When low back pain strikes

Physio Jonny gives his top tips on how to help ease your pain

Feeling a bit cramped at home? Tense, stiff, achy? It’s not a surprise if you are with the current situation. Many of you will have been thrust into adapting to a new life stuck at home in the past month. The speed at which it happened meant there was little time to set up a proper office in your home environment. On social media there has been all sorts of amusing makeshift desks made from coffee tables, cocktail cabinets – and even ironing boards. Inventive, for sure, but also a recipe for a sore and stiff back.

As a #physiotherapist, a lot of my patient workload is spent trying to turn back the hands of time from self-inflicted damage done to the body by poor posture at work. Workplace #ergonomic assessments would be ideal for all but even just the basics of being more self aware of sitting properly. That doesn’t mean investing in an expensive ergonomic office chair or being bolt upright all the time. If you feel as if you’ve been slouching, stand up and walk about for five minutes. Or change position, work in standing intermittently. Being static for too long is a major cause of discomfort. Try leaning back slightly in your chair, with your feet on the ground so you have a slight outward curve in your lower back.

This distributes your body weight more evenly and takes some of the pressure off the spine. It’s also worth sitting with your pelvis slightly higher than your knees, so put a cushion under your bottom.

Many people come to the clinic when they’re suffering an acute episode of #backpain.

This happens when sore, overstretched or compressed back muscles become inflamed, and begin to press on the nerves around the spine. It can lead to #musclespasm.

This often happens when we least expect it, like while brushing your teeth or picking up something off the floor. It can be excruciatingly painful, and debilitating, patients often ring saying they are stuck on the floor in pain. There are things you can do though and good news is, over three or so days, it usually begins to ease. During this time, it’s important not to load the back by doing heavy lifting, but do try to keep moving. As #pain begins to subside, start to introduce gentle loading movements such as twisting, turning and reaching. It goes without saying, a flareup like this is the last thing any of us need during the lockdown. We want to try and prevent this happening before it occurs, the image below shows the gentle stretches that everyone should follow on a daily basis to treat and prevent back problems whilst in lockdown:

If you’re already a bit stiff and in pain, you should find the #exercises immediately soothing.

If your back makes you a bit wary of exercise, try applying a hot water bottle to the problem area for a few minutes before starting. As we are limited to certain activities outdoors, unless you have a garden, you need to attempt to do some indoors. Walking is among the best activities for back #painprevention but #pilates style strengthening is perfect to do in a space at home. There are also many resources on our #instagram and #youtube.