Do you suffer from lower back pain symptoms that leave you searching for advice or relief? You are not alone. It is estimated that 4 in 5 adults suffer from some kind of back ache.

Remember, the pain is a symptom, the end of the chain of events signifying a breakdown in efficient function. The cause is either something you are doing daily or a deep set structural imbalance.

In this article we take a look at self inflicted causes of lower back pain.

We always recommend you seek treatment from a Physology Practitioner to treat your back pain and to stop reoccurrence of your symptoms.

In the meantime however, here are a few tips that will help you in the right direction.

1. Office Life

The average office worker spends over 8 hours a day slouched over a desk or at home on their laptop. The human body has taken around 200,000 years to evolve to its current state.

For 199,900 of those years we had no such thing as office work and spent very little time sat in chairs. So think of the impact it places on our body which is designed for movement, when we tense a selection of muscles for 8 hours a day to hold us in a seated position.

It’s clear to see why working life can lead to lower back pain symptoms after a number of years.

Advice: Teach your body that movement is your number one aim and it will create the right conditions for you to live pain free. Stand up every 30 minutes and take a walk around the office, stretch at your desk and have regular maintenance treatments with a Physology practitioner to constantly release fascia restrictions that are usually the cause of lower back pain symptoms.

2. Sleeping Positions

First of all your bed should not be too hard or too soft. It should support you in a position where you feel your body can switch off into a relaxed position without you feeling pressure on your lower back. Secondly you should not snooze or sleep on your front.

It is the position that places most stress on your mid section, even more so on a soft bed. Ideally sleep on your side and choose a pillow that keeps your head in line with your spine. This will reduce your chances of lower back pain.

3. Emotional Issues

It is common knowledge that living with lower back pain could cause emotional stress and even depression.

What is coming to light in more recent years is evidence that this cycle can happen in reverse too. Scientists now understand that depression and stress causes a release of a stress hormone called cortisol.

Cortisol changes the condition of your fascia and muscles making them highly acidic. This dehydrates the tissue and causes an intertwining of the connective tissues in that area that should be gliding easily.

This is a very direct cause of lower back pain.

Advice: Physology practitioners can perform as specific treatment to release the affected areas and to make the body hydrate the area and perform more of the required healing process to leave you pain free. Once you are out of pain try mood enhancers such as exercise, dance or yoga to take control of your lower back pain symptoms.

Read: 5 Simple Lower Back Exercises For Pain Relief

4. Footwear

The human body has evolved for hundreds of thousands of years and for most of these we did not wear anything on our feet.

For even less time we have worn heals (ladies) or even stiff uncomfortable shoes that may be the hight of fashion. Any change in balance at the feet, means your usual centre of gravity is in a different place due to being “thrown forward” by the lifted heel.

To counteract this change in balance you turn on the “back line” of your body which includes hamstrings and lower back to hold you in place. This extra work loads can be a cause of your lower back pain.

Advice: Wear comfortable shoes with minimum lift.

5. Over protection

When people start to feel any kind of lower back pain it is human nature to protect it. You don’t want to push too hard unless something tears and you become injured for longer.

It is an old myth and sadly we still hear this advice from some GP’s that you should rest when you hurt your back. Bed rest or laying down does take pressure of the lumber region however staying off your feet for too long can cause long term problems.

Lack of movement as discussed earlier in this article will cause the body to lay down more collagen fibres that begin to interlock which actually gives you a reduced level of flexibility.

In the long run your range of movement becomes less and less which actually puts you at more risk of a lower back injury.

Advice: If you have hurt your back then it is important to keep moving within your pain threshold. This encourages fresh blood and nutrients to the area and also keeps your range of movement healthy. Of course don’t push yourself too fast and it is recommenced that treatment takes place by a Physology practitioner after a day or two so that we can keep scar tissue to a minimum and address the root cause of the back injury to stop it happening again.

6. Core Issues

When you think of your core, you may think of your abs. However your core is much more than that. Your overall midsection has a specific function in maintaining the best stability for your body.

When it is functioning correctly you find a balanced workload between all the muscles in your lower back, hips and stomach. When it is not functioning correctly it is very common that your lower back does much more work that the rest of the system to stabilise you.

This extra pressure has detrimental effects on the soft tissues around all your back muscles which leads to dehydration and restrictions in the fasciawhich goes on to be the primary cause of lower back pain.

Advice: Take part in Yoga or Pilates classes in order to promote the mind/body connection and you will find a stronger more in tune core will help prevent lower back pain.