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HIT
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Know
your Back
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Introduction
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| | | Term | # of Vertebrae | Body Area | Abbreviation | | Cervical | 7 | Neck | C1 – C7 | | Thoracic | 12 | Chest | T1 – T12 | | Lumbar | 5 or 6 | Low Back | L1 – L5 | | Sacrum | 5 (fused) | Pelvis | S1 – S5 | | Coccyx | 3 - 5 | Tailbone | None | |
Inanycompetent business, large or small, workers are the most valuableasset.Back disorders are the most common form of ill health thataffect theworkforce.
DESCRIPTION OF A SLIPPED OR BULGING DISC
Aslippeddisc is a disc that extrudes into the spinal canal. It is alsoreferredto as a bulging or ruptured disc. As a disc degenerates, itcan getherniated. In other words, the inner core extrudes back intothe spinalcanal, as shown in this picture on the left. The lightblue oval area isthe disc, which is bulging into the spinal canal onthe lower rightside of the disc. In the lumbar area, this can causepain to radiate allthe way down the patient's leg to the foot. In thearea of the cervicalspine, the pain would radiate from the neck, downthe arm to thefingers.
| Approximately90%of disc herniations will occur at L4- L5 (lumbar segments 4 and 5)orL5- S1 (lumbar segment 5 and sacral segment1), which causes pain intheL5 nerve or S1 nerve, respectively.
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| Openback surgery is the generally recommended treatment. This carries highrisks, hospital stays, and lengthy recuperation. Dr. Sarvotham’s acupressuretreatment can provide good relief, while obviating the inconvenienceand expense of surgery. |  |
DESCRIPTION OF A PINCHED NERVE
A pinched nerveisa nerve that is under pressure. This can cause pain orimpairedfunctioning of the area affected. It happens to nerves thatcontrolmuscle movements or relay sensations to the brain. The initialsymptomsof a pinched nerve may be tingling, numbness, burning sensationorshooting pains down the buttocks and legs, or in the neck,shoulders,arms and fingers. Sometimes the pains and sensations mayoccur awayfrom the point of pressure. For instance, pain in the calfmay be theonly symptom of a pinched nerve in the low back. Constantpressure cancause nerve damage which in turn may increase the pain andweakness.There may be a loss of reflexes, movement skills, sensation intheaffected area, and withering (atrophy) of the affected muscles.
Description of Sciatica
Sciaticaisthe lay term for the pain that runs from the buttocks down the backofthe leg, caused by a pinched nerve. The sciatic nerve is about aninchor so long. It is located in the buttocks and composed ofmultiplespinal nerves. When people commonly refer to sciatica it isnotnecessarily a problem of the sciatic nerve, it's a problem of thenervewhen it is being pinched as it exits from the spine from aslippeddisc.
| How Acupressure works
Peoplewithlower, upper, and mid back pain caused due to slipped disc reportthatacupressure has helped relieve their symptoms and pain to agreatextent. “The National Institutes of Health” (NIH) in the UnitedStatesof America has found that acupressure can be an effectivetreatment forsome types of chronic and acute pain
Acupressureworks both atthe physical and the emotional levels. The practitioner ofacupressureexerts calculated pressure on specific points of the body.Thisstimulates the central nervous system into releasing the body'snaturalpain-relieving endorphins, and thus relaxes the muscles. It mayalsoalter and reduce stress and emotional trauma which may themselveshavecontributed to the cause and an in increase in pain.
| | Neck / Cervical Pain/ Spondylitis
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| Inmostcases, neck pain originates from stress and strain, and can betreatednon-surgically with acupressure. Patients experiencing theacute phaseof the pain cycle have found that Dr. Sarvotham’sAcupressure helps inbreaking the cycle. The treatment involvesrelieving neck pressure andmuscle spasm through the related acu-points.
Acommoncause of neck, shoulder and arm pain is a ruptured or herniatedcervicaldisc. Symptoms may include dull or sharp pain in the neck orbetween theshoulder blades, pain that radiates down the arm to thehand or fingers,or numbness or tingling in the shoulder or arm.Certain positions ormovements of the neck can intensify the pain.
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Thesymptomsof a cervical herniated disc often resemble other disorderssuch ascarpal tunnel syndrome, problems with the rotator cuff andgout. In somepatients, a cervical herniated disc can cause spinal cordcompression,where disc material pushes on the spinal cord. This is amuch moreserious condition and may require a more aggressive treatmentplan.Spinal cord compression symptoms include awkward or stumblinggait,difficulty with fine motor skills in the hands and arms, andtingling or“shock” type feelings down the torso or into the legs.
Thousandsofpeople around the world suffer from episodes of acute or persistentneckpain each year as a result of injury, strain, overuse or aging.Any painin the neck should not be ignored and left undiagnosed anduntreated.Problems in the cervical spine, the first seven bones(vertebrae) in theneck running from the base of the brain to just pastthe shoulderblades, require assessment and treatment to preventfurther, morepermanent, damage.
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Achieve healthy balance through acupressure
The Stress / Back Pain Connection
Thereisa strong connection between stress and back pain. Stress causesarelease of stress hormones which increase the perception of pain.Thesealso cause the muscles to tighten up. The muscles may tense up totheextent that they go into painful spasms. Back and neck musclesareparticularly sensitive to the effects of stress.
Muscletensionin turn reduces blood flow to the tissues, which means there isreducedsupply of oxygen and nutrients to the tissues. This delayshealing.Adequate circulation is also necessary to flush acidic wasteproducts(by-products of muscular activity) from the tissues. A build upofacidic waste products in the tissues can cause fatigue and pain.
Tenseback muscles increase back pain and pain increases tensing of muscles -a vicious cycle of stress and back pain is created.
Acupressuretherapyinvokes the "relaxation response". Muscles relax and bloodpressure,heartbeat, and respiration decrease - the opposite of the"stressresponse" where muscles tense and blood pressure, heartbeat,andrespiration increase.
There are also many relaxationtechniques,from simple deep breathing exercises that are easy to learnon one's ownto self-hypnosis that must initially be taught by aqualifiedprofessional. Other relaxation techniques includemeditation,progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, andbiofeedback. Specialequipment is needed for biofeedback and it must betaught by aprofessional.
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