Back Pain Exercises

While there are many causes of low back pain, one of the more common scenarios is pain that actually has a root cause of kidney stress. This type of back pain is characterized by severe stiffness, especially first thing in the morning. There may be sharp pains that usually occur bending forward and/or twisting. Any type of movement is slow and guarded because of the stiffness and the anticipation of the sharp, stabbing pain.

How does this happen? When the kidneys become stressed, they may ache on their own. Also, when the organs are stressed, it has an affect on the nerve that innervates them. Nerves are two way streets. They may be affected at the spinal level, or the may be affected peripherally at their target point. The old model of everything originating at the spinal level only is like saying you can call someone on your phone but they can't call you. When the nerve becomes irritated, the muscles that are supplied by that nerve contract or spasm. In the case of the kidneys, it usually is the quadratus lumborum muscles. They attach at the bottom of the ribs and the top of the iliac crest. It is common for the pain to arise from these attachment areas. To treat successfully this type of back pain, the nerve irritation must be dissipated and to do that the kidney stress must be dealt with.

What stresses the kidneys? The following is a non-inclusive list of common stressors.
1. Diet-milk is one of the biggest offenders and must be avoided.
2. Dehydration-the kidney require adequate water for optimal functioning.
3. Allergies-when the pollen count is highest, I see more of this type of back pain. Undigested pollens (or anything else), are molecules that can be too big for the kidneys to handle and it stresses them to try.
4. Nutritional-the kidneys have nutritional requirements that keep them healthy. Some are vitamins A, D and B-1, amino acids, and essential fatty acids. Some helpful herbs are mullein, parsley, and alfalfa. Spinach, asparagus, mung and aduki beans are good foods.
5. Digestive incompetencies-anything not digested has the potential to stress the kidneys. Undigested sugar is a common offender. The answer is appropriate digestive enzymes and dietary modifications.

Structural corrections focusing on calming down the muscles in spasm and utilizing magnesium can be helpful. Cold laser treatments over the kidneys and on specific acupuncture points as well as adjustments at the second lumbar vertebrae are beneficial. Heat should be employed and iced drinks and cold avoided. This approach will progressively and predictably improve the status of the sufferer each day. To not address the kidney component of this painful condition is to doom the patient to perhaps a minimum of two or three weeks (or longer) of additional pain.