Lower Back Pain Left Side – Common Causes

There are several reasons why you’re experiencing lower back pain on the left side only. Understanding what the problem is can have a major effect on how fast you’re able to overcome the situation. So, we want to help you figure out why this left side lower back pain problem is present. Once you figure it out, the remedies will be much more successful.

• Obesity- Weight has always been one of the main causes of pain around this area. If you’re experiencing lower back pain on left side, then it’s possible you’re having a hard time supporting the weight. One of the best ways to reduce the pain is by doing simple exercising regimens.

  Taking a walk during your lunch break or even after dinner can have a positive effect on the way your back feels. If you belong to a gym then get on a treadmill or walk around in the pool (if they have one). You definitely want to get a boost in your metabolism. The point is; shedding a few pounds could be the solution.

• Weak Abdominal Muscles- It’s possible that the abdominal muscles on the left hand side of your stomach aren’t strong enough to offer support. This could be due to a lack of exercise, working all day in a sitting environment, or pulling one of those muscles, which probably feels pinched. If any of them is present then you could be experiencing soreness or something else.

  Now, if it’s due to a pulled muscle that has created a lack of support in the back; go see a doctor. Let them properly assess the complaint properly. If you have a desk job then get up and walk around at least once an hour. Then of course, if you’re not exercising enough you already know what to do.

• Dieting Habits- Even though you’re dealing with lower back pain on the left side issues, it’s possible your back isn’t what is hurting. There could be another underlying issue with your body. If none of the other potential causes are present, consider seeing a doctor and asking them about your kidney or muscles around the area.

  If you aren’t drinking plenty of water, you could experience lower left back pain issues soreness where the kidney is located. When you start drinking plenty of water and have to go to the bathroom, it’s possible you’re dealing with excruciating pain. This could be because of an infection, or because your kidney hasn’t been nourished with water and it needed to be cleaned.

  Also think about the food you eat as well, because a poor diet could result in obesity and weak abs.

• Strenuous Work- One of the most common reasons people experience lower back pain is because of their job. Those that have strenuous work positions could be putting their back through hell. This is especially true if you wouldn’t consider yourself fit and then have to exert this type of energy on a daily basis.
• The Way you Sleep- Another problem is where and how people sleep. Lower back pain, left side issues can be present just by sleeping the wrong way at night. When your body stays in one position for long periods of time (especially in the wrong position), it can create soreness like you wouldn’t believe.

This is also true if you don’t get enough sleep throughout the night. A lack of sleep can keep the body from healing itself properly, which means you could be dealing with this for days or even weeks.

There are several other reasons you might be dealing with problems associated with this side of your back. It’s possible you could have something wrong with a disc or the spine. Whatever the case may be it’s important to figure out the problem. Lower back pain, left side issues shouldn’t be taken lightly. If you let it go, the possibility of a chronic condition is much greater.

Take the time to look over your lifestyle and see what areas could be causing your lower back pain problems. There is a good chance you could make a simple change and see plenty of positive benefits.

Oh, and don’t mask it with prescription medications, creams, or anything else out there. While they are great for lower back pain relief, in most cases it’s only a short term benefit.

Left Lower Back Pain – How to rid yourself of the Pain

When most men and women complain about back pain, they don’t usually say they have left lower back pain. We all just consider it to be “lower back pain,” but this isn’t necessarily true. One of the most important ways to rid yourself of any back issue is finding out the exact problem behind it.

Some individuals will pull or strain a muscle from lifting something. Others will sit in front of a computer all day without stretching at work. Then of course there are degenerative and bulging discs that can come into play as well. Actually there are a host of other problems associated with lower back pain, but only a few of them give you left lower back pain.

Today we want to help you find those answers. There are specific reasons why the lower left side of your back is hurting. If you try and resolve the issue by just thinking about the lower area as a whole, the end result will produce minimal results.

Here are a few things you need to consider:

• Injuries to Muscles or Ligaments

The most common left lower back pain problem revolves around the straining muscles or ligaments. It can be caused by strenuous activity or an awkward moment. The latter is usually caused by a lack of exercise where the muscles or ligaments become weak. The pain will be immediate if this occurs.

If you find yourself dealing with this particular issue then it’s important to look for the right solutions. The individual that tries to fix something else will continue to feel the pain. The best place to start is by visiting your doctor or a chiropractor. They will be able to give you a few solutions and treatments to help relieve the pain.

