Be Well: The Truth About Lower Back Pain

You bend down to tie your shoes and your back suddenly goes out. It hurts so badly you can barely stand up or move at all. You surrender yourself to the couch, sweating and grimacing,

imagining a world in which initiating everyday tasks comes without consequence.

Sound familiar?

The Lower Back Pain Club has many members: Nearly 65 million Americans have reported a recent episode, according to the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute. Back pain is one of the most common reasons people see a doctor or miss a day of work.

Your lower back can hurt for numerous reasons, from trauma to overuse to sitting too much. More often than not, it’s an accumulation of issues that cause your back to finally say enough is enough, says Michele Vincent, DC, faculty clinician, and associate professor at Northwestern Health Sciences University.

“People are often mystified. They reached into the refrigerator and their back went out. It’s usually just the straw that breaks the camel’s back,” Vincent says. “What is most relevant is that people do the same things over and over, day after day, for eight to 10 hours a day. The lower back gets weakened, and down the road they end up having lower back pain.”

Read the full article from Mpls.St.Paul Magazine here.