Most people struggle with sitting and standing up straight. Many of us can remember as teenagers being told by our parents and teachers that good posture was the key to good health later in life!

Back then we all rolled our eyes, as this demand seemed annoying. However, as we grow older, we realize that good posture goes beyond appearances and looking confident. Sitting and standing with good spinal alignment can actually help prevent back pain.

Physical therapists are great at teaching patients how to practice proper posture. Your physical therapist will help you to understand the importance of it, and give you the education necessary to make sure you’re achieving excellent posture every day.

If you’re experiencing back pain, it could be because of poor posture. Let our clinic help you discover the benefits of physical therapy for back pain. Contact Next Level Physio today to schedule an appointment with a physical therapist!

How Does Good Posture Relieve Back Pain?

Your spine is meant to operate in a specific way. Each time you move, sit, or stand in ways that disrupt the correct position and operation of your spine, you can end up creating long term problems.

Practicing good posture with the help of a licensed physical therapist is one way that you can work to minimize back pain. When you begin physical therapy, you will learn how to develop good posture, recognize when you are not practicing good posture, and discover many ways that healthy patterns of movement can minimize your back pain.

Some ways that developing good posture through physical therapy can help you with avoiding back pain are as follows:

1. Avoiding Incorrect Anatomical Changes

Did you know that the ways in which you use your spine can actually cause changes in your anatomy? It’s true. Sitting hunched over can cause excess stress and can eventually lead to damage of your spinal discs, muscles, joints and the nerves and blood vessels traveling through your spine. Thankfully in most cases the damage can be reversed by physical therapy. Targeted exercises, stretches, and education can help your body learn to sit and stand correctly!

2. Good Posture Encourages Flexibility and Strength

If you haven’t had good posture for a long period of time anyways, it’s probably best to assume that learning to maintain it isn’t going to be the easiest thing to do. It might take time in physical therapy to gain the strength and flexibility you need to keep ideal posture and spinal alignment. According to the Mayo Clinic, “correct posture can boost your productivity and mood, as well as help you use your muscles more efficiently.”

The work you do and the effort you put in with your physical therapist to achieve your goal will lead to greater overall fitness. The more flexible you get, the stronger you’ll be, and the less likely you are to suffer from nagging back pain every day.

3. Improved Posture With Everyday Activities

Most of the time when we hear the term “good posture” we think of how we sit or stand, but good posture is important in everything we do!

In physical therapy, your therapist will teach you how to maintain good posture during sports and everyday activities such as running or walking. Improving your overall posture will lessen the wear and tear you put on your spine every day. This will also minimize your risk of developing back pain from these activities.

4. Encourages Good Circulation

Maintaining the proper spinal alignment means that your veins will not be as constricted by pressure on your vertebrae. There are many components of your spine that require proper circulation to operate the right way and to reform from daily wear and tear.

It might seem like a daunting task, but as your physical therapist guides you through the different physical therapy exercises and techniques that help with maintaining good posture, you will improve at keeping the alignment required for proper circulation.

5. Prevents Back Pain Caused by Improper Lifting

If you constantly lift heavy objects, you definitely need to make sure you have good posture! Good posture is a critical component of lifting objects without hurting yourself. If you lift and fail to use good posture, there is a much higher risk that you will hurt your back.

Ask your physical therapist how to maintain proper posture while lifting. They will be able to show you how to properly lift things, and also guide you through exercises to hold the right posture.

Visit Our Office Today For Your Back Pain

If you are suffering from back pain, chances are it could be the result of poor posture. Contact Next Level Physio today to get set up for a consultation with one of our licensed physical therapists!

Source:

• https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/posture-align-yourself-for-good-health/art-20269950

The post Got Back Pain? Your Posture May Be The Culprit appeared first on Next Level Physio.

Back and neck pain are extremely common conditions that many people struggle with over the course of their lives. According to the National Institute of Health, back pain is one of the most common reasons people see a doctor or miss days at work. Even school-age children can have back pain.

Unfortunately, it’s not always an easy task to pinpoint the exact source of the pain you’re feeling in your neck or back. Pain can often radiate into your arms, legs, and head.

Oftentimes people end up paying for expensive surgeries to find relief, or falling back on addictive medication that can cause harmful health effects later in life. However, there is another solution for back and neck pain: physical therapy!

What Physical Therapy Does For Neck & Back Pain:

There are many different techniques in physical therapy for targeting neck and back pain. Physical therapy for these conditions is focused on the structures supporting the spine. These include the tendons, ligaments, muscles and joints. Typically, physical therapists include stretches, exercises and adjustments to relieve neck and back pain.

Some therapists even use aquatic exercises to make therapy even smoother. Aquatic therapy is helpful because the buoyancy of water takes pressure off of the cervical and lumbar spine while you’re performing the exercises.

Passive physical therapy also includes a variety of modalities like heat or ice therapy, massage therapy, electrotherapy, and ultrasound therapy. Heat or ice therapy can increase blood circulation to speed up the healing process and reduce swelling and inflammation. Massage therapy will relax muscles to reduce pain.

