Alleviate your back and neck pain and get back to enjoying your life.
Do you have leg pain after walking or standing for longer than 10 minutes? Does your back hurt when sitting or laying on one side? Do you get sudden sharp pain when climbing stairs or crossing your legs? Lower back pain and sciatica are quite debilitating and scary.
Lower back pain and sciatica
Lower back pain (LBP), including sciatica, is the number one reason why people seek out medical attention. Your lower back is made up of five lumbar vertebrae, which has an inward curve known as lordosis, and a right and left sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve, the largest nerve in the body, exits the spine between the last three spinal segments, travels down the buttock underneath the glute and piriformis muscles, behind the thigh, and then splits behind the knee to travel down to the foot. You can have sciatic pain, numbness or tingling anywhere along its path usually caused by an issue in the spine. But, sometimes sciatica is not coming from the lumbar spine; it’s coming from an impingement somewhere along its path or from the sacroiliac (SI) joint.
Common lower back pain diagnoses include herniated or bulging discs, spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, arthritis, and sacroiliac (SI) dysfunction.
Upper back pain
Your upper back is made up of 12 thoracic vertebrae and your rib cage. Your thoracic spine has a normal outward curve known as kyphosis which can become excessive or can become the opposite, flatter. This can be a sign of osteoporosis, with a weakening of the muscles surrounding the thoracic spine.
Upper back pain often happens because of repetitive rotation movements and posture. Sometimes upper back pain is coupled with pain in your chest and when breathing, which usually means there is an issue in the thoracic spine and the corresponding rib.
Neck pain
Your neck is made of seven cervical vertebrae and has a small inward curve known as lordosis. Cervical radiculopathy is pain, numbness or tingling down the arm into the fingers coming from an issue in the cervical spine with or without neck pain. Sometimes acute neck pain resulting in the inability to turn your head to one direction is actually an issue with your first rib and can be easily corrected.
What do these issues all have in common?
Any of these painful issues may have nothing to do with what is going on in the spine, but instead results from other issues outside the spine, such as core and hip weakness, posture, feet or jaw issues, and poor movement patterns as you sit, stand, and walk through the day.
What is the biggest mistake you can make if you have pain?
The biggest mistake you can make is to ignore your pain, or think you can just rest and it will go away. While a short period of rest may be appropriate, ignoring the pain is often a recipe for pain to become chronic, more difficult to treat, and you may develop other issues while compensating for the original issue.
What happens when you come in to The Manual Touch?
Your therapist will use a Whole Body Approach to evaluate you and determine the root causes of your condition. Then, you’ll be prescribed a unique treatment plan using traditional and non-traditional manual therapy and exercises. You’ll learn how to move appropriately throughout your day and night, so as not to aggravate your condition. Our ultimate goal is to help you reclaim function, life, movement, and enjoyment of the activities you love.
Common back and neck pain conditions we treat
- Lumbar stenosis
- Cervical stenosis
- Degenerative disc disease
- Osteoporosis
- Spondylolisthesis
- Arthritis
- Herniated or bulging disc
- Upper back pain
- Rib pain
- Neck pain
- Whiplash
- Cervical or lumbar radiculopathy
- Sciatica
- Sacroiliac (SI) dysfunction
- Ankylosing spondilitis
- Ehler danlos syndrome
- Piriformis syndrome
- Head pain
- Concussion
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