Back Pain Remedies For Dummies E-Book

Michael S. Sinel

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Seitenzahl: 575

Beschreibung

Get back in control of your back pain Back pain is such a common condition that many doctors andresearchers consider the complaint a normal part of life, similarto having an occasional cold or flu. If you are a back painsufferer, you are not alone: * Back pain affects more than 80 percent of the population atsome time during their lifetime. * Back pain is second only to the common cold as a reason forvisits to the doctor and it is second only to childbirth as areason for hospitalization. * Approximately 50 percent of the working population reports backproblems every year. * The total medical cost of back pain exceeds 20 billion dollarsa year in the United States. Back Pain Remedies For Dummies takes a holistic approachto back pain prevention and treatment. Exploring the therapeuticoptions - from conventional medicine to popularalternative treatments - this patient-friendlyguide gives you a heads-up on how to relieve pain now and avoidfuture injuries, plus * Boning up on your spinal column's pieces and parts * Uncovering some conditions that cause back pain * Examining the lineup of doctors who treat what ails yourback * Taking your pain lying down - or not * Giving weight to alternative therapies, including yoga,acupuncture, and imagery exercises * Promoting the importance of good posture * Returning to work and play with a healthy outlook * Saying yes to sex after a back injury As you try to manage your back pain problem and investigatevarious treatment approaches, you can help yourself by beingassured and hopeful that you can remedy your problem. This reliablereference gives you plenty to reason to believe that back pain doesget better, and successful treatment is possible. You can expect tofind the best treatment for your back problem when you have someunderstanding of who treats back pain, how he or she treats it, andwhy using a multidisciplinary approach isimportant - all of that awaits in Back PainRemedies For Dummies.

Leseprobe

Back Pain Remedies For Dummies®

by Michael S. Sinel, M.D. and William W. Deardorff, Ph.D.

Back Pain Remedies For Dummies®

Published byWiley Publishing, Inc.111 River St.Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774www.wiley.com

Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 99-62838

ISBN: 0-7645-5132-9

Manufactured in the United States of America

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About the Authors

Michael Sinel, M.D. is a nationally renowned back pain expert. He received his medical degree from State University of New York Downstate and then completed a residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at New York Hospital-Cornell University Medical Center. After serving as Director of Outpatient Physical Medicine at Cedar Sinai Medical Center, he became board-certified in both physical medicine and rehabilitation and pain management.

Dr. Sinel is a co-founder of California Orthopedics and Rehabilitation (COR), a prestigious multi-specialty medical group in Beverly Hills, California. He is also an assistant clinical professor at UCLA Medical Center and attending physician with the UCLA Comprehensive Spine Center. He lectures regularly to various medical and lay audiences and is actively involved in clinical research of spinal disorders.

As a specialist in non-surgical approaches to spinal problems and pain management, Dr. Sinel has made numerous national radio and television appearances and has been quoted in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Reader’s Digest.

William W. Deardorff, Ph.D., ABPP received his doctorate in clinical psychology with a special emphasis in health from Washington State University after completing an internship at the University of Washington Medical School. He then completed a post-doctoral fellowship in behavioral medicine at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Dr. Deardorff is board-certified in clinical health psychology and specializes in the evaluation and treatment of psychological issues related to medical problems. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and Past-President of the American Academy of Clinical Health Psychology. Dr. Deardorff is in practice with California Orthopedic and Rehabilitation group in Beverly Hills, California. As an assistant clinical professor at the UCLA School of Medicine, he is active in teaching and research.

Dr. Deardorff has published extensively in the area of health psychology. His previous patient guidebook, Preparing for Surgery: A Mind-Body Approach to Enhance Healing and Recovery won the Small Press Book Award in Health in 1998. He has made numerous national radio and television appearances, and has been quoted in a variety of general publications.

Dedication

Michael Sinel: To my wife, for her never-ending love and commitment. To all those who suffer from back pain, and all those who help.

