An extra back pain question answered
On May 27th, I posted the answers to some back questions that had been submitted for our back expert, Malton Schexneider, PT, MMSc, a clinical specialist in orthopaedic physical therapy and is author of Back Pain Relief Secrets and Healthy Back Essentials (The back expert answers questions).
One question was submitted late and Malton agreed to answer it. Here it is:
Question:
Hi, I hope I am not too late! I have chronic migraines with aura (and sometimes with hemiplegia) and also was diagnosed with idiopathic brachial neuritis in December. Since then I have treated the neuritis but continue to have excruciating upper back pain and tension.
How can I effectively treat the tension? I feel that it is triggering more migraines and quite frankly, I am exhausted from the constant pain of the migraines during the morning and afternoon and the back pain throughout the rest of the day. I have tried muscle relaxants and opiates, which dull the pain a little but do not make it go away. I am also having trouble sleeping due to the pain, which I am sure is contributing to more migraines. What do I do??
Answer:
I am terribly sorry to hear about your troubles. Migraines are bad enough but when you throw back pain into the mix… whew, I know you’re hurting.
While I am certainly no expert at helping people solve their migraine issues, I can help with the tension and back pain troubles you’re describing.
If you’re like most people I see with neck pain and the often times associated garden variety headaches that accompany a stiff and painful neck, then you’ve probably got a condition I describe as “forward head posture”. Forward head posture (FHP) has the following characteristics:
¨ Head forward of the shoulders
¨ Flattening of the normal cervical curve
¨ Loss of forward movement of the head on the neck (nodding motion)
¨ Accentuation of the thoracic curve
¨ Forward rounding of the shoulders
¨ Muscle imbalances associated with the neck, chest, and mid back area.
The key to managing these problems is to address the muscle imbalances. These are defined characteristics involving tight muscles on one side of our body and weak muscles that oppose the function of the tight muscles.
As it relates to tension, headaches, and neck pain, what typically happens is that the muscles at the base of the skull get tight and the muscles on the front side of the neck get weak. A simple way to stretch these muscles is to clasp your hands behind your neck and slowly nod your head forward until you feel a stretch at the base of your skull. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds and repeat.
Obviously there’s way more involved than just this. For a more complete explanation, post a question on my blog, http://eraseyourbackpain.com, and I’ll talk to you in more detail.
I hope that helps some and I do wish you better health in the future.
Malton A. Schexneider, PT, MMSc
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POSTED IN: Ask the Expert & Guest posts, Back & neck pain, Headaches/Migraines
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