The 7-Day Back Pain Cure
Pain Is a Message…So Listen!
Pain is your body’s way of telling you that something is
out of balance, or “messed up” in some way. That may not be
the technical term doctors use, but it’s the most accurate one I
!can think of
Through pain, your body is trying to send a message that
something is wrong and it needs help. When the message is
silenced but the underlying problem is ignored, the
communication has failed. Consequently, your body starts to
“yell” louder by giving you more pain—recurring and more
.severe pain
Your body is trying to tell you something, but you aren’t
!listening
The Three Big Myths About Back Pain
What I want to emphasize here is that we can’t just focus
on symptoms like pain. Instead, we must turn our efforts
toward figuring out and fixing the underlying problem
,causing the pain. Before I explain the primary causes
however, let me start by dispelling a few popular myths
:Myth #2
:Myth #1
You “Throw Out” Your Back
In the course of my work, I’ve taught hundreds of
thousands of people my back-pain treatment approach. When
I ask them what’s wrong, they almost always say something
.like, “I was doing X when I ‘threw out’ my back
Usually, some physical activity precedes the back pain, like
picking up a heavy object, sneezing, bending over, or getting
out of bed. The thinking goes, “Well, since I didn’t have pain
.before the activity, the activity must have caused the pain
As you’ll see in the next few chapters, the reality is a bit
more complicated. In many cases, a physical activity can
trigger a pain episode, but by itself, it isn’t the underlying
cause.
Consider this example: Let’s say you fill a room with
natural gas and then toss a match inside. You could say that
the match caused the explosion, but it would be more
.accurate to say the match “triggered” or ignited the explosion
The better question to focus on is “Where did all that gas
?come from in the first place
It’s very similar with back pain. A physical activity can
trigger a pain episode, but it’s not the “fuel” behind it. If you
don’t get rid of the underlying problem, then any number of
.things can “trigger” the pain
:Myth #2
Back Pain Means Something Is Wrong with the Back
People usually think that if they have back pain, their
.bodies are suffering from some mechanical dysfunction
“Since my body hurts,” they say, “it must mean something is
wrong with my body—something with the bones, the
.muscles, or the soft tissue that connects them
While this is sometimes, if not often, the case, it’s not the
only underlying cause of back pain. Other factors that
originate in your mind (e.g., stress levels) as well as your diet
(unhealthy foods) can cause severe back-pain episodes, even
,when there’s nothing wrong with your spine, discs, joints
muscles, or ligaments. These factors also can exacerbate
physically caused back pain, making it many times more
.painful
:Myth #3
The Current Pain Isn’t Related to Previous Bouts
If you experienced a back-pain episode two months ago
and another today, you’re likely to think these episodes are
unrelated. Perhaps the last time it happened because you
.sneezed. This time you were moving furniture
For most people, the trigger that causes their pain episode
is different on different occasions. Naturally, they associate
the “cause” to the trigger and believe the episodes are
.unrelated
In fact, in the vast majority of cases, multiple back-pain
ـــــــepisodes are usually caused by the same underlying problem
.even if each pain episode had a different trigger
Let’s consider again the room filled with natural gas—a
dangerous situation, no doubt. But the gas is the source of the
danger, not the match, static cling, or a cell-phone ring that
.might create a spark to trigger the explosion
The same is true when it comes to back pain. Once you’ve
,created conditions in your body, inadvertently or otherwise
that are ripe for an explosive bout of back pain, any number
of things can set off a pain episode. Different activities that
may trigger pain are only sparks igniting the gas that was there
.all along
If you experienced a back-pain episode two months ago
and another today, you’re likely to think these episodes are
unrelated. Perhaps the last time it happened because you
.sneezed. This time you were moving furniture
For most people, the trigger that causes their pain episode
is different on different occasions. Naturally, they associate
the “cause” to the trigger and believe the episodes are
.unrelated
In fact, in the vast majority of cases, multiple back-pain
ـــــــepisodes are usually caused by the same underlying problem
.even if each pain episode had a different trigger
Let’s consider again the room filled with natural gas—a
dangerous situation, no doubt. But the gas is the source of the
danger, not the match, static cling, or a cell-phone ring that
.might create a spark to trigger the explosion
The same is true when it comes to back pain. Once you’ve
,created conditions in your body, inadvertently or otherwise
that are ripe for an explosive bout of back pain, any number
of things can set off a pain episode. Different activities that
may trigger pain are only sparks igniting the gas that was there
.all along
