When you have back pain, you are desperate to ease the pain straight away. Taking pain medication is one option. Waiting until the pain subsides is another, longer-term option. But what if you knew exactly what to do to relieve the pain? Back pain is draining, sapping all your energy. The better you look after your back, the sooner you can return to feeling more carefree. This blog gives you a few general guidelines and discusses how yoga therapy can help when you have acute back pain.

There are many unexpected triggers for acute back pain. You may have overdone the gardening, sat in a car seat or soft chair too long, lifted something heavy, or slept on the wrong mattress. Sometimes, pain erupts during or immediately after the particular activity. At other times, the pain can start suddenly during a small movement, the day after the back-breaking activity. Then again, it can develop gradually over time. The patterns of pain development point to different causes of back pain and to different treatment approaches.  

Usually, there is some position or movement that can ease your pain. If no position or nothing you do alleviates the pain, it’s very important to seek medical help as soon as you can. This is because this kind of constant back pain might indicate a tumour pressing against your spine.

This blog focuses on a common form of back pain that starts quite suddenly and does respond to changing positions. Let’s start by exploring what you can do to soothe this acute kind of pain.

Slow down

Back pain drains your energy, so stop rushing around. This not only preserves your energy but also allows you to feel which positions hurt and which don’t. Getting to know your pain is the start of healing.

Favour pain-free positions

Once you move more slowly and with more awareness, you will understand which positions ease the pain. Favour these and avoid all those that increase your pain. Is your lower back pain accompanied by a sharp shooting pain or tingling down your leg? Avoid movements that exacerbate these sensations as much as you can, as they indicate nerve impingement. Do what you can to avoid further irritating the muscles and/or nerves. At first, we want to find and ease the pain trigger. In this way, we allow muscles to return to a more relaxed state, or we avoid increasing the pressure on a nerve.

Rest

Find a position that feels restful and soothing. Usually this is not in bed or on a soft sofa, but on a yoga mat or carpet. Using support for the head and legs means that muscles can release better. The position below benefits many causes of back pain but if it doesn’t, rest on your back with your legs straight.

Rest for 10 to 30 minutes once or twice a day. During this time, focus on your breathing, which is bound to slow down and soothe the whole body. The position and breathing will allow the muscles to relax and reduce the stress of being in pain.

Do yoga back care practices twice a day

To heal muscle cramp or tightness, it just isn’t enough to exercise a few times a week. The way yoga therapy can help when you have acute back pain is through repetition. Doing gentle stretches, or strengthening if appropriate, will be more beneficial when done daily. I would even recommend twice a day for strong pain. The need for daily practice is why I give my students tailored home practice sheets. When they practise at home, there will be more improvement and the next yoga session can build on that. The yoga practices don’t have to be complicated. On the contrary, simple movements or positions are often most effective.

Table rest

For acute pain, this table rest can do wonders to release tight back muscles. When done a few times a day, combined with the tips above, your back muscles can gradually ease and pain dissolve.

If you have shooting pain down your leg, it will be better to lie on your front on a mat and rest in a prone position instead.

Sitting on a chair, carefully lean your trunk forward on a table. You can either place your elbows on the table and rest your head in your hands, or lower the head to rest on your arms. The position has to feel completely comfortable and relaxing, so choose the higher or lower position accordingly. Stay for a minute or two while simply following your breath.

Hold one leg

This position can be soothing for many causes of back pain.

Lie on your back and bring one knee up to the chest. Rest for up to a minute while focusing on your breath and repeat with the other leg.

How yoga therapy can help when you have acute back pain

Many yoga therapy practices will be important in your journey to a healthy back, but they depend on the cause of your back pain. As a yoga therapist with more than 13 years of experience, I have trained to offer yoga therapy to people with diverse causes of back pain. However, because everyone’s back is unique, the process of finding the best yoga therapy programme is a joint endeavour.

With a student, I always start by reviewing the health form and discussing the health needs. The yoga therapy programme will vary according to the particular kind of back issue. For instance, someone with a herniated disc needs a different programme to someone with arthritis of the spine or someone with sacroiliac joint pain. Any other health issues will also change the yoga therapy intervention, so someone who is young and sporty will benefit from a different programme to someone who is recovering from cancer treatment. I love creating just the right programme for each of my students.

In all cases, relaxation and breath optimisation is important. This is what makes yoga therapy unique. This is how yoga therapy can help when you have acute back pain. It’s not about doing exercises, but about doing the movements in a mindful way, with the breath. It’s about taking time to breathe, rest and quieten the mind.

If you would like to explore yoga therapy, do contact me or book a free Zoom consultation session:

https://beneyoga.co.uk/book-a-free-consultation-call/.

To read about yoga therapy for specific back conditions, here are some examples to start with:

For a herniated disc: https://beneyoga.co.uk/yoga-therapy-for-herniated-discs/

Sacroiliac joint derangement: https://beneyoga.co.uk/sacroiliac-joint-pain-how-yoga-can-help/

Ankylosing spondylitis: https://beneyoga.co.uk/yoga-for-ankylosing-spondylitis-and-axial-spondyloarthritis/

Spondylolisthesis: https://beneyoga.co.uk/yoga-therapy-for-spondylolisthesis/

To find blogs on other specialised topics, such as osteoporosis and osteoarthritis, use the search bar on my blog page to find more.

Namaste