# Back pain and spasms - has anyone been able to fix? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 22, 2019, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452 "2019-07-22T15:15:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/21 "2019-07-24T11:53:03Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > In Ontario, physiotherapy is only covered by public insurance in very limited circumstances. Pretty much only if you were hospitalized for your injury. And it would be very unlikely for a GP to refer you to a specialist because your back is sore after doing chores. I have my doubts Alberta is more generous. Even one or two advisory session with a PT would be a good idea - to set an appropriate exercise regime. If the OP isn’t used to regular exercise, they’re not going to know what’s going to be the right thing to do. And doing the wrong thing could have serious consequences. I’d shell out for a session or two and get some proper advice. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/22 "2019-07-24T14:30:50Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Almost all of you people are talking about fixing back problems. I suggest that the OP doesn’t have that, in the way most people think. If you have a sedentary lifestyle and you do a bunch of repetitive chores with lots of bending, one should expect a sore back. I would submit that _back spasms_ are way different than having _back muscles that are sore_ from being worked a good bit more than you’re used to. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/23 "2019-07-24T15:18:52Z")
> [@mischievous](#): > > I used to have terrible back spasms, and yoga completely fixed it for me. Start with gentle classes! Another one where results may vary. If you already have good flexibility/mobility, yoga may have you holding your body in poses and going through ranges of motion that really aren’t ideal for your muscles and ligaments. But if you have poor flexibility and mobility, then this may be helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/24 "2019-07-24T16:33:44Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > This happened to me one time. I had no idea what it was, (and thought my internal organs were failing, or something like that). The doctor told me to take one–and only one–_ **large** _ dose of ibuprofen, which I otherwise never take. It worked perfectly, and the spasm stopped. He emphasized that it should be one very large dose, but you say a low dose. Why the discrepancy? I believe your Doc to be misinformed. There’s no evidence that larger doses of NSAIDs like ibuprofen are better at relieving pain than your basic 200 mg dose of ibuprofen. Now, 1000 mg of ibu may hang around in your system longer than a 200 mg dose so it may relieve pain a bit longer, but not better. And the higher dose raises risks for side effects. Where larger doses truly come into play is when there’s inflammation that needs to be reduced, like in rheumatoid disease. But then the larger dose must be taken regularly for weeks to relieve the inflammation. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/25 "2019-07-24T16:54:37Z")
Weak back muscles often lead to back pain because your body is trying to stabilize the spine with muscles too weak to efficiently do the job. This problem is not unique to your back. All your muscles can cause problems if they are too weak to do the job–shoulders, hips, legs, etc. And you can’t always know when you’ll need that strength. A slip off the curb can cause major injury because weak muscles can’t stabilize your body and stuff gets pulled and stretched in bad ways. The solution is to exercise regularly in such a way that all your muscles are strengthened. Continue doing PT until you feel better, but after that you should find some kind of total-body exercise that you enjoy. Some examples might be things like kickboxing, Zumba, boot-camp, etc. These kinds of exercises work many muscles together to build total body strength. They not only make your muscles stronger, but they will make your muscles work more efficiently together. So when you lift something, all your core muscles will engage to keep you stiff and stable rather than being floppy because weak muscles struggle to keep you upright from the added weight. As an analogy, think of a ladder where all the bolts and connectors were lose. The ladder would be quite wobbly and it wouldn’t be able to hold much weight. But if the connectors are all tight and strong, the ladder will be very rigid and can easily hold a lot of weight. You can think of your body in the same way. If your muscles are weak, your body will be wobbly and will struggle to lift any significant weight. But if you work out enough, those muscles will be firm and strong and will be able to efficiently handle additional stresses. ---
**Author:** ![MikeG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikeg/32/4329_2.png) [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/26 "2019-07-24T17:04:23Z")
I’d agree with the posters who tell you to see a pt. Lumbar stabilization exercises will help anyone or at least do no harm. I’m wary or muscle relaxers, I found they contributed to more pain as the support was diminished. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2019, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452/27 "2019-07-25T12:37:19Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I would submit that _back spasms_ are way different than having _back muscles that are sore_ from being worked a good bit more than you’re used to. Its different but if it only comes after repetitive chores while otherwise being sedentary it is in no way surprising. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-pain-and-spasms-has-anyone-been-able-to-fix/837452.md?page=1)