Can Massage Treat Low Back Pain?

One of the most common complaints massage therapists hear at Cherry Creek Myotherapy, in Thompson Falls MT, from our clients, is that they have low back pain.  This common complaint can lead to lost job time and increased medical costs as well as causing people to miss out on the fun of life.

The causes of low back pain are numerous and range from improper lifting, repetitive positioning of work, poor posture, lack of fitness, poor sleep habits and for some women, pregnancy.  Accidents are also another cause of low back pain as well as falls and over stretching. Whatever the cause, the result is the same.  It hurts and changes what we can do in our lives. Many of us learn to live with it. People change their lifestyles and decrease activities. We may assume its just part of growing older and try to accept it.

While massage can not cure every case of low back pain, if the pain is a result of injury to muscles, tendons or ligaments, massage can play a very effective role in decreasing pain and assisting in the healing process.  Deep massage in the lower back can speed the healing process by stimulating circulation to the injured tissues. Massage can also help prevent the build up of scar tissue and assist in the formation of healthy tissue growth.  Massage can also help decrease muscle spasms, allowing easier movement and reduced pain.

The muscles of our bodies are all connected. For this reason your massage therapist may work on your legs and hip muscles to help decrease the pain you are feeling in your low back. When these muscles become contracted they pull on your low back,  which over a period of time can translate into pain.  Releasing these contractures can sometimes provide an almost immediate decrease in low back pain.

Call Cherry Creek Myotherapy if you are suffering from low back pain to find out how massage can help improve your quality of life.  When we hurt we don’t function at our full potential.  Massage can help change that.  Why wait? Life is too short to live with pain.