Chronic Lower Back Pain (CLBP) is a condition of the mind as much as the body: anxiety, stress, depression, trauma and other mental health issues can actually cause physical pain and make existing pain worse.
Both acute and chronic back pain can be associated with psychological distress in the form of anxiety (worries, stress) or depression (sadness, discouragement). Psychological distress is a common reaction to the suffering aspects of acute back pain, even when symptoms are short-term and not medically serious [35].
Cortisol and adrenaline are released, and there is typically an involuntary tightening of your muscles. This often occurs in the neck, shoulders, and down the spine. Prolonged tension in these areas can lead to back pain and, more specifically, lower back pain.
Traumatic Injury such as from playing sports, car accidents, or a fall that can injure tendons, ligaments, or muscle causing the pain, as well as compress the spine and cause discs to rupture or herniate.
Lower Back: Anger
If you sit on frustration, the lower back is a common place for storing repressed anger. For relief, learn to constructively articulate frustration and address conflicts with others in the moment.
Some may have a fight-or-flight type of response, which may include muscle tension, heart pounding and sweating because their body "believes it needs to activate," she explains. Others maybe experience a freeze response, which can look like someone who struggles to move or get out of bed.
“Red flags” include pain that lasts more than 6 weeks; pain in persons younger than 18 years or older than 50 years; pain that radiates below the knee; a history of major trauma; constitutional symptoms; atypical pain (eg, that which occurs at night or that is unrelenting); the presence of a severe or rapidly ...
These strains and sprains can occur for many reasons, including improper lifting, poor posture and lack of regular exercise. Being overweight may increase the risk of back strains and sprains. Back pain may also be caused by more-serious injuries, such as a spinal fracture or ruptured disk.
Common Anxiety Back Pain Symptom Descriptions. You get frequent back pain, tension, stiffness, soreness, or back spasms. It feels as if your back is often painful, tense, stiff, or sore. Your back is so sore that it causes mild to severe immobility.
An effective way to reduce stress and back pain is to exercise and stretch more. Physical activity can release endorphins and improve overall health, which can help reduce stress. Make a point to get up during the work day and do a few laps around the office every few hours, or try a standing desk.
4. Middle Back = Insecurity and Powerlessness. Healing traditions such as reflexology link middle back pain to feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and insecurity. If you're feeling unsupported by other people or life, you probably carry tension here.
Intrusive memories
Recurrent, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event. Reliving the traumatic event as if it were happening again (flashbacks) Upsetting dreams or nightmares about the traumatic event. Severe emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of the traumatic event.
We need to embrace the body-mind-soul aspect of the pain (metaphysical). The back represents our support system, so problems with our back usually mean we feel we are not being supported. It is also linked with finance, the lack of money, fear of not having enough, fear of material loss, the fear of your own survival.
Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is a common, yet challenging condition for both patients and clinicians. Several studies have demonstrated a strong association between CLBP and psychological factors such as anxiety, fear-avoidance, self-efficacy, catastrophizing and depression.
Kidneys help remove liquid waste from the body. When urine contains a lot of chemical substances – more than what the urine can dilute – kidney stones can form, and they can cause a sharp pain in the side and the lower back region.
Poor posture, like slouching or pushing the head forward while sitting or standing, causing misalignment of the spine. Muscle overuse or strain, usually due to repetitive motions or lifting items or children incorrectly. Injury to discs, muscles and/or ligaments.
Back pain can be caused by many different things, including mechanical or structural problems with the spine, inflammatory conditions, and other medical conditions.
Contact your health care provider for back pain that: Lasts longer than a few weeks. Is severe and doesn't improve with rest. Spreads down one or both legs, especially if the pain goes below the knee.
An MRI is best used when your doctor suspects a specific problem—something other than the muscle strain that causes most low back pain. An MRI usually isn't done when simple muscle strain is suspected, because: An MRI will not show muscle strains or other problems with soft tissues.
Seek emergency medical care
Call 911 or emergency medical help or have someone drive you to the emergency room if your back pain: Occurs after a trauma, such as a car crash, bad fall or sports injury. Causes new bowel or bladder control problems. Occurs with a fever.
Emotional information is stored through “packages” in our organs, tissues, skin, and muscles. These “packages” allow the emotional information to stay in our body parts until we can “release” it. Negative emotions in particular have a long-lasting effect on the body.
The organs, tissues, skin, muscles and endocrine glands can store trauma. These parts have peptide receptors that let them access and retain emotional information. This means that your memories are in your body and your brain.
Ever since people's responses to overwhelming experiences have been systematically explored, researchers have noted that a trauma is stored in somatic memory and expressed as changes in the biological stress response.
A study conducted by a Columbia University has discovered that traumatic childhood experiences can cause stomach or gut problems which may manifest in adulthood as mental or emotional issues. As a psychotherapist, I often see clients who feel grief, anger, sadness and anxiety in the gut or stomach.