Low Back Pain Treatment in Citrus Heights, CA
Low back pain is widespread in our society, and we treat it every day. Nearly everyone will suffer from lower back pain at some point. According to a recent study, lower back pain is the leading cause of disability in the United States. Low back pain is so common because of our:
- Sedentary lifestyle: people who spend a lot of time sitting and lying down are more prone to developing low back pain, as this position puts a lot of strain on the lower back muscles and joints.
- Poor posture: Poor posture, such as sitting with poor lumbar support, can lead to muscle imbalances and put excess strain on the lower back.
What Can Cause Low Back Pain?
Our muscles, joints, discs, and nerves contribute to low back pain in their unique way.
- Muscles: low back muscles help support the spine and assist with movement. Strains or sprains in these muscles can lead to low back pain.
- Discs: spinal discs act as shock absorbers and help cushion the vertebrae. When a disc becomes damaged or degenerated, it can herniate or bulge, putting pressure on nearby nerves.
- Joints: The joints in the lower back, called facet joints, can become strained or injured, leading to pain. Degenerative conditions such as osteoarthritis can also affect the low back joints and cause pain.
- Nerves: nerve compression or irritation leads to pain. This can be caused by various conditions, such as herniated discs or spinal stenosis, which is the narrowing of the spinal canal.
Low back pain can hinder your ability to work and exercise, not to mention make it difficult to perform everyday tasks, such as standing, walking, sitting, and lifting. Addressing the pain early on can help prevent it from escalating and potentially causing more long-term damage. Untreated, chronic low back pain can lead to health problems like depression, anxiety, incontinence, digestive disorders, infertility, and sleep disorders. Low back pain is common but not normal. Taking care of your pain is essential to reduce your risk of disability and improve your quality of life.
$99 New Patient Special
- Consultation
- Examination
- Report of findings
How Our Low Back Pain Care Plan Works
Certainty
Optimum results require optimum care and that requires optimized testing. The more your doctor knows about your complete health status the better their recommendations will be, and a better plan gets better results! At River City Chiropractic, we don’t guess, we test!
Clarity
Knowing your body inside and out is the first step in your pathway to relief and experiencing the life you were designed to live. Understanding your doctors tests and recommendations are paramount to reaching your personal health goals. At River City Chiropractic, we take the time to guide you each step of the way!
Confidence
Relief that results from focusing on the cause of your condition is lasting relief! You deserve the best and it begins with the best health. At River City Chiropractic we don’t just provide care for relief we will guide you towards experiencing the life you were designed to live!
How We Treat Low Back Pain In Citrus Heights, CA
The specific treatment techniques we use may vary depending on the individual patient and the nature of their low back pain condition. Here are the techniques we use as part of our lower back pain treatment:
Comprehensive Consultation and Exam
We employ comprehensive consultations and examinations to obtain information about a patient’s condition and formulate a treatment plan. It often entails thoroughly evaluating the patient’s medical history, a physical exam, and possibly diagnostic procedures such as postural screenings and X-rays.
Specific Chiropractic Care
Spinal misalignments interrupt nerve flow and affect proper muscle function. This can lead to pain, muscle tension and imbalance, and organ dysfunction. Spinal manipulation, which includes applying force to the spine to increase mobility and reduce pain, and spinal mobilization, which involves using gentle, low-force movements to the spine to enhance mobility and reduce pain, are two typical treatments we employ to treat lower back pain. Correcting these misalignments, also known as subluxations, will restore balance to the physical structure of the spine as well as the nervous system, which is responsible for controlling every aspect of our body.
Chiropractors are healthcare practitioners who diagnose and treat neuromuscular diseases, focusing on the spine. They use several treatments, including spinal adjustments, to reduce pain and improve nervous system function. Numerous individuals seek chiropractic care to alleviate back, neck, and other musculoskeletal problems.
