Question
Dear Dr. Orsnstein,

For some time now,my back is killing me. I don't know what happened, but I might have strained it. It really hurts. Is there anything I can do by myself to relief the pain without using medication? Like maybe doing some exercise?
Thank you in advance!

Sincerely yours,

Thomas Olsthoorn

Answer
Hi Thomas,

Sorry for the late reply and I hope you are feeling better.

It is usually a strain of a muscle. If you have no pain in the leg(s), numbness, tingling, it is usually a muscle. However, the disc itself can produce pain and there can be muscle spasm associated with that.

By now, you can use heat - a hot tub or moist hot packs. If it hurts to sit, it might be related to the disc. So, if it is disc related, you can try these exercises/stretches at http://www.necksolutions.com/back-pain-exercises.html to see if extending the back helps. If this produces pain, stop and try some of the exercises at http://www.necksolutions.com/back-exercises.html and this will give you some options for ones that do not produce pain.

If this does not help or the pain is not better by now, you should get an examination by a doctor.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Steve