Back Pain Facts

Persistent Low Back Pain Rarely Equals Serious Tissue Damage

Alot of back pain begins with simple everyday tasks. These occasions may relate to stress, tension, fatigue, inactivity or unaccustomed activity that makes the back sensitive to loading.

Scans Often Don’t Show The Cause of Low Back Pain

Scans are only helpful in a minority of people.

Alot of things your scan show are very common in people without low back pain and don’t predict how much pain you feel.

Pain With Movement Doesn’t Mean You Are Doing Harm

The pain you feel during movement and activities reflects how sensitive your structures are, not necessarily how damaged they are. So it is safe and normal to feel some pain when you start to move and exercise.

Tensing To Protect Isn’t The Answer

Particularly in athletes, being strong and having good control around the spine and pelvis is important to help prevent low back injury.

However, being tense all the time isn’t helpful can can sensitize structures further when you have low back pain. Learning to relax the ‘core’ muscles during everyday tasks can be helpful.

Pain Flare Us Don’t Usually Relate To Tissue Damage

The common triggers are things like poor sleep, stress, tension, low mood, inactivity or unaccustomed activity.

If you have a pain flare up, try not thinking about it like an injury, rather stay calm and keep moving.