Did you wake up one morning with a painful ache in the lower region of your back? Having lower back pain can put a real cramp into a healthy active lifestyle. Not to mention make you real grumpy.
Discovering why this happened to you and learning the steps you can take to prevent it from happening again is key information for living a healthy lifestyle.
Low back pain is the #2 reason that Americans see their doctor, second only to colds and flu. Many back-related injuries happen at work, but you can change that. There are many things you can do to lower your chances of getting back pain.
Pain felt in your lower back may come from the spine, muscles, nerves, or other structures in that region. It may also radiate from other areas, for instance:
- stress
- hernia
- ovaries
- testicles
- endometriosis
- uterine fibroids
- mid or upper back
- PMS & menstruation
You may feel a variety of symptoms if you’ve hurt your back. You may have a tingling or burning sensation, a dull aching, or sharp pain. You also may experience weakness in your legs or feet.
It won’t necessarily be one event that actually causes your pain. You may have been doing many things improperly, like standing, sitting, or lifting, for long periods of time. Then suddenly, in a split second, while reaching for something or bending, you feel pain.
Most back problems will get better on their own. The key is to know when you need to seek medical help and when self-care measures alone will allow you to get better.
Low back pain may be acute (short-term), lasting less than one month, or chronic (long-term, continuous, ongoing), lasting longer than three months. While getting acute back pain more than once is common, continuous long-term pain is not.
If you are like most people, you will have at least one backache in your life. While such pain or discomfort can happen anywhere in your back, the most common area affected is your low back. This is because the low back supports most of your body’s weight.
