The Real Cost Of Back Pain & Why The Doctor May Not Help
At some point in your life you will (or likely have) experienced lower back pain.
There are many reasons this can occur.
The cost of back-pain can be **tremendous**
Missed work & pay, Being bed-bound and not to mention the mental side of this if you cannot live the life you had
Health is only missed when we are sick – then it’s too late
Recent surveys have noted the following as the main players in back pain
These risk factors are simply compiled from correlational studies and surveys of patients with back pain.
What should you take from this list? Most people develop back pain for nonspecific reasons.
Any of these impact you?
- Being Overweight (More weight to carry)
- Having a Physical Job
- Having a Sedentary Job
- Psychologically Demanding Job (Yes, Chronic Stress pop’s up again)
- Mental Illness (Depression, Anxiety)
- Smoking (Slower to Heal)
These risk factors are simply compiled from correlational studies and surveys of patients with back pain.
What should you take from this list?
Most people develop back pain for nonspecific reasons.
Now enter the Doctor’s office.
See if this story seems familiar to you or a family member
- You have had untreated back pain for a few days
- You visit the Doc
- He’s not quite sure what’s up – he sends you for a MRI/CT Scan or X-ray (maybe all 3 if you get involved w/ expensive consultants)
- Results come back from scan (no examination of the muscle tissue joining your back)
- You’re symptoms are diagnosed (These are diagnosed wrong a lot of the time)
- You get some low level pain killers like Panadol or Anti-inflammatories such as Ibuprofen
- The pain recedes (yes, painkillers work) but the issues is not resolved and the pain comes back
Not lets stops here for a minute.
At this stage you have paid for a doctors visit (€60),
You have gone to a private hospital for 1 X-ray & 1 MRI (€350+ minimum)
You have been referred to a ‘Specialist’ (€200)
You have gone to the Pharmacy for pain pills (€25)
And you what have you got?
A bill for potentially over €500 & no permanent fix to your complaint
A classic example of treating the symptoms & not the cause.
And before someone goes ‘But my Doctor fixed mine’
There are *many* cases a doctor or a radiologist can spot major red flag with back pain and imaging is a literal life-saver.
What Iam saying is 85-90% of back pain cases are not these types
Your back pain is most likely caused by muscle pain.
Here are some things you should do to fix it:
- Stay active – This is not the time to lay in bed. Keep the muscles moving and the blood pumping. You don’t need to lift weights necessarily but you something like walking is perfect/ Yoga & Pilates have been a lifesaver personally.
- Heat – Remember heat heals & helps improve blood flow and relax tight muscles. Cold is not useful. It doesn’t penetrate the skin and has no real benefit in healing. Regular Sauna sessions are your friend with back pain.
- Acupuncture/Dry Needling – There’s plenty of evidence this is beneficial for pain and is underutilized in the western world, Dry needling is very useful to reduce acute pain (check out Stephanie Dowling – Galway Holistic, the best in the business)
- Physical therapy – they can help you exercise those muscles that hurt so they don’t get hurt again. Get a good one who will build you back up & not fleece you for €€€
And we can’t forgot about the benefits of Floating for the back.
**No other** activity decompresses your spine like a Float.
Its the only place your back gets to turn off & rest.
After improving sleep quality, the most positive feedback we get are from people with back injuries.
Car crashes, slipped/bulging discs, old sports injuries and the dreaded sciatica
Before I sign off (and in case any doctors read this!) – pain needs to be treated, but so does the root cause.
if you’re struggling wiht frequent back pain you need a hlitic approach to address the cause.
A 30 minute Sauna & a 60 minute Float Therapy (from only €64 a month for members) coupled with the solutions provided above could serve you much better.
Get back to living a pain-free life – at a fraction of the cost
Something work thinking about if/when your back ever acts up
For too long have people relied on what seemed to be established science.
*Some* Doctors leave college & never pick up a book again – are these the people we want telling us how to stay healthy?
I doubt it.
Science changes – that’s the whole point of it.
Remember when Columbus & his crew thought the world was flat and they could sail of the edge?
Or when doctors recommended their favourite cigarette brand?
That wasn’t that long ago!
Now we have access to a lot of info – including our knowledgeable customers
We get the chance to have great conversations with our customers,
Where they get their information from and what they have learned recently.
So today, we’re going to list 5 of our go-to’s.
These people live in the bleeding edge of science and are worth a listen
1. Professor Andrew Huberman – His Podcast, Huberman Labs, is a no-brainer if you have interest in managing your own health.
2. Dr. James Di Nicolantonio – The author of multiple books and breaks down the science of what it means to be healthy
3. Dr Rhonda Patrick – Our ‘Sauna’ nerd. She is one of the most published doctors in science with and focuses on heat exposure, fasting & hormone performance
4. Dr Mark Hyman – Bringing us back to our roots this doc helps us understand how the world & food has changed in recent years
5. Dr Matthew Walker – The Sleep Guy. The first time I listened to this man I got a fright. Sleep is important. Quality sleep is even more important
These people can be found across the interwebs and podcasts.
Don’t listen to us – find out what works for you and doing your own research
And remember nothing is ever set in stone.
Hopefully we can help you stay on top of it all