William Deardorff: To my wife Janine (“not Jeanine”) for her support, patience and putting up with my never-ending “projects.” To my sons Paul (“Mr. P”) and James (“Squeaks”) for their constant encouragement in the form of the regular retort, “How many pages to go, Daddy?”

Acknowledgments

Michael Sinel: I want to thank my wife and my parents for their support and encouragement. I want to thank my first mentor, John Sarno, M.D., who taught me the strength of the mind-body connection, and my present and forever mentor and friend, Ted Goldstein, M.D., who remains the premier “spine doctor” in my eyes. Finally, I would like to thank my patients who will always be my true teachers.

William Deardorff: Aside from my family, I want to thank my close friends for their consistent support throughout the past year: Jeff and Kimberly Steinbach, Brian and Nicoli Tucker, Rick and Joanne Wilson, Ron and Gerri Day, and “Uncle” Dr. Allan F. Chino. I would also like to extend special thanks to Dr. Theodore (“Teddy”) Goldstein for his friendship, support, and professional practice style.

I want to thank Brian Kramer, our project editor, for keeping me on track and on time, as well as immersing me in the ... For Dummies style. Also, thanks to Tami Booth, our executive editor, for being an excellent problem-solver and for taking the time to be sure that this book gets to the people that need it the most, the back pain sufferer.

From both authors: We would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to the many experts who made invaluable contributions to this book, insuring that the information presented is “cutting edge”. First, special acknowledgments are given to the following who made major contributions to specific chapters: to Theodore Goldstein, M.D., for his contribution to the surgery chapter, to Jay Triano, D.C., Ph.D., for his contribution to the chiropractic chapter, and to Larry Payne, Ph.D. for his contribution to the yoga chapter.

We would also like to thank the following for their contributions to various parts of the book (listed in alphabetical order): Aaron Filler, M.D.; Mary Jo Ford, M.D.; Stephen Hochschuler, M.D.; Patrick Johnson, M.D.; Fred Lerner, DC, Ph.D.; Joshua Prager, M.D.; John Reeves, II, Ph.D.; Risa Sheppard; Stephen Sideroff, Ph.D.; Steven Waldman, M.D.

Lastly, we would like to thank our technical reviewers Anthony Cole, M.D. and John Reeves, II, Ph.D. for ensuring the accuracy of our information and strengthening the presentation of the material overall.

Publisher's Acknowledgments

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Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions and Editorial

Project Editor: Brian Kramer

Executive Editor: Tammerly Booth

Copy Editors: Christine Meloy Beck, Tamara Castleman, Kathleen Dobie, Patricia Yuu Pan, Susan Diane Smith

Technical Editors: Andrew J. Cole, M.D.; John L. Reeves, Ph.D.

Editorial Manager: Leah P. Cameron

Editorial Assistants: Beth Parlon, Alison Walthall

Special Help Donna Love; Larry Payne, Ph.D.; Douglas Barenburg, D.C.; Laura Johnston

Production

Project Coordinator: Regina Snyder

Layout and Graphics: Linda M. Boyer, Laura Carpenter, Angela F. Hunckler, David McKelvey, Anna Rohrer, Brent Savage, Janet Seib, Michael A. Sullivan, Brian Torwelle

Illustrator: Kathryn Born

Photos: Custom Medical Stock Photo (page 81); P. Saluotos/Custom Medical Stock Photo (page 84); M. Moreland/Custom Medical Stock Photo (page 189)

Proofreaders: Kelli Botta, Laura L. Bowman, Betty Kish, Nancy Price, Marianne Santy, Rebecca Senninger

Indexer: Steve Rath

Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies

Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies

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Composition Services

Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

Contents

Title

Introduction

About This Book

Foolish Assumptions

What You’re Not to Read

How This Book Is Organized

Icons Used in This Book

Where to Go from Here

Part I : Getting Back to Back Basics

Chapter 1: Ouch! The Problem of Back Pain

Defining Back Pain

Treating Back Pain

Chapter 2: Introducing the Parts of Your Spine

Feeling Fine with Help from Your Spine

Touring Your Splendid Spine

Chapter 3: The Root of All Back Pain

A New Idea About Pain: The Gate Control Theory

Understanding Categories of Pain

The Need to Diagnose: Helpful or Harmful?