• Disc Problems

Since the discs in your lower back are there to support the spine, it’s possible that one of them is fatigued, bulging, or has become degenerative. If you haven’t pulled any muscles or ligaments, you most likely are dealing with a disc issue.

Treating each one of these is meticulous and sometimes requires multiple surgeries.

If the disc is just fatigued then a healthier diet and the proper exercise could turn things around. Bulging discs could require cortisone shots to relieve the pressure and pain. If you have degenerative discs then the solution process is a bit more difficult.

The best thing you can do speak with a trained professional and figure out which one of these issues is the culprit. Without knowing you’re basically trying everything and hoping something actually works.

Your Back might not be the Problem

It’s possible that after a complete evaluation, your left lower back pain is being caused by another issue. There are several areas of the body and various conditions that will cause issues. Here are a few of them:

1. Obesity- We use this term lightly, because anyone overweight could end up with left lower back pain. It doesn’t have to be excessive, because even a minor change in your weight can have a reflection on the rest of the body. When you have to support more weight, the muscles and ligaments in the left area of your back could be strained.

   Plus, obesity can also be the cause of developing diabetes. When the body is unhealthy it begins to break down, which means this could be happening to you.

2. Pelvic and Hip Issues- We’ve seen several occasions where left lower back pain starts from pelvic bone problems, hip replacements, and similar issues. If you’re dealing with other problems in this area, it could be the reason why you’re experiencing lower back pain on the left hand side.
3. Kidney Infection- Sometimes you don’t even have left lower back pain. The pain is protruding to that area, but you’re dealing with some sort of kidney or bacteria infection. If this is the cause then start drinking plenty of water. You should also schedule an appointment with your family physician.

There are several other considerations as well, but you get the point. The goal is to find the root of the problem, because sometimes it’s not your back that is causing the pain. If you take the time to do this then you will be able to help a doctor or chiropractor assess the problem appropriately. Best of all they will be able to find a solution to your left lower back pain faster.

Lower Back Pain, What Can You Do?

It does not matter if you are eighteen or eighty; everyone experiences lower back pain from time to time. The question is, are you going to suffer, or are you going to do something about it? There are many types of exercise and medical treatments, so no one needs to live with this pain.

To begin most of us need to understand the lower back pain causes. More than likely if you are suffering from lower back pain you have experienced some form of trauma to your back. This trauma can be something as simple as strain from improper lifting or something as extreme as a car accident. The unfortunate fact is that either extreme can be painful and relief can feel a million miles away.

What we all need to understand is that the back is made up of a series of muscles and if we do not take care to keep these muscles strong, then we will eventually do some damage to them. It is almost impossible to move without involving the back muscles, therefore they are being used constantly and there is a greater chance of us damaging them.

Educating yourself on the prevention of injuring these lower back muscles is the place to start. There are many different exercises that we can do in the comfort of our own home to prevent lower back pain. A simple search of the internet will turn up hundreds of exercises that can give some back pain relief or prevent the pain from occurring in the first place.

The problem is we are not normally concerned with prevention of damaging our back until the injury has already occurred. So where can you find back pain relief? The place to start once an injury has occurred is with your doctor, they can usually prescribe medication and a simple stretching regiment for lower back pain treatment. Your doctor can also recommend someone that is a specialist in soft tissue injuries.

So you have seen your doctor received the medication, you do the stretching and strengthening exercises, you have even seen the specialist, but the pain persists and you are looking still looking for some back pain relief, what now? It may be time to look for a deeper more extreme solution to your problem. In the worst case scenario you may need surgery to solve your problem.

Once the back is injured, your problems may increase without proper treatment. If you damage the vertebra or the discs of the back then sometimes the only option is back surgery and that means a long recovery time, and no one wants that.

Lower Back Pain Prevention

So learn the proper way to lift, using the knees and muscles of the leg instead of the back. Do some exercises and stretching designed to strengthen the lower back. If your career or hobbies put your back in danger, learn the ways to prevent a back injury and remember as we get older there may be nothing we can do to reduce the chance of injuring the lower back, so let’s be careful out there and avoid lower back pain.

Are Stretches for Lower Back Pain Effective?

When an individual experiences pain, it is human instinct to curl up in bed and obtain a lot of sleep and rest. Bed rest however, believe it or not, is never the solution for lower back pain as allowing the back to become inactive will only intensify the concern. In instances of lower back pain caused by muscle spasms, the muscles become shortened and tense, so that the spine is thrown out of alignment, resulting in pain.

