Rest vs Movement

​Should I rest if my back hurts?
Many of our patients ask us what they should or shouldn’t do to help their back pain get better. There are multiple ways to help back pain, but today I want to focus on the question of rest vs movement. Some of you may already know this but:
Movement is medicine!

Keeping active is one of the best ways to help back pain.
But before you take off for a half marathon or a full-contact game of footy, let me explain why many people are still concerned about movement, and what type of movement is the most helpful.
It is important to rest when you suffer certain serious injuries. For example, when you break a bone, you must keep it immobilized while it heals. You would have also noticed that resting tends to reduce pain for most injuries. This has led to a belief that resting (sitting or lying down) will help injuries to heal quicker and more effectively.
The problem with this is that it doesn’t work for injuries to the soft tissues, like muscles or ligaments. Most back pain is caused by an issue with the soft tissues, such as a sprain or muscle spasm.
When you rest a soft tissue injury, the muscles get weaker and the joints become stiffer. This makes it harder to get moving again and can make re-injury more likely. For example, if you sprain your ankle, it is now recommended that you start retraining the muscles within one week of injury (Chen et al., 2019).
Movement also teaches your brain to trust your body and reduces fear, anxiety and overprotection.

What type of movement should I do?
The easiest way to get moving is walking. It’s simple, free, low impact and helps to mobilize the spine in a gentle way. Other options include swimming, stretching and mobility exercises. Discussing which exercises are best for you is a key part of your Osteopathic treatment. The sooner you can get back to your normal activities the better.

Can I sit down at all?
Of course you can! Just try to limit your sitting to 45 minutes before you get up and move around.

Are there any exceptions to this?
As with any advice, it won’t apply to everyone. Our Osteopaths are able to tell if your back pain is coming from a rare serious injury that requires rest.

What about hands-on treatment?
Seeing one of our Osteopaths for a treatment works hand-in-hand with movement. We use techniques such as massage and joint mobilisation to reduce muscle tension and speed up your recovery from injury.

Contact Wigney Osteopathy Clinic to book your appointment today.
admin@wigneyosteopathy.com.au
Mobile: 0419 910 237
 
Written by Dr David Salisbury

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