Tag Archive for: Treating Lower Back Pain

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Leg Pain & Treatment Options | Chiropractic Victoria BC

Leg Pain & Treatment Options | Chiropractic Victoria BCLeg pain can range from a mild irritation to an unbearable pain that makes it difficult to complete any day-to-day activities. Leg pain can take many different forms, from a dull ache to searing pain. Other symptoms that may also occur are a pins-and-needle sensation, numbness or weakness.

Leg pain can be caused by a problem in the leg, but often it starts with a problem in the lower back, where the sciatic nerve originates, and then travels down,  along the path of the nerve. For this reason, if you have leg/foot pain, or leg/foot weakness or numbness, you should have a health care practitioner include an examination of the lower back.

When a nerve root in the lower spine is irritated (sciatica) you can experience a searing pain that starts in the lower back area and radiates down to the leg. Sciatic pain can be a constant or intermittent pain, and for many people this pain can be excruciating and debilitating. Spinal decompression treatments can bring relief for this type of back pain.

Numbness can be another symptom of leg ”pain” and is frequently caused by a pinched nerve.  Numbness coming from a low back problem can interfere with movement, balance, level of fatigue and can be a symptom of something more serious such as MS or a stroke. Both chiropractic and physiotherapy can treat a pinched nerve.

If you sit or stand for long periods of time and you have leg pain, you might suffer from positional leg pain (spinal stenosis/facet joint, which is a problem of anatomy in the low back) this pain can usually be relieved by simply changing your positions.  You can also alleviate these symptoms by bending over, or with gentle stretching.

Other causes of leg pain can be due to either over-pronation/under-pronation of the foot; which can cause added stress on your leg and back muscles. A gait scan of your feet will diagnosis if you are a candidate for orthotics.

The types of leg pain experienced can vary widely from patient to patient, so it is important that you seek a diagnosis from a trusted health care practitioner.

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Find Relief from a Herniated Disc with A Natural Health Practitioner

Your spine is made up of vertebrae and discs, so finding relief from a herniated disc with a natural health practitioner like a doctor of chiropractic makes sense.

Discs are like soft cushions between the bones of the spine. The discs in the spine let you move your backbone. When a disc between two bones in the spine presses on the nerves around the backbone, it’s called a herniated disc. The word “herniate” means to bulge or to stick out. Sometimes this is called a ruptured or slipped disc.

Find Relief from a Herniated Disc with A Natural Health Practitioner

Find Relief from a Herniated Disc

Herniated discs are most common in the lower part of your spine referred to as the lumbar spine. This area is constantly absorbing the impact of bearing the weight of the upper body.  The lower back is also critically involved in our body’s movements throughout the day, as we twist the torso in rotating side to side and as we hinge the back in flexion and extension while bending or lifting.

When part of a disc presses on a nerve, it can cause pain in the back and the legs. How bad the pain is depends on how much of the disc is pressing on the nerve. In most people with herniated discs, the pain spreads over the buttocks and radiates down the back of one thigh and into the calf. This is known as sciatica because the pain travels along the path of the sciatic nerve. Some people have pain in both legs, and will feel numb or a tingly sensation in their the legs or feet.

Here are some signs  If you have a herniated disc, the painful symptoms will worsen:

  • After you have been sitting down or standing for a long period.
  • During the night.
  • When you laugh, cough or sneeze
  • When you walk, even a short distance.
  • When you bend over backward

Becoming active as soon as possible is very important. Exercises can be helpful. The goal of exercise is to make your back and stomach muscles stronger. This will ease the pressure on your disc and make you hurt less. Ask your practitioner about safe exercises for your back, and start these exercises after your back is a little stronger and doesn’t hurt as much.

Spinal Decompression is painless, drug-free, non-surgical  treatment that has numerous published scientific studies reporting its’ effectiveness at 86% to 94%, and most people who have a herniated disc are better in about 4 – 6 weeks.

Spinal Decompression provides relief to severe back and neck pain sufferers by gently reducing the pressure within spinal discs. The bones of the spine are slowly and methodically separated and as the vertebrae are separated pressure is slowly reduced within the disc until a vacuum is formed. This vacuum “sucks” the gelatinous center of the disc back inside thereby reducing the disc bulge or disc herniation. Significant disc bulge reduction removes pressure off the spinal nerves and drastically reduces pain and disability. This “sucking” vacuum also pulls much-needed oxygen, nutrients and fluid into injured and degenerated discs allowing the healing to begin.

