Far too many people struggle with back pain for years… even decades. If you’re one of them then you need to know about one of the most common reasons people can’t seem to beat their back pain: mixed pain syndrome.
In a nutshell, mixed pain syndrome describes how pain arises from multiple causes at the same time. Just because you have a herniated disc doesn’t mean it is the sole source of your back pain or even a source of pain at all.
There are two primary causes of pain: nerve compression and soft tissue pain. Nerve compression may be caused by conditions like a herniated disc or spinal stenosis causing direct pressure on a nerve. Soft tissue pain can occur from inflammation, scar tissue, trigger points, muscular micro-tears, or even decreased local cellular oxygen levels.
So what happens when you have a herniated disc pressing on a spinal nerve root, multiple trigger points in that area of the back, and local inflammation at the same time? Then you have a mixed pain syndrome condition that will take multiple approaches to eliminate your pain! Treat just one and you will end up frustrated and still in pain. This is why those suffering from back pain are encouraged to experiment with different types of treatments, often simultaneously, to get lasting back pain relief faster.
Need a starting point for treating mixed pain syndrome back pain? Begin by treating your back pain with safe alternatives to anti-inflammatory drugs:
Once painful spasms have been reduced and at least limited mobility has been restored, begin identifying underlying patterns and causes of your pain and eliminate them to prevent future back pain:
Remember, every person is different. There is no “one size fits all” approach to getting back pain relief, so what works for one person may not be as effective for another. Experiment until you find what works best for you.
We recently made the first of many donations that are part of the launch of my new book, “The 7-Day Back Pain Cure”
Not only are we giving away copies of the book for free, but we are also donating $2 of the shipping fee to one of two great charities: Habitat for Humanity and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital (you choose!).
As you can see, the first donation was $1198 to Habitat for Humanity and while I’m the only one in the picture, our entire team was very excited to be able to make such a large contribution to a great organization like Habitat. We’ll be making another similar donation to St. Jude’s this week.
Thank you so much to everyone who was a part of this. This truly turned out to be a great way to help a lot of people at the same time.
If you have not yet requested your FREE copy of my book, do it now because I’m not sure how much longer we’ll continue to offer it for free. As you hopefully can imagine, we are losing quite a bit of money with this offer.
Bodybuilding is tough work, requiring many hours every week sculpting muscles in the gym. It also leads to numerous muscle and tendon injuries, particularly among those less knowledgeable about balanced workouts.
A complete series of articles on preventing bodybuilding related back pain should be required reading for anyone contemplating hitting the weights. Unfortunately, most people looking for this type of information have already sustained an injury.
Once a muscle injury has occurred the first thing one should do is STOP doing the activity that caused the injury — immediately. Allow the injured area adequate time to rest. Not just a day or two, but a week or longer is required to allow the body time to reduce inflammation and repair tissues.
Applying ice to the injured area as soon as possible, preferably within 5 minutes of injury, will significantly decrease the amount of swelling and pain. Use ice alternating 20 minutes on / 20 minutes off to start. Continue using ice for at least the first 2-3 days after injury. Alternating heat and ice treatments can speed healing even more.
Use compression and elevation to reduce swelling. For example, if you overstretch your hamstring try wrapping the area with an elastic compression bandage. Then lie down with your leg propped up on a pillow or other comfortable support.
Once your body has ample time to rest and recover a focused program targeting specific muscle imbalances will help you prevent re-injury. Stretch overly tight muscles to increase flexibility and focus strength exercises on weaker muscles. This type of well balanced program offers bodybuilders the best chance at building a well sculpted body without injury.
Upper back surgery made the news earlier this year when U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln underwent a procedure to remove part of a herniated disc which was pinching a nerve in her back. What is particularly interesting about this surgery, beside the fact it was on a sitting U.S. Senator, is how uncommon the need for upper back surgery actually is.
Surgery for back pain is only performed in about 5% of all cases. And only 1% of all disc herniations occur in the thoracic, or upper back, due to its stability. This is good news for those with upper back pain: odds are high upper back surgery won’t be in your future.
While upper back surgery is still rare, upper back pain itself is becoming more common. Accidents, sports injuries, and other trauma can cause muscle sprains and worse. But an increasingly common cause of upper back pain is related to postural and strength issues, particularly for those who spend much of the day working on computers.
