sometimes become more serious and resist treatment. Here are some of the common causes of chronic back pain:

Arthritis – Age-related changes of the spine may lead to inflammation.

Degenerative Disc Disease – Spine changes can cause slipped, bulging, or herniated discs. Age-related changes, along with wear and tear, make us more prone to these injuries.

Sacroiliitis – Inflammation where the lower spine and pelvis connect. Often causes pain with sitting down and standing up.

Radiculopathy – Commonly called a pinched nerve. It can develop in different areas of the spine and cause numbness, weakness, difficulty in controlling muscles, along with pain.

Myofascial Pain Syndrome – A condition where muscles may get knotted up and painful.

Compression fractures – Small breaks in the spine often related to osteoporosis. Sometimes also caused by a car accident or other injury.

Spinal fractures

Soft tissue damage – Ligaments, tendons and back muscles suffer strain or trauma.

Less Common Causes of Chronic Back Pain

Failed Back Surgery Syndrome – This occurs when back surgery fails to bring pain relief or seems to worsen the condition.

Scoliosis – A deformity that causes abnormal sideways curvature of the spine. Its causes are unknown, but it could be from a birth defect or genetic.

Lordosis – An excessive inward curvature of the spine. It may be caused by many different reasons.

Spinal infection – This can be caused by a virus or bacteria.

Spinal tumors – These can be either benign or malignant. They may begin in the spine or migrate there from another part of the body.

Treatment for Chronic Back Pain

There are many options available for the treatment of chronic back pain. You shouldn’t be stuck taking medication for the rest of your life. Nor should you be forced to undergo surgery. The pain management teams at our centers take the time to evaluate your individual case and pinpoint the root cause of your pain. A plan is developed for you that can be modified until full relief is achieved. We offer the latest chronic pain treatments and apply them with precision and care. Some of the chronic pain treatments we may discuss with you are:

Physical Therapy – This is often the foundation of chronic back pain treatment. The therapist may work with you personally or give you exercises to do at home. Your exercise program needs to be tailored to your physique and condition. Exercises may include core training, stretching and flexibility and posture retraining.

HF10 Therapy – This entails advanced spinal cord manipulation. It calms the nerves carrying pain signals to your brain. Unlike traditional spinal cord stimulation therapy (SCS), it does not cause paresthesia, which is numbness or tingling.

Other Natural Strategies to Help Ease Pain

-Make sure you get enough Vitamin D and Vitamin K12. These nutrients help prevent softening of your bones.

-Reduce your intake of grains and sugars. They can increase inflammatory prostaglandin production.

-Eat enough high-quality animal-based omega-3 fats. They help alleviate inflammation.

-Grounding. Walk barefoot on sand, wet grass or concrete. This helps ensure your body gets enough electrons from the earth. Electrons help reduce inflammation in your body and boost your immune system.

What to Do Next

If you have been living with chronic back pain and need relief, consider calling one of our MidSouth Pain Treatment Centers. We have multiple locations to serve you. We will listen to your story, offer advice and set up an appointment to meet you. One of the most important criteria for getting an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan is being able to really hear what our patients are saying. This is why we listen to you to make sure we are fully addressing your needs.

So if you or anybody you know is suffering from chronic pain or back pain, contact us today to find a Midsouth Pain Treatment Center branch near you in Tennessee or Mississippi.

Topics: back pain, low back pain, pain treatment, pain doctor, chronic pain