BackFaqs

There's a lot of misinformation floating around about back pain. It's important to clear it up, because a whole lot of folks deal with it. If you're under 45, back pain is the number one cause of disability in the U.S. Kinda scary. And it's a close second, right after that pesky common cold, as a top reason for visits to health professionals in the U.S. (Sorry to be ethnocentric here, but I don't have figures for other countries.)

You can relax about one thing. Even though it's important to get your back pain checked out to rule out something serious, under one percent of acute lower back pain is the result of a serious infection or something like cancer or a spinal injury. If you're under 50, the rate is even lower.

OK, about those myths:

1. Nothing's REALLY wrong with you. Bzzzzt! Wrong! Allopathic (in layman's terms, that means good ol' medical doctors and traditional health professionals) doctors tell this to chronic pain sufferers almost 90 percent of the time, and it really makes me mad. Just because they can't figure it out or see it on an x-ray doesn't mean nothing's going on. Pain is an area that traditional medicine is sometimes not very good at dealing with. If a pill or a knife won't cure it, it doesn't really exist. Don't give up, and don't listen to them if they're telling you to "just live with it.
2. People don’t die from chronic back pain. Wrong again. Not understanding this can have tragic consequences. Chronic long-term pain combined with depression and anxiety can place sufferers in a serious downward spiral. Suicide is a rare but definite risk. If this describes you or someone you know or love, please seek some help or counsel.
3. Serious back pain usually requires surgery. BIG Myth! Nope, less than two percent of back pain patients end up needing surgery. Now, if your first stop for pain is the orthopedic surgeon, the odds are higher that surgery might be the first recommendation you get. You know that old adage, "When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail"… So try to see someone with more of an open mind first.
4. Back pain is not a common cause of on-the-job disability. Wrong! Back pain is actually the number one occupational injury in the U.S.
5. The best way to heal back pain is to lie down and rest. Uh uh. We're definitely in old wives' tale territory here. In most cases, bed rest can actually hinder recovery. During the acute stage (when you can barely move), you might have to hang out in bed for a bit, but get up and move as soon as possible. Read my post Should You Exercise for Back Pain?
6. Men get more back pain than women. No. Uh, ever been pregnant? Seriously, though, it's definitely a myth that men get more back pain. There's only one area where that's true, and that has to do with disk disorders in middle age. Otherwise, back pain is an equal opportunity disorder.
7. If your pain pattern isn't regular or consistent, it's probably "all in your head." Gimme a break! Pain changes and varies, and no two people are ever going to experience exactly the same set of symptoms. Even with "medically recognized" diseases, pain patterns change from day to day depending on activity level, events, emotions, and other factors. In addition, people's abilities to describe their pain varies, so throw this myth out the window into the trash can where it belongs. Along with all the others!