Fixing Your Back Pain
We all know back pain is no fun. You or a loved one are probably struggling with back pain right now. You might be thinking there is no way you could feel better in 5 minutes, but you can! I’m not talking about taking something from your medicine cabinet, or getting into a state of relaxation where you imagine your back doesn’t hurt. I’m talking about real help using the floor, a chair, gravity, and 5 minutes of rest.   You are about to learn the real reason for your back pain, and why spending 5 minutes doing one simple thing is well worth your time.

Understanding Your Back Pain
First, understand your pain. When your back hurts, your nerves are telling you something is wrong. But what? You must first understand why it hurts. Yes, your doctor may have given you a diagnosis for herniated or bulging disks, degenerative disk disease, stenosis, spondylothesis, sciatica, or SI joint dysfunction. It might initially comfort you to get a diagnosis, but a diagnosis isn’t an answer. It won’t tell you what’s wrong or how to fix it.

The difficulty with back pain is that it’s not the same for everyone. Back Pain is very personal. Your back might hurt for a very different reason than your Aunt’s or your neighbor’s. For example, Aunt Jane might have knock-knees. Your neighbor might have uneven hips. You might have ‘winging’ shoulder blades or a flat lower spine. You all might experience a similar kind of pain, but it’s there for different reasons. Or is it? In Postural Therapy, we know that one thing fixes each of these issues. Specifically, this means your aunt, your neighbor, and you just need to straighten your joints and spinal alignment. Here’s an even more comprehensive list of all the potential posture problems that could be contributing to your back pain:

• Forward head position
• Rounded shoulders (slouching)
• Uneven shoulders (one side higher than the other)
• Twisted hips
• Uneven hips (one side higher than the other)
• Leaning to one side
• Swayback
• Exaggerated “S” curve of the spine
• Flattened Spine
• Knock-Knees (valgus stress)
• Bow-legs (varus stress)
• External Femurs (knee caps pointing outward)
• Internal Femurs (knee caps pointing towards each other)
• Tibial Torsion (kneecap pointing different direction than the feet)
• Wide Stance
• Flat feet
• Everted Feet (feet pointing outward)

Second, address your posture. To fix your back pain you must fix your crooked posture. People suffering from back pain might have a different combination of the above imbalances, but the fix is simply to straighten up from head to toe [No, standing up straight is not the answer] Usually, we get fixated on the pain itself. The typical treatments of heat, ice, braces, or medications will not fix your crooked posture or your pain. Your posture problem is causing the inflammation, pinched nerves, or muscle spasms; so your posture is what needs a fix.

Likewise, you can sign up for a surgery to fuse the spine or remove part of a disk (laminectomy) with the fading hope that it will end your nerve pain. Fusing a joint or cutting out portions of your disks doesn’t fix crooked posture. No matter your back pain diagnosis, it’s of utmost importance that you straighten out your crooked body to rid yourself of the pain.

Static Back: Your 5 Minute Fix

Description:

• Lie on your back with legs up and over a block, chair, or couch with knees bent at 90 degrees
• Relax your arms straight out from the shoulders, or just below, with palms up
• Relax your legs and shoulders, letting them settle into the floor and chair /block
• Breathe deeply and feel your body, especially your lower back, settle into the floor

Lay in this position for 5 minutes or longer

(If your head is unable to settle onto the floor, it’s ok to use a small pillow at first. It’s also important to note that this is a sign that you have a very forward head position. Over time gravity will improve your forward head position, so progress with less propping up of your head as you are able to each day.)

The Science Behind Static Back
The static back exercise is simple but quite powerful. It works by the PTX principle called ‘box logic’. The exercise uses the floor and gravity to straighten your joints. When you lay down on the floor, your shoulders, head, and upper back are able to settle into a level position. Gravity is your friend, as it gently pushes each joint evenly down onto the floor.

Placing your legs over a chair puts your hips and knees into a 90 degree angle. This position forces your hips and lower body to level out. The entire body is affected by this simple exercise. You can look at this quick video to learn more about box logic:

Posture Therapy is the cutting-edge answer for all musculoskeletal pain. Box logic can get you out of back, hip, knee, shoulder, wrist, or foot pain. When you stack the joints and get the muscles balanced again, your body has no choice but to straighten up, whether you try to stand up straight or not. When your joints are straight, your pain exits. There won’t be anything for your nerves to complain about, and you can get back to living. Your whole-body-fix is waiting.

Learn more @ PTXTherapy.com
Your Posture Is Your Pain