11 Facts You Need to Know about Back Pain
- Elisabetta Brigo
- Sep 4, 2019
- 5 min read
There are (too) many myths circulating around the Internet and Social Media about Back Pain nowadays.
Sadly, most of them are complete lies that only end up harming the people who don’t have adequate knowledge to recognize the truth from the falsity.
So with this article, I’ve decided to help you understand what are the true facts about Back Pain.
Before we continue, though, I highly recommend that you check out this article first, so that you can have a better idea of the causes and the treatments of Back Pain.
Truth #1: Back Pain does NOT have a Single Cause
Back Pain is a Multifaceted Issue, which means it is caused and influenced by MANY co-factors.
These factors can be biological (=physical/structural/anatomical), psychological (e.g. anxiety, stress, fear , depression,…) and social (e.g. relationships, work environment, poor sleep, eccessive training, inactivity…).
It’s important to identify as many of these contributing factors as possible in order to treat Back Pain effectively.
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Truth #2: Inactivity will Worsen your Back Pain
When you have Back Pain it’s understandable that you don’t want to move and you’d rather stay in bed to rest.
While you may lie in bed for the first couple days if the pain is intolerable, after 48h you should definitely get moving, such as some light walking.
Inactivity is NOT your friend.
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Truth #3: Back Pain is NOT due to a “Weak Core”
This is linked to the Truth #1: Back Pain does NOT have a single cause, so blaming your core for your Back Pain is pure nonsense.
It seems, actually, that having a “Weak Core” could actually be a CONSEQUENCE, not the cause of Back Pain!
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Truth #4: Disc Herniations can Heal own their own
You read that right.
If you’ve been told that you have a herniated disc, don’t freak out!
In fact, most herniated discs can naturally heal on their own, without surgery.
What’s more, it has been shown that it is very common to have disc herniations and still NO problem. ZERO PAIN.
So having a disc herniation does NOT mean that you will have Back Pain forever…or at all!
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Truth #5: Diagnostic Imaging shows Anatomy, NOT Pain
Usually when people have Back Pain, they think that they need a scan ASAP.
Truth is, you don’t really need one.
That’s because Imaging findings (think – MRIs, X-rays,…) are NOT capable to explain much about our current Pain, Prognosis and how we Function.
Most of the time, Imagining results show NATURAL age-related changes that are also present in HEALTHY people with NO pain/symptoms (just like our hair turns gray with age, and our skin forms wrinkles).
Remember: Imaging shows anatomy, NOT Pain!
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Truth #6: Your Back is NOT Fragile
You do NOT have a “Bad Back”. It’s just currently sore.
Which means that your Back is NOT going to hurt forever.
If you believe or have been told that you won’t be able to do certain activities for the rest of your existence (e.g. running, lifting weight,…), think again.
Our body (back included) is very strong and adaptable. Our bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, ecc… can withstand great loads and, with time, can adapt to withstand even greater ones.
So if you currently think that your back is fragile, know that it’s not. Our body will repair, adapt to stress and grow stronger!
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Truth #7: more Pain does NOT mean more Damage
When we are suffering from a great deal of pain, it’s easy for us to believe that our body is severely damaged.
Truth is, there is no linear correlation between pain and tissue damage (a.k.a. If you have a lot of pain, it does NOT mean that you have a lot of damage too).
Think about when you cut your finger with the border of a paper sheet: it hurts like hell, but the damage is ridiculously tiny.
Same goes with Back Pain: the pain we feel is influenced by MANY factors (remember Truth #1 ?): for example, when you are anxious, are sleeping poorly, are not moving enough, are stressed out, have deadlines to meet, etc… all these factors will make you feel a lot more pain, when in fact the real damage is most probably very little.
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Truth #8: even if you have Back Pain, there’s NOTHING “Out of Place”
The structures in our back are so strong that nothing can get “out of place”.
Discs do NOT “slip” and your back is not “broken”.
Your vertebrae are NOT “out of alignment”: everything is exactly where it’s supposed to be.
Because your Back is much stronger and more robust than you think.
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Truth #9: Spinal Manipulations do NOT “fix” Anything
When you have Back Pain, you might be temped to go get “adjusted” thinking that getting your back “cracked” will “fix” your back by putting what was “out of place” “back in”.
But as we saw in Truth #8, there’s nothing “out” that needs to be put back “in”.
Manipulations do NOT cause any structural changes in our body: the “crack” you hear is just bubbles forming and blowing within the synovial fluid of your joints. That’s it.
So after a manipulation you might feel a bit better not because of physical changes, but simply because your brain relaxes for a little while (i.e. a few minutes only). Nothing more.
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Truth #10: your Beliefs about Back Pain will influence your Prognosis
When they say that mind and body are closely connected, believe it.
In fact, it has been shown that having wrong, negative beliefs about your current Back Pain condition will only make it harder for you to recover.
Instead, if you can keep a positive attitude, correcting your current misconceptions regarding Back Pain, your outcomes will be much better, with a faster and more effective recovery.
So learn as much as you can about Back Pain, so that you won’t be dragged down by those who spread fear and lies on this topic!
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Truth #11: the Best way to Recover from Back Pain is having an Active Role
When you are suffering from Back Pain, you should see a Physiotherapist.
But if he/she does NOT actively involve you in your journey to recovery, then look for someone else.
The treatment you’ve been offered should NEVER consists mainly of passive techniques (such as massage, manual therapy, dry needling, acupuncture, cupping, taping, electrotherapy, etc…).
Instead, it should be made up of exercises to improve your strength, stability and mobility.
So if you are simply lying on a massage bed and you’re not moving a single finger in your rehab program, then know that that’s NOT a good one.
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What to Do Next:
To learn more on this topic, here’s what you should do next:
1. Read this blog post
2. Check out this video
3. Get rid of Back Pain from Home with THIS INCREDIBLE GUIDE (it’ll SAVE you so much Stress, Time, Energy and Money!):👇👇
I hope you enjoyed this article!
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Thanks for Reading!
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–Elisabetta Brigo
Physiotherapist
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