January/February 2003 Alternative Health
Oh, my aching Back!

by Todd Pennington, LMT

Back Pain is one of the most common complaints of our society. Almost everyone has it at some time or another. The question is, do you have it now? Many people have movement restriction and do not even realize that it is part of back pain. In many cases the restriction has been there so long that you live life and do not even notice the problem. There is a possibility of help even if the pain has been there for years.

The spine is central to all motion in the body. If a nerve is pinched by a muscle or bone, then the nerve function is interfered with, frequently resulting in pain. If the problem progresses so that the disk between the vertebrae gets pinched or herniated, you can feel a lot of pain. If the difficulty progresses and the disk ruptures, then debilitating pain results. Ruptures last until they are taken care of, most likely by surgery. Many people who have back surgery continue to have at least some problem for the rest of their life. Taking care of all of the causes before they lead to a herniated or ruptured disk is the best course of action.

Many things can cause back pain: Flying lessons from horses, roofs, ladders, bicycles and skis. Additional causes include sudden stops - frequently involving high speed vehicles, tripping, sliding and falls. Then there are the sporting activities, gardening, lifting and general exercising. These are just a few examples, you can probably come up with more. This may just sound like life and that is exactly what it is.

Low back pain has its origin in several areas. A problem area may be tight muscles in the pelvis. Working the glutes frequently helps to relieve a lot of the area known to low back pain sufferers as L5-S1. Those of you that know this term know how painful it can be. Massage can help, if it is done in a way that will get the distant muscles to relax and allow the bones to reposition. Only as the tension is taken off of the disks between the spinal joints, will the pain be released long term.

Upper back pain can be nagging. In some cases, it will force changes in life style to try to reduce the pain. There are many causes of upper body pain. One of them is the head being pulled forward by muscles in the chest and the neck. This forces the upper ribs to pull the top of the body forward. One of several results is that muscles of the upper back are pulled tight enough to cause pain.

Many think that shoulder blade pain is caused by the Rhomboid muscle. This is not always true. Sometimes muscles that run vertically may be the problem. When the muscles of the front of the chest, neck and the vertebral muscles of the back are worked together, it is possible to relax a very tight and painful upper back.

Scoliosis is a side to side curvature of the spine. One key to helping this is knowing how to help the tail bone return to being straight. Massage, in the right areas, frequently releases the tail bone easily and has a potential of helping with scoliosis. Also, each spinal joint has its own ways of being forced out of alignment and thus its own ways of being relaxed. By understanding how to locate regions that are forcing the side bending, it is possible to get relief. This can be done reasonably quickly and gently. To be most effective, all muscles pulling the spine out of place must be relaxed.

Many people just live with muscles pulling bones out of place. They may rely on over-the-counter pain pills to help them or get stronger pain medications from doctors. Some live on muscle relaxants, frequently every day, and may find that the relaxants work on all the muscles. Getting the muscle to relax and stay relaxed can greatly reduce the pain, so the medication level can be reduced as well, which can be much easier on the body.

Long term pull on a bone, can in time deform the bone. Also, a muscle that does not relax can accumulate calcium. Frequently, people talk about having to live with pain. In many cases, it is possible to relax the muscle and allow the calcium in the muscle to move again. The amount of relief possible is partly dependent on changes in the bone. If the work can be done before the bone is changed, then the chances of relief are improved.

NeuroMuscular Therapy works on the connections between the nerves and muscular skeletal system. It is a gentle and effective way of relieving muscle tightness and pain.

Control Muscle Release Therapy looks at the muscles that control bone and muscles at a distance. The goal is to release the structure easily and gently. The easiest way to release the whole body is to relax the key regions of the body. In many cases, long term (chronic) conditions can be improved.

For more information or an appointment call
Todd Pennington, LMT --- OR Lic # 3833
Pam Pennington, LMT --- OR Lic # 8027
10175 SW Barbur
Suite 306
Portland OR 97219
503-244-4427
www.penningtonmassage.com