Low Back Pain Treatment in Greer, SC
Chiropractic Care for Low Back Pain
We all know someone that suffers from low back pain. It may be you, your relative, or a friend, nevertheless low back pain affects up to 80% of people at some point in their life and is the number one cause of disability across the US. Low back pain is generally caused by bad habits such as poor posture, repetitive motions, picking up something the wrong way, a sudden jerking motion such as a car accident, pregnancy, excessive sitting or standing, or sleeping wrong. Regardless of how you get to the point where you are experiencing low back pain, your main objective is seeking relief.
There are different types of pain; acute or chronic. Acute pain will typically develop suddenly and last for less than a month. Chronic pain is consistently present for three months or more. To prevent acute pain from becoming chronic, seeking treatment at the onset of the condition is essential.
Low back pain may be associated with one or more of the following things: your muscles, ligaments, joints, or discs. Most commonly, a strain or sprain to the muscles or ligaments in your lower back, ranging from simple over stretching to complete tears, cause inflammation resulting in back spasms. This is generally acute and can be treated promptly at the onset of pain.
Chronic inflammation within the joints, generally caused by arthritis, will cause joints to become immobile, resulting in the loss of mass and the breakdown of degenerative arthritis. Degenerative joints are more susceptible to injury from even the smallest trauma.
Our discs act as shock absorbers within our spine and spacers between the bones, allowing spinal nerves to exit without pressure or pinching. We have five discs in our lower back. If our discs begin to degenerate, which means breaking down or losing hydration, this can result in a pinched nerve, bulging, or herniated disc. Not seeking immediate treatment for this may lead to acute or chronic pain.
How We Treat Lower Back Pain in Greer, SC
Your First Chiropractic Visit
Health History and Consultation: At your first appointment, during your consultation, we will get a health history. This informs the doctor and their team of your current level of health, complaints, and history of injuries or illnesses.
Clinical Examination: Your examination may include a thorough evaluation of posture (posture is the window to the spine), range of motion, leg length, muscle strength, reflexes, palpation, orthopedic and other tests. These tests will help determine whether subluxations (misalignments) of the spine or other joints are affecting your health.
X-Rays And Analysis: Your chiropractic examination may require comprehensive X-rays. The X-rays reveal the degree of spinal misalignment, the phase of spinal degeneration, significant pathologies, and other potential considerations of care. In our clinic, careful analysis leads to precision measurements. This thorough analysis and the clinical exam findings enable us to provide you with our best recommendations.
Your Second Chiropractic Visit
We schedule the second visit at a specific time of day, reserving 30 to 45 minutes for thoroughness. We ask that you please respect this time.
Explanation and Report of Findings: This could be the most crucial visit because you are given a thorough report of findings after your doctor has studied your health history, clinical examination, and X-rays. Your spouse or significant other is more than welcome to attend this report. We will educate you about your spine and nervous system. After explaining the exam findings, your X-rays are reviewed and compared to normal findings helping to provide you with a clear understanding of any problems present. Based on the results of these tests, we’ll recommend any further necessary diagnostic testing. We will also discuss all insurance information during this appointment.
First Adjustment: If the doctor finds that they can help you and accepts your case, they will administer your first chiropractic adjustment. The doctor will then offer their services and discuss their recommendations for corrective care. The recommendations will vary according to subluxation severity, degeneration phase, age, and current condition. Because we are proficient in various adjusting techniques, we can choose the most effective approach to enhance your comfort and results.
Our recommendations are always based on helping you regain as healthy a spine and nervous system as you can and teaching you to maintain it throughout your life.
Specific Chiropractic Care in Greer, SC
What is a subluxation?
Subluxation, often referred to as vertebral subluxation, occurs when the spine becomes misaligned and obstructs nerve flow. This can compromise movement and lead to many unwanted health problems that people suffer from regularly. Subluxation can cause a wide range of negative effects on the body, such as nerve flow interference (via pinching of the involved nerve), disc degeneration, bone spurs, as well as changes in the ligaments, muscles, and tendons. Most frequently, subluxation occurs in the neck, mid back, lower back, or hip bones but can also occur in other joints. Some common symptoms associated with subluxation include:
- Neck Pain
- Low Back Pain
- Headaches
- Sciatica
- Leg Pain
- Shoulder Pain
- Arm Pain
- Decreased Mobility
- Muscle Spasms or Tenderness
- Inflammation
Since subluxations impair natural nerve function and compromise the body’s ability to maintain optimal health, it is essential to have your spine evaluated to see how chiropractic might help improve nerve flow resulting in better nervous system functioning.
Relieve Nerve Pressure
One of our highly skilled doctors will perform a chiropractic adjustment. The doctor will manually adjust your spine and relieve the subluxation by placing a certain amount of pressure in a specific location. This will allow proper nerve flow to return to the area and decrease pain associated with the subluxation.
Optimal Spinal Function
By following the doctor’s recommendations and being present for all your scheduled appointments, you will be on your way to a healthier spine. It is also important to perform your recommended exercises.
