The holidays are upon us and for many that means a lot of traveling in uncomfortable seats. Holiday travel leads to lower back pain for many people, due to muscle spasms. If this happens to you it is usually a good time take a page from high school sports. ICE ICE ICE! The rule of thumb is any acute (or new) injury is to ice it and avoid any type of heat on it, especially moist heat or overnight heating pads. Now again this just a rule of thumb any injury or pains should be examined by a qualified health professional to determine the origin. The whole ice vs heat ordeal is due to the way your body internally reacts to the two and heat can actually make an acute injury worse even though it helps deal with the pain. Also many of us travel with large suitcases so be careful how you lift them and avoid just swinging them out of the trunk of your car. A lot of those suitcases way up to 50 pounds and can easily cause muscle injuries.
Happy Holidays from New Life Chiropractic in sunny Cape Girardeau, Ca!