My Back Hurts !!!

Is this a reality or just an excuse ? Sadly for most of us it is the former. It is such a common and omnipresent problem that is often misconstrued as an excuse to avoid work. But why is it so? And more importantly, what to do??

Our ability to stand on two feet affords us tremendous possibility when compared to other animals. However it also comes at a cost - BACK PAIN !! The bipedal upright posture makes the spine bear the entire weight of the upper part of the body and pass it to the hips and legs. This leads to tremendous stresses on the spine and back muscles. Also the spine has to perform the dual function of weight bearing and providing flexibility to enable movements like bending and twisting of the upper body. For this the spine has been designed by nature to be made of multiple small bones with joints in between. This makes the back similar to a complex piece of machinery. As with any complex machine, it becomes more prone to breakdown and requires a greater degree of expertise to understand and address the problem.

The problem of back pain has increased tremendously in modern times due to our prolonged sitting habits. Sitting posture places more stresses on the back compared to standing. Poor ergonomics both in terms of the available furniture and our long developed habits leading to a stooping posture during prolonged sitting often leads to problems like mechanical back pain and slipped disc. If ignored, these can progress and can lead to significant disability both in terms of productivity and the ability to enjoy life.

Is all lost then?? Or do we all need to quit our desk jobs??

The answer is obvious. No we can't quit our jobs, most can't afford to. Some may not want to. And the good news is - We Don't Need To. In most cases what we need is subtle changes in lifestyle and add few minutes of exercises to our daily routine. Few changes to our behavior and furniture can go along way in dealing with this difficult problem. Eighty to ninety percent of patient with significant back problems will recover almost fully with the above measures. How to go about implementing them??? We will cover them in the subsequent BLOGS.