What’s Really Causing Your Back Pain?
The back pain experience is incredibly frustrating. With over 80% of the population experiencing some type of back pain in their lives, it’s very common as well. With such a common problem, it makes sense that there can be different reasons or sources for your back pain.
Back Pain can be an overuse injury from stressing the muscles while sitting long periods with poor posture, or improperly lifting a heavy box and causing a disc herniation. But often times, we also find low back pain that’s coming from the hips and pelvis! The pelvis is a ring of 3 large bones that support the rest of your spine as well as your hips, so when the bones are misaligned, they can have a huge impact on your spine alignment and the length of your legs!
Pelvis Misalignment
Do you ever feel like you’re taking uneven steps? Like you have to put more weight on one leg compared to the other? Does crossing your legs make your low back hurt? Frequently carrying a heavy bag to one side, poor posture, sitting too long, and not wearing supportive shoes can all contribute to hip misalignment leading to low back pain. Misaligned hips often begin as a result of weak back, core or pelvis muscles and uneven shoe wear.
Prolonged Sitting
If you spend most of your day behind a desk, you could find yourself sitting for hours on end without much movement. Prolonged sitting compresses the spine and increases stress on the back, legs, arms and even neck. In addition, it also tightens your hip flexor muscles that attach your legs to your pelvis AND your low back! This connection means that if you sit too long in a day, you’ll shorten and tighten these muscles, which will then pull on your pelvis and low back, causing unnecessary load on these joints and sometimes pain.
Visiting a chiropractor is a great first step to dealing with your low back pain. You will get a comprehensive assessment to figure out where exactly your back pain is coming from, learn how chiropractic can help, and learn stretches or exercises that will help you move better and feel better. Regardless of where your back pain has started, taking steps to make sure that you are taking regular breaks from sitting and having a regular exercise routine are great ways to help reverse the damage that too much sitting is doing to your body
