Why are we so skilled at ignoring back pain?

Perhaps the answer is that we are too busy for back pain. Compare back pain to other conditions: the effect of an acute injury like a broken finger is immediately tangible- it may actually prevent you from performing a given task; a migraine tends to steamroll all other tasks, consuming your attention as the pain centers in your head; back pain, however, is not like these other injuries, at least at first. Back pain tends to start slow- an ache in the lower back, stiffness in the neck- and bide its time until it blooms into something much worse. 

Why ignoring back pain is so problematic

It’s true that most cases of mechanical back pain heal themselves, but only in the sense that the pain will eventually subside. During our younger years, we are conditioned in this manner: just let the pain be, maybe use some ice or heat, and it will go away. So we continue with our busy lives, and back pain recurs on and off in different spots over the years. As we grow older and heavier, and our spine begins to feel the effects of wear-and-tear, these aches and pains tend to compound upon each other and cause more obvious injuries. 

The truth is, pain is a signal. Even if it does eventually subside, it is still worth investigating what caused it in the first place. Letting back pain and its causes go unchecked is what allows for the onset of spinal degeneration and crippling back pain. We treat many patients who lament that they let their back pain go unchecked for so long. 

The role of chiropractic in back pain

Don’t join the ranks of lamenters! Listen to the signals your body is trying to send when you feel pain and choose to respond with decisive action. Chiropractic is that decisive action: we help respond to pain signals by determining where they come from and what is causing them. We set a course for goal-oriented treatment that relieves pain, improves function and range of motion, allowing you to move forward more freely, confident in the notion that we’ve got your back. 2018 is the year that we stop letting back pain linger! If you have been putting off a conversation about back pain, now is the time to speak with your musculoskeletal specialists at Holmes Chiropractic.