What has worked for me

There are several things that have worked for me, and several things that haven’t.

The number one thing that worked for me was getting a proper diagnosis. This of course seems obvious, but I think that many people go around saying that have low back pain, or sciatica – but they don’t know why.

My issue is that I have disk degeneration in the L4-L5 region (the second most common area for disk degeneration, the first being L5-S1), and poor posture which misaligns my hips, which then pinches my nerves.

Again, when I refer to my poor posture, this is specifically my pelvic tilt (or lack of it), not what is typically seen as poor posture, slouching.

After receiving a proper diagnosis, I could receive treatment specific to my ailment.

Again, it was my General Practitioner doctor who initiated me receiving a proper diagnosis. I recommend seeing your doctor first… they can direct you to others that can help you. And it was osteopath’s, chiropractors, massage therapists, etc., who gave me the wrong diagnosis… or did not diagnosis me at all… they were just treating the pain, not the cause of the pain.

Once you receive a proper diagnosis, not all treatments are created equal.

I highly suggest going to someone recommended to treat your specific cause of pain. Someone who has been successful with others in the past – and is proven. Don’t waste your time and money with those who don’t have a history of success… they are often too young, or just not good at what they do, to reduce your pain.

Other things that helped me:

• Traction – creating space between your spine vertebrae (I will explain how to do this in more detail in other entries)
• Posture pump – a device which stretches your back, and increases mobility within your back
• Knowing what my triggers are – for me, chronic movements that involve slight twisting, such as vacuuming
• Having a very experienced, knowledgeable physiotherapist
• Reading the book “8 steps to a pain free back” – which caused me to focus on my posture, changing the way I sleep, walk, sit, stand, move, etc.