With electrotherapy, electrical pulses are sent directly into sensory nerves to prevent the pain signals from reaching your brain. Ultrasound therapy uses sound waves to penetrate deep into tissues and provide a soothing sensation to affected areas.

What Will My Physical Therapist Do?

A full assessment of your physical condition will be done, and a personalized treatment plan will be created to target the cause of your back or neck pain.

Your physical therapist will conduct a thorough examination to pinpoint the root cause of your back or neck pain. He or she may use a tool called a goniometer to measure your range of motion. They will also most likely perform a strength test on you.

Spinal mobility will be measured along with palpation to locate sore or tight muscles. Your physical therapist will also ask you to complete certain tasks in order to figure out what your functional mobility levels are.

Your physical therapist will take a look at your medical history as well to see if there are any factors that might correlate to the pain you’re currently feeling, such as recent injuries or surgeries. During this time, you can discuss the things that you are now not able to do as a result of any past injuries you might have sustained.

What Is The Importance of a Treatment Plan?

Your physical therapist will create a customized treatment plan that is specific to your pain levels and needs. This treatment plan might be different for you than it would be for someone else, since the cause of your back or neck pain can vary.

For example, you might be experiencing pain because of a herniated disc, a degenerative disc disease, whiplash from an auto accident, a sports injury, arthritis or poor posture.

A few conditions that could be the root cause of the pain you’re feeling are as follows:

• A herniated disc: This condition occurs when the gel-like material of the disc bulges or leaks out.
• Degenerative disc disease: This condition occurs when there is wear and tear on the discs.
• Osteoarthritis: Arthritis is developed due to wear and tear on the facet joints. This causes friction when bending, can result in pinching a nerve root, or in sciatica.
• Strains & sprains: This is a very common issue that sends people straight to a physical therapist. It is not uncommon for athletes to incur sprains and strains to the neck or back regions when engaging in sports that require aggressive overuse of a body part or muscle.

Physical Therapy Can Help Your Condition

Neck and back pain is absolutely not easy to deal with no matter what age you are! The good news? Physical therapy has been proven to help with neck pain or back pain regardless of its root cause. It’s a totally safe, natural, and effective mode of treatment for anyone looking to avoid expensive surgeries or harmful medications.

If you’re suffering from neck pain or back pain, call our office today to see how physical therapy can help get back to living a pain-free life. Our physical therapists are certified and waiting for you; they’ve helped many others and you’re next in line!

Contact Next Level Physio today, and learn how we can get you on the path to recovery. There’s no reason to suffer in pain when we have the solution right here!

Source:

• https://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/patient-caregiver-education/fact-sheets/low-back-pain-fact-sheet

The post How Physical Therapy Can Relieve Back & Neck Pain appeared first on Next Level Physio.

Sources of Aches and Pains

If you suffer from generalized pain when you wake up in the morning, here is what your physical therapist will tell you. Our bodies build up inflammation in the tissues throughout the day. This can be extremely subtle and you may not notice it, even by the end of the day. But when we lie down and go to sleep, the inflammation can thicken and settle into your muscles. This in turn immobilizes your joints and can lead to aches and pains when you wake up. That same process repeats, day after day.

Eventually, chronic pain can set in if you do not make any lifestyle changes to correct the problem. This is why it is a great idea to contact our office for a consultation, before the pain leads to more serious health problems.

Diagnosing Aches & Pains with a Physical Therapist

Your first visit with a physical therapist will involve a conversation about your symptoms and medical history, as well as some simple tests. Be prepared to answer questions about past injuries that may be contributing to your current aches and pains. Your diet, exercise routine and daily activities will also be discussed. This is to give your therapist an idea of the possible cause or causes of your pain.

You will then be given a series of tests, based on your description of your symptoms. These will involve posture and range of motion exercises, and possibly some strength and resistance tests. When your therapist knows where you are experiencing aches and pains and has determined the likely causes, your personalized physical therapy treatment plan will be drawn up.

Physical Therapy for Aches and Pains

Physical therapy has a wide range of tactics and techniques that can be deployed to help with pain management. Here are just a few:

• Tissue massage
• Joint and bone manipulation
• Movement therapy and exercise
• Cold laser therapy to release endorphins
• Microcurrent stimulation to release serotonin
• Manual therapy

Within each of those categories, your physical therapist has a lot of tools and techniques at their disposal. For example, movement therapy and exercise might mean running on a treadmill, or working in a swimming pool. It all depends on your physical condition, the source of your aches and pains, and the treatment methods that are most likely to meet with results.

Tips for Ongoing Pain Relief

Your physical therapist will also work to educate you on ways to keep aches and pains at bay, by living a healthier lifestyle. This can range from advice on staying hydrated and enjoying better nutrition, to exercises and stretches you can do at home. The goal is to get you to the point where you are motivated to stay healthy without the need for regular physical therapy sessions. All of this will contribute to solving your aches and pains.

If aches and pains are starting to lower your quality of life, it’s time to take that first positive step by calling our office. Contact us today to schedule your first appointment with a trained and licensed physical therapist.

The post The Best Treatment Method for Solving All of Your Aches and Pains appeared first on Next Level Physio.