5 Drug-Free Ways to Treat Chronic Back Pain

Living with chronic back pain can severely affect a person’s quality of life. Although medications can help there is wonderful complimentary treatments available too. Here are five effective natural ways to treat your back pain:

1. Physiotherapy

Physiotherapists use a wide variety of techniques such as massage, exercise and electrotherapy to relieve pain, rebuild your muscle strength and restore full range of motion. Physiotherapy can help reduce the pain and stiffness in your back.

2. Chiropractic Care

Chiropractors use spinal manipulation to relieve your back pain. This helps to take the stress off of the surrounding muscles, tendons and ligaments and thus relieve the pain and restore normal functioning.

3. Massage Therapy

People with chronic back pain tend to have very tight muscles. Massage can help reduce the tension and undo painful muscle spasms, improve blood flow, encourage relaxation and relieve the pain. Massage therapists use a variety of methods, some are very gentle and others are more intense.

4. Acupuncture

Acupuncture has been used for over 4000 years and is one of the world's most ancient systems of medicine. It involves stimulation of specific points on the body surface to treat injuries and illness and has been shown to reduce pain and increase activity levels in patients.

5. Fitness

Your core muscles support your spine and so strengthening these muscles can really help with pain relief. When these muscles are strong you will have better posture, you body will be more balanced, your movement will be more efficient and you are less likely to be injured. Exercise and movement naturally stimulate healing in most cases of back pain. Inactivity can actually increase back pain as your back becomes stiffer and weaker. Exercise helps treat back pain and prevent future pain. Exercise such as Yoga can be a gentle, yet effective way to strengthen your core muscles.