Monday 21 April 2008

Do You Have Degenerative Disc Disease?

Degenerative Disc Disease!! When I was told I had that I felt sick to my stomach. I knew I had Sciatica and back pain , I did not know I had an Actual disease!!

Well after I did some of my own research turns out that Degenerative Disc Disease is in fact not a disease at all.

Degenerative Disc Disease, often known as DDD, is a natural part of getting older. It happens. It is not contagious or of risk to anyone else. With time everyone experiences some changes in their discs. Some people will get symptoms associated with that process, others will not. It showed up on my MRI scan quite clearly that I had DDD in my L4/5 and L5/S1 discs which showed up black on the scan results and a narrower space than the other discs.

DDD is where the gel type substance in the discs dries out. The discs over time, lose their shock absortion role and become more stiff. In addition the ligaments around the disc tend to become brittle which leaves them at risk of tears.

Degenerative disc disease is not a disease at all. It is a condition that can degenerate.

Degenerative means to most of us something that gets worse over time and with age. In the case of DDD the disc can degenerate with age and time but it does not always follow that the symptoms will get worse.

To learn more please click here to read more about DDD If you liked this post do consider joining our Facebook Page Sciatica Solutions.



Lose The Back Pain System
Lose the Back Pain, is a system of self assessments to determine what physical imbalances you may have that may be causing your pain, then specific and targeted exercises to follow to address the imbalances, along with pain reduction strategies. 

For useful information and suggestions there is a Free Back Pain Book Written by the Healthy back Institute-

7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will give you a good starting point for taking back control of your back pain covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
Follow Jasmine Ann Raintree's board Back And Sciatic Pain Strategies. on Pinterest.

Sunday 13 April 2008

Craig Lundberg:An Inspiration.

It's the London Marathon today and many people are running for various charities.

There are very many stories of incredible bravery and people overcoming illness and fighting for life. All fantastic and inspirational people to me.... Its hard to choose but I was particularly touched by Craig Lundberg who was severely injured in Iraq, very nearly lost his life and is now totally blind. Whatever your views on Iraq what struck me was this 22 year olds amazing attitude to the lifechanging blow to his future.

A year on from his horrendous accident today he is running the London Marathon, he is totally blind and has 2 helpers to run with him.

I just wanted to post links to his story and blog here if we ever feel in need of a little inspiration about how to handle things that may have happened to us, out of our control and how one young man has coped and made the very best of a potentially depressing and terrible situation.

Craigs Story : article in the papers.
(Link no longer active 2016)



Way to go Craig!! If you liked this post do consider joining our Facebook Page Sciatica Solutions.



For useful information and suggestions there is a Free Back Pain Book Written by the Healthy back Institute-

7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will give you a good starting point for taking back control of your back pain covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
Follow Jasmine Ann Raintree's board Back And Sciatic Pain Strategies. on Pinterest.

Monday 7 April 2008

Kick Off Those High Heels!

Don't you just love high heels!They are stylish, sexy and look sleek and beautiful. Girls we feel very ladylike and the "bees knees " in them. Guys seem to like us wearing them too.

However much as I love my shoes, they are no longer my regular shoe of choice and if you have back pain they maybe should not be yours.

Why?

Well look at yourself in a full length mirror in your underwear while wearing them. First stand with no shoes on and see how your spine curves-there should be a gentle "S" bend but nothing too exaggerated. Then put on your heels(we are talking 2" plus here.) Do you see how they throw your spine out of its normal alignment? Does your spine curve more? Is the lower spine now an exaggerated curve? Take them off and stand and you will see the difference.

If your spine is held in that posture throwing the hips forwards and downwards for too long, too often, you are likely to develop muscle imbalances and pain. If you already have back pain and have particularly a forward titled pelvis like I had, then you are doing yourself no favours.

With an increase in the curve of the lumbar spine comes additional pressure on the spine and the disks and the muscles supporting that area. Over time if this pressure is regular you may incur muscle imbalances and disc problems, even disc herniations.

So what can you do? Well you don't need to throw away your heels and always wear flatties but do limit your use of high heels. Wear a variety of heel heights and sometimes go barefoot even round the house.

Take full advantage of fashions where heels are not so trendy. You can get some beautiful shoes with lower heel heights. I love my shoes but now I take care of my back too :)

Keep high heels for special occasions or times when you know you will be sitting down mostly. I have even been known to walk to the venue for an evening out in flatter shoes then change into my heels just before I go in!!

For more information on muscle imbalances and how to rectify please follow this link to Lose The Back Pain System

Take care of you and your back :) If you liked this post do consider joining our Facebook Page Sciatica Solutions.



Lose The Back Pain System
Lose the Back Pain, is a system of self assessments to determine what physical imbalances you may have that may be causing your pain, then specific and targeted exercises to follow to address the imbalances, along with pain reduction strategies. 

For useful information and suggestions there is a Free Back Pain Book Written by the Healthy back Institute-

7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will give you a good starting point for taking back control of your back pain covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
Follow Jasmine Ann Raintree's board Back And Sciatic Pain Strategies. on Pinterest.

Wednesday 2 April 2008

Rub On Pain Relief

Whenever I hear about new things which may help you I like to post them here. I have been told recently about this product "Rub on Relief" which I think is worth spending a little time on.

Now I don't think a pain relief cream alone can cure all types of back and sciatic pain though it may help you to cope better. If it can ease pain long enough for you to sleep, rest and work on your stretching and strengthening exercises etc most importantly -without side effects- that is a good step towards recovery.


I could not take any pain relievers during my back pain due to the powerful and very unpleasant side effects I experienced so I dealt with pain 24/7 and suffered lack of sleep and various degrees of pain night and day, and had to progress slowly with my exercise and stetching rehab.

Maybe a cream like this would have given me some much needed relief...for which I would have been so very grateful and allowed faster progress....



Please read the information below and click on the link to learn more about it and what people who have used it say.
 



The following information comes courtesy of The Healthy Back Institute"


Rub On Relief has been shown to be especially valuable in treating a variety of joint and muscle pains. Its proprietary combination of natural oils and organic ingredients works to bring relief-often immediately-from the daily aches and pains many people experience.

Rub On Relief appears to work especially well with soft tissue and joint problems and has been shown to be effective in relieving rheumatic pains, swollen and stiff joints, tendon pain, sciatica, tenderness in knee joints, low back pain, neck stiffness and even head aches.

Other pain relief options, such as Cortisone and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) also work to reduce inflammation, but the downside is that they often bring with them a number of unpleasant side effects.

Instead, Rub On Relief contains powerful antioxidants that work to neutralize free radicals-unstable molecules that can do a lot of damage, especially to blood vessel walls and the cartilage tissue that surrounds your joints.

The antioxidants contained in Rub On Relief prevent these free radicals from getting additional oxygen, something they need in order to thrive. Rub On Relief also includes omega-3 fatty
acids, which have been proven to reduce inflammation as well as provide numerous other health benefits.

Several clinical studies have confirmed that the Rub On Relief formula can bring quick and effective relief to a variety of painful conditions. In one study, participants suffering from
arthritis were asked to stop using a popular pain-relief product and instead begin applying Rub On Relief once a day for three days.

In a matter of days, almost 90 percent of the participants who used the topical cream reported getting faster pain relief than they had gotten from the product they had been using. They also
said it was more pleasant to use and reported no adverse side effects.

For those who have unsuccessfully sought relief from over-the-counter pain relievers and prescription NSAIDs-or who simply cannot tolerate some of the undesirable side effects, such as
stomach irritation or worse-a completely natural topical cream like Rub On Relief may be a good treatment option.



Click here to learn more about Rub on Relief


  If you liked this post do consider joining our Facebook Page Sciatica Solutions.


For useful information and suggestions there is a Free Back Pain Book Written by the Healthy back Institute-

7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will give you a good starting point for taking back control of your back pain covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
Follow Jasmine Ann Raintree's board Back And Sciatic Pain Strategies. on Pinterest.