There are a number of natural health avenues one may consider for when dealing with upper back pain issues, including:
Muscle Balance Therapy uses targeted exercise and stretching to strengthen deconditioned muscles and stretch overly tight ones to relieve muscle pain and pressure on the spine.
Massage Therapy by a trained massage therapist can provide relief from upper back and increase joint mobility.
Trigger Point Therapy is used to relieve myofascial pain from irritated muscles, particularly common in the broad upper back and shoulder muscles.
The Alexander Technique, taught in private or group sessions, provides instruction on how to change movement habits to remove muscle restrictions and create more ease of movement. The Alexander Technique is particularly helpful for postural issues such as forward head posture and hunched shoulders.
Remember, except in cases of severe trauma your upper back pain did not happen overnight. It can take time to overcome the underlying causes of pain. But actively working towards better health naturally is almost always a better approach than what should be your last resort: upper back surgery.
Many patients who hear a diagnosis of a herniated disc immediately question whether spinal surgery is in their future. Whether or not surgery is the right option should be discussed with one’s doctor. However, most patients can find back pain relief using more conservative treatments.
The most common school of thought on treating herniated discs focuses on treating pain. Anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone injections, hot packs, ultrasound, and therapeutic exercises fall in this category.
While pain relief is important, the weakness of this approach is it fails to address the underlying cause of the herniated disc: why did it herniate in the first place? Ignoring the cause leads to repeated doctor visits for pain treatment. As pain worsens over time, surgery becomes a presented option.
A better approach is to understand the reason for the herniation and correct the problem. Not just mask the symptoms with pain killers.
Why a disc herniates
Outside of trauma, herniated discs do not happen overnight. They occur from long term uneven pressure on the disc due to postural dysfunctions caused by muscle imbalances.
Think of a jelly donut. If someone places a lot of pressure on one side and less on the other, the jelly is likely to bulge out the opposite side from the pressure. With enough pressure, the jelly will break through the donut. On the other hand, if the same amount of pressure was placed evenly across the entire donut the jelly might compress but would likely stay intact inside the donut.
Similarly, when muscle imbalances create improper hip and spine posture, the spinal discs between the vertebrae are unnaturally forced to sustain more weight and stress on one side than the other. Eventually, the disc wears down leading to a bulging, herniated or even a ruptured disc.
Non-surgical alternative treatments for herniated discs
There are at least five significant actions one can take right at home to help treat and reduce back pain from a herniated disc. Each is a superior alternative treatment to spinal surgery in most cases.
Reduce inflammation by increasing fluid intake (preferably by drinking clean water), improving eating habits, and reducing excess fibrin with proteolytic enzymes when possible.
Stop pain spasms, improve blood flow and increase range of motion with heat and cold therapy. The most effective and safe form of heat therapy is Far Infrared Heat (FIR).
Decompress the disc using inversion therapy. Excellent inversion tables can be purchased for this purpose for just a few hundred dollars.
Eliminate referred pain caused by trigger points which are a form of tiny muscular contraction knots.
Correct postural dysfunctions through stretching and exercise targeting specific muscle imbalances to eliminate the underlying root cause of your disc herniation.
The Healthy Back Institute - 333 Main St. Suite #201 Gaithersburg, MD 20878
Phone: 800-216-4908 Fax: 866-843-4319
The Healthy Back Institute is a Get Healthy and Fit Company
Far too many people struggle with back pain for years… even decades. If you’re one of them then you need to know about one of the most common reasons people can’t seem to beat their back pain: mixed pain syndrome.
As you can see, the first donation was $1198 to Habitat for Humanity and while I’m the only one in the picture, our entire team was very excited to be able to make such a large contribution to a great organization like Habitat. We’ll be making another similar donation to St. Jude’s this week.
Bodybuilding is tough work, requiring many hours every week sculpting muscles in the gym. It also leads to numerous muscle and tendon injuries, particularly among those less knowledgeable about balanced workouts.
Upper back surgery made the 
Many patients who hear a diagnosis of a herniated disc immediately question whether spinal surgery is in their future. Whether or not surgery is the right option should be discussed with one’s doctor. However, most patients can find back pain relief using more conservative treatments.