One of the most effective exercises for the back is the stretches for lower back pain and the following are some of its positive aspects that can help ease pain…

• Elongating of shortened muscles
• Muscles that are under a lot of stress are loosened up
• Improves blood movement to the muscles and other support tissues of the back
• Removes lactic acid and other waste products that have piled up in the muscles through the lymphatic system
• Spinal joint mobility is increased.

Since stretching exercises can also help relieve sciatica pain, it is also called sciatic stretch. Before performing stretching exercises, always loosen up for 5 minutes by walking, biking on an exercise bike or merely marching in place. Tearing and other traumas will not occur with the suitable warm up routines.

About 60 to 90 seconds of hold time per stretch will make stretching exercises most beneficial. For newbies, holding the stretch for 5 to 10 seconds will be sufficient, with an equal number of repetitions. Typically, 3 to 5 repetitions are required for a stretch held for 30 seconds. When doing a stretch, never hold your breath in order to keep the muscles loosened up and make the exercises more effective. Listed below are some of the best stretching exercises…

Pelvic Twist: Stretches for Lower Back Pain

1. Begin by lying on your back with the knees bent and both feet flush on the floor.
2. Breathe in deeply.
3. Breathe out slowly while compressing the small of the back next to the floor.
   Make use of your abs when easing the back to the ground.
   Never utilize the feet to assist.
4. About 5 seconds hold would be enough.
5. Gently rest.
6. Perform 5-15 times.

Basic Twist: Stretches for Lower Back Pain

1. Keep arms extended to the side while lying on the back.
2. Bend both knees and carefully pull nearer to the chest.
3. Breathe in deeply.
4. Exhale gently as both knees are lowered to the ground to the right.
5. Gently breathe in as both knees are pulled up to the chest again.
6. Gently breathe out while both knees are being lowered to the ground to the right side.
7. Gently breathe in as the knees are drawn closer to the chest.
8. Do 5 repetitions.

In incidents like extreme pain, stretches for lower back pain may be done twice a day and as a regular workout routine daily or every other day to maintain overall back health. More natural back pain relief options on this Back Pain Relief Reports site.

The Cat Stretches for Lower Back Pain

1. Begin by dropping on all fours and make sure to keep the arms immediately under the shoulders and the knees directly below the hips.
2. Gently breathe in while you bring down your abdomen to the ground and lean your head up.
3. Exhale gently when going back to the initial placement.
4. Slowly alternate between the two stances and stop for several seconds with each posture.
5. 5 repetitions should be done.

Knee To Chest Stretches for Lower Back Pain

1. Lie on your back, with knees folded and feet flush on the ground.
2. With both hands, grip the left leg, just right behind the knee.
3. Pull the knee closer to the chest.
4. To be able to enable stretching of the front of the right hip, the right leg could be bent with the foot flush on the floor or the leg fully stretched.
5. A 30 second hold time is essential.
6. Slowly bring down the left leg.
7. Perform the process with the right leg.
8. Perform around 5 to 15 repetitions.

Piriformis Stretches for Lower Back Pain

1. This exercise will entail sitting on a chair.
2. Set your left ankle over the right knee.
3. Incline forward and hang on for 30 seconds to feel the stretching of the lower left buttocks.
4. Switch sides and repeat.In cases of serious soreness, these stretches for lower back pain may be performed two times a day. As a regular exercise program, these Stretches for Lower Back Pain may be undertaken daily or every other day.

Lower Back Pain Causes – What are the Main Reasons?

There are many lower back pain causes. These include nerve irritation, lumbar strain, bony encroachment, lumbar radiculopathy, and some other joints and bone conditions. Each of these lower back pain causes is reviewed in this article.

1. Nerve Irritation

Nerve irritation is one of the common lower back pain causes. The lumbar spine nerves can easily be irritated by any disease anywhere along the nerves’ paths, from the roots of the spinal cord to the surface skin. This condition causes radiculopathy or lumbar disc disease, nerve inflammation, and bony encroachment.