Understanding the Deconditioning Syndrome

Conditions that Cause Back Pain

Other Conditions That Cause Back Pain

Chapter 4: Out of Your Hands: When to Seek Help and from Whom

Who Treats Back Pain?

Asking Your Doctor the Right Questions

Dealing with Chiropractors and Other Practitioners

Building a Positive Relationship with Your Healthcare Provider

Part II : Conventional Treatment Options

Chapter 5: Home Remedies: First Aid for Your Back Attack

Heading for the Doctor

Using Home Remedies

Chapter 6: Back Pain under the Microscope: Common Medical Tests

Meeting with Your Back Pain Doctor

Examining Your Doctor

Exploring Your Diagnostic Testing Options

Moving from Body to Mind

Chapter 7: Going the Conservative Treatment Route

The Active Therapies

The Passive Therapies

Medications

Invasive Conservative Treatments

Implantable Pain Therapies

Chapter 8: Choosing to Have Back Surgery

Choosing Surgery

Determining When Surgery Is Necessary

Addressing Psychological Issues and Surgery

Finding a Spine Surgeon

Recognizing Red Flags in Working with Your Spine Surgeon

Different Types of Spine Surgery

Preparing for Surgery

The Future of Spine Surgery

Part III : Complementary Approaches: Are They for You?

Chapter 9: Ancient Eastern Wisdom and Contemporary Ideas

Selecting an Alternative Medicine Practitioner

Choosing the Best Complementary Medicine Approach for You

Considering Specific Alternative Treatment Methods

Chapter 10: A Chiropractic Solution to Back Pain

How Chiropractors Think about Back Problems

When to Choose Chiropractic

What to Expect — Diagnosis and Treatment

Possible Side Effects

Stopping Chiropractic Treatment

Chapter 11: All in Knots: Yoga for Your Back Problem

Beginning Hatha Yoga

Using Yoga to Treat Back Pain

Chapter 12: Using the Power of the Mind-Body Connection

Taking Control of Your Thoughts and Emotions

The Relaxation Response: More Than Just Relaxing

Different Types of Breathing

Cue-Controlled Relaxation

Using Imagery Techniques

Biofeedback Training

Here’s a Suggestion: Hypnosis

Part IV : Rehabilitation

Chapter 13: The Importance of Posture

Sizing Up Static Postures

Dealing with Dynamic Postures

Chapter 14: Exercising Your Way to a Healthy Back

Exercise Tips

Exercise Warnings

Your Back Exercise Program

Chapter 15: Products for Better Back Health

For Your Home

While You Are Sleeping

For Your Office

While You Travel

While You Stay Healthy and Fit

Part V : Resuming Normal Activity and Preventing Future Injury: Work, Play, and Sex

Chapter 16: Getting Back to Work

The Purpose of Work

Identifying Risky Occupations

Returning to Work

Preparing to Return to Work

Returning to the Office

Chapter 17: Safely Returning to Your Favorite Sports: The Weekend Warrior

Getting Involved in Sports Safely

Playing Sports with Back Pain

Chapter 18: Sex and Back Pain: Getting “Back” in the Saddle

Understanding Back Pain’s Vicious Cycle

Don’t Be Shy: Communicate

Getting in the Mood

Getting Physical

Back Friendly Sexual Positions, or “Getting Down to It”

Putting It All Together

Part VI : The Part of Tens

Chapter 19: Ten Most Common Questions about Back Pain

Can I Manage My Herniated Disc without Surgery?

What Kind of Doctor Should I See for My Back Pain?

Why Do I Still Have Pain When My Imaging Scans Are Normal?

