Acupuncture, Stretching, and Posture for Back Pain Relief
Lower back pain can take all the fun out of your day. Or week. Or years of your life. And that’s not OK.
Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years to help people get out of pain.
How it works - the needles (1/12 the size of a hypodermic needle) go into your arms, legs, and sometimes back or abdomen to change the pattern of blood flow to the pain area(s).
When you improve circulation, it's like when you un-kink a garden hose. The flow returns and your garden (in this example, your back) gets what it needs to heal.
In many cases, we also include cupping, "gua sha" techniques, and supplements to speed along the healing.
Most people feel some improvements within the first couple of treatments. Problems that have been chronic and long-term may take several rounds of treatment to make a full recovery, but you should feel some improvements within a handful of sessions. This way we know we're heading in the right direction.
What Else Can Help With Back Pain?
By now, you’ve already heard the importance of “strengthening your core.” There’s an underlying principle about your core that few people mention:
It's called the “Inner Corset.”
Where can I buy this “Inner Corset?” you may be asking.
Good news: it’s free. Your body already has one; you just need to activate it.
HOW TO: to engage the obliques, you need to anchor your ribs. As your hands are on your ribs, push your ribs in, and tighten your abs.
TEST IT: Put one hand on your lumbar spine while sitting straight up. Do you feel how the back muscles are tight and ropey?
Now use your other hand to guide your ribs down as if you’re going to hunch over. Feel your back now. The muscles are no longer tight but relaxed. This is how you engage your inner corset.
NEXT: The next step is getting your shoulders back while you do this!
You can engage this inner corset (rib anchor with oblique muscle flexion) anytime during the day. I recommend doing it at least 12 times daily to get it to be new muscle memory.
Simply by engaging this musculature in the natural way it is meant to be used, your “core” muscles develop beautifully!