2. Acute and Chronic Lumbar Strain
Being one of lower back pain causes, a lumbar strain can be very painful as it is the result of a stretching injury that occurred in the lower back muscle ligaments and tendons, thereby causing different degrees of microscopic degeneration in the affected tissues. This condition is often caused by trauma, overuse, or improper use. Lumbar strain is classified into two types: acute lumbar strain which means that the lower back pain has been felt by the patient for days or weeks while chronic lumbar strain has been felt for more than three months already.

3. Bony Encroachment
Bony encroachment results from movement in or growth of the vertebrae in the lumbar spine, thereby limiting the space for the adjacent spinal cord and nerves. This condition is one of the main lower back pain causes as it is caused by any of the following: Spondylolisthesis; Spinal stenosis and foraminal narrowing. The three above conditions cause sciatica pain with extreme pain radiating down to the lower extremities. Spinal stenosis is very painful especially when walking but this pain can relieved by resting. These conditions have different treatments depending on their severity. The treatments can be as simple as taking some rest or as complex as surgical decompression which involves bone removal.

4. Lumbar Radiculopathy
A type of nerve irritation, lumbar radiculopathy is a result of the damages in the discs along the vertebrae. This is usually caused by degeneration or wear and tear of the outer ring of the discs, traumatic injury, or even both. Because of these, the middle portion may rupture or be herniated through the outer ring of the disc and adjacent to the spinal column. The damage in this area causes sciatica pain that can be felt through the legs.

5. Joint and Bone Conditions
These conditions are also known lower back pain causes. Joint and bone conditions are classified into congenital injury or the injury present since birth, degenerative injury caused by the wear and tear of the muscles, tissues, and bones, or injuries resulting from the inflamed joints also known as arthritis. Congenital injuries are further classified into scoliosis and spina bifida. Spondylosis is one of the known degenerative injuries, characterized by the narrowed space between the vertebrae. Arthritis and fractures are also one of the known joint and bone conditions.

There you go- some of the most common lower back pain causes. If you feel any symptoms of lower back pain, make sure to consult with your doctor right away to see if any of the above mentioned is the reason why you feel some pain in your lower back.

Lower Back Pain Exercises for Strengthening and Pain Relief

Lower back pain is a common malady in the U.S. and elsewhere, and for those who experience it, such pain in one’s lower back can become excruciating, and at times debilitating.

The good news, however, is that physicians have put on their thinking caps and uncovered a wide assortment of lower back pain exercises capable of removing, or at lessening that pain which varies in severity from one individual to the next. And they have come up with many positive outcomes from those exercises.
The three general categories these exercises fall into are aerobic exercises, strengthening exercises, and stretching exercises.

Aerobic exercises speed recovery from back pain by strengthening one’s heart and muscles, thus providing an arena for improved overall body health, including one’s back. A byproduct of aerobic exercise—which commonly comes in the form of walking, swimming, or walking in knee-deep water—is the efficiency of oxygen intake which is healthy for the muscles, including back muscles, and one’s supply of blood.

Strengthening exercises focus on strengthening one’s back, stomach, and leg muscles. It’s readily apparent that stronger back, stomach, and leg muscles not only will help eliminate lower back pain one might be experiencing currently, but extend one’s improved back health into the future.

Stretching exercises provide the important function of keeping one’s muscles and supporting tissue flexible and less prone to injury. Some stretching exercises, even done properly, can initially provide some physical discomfort, yet most often will result with a sense of physical satisfaction after a short period of time.
Although there many exercises to reduce back pain, even exercises directed toward those who experience relief from their lower back in different manners, there are many exercises commonly used to novices to reduce back pain that can aggravate the situation rather than improve upon it.
Wrong exercises to implement for back pain include:

• Straight leg sit-ups
• Bent leg sit-ups or partial sit-ups (curl-ups) when one has acute back pain
• Lifting both legs while lying on one’s back (leg lifts)
• Lifting heavy weights above the waist (standing military press or biceps curls)
• Toe touches while standing

There are significant lists of exercises to employ for persons experiencing back pain posted on the Web site WebMD. The site, before it goes into detail describing specific exercises, encourages individuals to consult with their physician or physical therapist before embarking on an exercise program.

Lower Back Pain Exercises

The site says a simple aerobic exercise such as walking, even in small measures, can prove healthful for lower back pain, especially if the individual gradually increases the length of their walks. Too, the site recommends implementing a few stretching and strengthening exercises each day.

The specific exercises itemized at that site, and there are 19 in all, are listed in three separate categories dependent in which physical position the patient feels the least pain. