Why does my back ache?

US Department of Labor estimates that 100 million work days per year are lost due to low back pain!Carrying the kids on your shoulders, cleaning the floors, lifting groceries out of the car, or a little extra up front (that’s the pendulous abdominal syndrome). Lifting, bending and twisting, or worse yet, sitting all day at work. Add to this a slip and fall or a previous car accident and it’s not difficult to understand why studies show that approximately 80% of Americans will suffer from lower back pain at some time in their life. Many times back pain begins after just bending over to pick up a pencil. Now, it’s not the pencil causing your back pain, but rather your lower back’s structure (meaning the muscles, joints, discs, and vertebrae) has lost it’s normal functioning, and therefore could not provide the necessary support to your spine. Doctors of Chiropractic specialize in finding the cause of your lower back pain. Combining spinal adjustments with proper exercises and stretches, and a well balanced diet are the keys to reducing or eliminating your lower back pain. Doctors of Chiropractic are the specialists in treating lower back pain.

I’m Pregnant

Pregnancy is extremely hard on the lower back as well as on the neck and shoulders. Examine the spine of an expectant mother from the side and it’s easy to understand why they are in pain. Due to the increased development of the breast tissue, the shoulders are rounded forward, placing tremendous pressure on the neck and shoulders. The weight of the growing child places the lower back in a strenuous position.The nine months of pregnancy bring many hormonal changes that relax the ligaments stabilizing the lower back and pelvis. As the pelvis rotates down in the front, the muscles of the lower back become short and tight, causing an increase in pressure on the pain sensitive joints of the lower back, producing achy lower back pain. Chiropractic care can help make this special time in a woman’s life as enjoyable as it was meant to be.