What About Alternative Treatments for My Back Pain?

Is My Diagnosis as Terrible as It Sounds?

When Should I Consider Surgery for My Back Pain Problem?

Can Stress and Emotions Cause My Back Pain?

How Can Pain Only in My Legs Be Related to My Back?

What Does a Good Medical Evaluation Consist of for Back Pain?

Should I Continue Exercising If Doing So Worsens My Pain?

Chapter 20: Ten Steps to a Healthy Back

Stay in Shape

Do Your Back Exercises

Maintain Your Proper Body Weight

Watch Out for High-Risk Sports

Foster a Positive Attitude

Lift and Move Properly

Don’t Lift and Twist

Don’t Stand or Sit for Long Periods

Use a Good Chair

Avoid Carrying Heavy Luggage

Chapter 21: Ten Reasons to See a Doctor for Back Pain

You’re Weak in the Legs(or Feet)

You Can’t Control Your Bowels or Bladder

Your Back Pain Gives You a Rude Awakening

You Have New Symptoms or Excruciating Pain

You Undergo a Serious Trauma

You Want to Pursue Alternative Treatments

You Need More than Chicken Soup

You’re Not Seeing Improvement

Your Medications Aren’t Working

Your Doctor Recommends Surgery

Chapter 22: Ten Tips for Working Successfully with Your Doctor

Identifying Your Communication Style

Becoming an Assertive Communicator

Planning Your Interview and Doctor Visit in Advance

Preparing Your Medical Fact Sheet

Checking Your Attitude

Allowing the Doctor to Ask Questions First

Making Sure That You Understand the Conclusions

Bringing a Friend

Directing Your Questions to the Appropriate Person

Exploring Other Sources of Information

Chapter 23: Ten Hot Topics in Back Pain

A Revolutionary New Medicine: Celebrex

Back Pain and the Unconscious Mind

The Cybertech Back Brace

MR Neurography: Taking a Picture of Your Nerves

Preparing Psychologically for Your Spine Surgery

Spinal Endoscopy

Preemptive Analgesia

Treating Massive Disc Herniations without Surgery

Advances in Spine Surgery

Advances in Implantable Pain Therapies

: Appendix A

Glossary

Appendix B: Resources for Additional Information

Organizations

Internet Resources

Product Resources

Introduction

“Oh, my aching back!” If you’ve ever uttered these words, then this book is for you. Back pain is a very common problem. In fact, almost everyone has or will experience back pain at some point in time.

We know how miserable back pain can be — many of our patients struggle with chronic back pain, while others come to us searching for an end to pain that began after an auto accident or some other trauma. Several things can cause back pain; this book offers multiple remedies to manage — and conquer — this frustrating condition.

We also know that any pain is frightening. You may be afraid to move for fear you’ll injure yourself further. You may worry that you’ll never regain normal functioning. And you may be shaken when your doctor starts suggesting tests with high-tech, hard-to-pronounce names. This book works to put you in charge of the pain and to remove the intimidation factor from common medical procedures.

About This Book

In our practice, we use a whole-person, multidisciplinary approach. When treating the whole person, we look at all the factors that contribute to a back pain condition. With a multidisciplinary approach, we often combine treatments from different disciplines (for instance, medical approaches, exercise, chiropractic, acupuncture, bodywork, and so on) to help our patients overcome back pain problems. We believe that back pain is completely manageable and that surgery is avoidable in the vast majority of cases.

Throughout the book, we look at both the physical and emotional causes and ramifications of back pain. We also look at ways you can manage and relieve your pain, including everything from aerobics, nerve blocks, and medication to yoga and guided imagery. We also cover common treatments and diagnoses, and we look at ways in which pain affects your life at home and at work.

