Chronic Pain -- Home Remedies for Back Pain

Back pain is a common issue for many people of all ages and both sexes. It may be triggered by a wrong move at the golf club, lifting something heavy or sitting for too long at your desk in a wrong position. Unless you have a disc problem or a major injury, your doctor may not be able to do much besides advising you to rest and prescribing some pain medication. If you don’t have a painkiller handy or you just want to reduce your medication intake because of their side effects, you can also use home remedies to help alleviate the back pain. In this article we will discuss a few home remedies that have proved to help with back pain relief.

Ice

Ice can work well in alleviating back pain. You may apply an ice pack on the painful area to minimize pain and inflammation. It is best to place the ice within the first 24 hours since you had an injury. Ice decreases the ability of nerves to send pain signals to the brain and this way it can ease your discomfort. Place a thin towel on the skin over the painful area and place a plastic bag with ice cubes on top of the towel. Leave it on for 20 minutes, take a break for half an hour and then replace the ice for another 20 minutes.

Hot bath

After the first 24 hours since the injury, ice cannot help to reduce pain or inflammation, but heat may help instead. Heat can increase the elasticity of the muscles and alleviate the pain. Try taking a hot bath and soak in for 20 minutes or more. You may add a few handfuls of Epson salt to the hot or lukewarm water. The salt can go through the skin and into the sore muscles. Do not spend too much time in hot water if you are a pregnant women, because it might cause miscarriage or birth defects.

Massage

You may ask a member of your family to give you a massage over the painful back area. Lie face down on a bed and ask your masseuse to rub the muscles on the painful area.

Rubs and ointments

Rubs and ointments can also help alleviating back pain. You can find plenty of ointments and rubs on the shelves of health stores and pharmacies. Some ideas of ointments that work well against back pain are “Tiger Balm” and “Icy Hot.” Their effectiveness varies from user to user and in general they have calming effects and relieve pain. Another popular product is “Biofreeze,” another natural compound that gives a cooling sensation and has the advantage to not have a greasy texture. It is available in spray form and it comes in non-scented and menthol varieties.

Back pain is a common issue for many people but the good news is that you can successful alleviate the pain with some home made remedies. Whenever you don’t have a painkiller handily or you just want to reduce the medication intake you can use ice, a hot bath, rubs and ointments, or a massage instead.

Source: http://www.easygoodhealth.com