Custom Therapeutic Exercise Plan
Many low back pain cases are due to muscle weakness or imbalance, particularly in the core or back muscles. At Ehlich Family Chiropractic, in addition to excellent chiropractic adjustments to treat your lower back pain, we also prescribe traditional and postural exercises to strengthen your core and back muscles, leaving you functioning better as you heal. In your exam, we’ll assess how you move and create an exercise plan that addresses those specific functional deficiencies. Not only will we be helping you in the office, but we will also give you a plan to do at home to restore function as quickly as possible.
Here are three easy exercises you can do at home for lower back pain:
- Lie flat on your back with your knees flexed and your feet flat on the floor, as close to the buttocks as possible. Keep the knees together. Tighten the muscles of the lower abdomen and buttocks to flatten your low back against the floor. Slowly raise your hips up from the ground and hold for a slow count of five. Repeat this exercise four times. If you cannot raise your hips from the floor, tighten the belly, the abdominal, and the buttocks muscles and wait until you can raise your hips.
- Lie on your back with your knees bent. Put your feet flat on the ground. Take a deep breath and relax. Grasp one knee with your hands and pull it as close to your chest as possible. Straighten your leg, returning to the starting position. Relax. Repeat ten times with each leg.
- Lie on your back, draw both knees to your chest, and extend your arms on the floor, even with your shoulders. Roll your hips to the side to touch your knees to the floor. Turn your head in the opposite direction that your knees are bending. Repeat this four times, going right and then left.
I’m confident these exercises will prove beneficial, and together with rhythmic adjusting and breaking certain bad habits, you’ll be on the right track to improving your lower back health.
Spinal Decompression
Non-surgical decompression is a therapy that targets spinal disc disorders and can relieve back pain by carefully stretching the spine. This action removes stress on the spinal discs by creating negative pressure and promoting water and nutrient movement so the discs can properly heal. Spinal decompression therapy is a non-surgical procedure for patients suffering from back pain. It is the least invasive treatment for disc injuries, the most cost-effective, and has a very high success rate.
Deep Tissue Laser
At Ehlich Family Chiropractic, we offer laser therapy for acute and chronic conditions. Laser therapy has been proven to reduce inflammation and pain. This type of therapy is highly effective in treating acute pain, chronic conditions, and post-op pain. Laser therapy treatment is safe, painless, and fast – treatments typically take between five and ten minutes to administer. Our patients usually see results within three to five treatment sessions. Laser therapy stimulates cellular activity, utilizing the healing power of your own body. The stimulated healing process actively reduces inflammation for up to 24 hours after treatment.
Common Causes of Lower Back Pain
What is a Spinal Disc?
Discs act as shock absorbers in the spine, positioned between each bony vertebra. They are made up of tough annulus fibers on the outer portion of the disc and a softer center called the nucleus that holds the spine’s vertebrae together. The discs of your spine get nutrients from movement. When your spine is subluxated (out of normal alignment), your discs get fewer nutrients. This process causes the disc to deteriorate and leads to several disc conditions.
Bulged Lumbar Discs
Over time your discs can wear down and dehydrate. Fibers begin to tear, and the nucleus takes the path of least resistance. This causes low back pain that can radiate down the leg.
Herniated Lumbar Discs
When a bulged disc progresses, the outer fibers tear more, and the nucleus breaks through the disc’s exterior. This causes more intense pain. Surgery may be necessary if it doesn’t improve, so you want to catch and fix it early.
Degenerative Disc Disease
This is an age-related condition when discs break down. Obesity, smoking, and work that is hard on the spine can contribute to the discs shrinking. It also shrinks the hole for the nerve to exit, causing a pinching of the exiting nerve.
Spinal Stenosis
Stenosis occurs when pressure is put on the spinal cord or the exiting nerves. This can cause pain, weakness, numbness, or affect organ function like the bladder or bowel. Standing or walking can become very painful. See your health care immediately if you have lost bladder or bowel control. This is an emergency.
Muscle Strain
Strains are dull, achy pain localized in the lower back that intensifies with movement. It can be caused by sudden activity or over time with repetitive motion, poor posture, or weak core muscles. Usually, it resolves itself, but you want to fix it early as it could be a symptom of something else.
Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction (SI Joint Pain)
The SI joint is located where the sacrum meets the pelvis. The SI joint absorbs the shock between the upper body, pelvis, and legs. SI joint pain makes up 15-30% of low back pain cases, with causes including leg length discrepancy, pregnancy, and repeatedly stressing the joints. The joint can suffer from hypermobility or hypomobility, an increase or decrease in the normal movement of the joint.
Facet Joint Dysfunction
Facet joints are where the vertebrae meet. The cartilage inside the facet can break down and become inflamed. Extension and standing for long periods can aggravate this condition.
Subluxation
Subluxation is a misalignment of the spine. This causes a dysfunction in the spine, putting undue pressure on the nerves. Specific chiropractic adjustments are the best solution to correcting a subluxation.
Check Out Our Location Near You
606 W Poinsett St A, Greer, SC 29650