“Doc, I feel so good right now! Can I take you home with me?!”
Probably not, but taking a support belt with you may be the next best thing.
The adjustment and adjunctive care in the office go far to relieve pain and enhance healing, but those pesky activities of daily living may interfere and even instigate a pain episode. The simplest movements like turning over in bed from lying on your back to lying on your side which triples the pressure in your spine from 25mm to 75mm can aggravate your pain. (1)
25 mm pressure
75 mm pressure
So to help you as you heal, you may be advised to wear a support brace. A support brace supports your movements in the beginning of treatment, reminds you to carefully think about your next move, and holds your spine as you do some normal activities like sleeping and sweeping and getting in and out of the car.
Specific conditions like disc herniation and spondylolisthesis may well benefit from the stabilizing effect of a support belt as they heal.
Recent medical research even supports the use of back supports during the acute phase of care.
- Consider a memory foam-filled belt that adapts with your spine as you heal.
- The memory foam "packs" in around the spine segments to hold them in place.
- Such a belt is as useful on day one when you might be bent over in pain as it is on day 5 or 10 or 12 when you have straightened and are healing.
Ask Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc about the best support for your spinal condition.
Reference
- (1) Nachemson A: The Lumbar Spine-an Orthopedic Challenge, Spine 1976; 1 (1): 59-71