Back Pain Remedies For Dummies is organized in an easy-access manner. We start with the most basic information (such as an overview of back pain and back anatomy) and move through to more specific topics like conventional and complementary approaches, as well as rehabilitation. The book is chock-full of tips and anecdotes from our practice (many derived from our patients) who have overcome the challenges of back pain. You’ll find detailed explanations of common conditions, tests, and treatments — all described in plain English. (If we ever lapse into medical jargon, our editors make sure that we explain exactly what we mean in layman’s terms.)

Finally, this book is a tool that empowers you to get the best possible treatment — and results. We give you lists of questions to ask your doctor, and we prepare you for interaction with the medical community. No more will you find yourself nodding your head while your doctor talks, only to scramble to figure out just what he or she meant after the appointment. When you’re talking about your body, you deserve to be in control.

Foolish Assumptions

As we wrote this book, we did make a few assumptions about you, the reader:

You or someone you care about suffer from occasional, chronic, or recurring back pain.

You want to educate yourself about back pain conditions and common treatments.

You are frequently frustrated by the information — or lack of it — that you receive from the medical community.

You want to take charge of your own treatment, and you want to make intelligent decisions about any tests or surgeries your doctor suggests.

You are interested in exploring some of the emotional aspects of living with back pain.

You want to feel better.

You like chocolate ice cream. (You don’t actually have to like chocolate ice cream, but we try to add a little humor here and there.)

What You’re Not to Read

You don’t have to read this book from cover to cover. Feel free to skip around and read what interests or applies to you and your situation. The book is modular, so you can start in the middle of Chapter 13 and then go to the beginning of Chapter 1 without losing any important information, and no matter how much you skip around, the book will still make sense. We’ve loaded the book with cross references to other chapters, so you know right where to jump for more information or a further explanation of a given term or treatment.

Of course, if you’re one of those people who must start at the beginning and go to the end, we won’t stop you. The book does have a logical progression, so you can read from front to back. Just remember that even though back pain can be scary, we didn’t write this book like a Stephen King thriller. Use what you need; skip the rest.

How This Book Is Organized

Remember back in high school when you had to provide your teachers with an outline of a chapter or a report? This book is organized in much the same way. We start out by dividing the text into parts. Each part covers a general area of back pain and treatment. The parts are further divided into chapters. Each chapter deals with a specific issue that pertains to the entire part. Chapters are broken down by headings that separate the main ideas we cover, and sometimes, we even use subheads. Our English teachers would be so proud!

Part I: Getting Back to Back Basics

Most importantly, this part explains how common back pain really is. After reading this part, you’ll be relieved to discover that you don’t need to be embarrassed by your back pain — millions of people are facing the same challenges. We also spend a bit of time looking at spine anatomy and the causes of back pain. This part ends with a chapter that tells you when you need to see a professional, and what kind of professional can help you the most.

Part II: Conventional Treatment Options

We hate to hit you over the head with the obvious, but this part looks at traditional treatment options. When you first have a flare-up, you may want to try some home remedies, so we talk about which of those may work in your situation, and when you need to trade in the home remedies for a visit to your doctor’s office.

Our goal is to help you make the best decision possible about the course of treatment you choose. Physicians have several options for treating back pain, so in the next couple of chapters, we explain common tests and common medical treatments. We also spend a chapter exploring the surgery option (and we tell you how to find a good surgeon if you go that route). By the end of this part, you should have all the tools you need to make intelligent decisions about your course of treatment.

Part III: Complementary Approaches: Are They for You?

If you have a mother or a financial advisor, then you know that putting all your eggs in one basket is almost never a good idea. So in this part, we explore treatment options that you can use in conjunction with standard medical treatments, including the following (to name a few):

Acupuncture

Bodywork

Magnet therapy

Biofeedback

Massage

Yoga

We spend some time discussing the mind-body connection, and how you can use it to help manage your pain. No back pain book would be complete without a chapter on chiropractics, and we’re nothing if not thorough. Well, we’re also responsible, and to that end, we tell you how to recognize the charlatans out there of all types who offer quick cures that result in worsened pain.

