Help for Lower Back Pain in Geelong

What is Lower Back Pain?

Around 80% of the population suffers from Lower Back Pain at some stage in their life. This is where people experience cramping, stiffness and muscle spasms in addition to pain in the back region. If the pain is as a result of nerve-root pressure, one can experience pain that radiates to the buttocks and even down the legs.
The two major categories of Lower Back Pain depends on which area of the spine is affected. 
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:Blausen.com staff (2014). "Medical gallery of Blausen Medical 2014". WikiJournal of Medicine 1 

Facet joints are small stabilizing joints located between and behind adjacent vertebrae of the spine. In people experiencing facet joint based lower back pain, the saddle like base which is covered by a synovial lining, becomes inflamed. This results in extra pressure when one bends backwards, leading to immense amount of pain. In this case, bending forward generally provides relief as the forward flexion decompresses the facet joint, relieving pressure and pain.
 
On the other hand, intervertebral disc based lower back pain is a result of a tear in the discs; soft cushion-like structures in the spine. This results in a protrusion or bulging of the disc structure which can compress certain nerves, leading to pain that is experienced in the hip region, legs, ankles and feet. Unlike, facet joint pain in the back, disc pain intensifies in nature when one bends forward as this exerts pressure on the back of the disc structure where the nerve exists the spine. ​

What Causes Lower Back Pain?

Facet joint motion in the lower back can be disrupted by injury, leading to stiffening of the back caused by bone spurs, joint capsule scarring or thickening and muscle spasms or hypermobility of the joint due to fractures, dislocations, overstretched ligaments etc.
Various factors can lead to disc damage in the lower back like age, obesity, lack of exercise, poor posture etc. One can either experience degenerative disc disease due to holding the same position for a length of time or a ruptured disc where the disc develops tears and causes the fluid to irritate surrounding structures leading to pain and even sciatica. 
​Osteoarthritis or degeneration of the spine can be a cause of lower back pain also. According to the book 'Campbell's Operative Orthopaedics: Adult Spine Surgery', MRI evidence has shown that 100% of people over 50 years old have lumbar (lower spine) degeneration, however clearly, 100% of those 50 years or over do not experience constant lower back pain, so degeneration of the spine does not always mean one has to live in pain.  

When to Seek Help for Lower Back Pain?

If lower back pain is persistent it's a good idea to get somebody to look at it without leaving it too long. The earlier the causes of the back pain can be addressed, typically the faster lasting relief will be experienced. 

How may Bowen Therapy help people with Lower Back Pain?

Lower back pain caused by muscles, tendons, pinched nerves, facet joints, arthritis or disc problems are all worth seeing your Bowen Therapist about. Bowen may works on the whole body and may help increase circulation to the damaged structures and tissues to facilitate faster healing and relieve the pain. Also, because Bowen targets several different areas we see as contributing to back pain, not just the back, that's how we may get our results to last longer.

You can read some reviews from Louis's clients on the Review page here, or Book Online here for a Bowen Therapy session targeting Lower Back Pain in Geelong.