Custom Therapeutic Exercise Plan
We create a therapeutic exercise program tailored to your unique needs and limits. A customized program can aid in strengthening the muscles that support the spine, enhancing flexibility and range of motion, and alleviating pain and discomfort. Exercises work with adjustments to stabilize proper spinal structure and help the body hold adjustments longer.
Spinal Decompression
Spinal decompression is a vital low back pain treatment. This procedure is frequently used to address herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, and spinal stenosis. Disc injuries put pressure on the adjacent nerves. By decompressing the spine, we can relieve pressure on the discs, relieve nerve irritation, and give the discs a chance to rehydrate and heal.
Deep Tissue Laser
Deep tissue laser is a non-invasive treatment that uses laser energy to speed up healing and reduce inflammation in the deep tissue layers of the body. We sometimes use this method to treat lower back pain and other musculoskeletal problems like arthritis, tendinitis, and plantar fasciitis.
Common Causes of Lower Back Pain in Citrus Heights, CA
Bulged Lumbar Discs
When a bulging lumbar disc presses on spinal nerves, it can cause lower back pain. The lower back discs (lumbar spine) have a soft, spongy center and a harder, fibrous outer layer. A bulging disc indicates the soft center has pushed through a crack or tear in the outer layer. It can cause the disc to press against adjacent nerves, resulting in lower back pain, tingling, numbness, and muscle weakness, even in the legs.
Herniated Lumbar Discs
Like with bulged discs, the outside fibers can begin to tear and the nucleus can start to move towards the outside of the disc. If the fibers tear enough, the nucleus can actually break through the exterior of the disc and sit on a nerve ending. Herniated discs tend to create more leg pain, then low back pain, and they also create more intense pain. When the disc ruptures, that takes the pressure off the low back area, but it creates a lot of pain down into the leg because the nucleus is out of the disc and sitting on the nerve.
A natural way for the herniated disc to resolve itself is a process called fago se cytosis – your body sees the nucleus as a foreign object so it will inflame to try to help eat up that nucleus and reabsorb it. If that doesn’t work, it can create pain that is usually enough to cause people to start to look into surgery. We try to treat herniated discs naturally, but after a certain course of treatment surgery may be the only option.
Degenerative Disc Disease
Degenerative Disc Disease is an age related condition where the discs begin to break down. (Obesity, smoking, and work that is hard on the spine can also contribute to Degenerative Disc Disease.) Similar to a bulging or herniated disc, as discs become dehydrated and break down they start to lose their natural height. A fully hydrated disc has height to create proper openings for the nerves to emerge from the spine and travel throughout the body. When the disc starts to shrink, the foramen – the holes that the nerves come out of – start to get smaller irritating the nerves. This is what creates that low back pain and potentially radiating pain.
Unfortunately, with Degenerative Disc Disease, whatever damage has been done can’t be reversed, but it can be slowed. This is why it’s so important to get treatment as soon as possible whenever you’re dealing with low back pain.
Spinal Stenosis
Spinal Stenosis can create a lot of significant symptoms, mainly because pressure can be put on the spinal cord as well as the adjacent nerves. Usually with Spinal Stenosis people will find that standing or walking can aggravate their pain and that resting, sitting down, or even bending forward can help relieve some of that pressure. Not only can it cause pain, but it can also cause weakness, numbness, or organ dysfunction – like your bladder or your gown. Those are emergency situations and you need to contact a medical doctor immediately.
Muscle Strain
Muscle strains are the most common causes of low back pain. They tend to be dull and achy, and the pain is intensified with movement or putting yourself into certain positions. Normally the pain stays localized in the lower back versus radiating into your legs or other areas. Muscle strains can be caused by sudden activity, over time with repetitive motion, poor posture, or weak core muscles.
Muscle strains usually resolve in four to six weeks, but we want to address them early if possible because, a lot of times, they are a symptom of a more root problem. This is why, at Springfield Wellness Center, we always try to attack the root cause of the problem versus just addressing the symptoms.
Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction (SI Joint Pain)
The sacroiliac joint is where the sacrum – the triangle bone at the base of your spine – meets the pelvis. This joint isn’t built to move a lot and problems can be created by hypermobility, moving too much, or hypomobility, moving too little. 15-30% of all low back pain cases are caused by SI joint dysfunction. The SI joint works to absorb the shock between the upper body and the pelvis and legs. Causes of SI joint dysfunction are leg length discrepancies, pregnancy, giving birth, or repeatedly stressing the joints.
Facet Joint Dysfunction
Facet joints are the joints at the back of the spine where the vertebra meet. There’s cartilage inside of those joints that, over time, can start to break down and become inflamed. People that have facet joint dysfunction normally feel pain when they go into extension, meaning they lean back, or if they’re standing for long periods of time because that loads those joints.
Subluxation
Subluxation is the dysfunction that chiropractors are looking for and that they treat. Subluxation is dysfunction in the spine, or misalignment of the spine, which creates pressure on the nerves. The nerves are then what create the symptoms and the low back pain.
Specific chiropractic adjustments are the only solution to a subluxation. You can do all of the stretches and exercises that you want, but if a vertebra is stuck out of alignment or is not moving properly, until you get that motion back or correct the alignment, you’ll continue to have issues.
Check Out Our Location Near You
7508 Sunrise Blvd, Citrus Heights, CA 95610
Frequently Asked Questions
When Should I Be Worried About Lower Back Pain?
Low back discomfort is your body’s warning system that something is amiss. Pain is usually the last thing to occur and the first thing to leave; therefore, we want to deal with it as soon as it appears to avoid becoming a chronic condition.
What Can I Do to Relieve My Lower Back Pain?
Chiropractic care, spinal adjustments, strengthening and stabilizing exercises, spinal decompression, and deep tissue laser are some of the best ways to reduce pain and correct the underlying problem to prevent relapse. The best thing to do is contact us so we can assess the source of your pain and provide more precise treatment choices.
How Do I Know if My Back Pain Is Serious?
All pain deserves to be assessed by a medical provider. However, some general guidelines might help you assess whether your back pain is serious:
- Pain has lasted more than a few days
- Standing or walking difficulties
- Difficulties urinating or passing stools
- Numbness, tingling, or radiating pain in the legs
- Pain that worsens when you lie down
- A high fever, nausea, or vomiting in addition to pain
- Unanticipated weight loss
- A cancer history
What Causes Lower Back Pain?
Some of the most common causes of lower back pain include muscular strains or sprains, herniated discs, spinal stenosis, facet joint dysfunction, and degenerative disc disease, among many others. It is always a good idea to consult a healthcare provider for an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment.
How Should I Sleep With Lower Back Pain?
You can try the following at-home remedies to help relieve lower back pain while sleeping:
- Use a supportive mattress: A firm mattress can help relieve lower back pain.
- Sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees can help keep your spine in a neutral position and reduce strain on your lower back.
- Sleeping on your back with a pillow under your knees can also help relieve pressure on your lower back.
- Avoid sleeping on your stomach as it strains your lower back and may aggravate your pain.
- Stretching your back and hips before bed will help release tight muscles and improve your sleep posture.
How Do I Tell if Lower Back Pain Is Muscle or Disc-Related?
With a thorough examination and diagnostic procedures, we can determine the exact cause of your low back pain and design an effective treatment plan.
Lower back pain caused by muscle feels achy and sore and can be improved with movement, ice and heat, or massage. Lower back pain caused by a disc will feel sharp and stabbing and be made worse by movement.
Can a Chiropractor Help With Lower Back Pain?
Yes! We are experts in detecting and treating neuromuscular problems, particularly spinal manipulation and adjustment. Our natural, holistic approach to optimizing the nervous system allows the body to heal faster and function better.
$99 New Patient Special
Includes Consultation, Examination & Report of findings