Part IV: Rehabilitation

This part gets into the hands-on stuff. We tell you what kinds of exercises and treatments your doctor is likely to recommend, and we walk through each of them with you. This part is also full of tips and tricks that you can do on your own to manage your pain and speed recovery. We help you design an exercise program tailored to your condition. And, finally, we offer you a chapter’s worth of products that can work to make you and your back more comfortable.

Part V: Resuming Normal Activity and Preventing Future Injury: Work, Play, and Sex

Bet you can’t guess what this part covers. Seriously, though, as you are painfully aware, a bad back can affect your overall quality of life. Once you finally get the pain and the condition under control, returning to normal activities can be a daunting thought at best. And after a siege of back pain, you certainly want to prevent any future injuries. By following the tips in these chapters, you can safely return to work and engage in extracurricular activities — all without fear of reinjury.

Part VI: The Part of Tens

All books in the ...For Dummies series contain a Part of Tens part. These chapters offer tidbits of information in easy bites. We cover ten (or so — ...For Dummies books aren’t big on rules) of the following:

Common questions about back pain

Steps to a healthy back

Reasons to see a doctor for back pain

Tips for working successfully with your doctor

Hot topics in back pain

If nothing else, you won’t run out of conversation starters at your next cocktail party.

We also end the book with two appendixes. The first is a glossary that gives you an at-a-glance definition of common terms in the world of back pain treatment. The second is a list of resources. You can contact the organizations here for further information and support or visit some helpful Web sites.

Icons Used in This Book

As you thumb through the book, you’ll notice that many paragraphs are set off by little icons. We put them there to draw your attention to information that is especially important, or that you may find particularly interesting. We use the following icons:

This icon alerts you to those instances when you should see your doctor right away.

We occasionally add some information that is pretty technical in nature. If you really want to delve into the topic, you’ll enjoy the information we present here. Otherwise, feel free to skip right over these paragraphs.

You’re not alone if your back pain causes you anxiety. We understand, so paragraphs marked with this icon offer you healing, motivational, or stress-relieving ideas.

These are things that we simply don’t want you to forget.

We give our patients all kinds of tips for dealing with and managing their pain and their interaction with the medical community. We’re happy to share them with you, too, in the paragraphs marked with this icon.

This icon’s not a picture of a bomb for nothing. These paragraphs warn you of things you shouldn’t do and symptoms you shouldn’t ignore. Think of this information as giant stop signs on the back pain highway.

Where to Go from Here

You’ve already made a commitment to helping yourself by getting this book. Just as you need to choose the treatment options and remedies that are best for you, you should choose where to start reading. Take a gander at the Table of Contents. When you find a topic that interests you, start reading your way to pain-free living.

Part I

Getting Back to Back Basics

In this part . . .

You are not suffering alone.

Back pain can be embarrassing and make you feel isolated from friends, coworkers — even your family. In this part, you discover just how common back pain is — actually, almost everyone suffers from at least one bout of back pain during his or her life. We also give you an overview of spine anatomy, which is essential to understanding your pain, and then we go on to discuss the things that can cause back pain.

Chapter 1

Ouch! The Problem of Back Pain

In This Chapter

Digging into the who, what, when, where, and why of back pain

Getting successful treatment

Combining traditional and non-traditional treatments

Unless you find the topic of back pain as exciting as the latest Tom Clancy novel, we’re guessing that you or someone you care about is experiencing back pain. Finding appropriate treatment that actually works can be frustrating, to say the least. And everybody seems to have an opinion about what you should do: Your mother-in-law swears by her chiropractor, your son thinks you should try yoga, your boss touts physical therapy, and your best friend raves about the results of his surgery.

In addition to getting more advice than you want, you may also notice that people treat you differently. For instance, how many times have you heard the following statements (or made them yourself):

Don’t lift those boxes without bending your knees; you’ll hurt your lower back.

You can’t play golf — that twisting motion is bad for your back pain. You’ll throw your back out for sure.