What can you do to help prevent a herniated disc?

Good posture (standing up straight, sitting straight, lifting with your back straight) can help your back by reducing the pressure on your discs.

  1. Bend your knees and hips when you lift something, and keep your back straight.
  2. Hold an object close to your body when you carry it.
  3. If you stand for a long time, put one foot on a small stool or box for a while.
  4. If you sit for a long time, put your feet on a small stool so your knees are higher than your hips.
  5. Don’t wear high-heeled shoes.
  6. Don’t sleep on your stomach.

If you or someone you know needs to find relief from a herniated disc with a natural health practitioner, please call Diversified Health Clinic for a free consultation.

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Is Spinal Decompression Right For Me? | chiropractor victoria bc

If you are asking the question, is spinal decompression right for me? | chiropractor victoria bc; there is a good chance that you are suffering from neck or back pain.  Spinal decompression provides relief to severe back and neck pain sufferers by gently reducing the pressure within spinal discs.

The bones of the spine are slowly and methodically separated using a state-of-the-art decompression table (Diversified Health Clinic uses the Kennedy Decompression Table). As the vertebrae are separated pressure is slowly reduced within the disc until a vacuum is formed. This vacuum “sucks” the gelatinous center of the disc back inside thereby reducing the disc bulge or disc herniation. Significant disc bulge reduction removes pressure off the spinal nerves and drastically reduces pain and disability. This “sucking” vacuum also pulls much-needed oxygen, nutrients and fluid into injured and degenerated discs allowing the healing to begin.

Is Spinal Decompression Right For Me? | chiropractor victoria bc

Spinal DecompressionTable

On your first visit to Diversified Health Clinic your practitioner Dr. Krisjan Gustavson will take a detailed medical history, and a through physical exam, which can include a variety of diagnostics tools.

Therapy sessions typically last 20 minutes with most people feeling pain relief with as few as 3-5 treatments. It is important to remember however, that pain subsiding does not infer that your discs and spine are healed, so it’s critical that patients follow the treatment protocol prescribed by their practitioners in order to achieve the full value of the decompression therapy.

What conditions can benefit from using a decompression table

  • Severe or chronic low back and neck pain
  • Sciatica
  • Degenerative disc and joint disease
  • Herniated or Bulging disc
  • Numbness, tingling or burning pain

Lumbar decompression effectively treats these conditions to help patients live a pain-free life and return to a more active lifestyle.

Please contact us for a free consultation which will help to answer the question; is spinal decompression right for me? | chiropractor victoria bc.

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Treating Lower Back Pain at a Victoria clinic

Diversified Health Clinic , a Victoria Clinic has been treating lower back pain for over 2 decades.  Most cases of  low back pain are cause by a muscle strain or sprain, or a specific condition, such as a herniated disc or degenerative disc disease.

Low back pain from a muscle strain is the most common and is usually caused by lifting a heavy object, lifting while twisting, or a sudden movement or fall.  While pain or discomfort can happen anywhere in your back, the most common area affected is your low back. This is because the low back supports most of your body’s weight.

Treating Lower Back Pain | Victoria clinic

Treating Lower Back Pain - Photo Credit: motorvehicleaccidentnews.com

There are many causes of low back pain.

  • Arthritis conditions such as osteoarthritis
  • Muscle spasm
  • Ruptured or herniated disk
  • Sciatica
  • Strain or tears to the muscles or ligaments supporting the back

When the muscles in the low back are strained or torn, the area around the muscles becomes inflamed.  This inflammation causes the muscles in the back to spasm and cause low back pain.

At Diversified Health treating low back pain consists of a combination of treatments, such as Chiropractic, Massage, Physiotherapy, Cryo therapy, Cold Laser Therapy, TENS therapy, Ultrasound, Back Project, Decompression Table, Neuromechanical Adjusting Tool as well as topical ointments such as Traumeel and nutritional supplements for help with inflammation.

With the first syptoms of low back pain, stop the activity for the first few days; this will help calm your symptoms and reduce any swelling in the area of the pain. You can also apply heat/ice to the painful area. Always use ice for the first 48-72 hours, then use heat.  You can also take something to help with the inflammation such as ibuprofen or nutritional supplements, and call your health care practitioner.

For more information on treating lower back pain,at a Victoria cliniccall 250-382-0018 and speak with Dr. Krisjan Gustavson.

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