For nearly 50% of Americans, daily back pain is a common occurrence. They wake up in the morning with it, sit at their desks or tucked behind a wheel with it, and then deal with it again when they go to bed. They feel the pain when they play with their grandkids and when they are having dinner with friends. This type of back pain is considered chronic and can really destroy someone's joy for living. No one likes to be in pain, but fortunately, there are ways to alleviate it without invasive surgeries.

First though, a need to discuss the various symptoms of back pain are necessary in order to determine if the pain you are suffering is actually back pain and not something else. What most people will experience with back pain, especially lower back pain, is numbness and/or sharp intermittent pain where a nerve is being touched by a herniated or bulging disk. This is known as impingement and can be incredibly painful, almost debilitating. Another type of pain can be stiffness, especially if you have been sitting for long periods or are just getting up in the morning. This is known as spinal degeneration. Other symptoms of lower back pain can be a loss of range of motion, weakness, aches, and general pains.

There are numerous reasons why we all experience back pain. For some, it can be as simple as strained muscles from not adequately stretching before, during, and after a tough work out. Those who are overweight will also tend to experience a great amount of back pain due to the lack of muscle tone to help support the skeletal structure and compression on the spine from carrying so much extra weight. Trauma to the spinal cord from injuries sustained on the job or from a motor vehicle accident are also major contributors to serious and ongoing back pain. Still others will have back pain due to bulging disks, narrowing of the spinal canal, nerve root impingement, or lack of moisture in the disk and spaces in between the disk and the bone. With proper care, most if not all of these painful conditions can be rectified.

The best, most effective treatment for all of these back ailments can be found in a chiropractor's office. These individuals go through extensive training on the back, how it works, why it gets injured, and how to fix it. They will assess the reasons for your back pain and will then thoroughly explain what treatment will give you the best pain relief. Some of the treatments they might suggest are physical therapy in conjunction with non-surgical spinal decompression, weekly visits to slowly adjust your alignment, message therapy, or a combination of all of the above. You should feel a difference after you very first visit and be well on your way to a pain-free life.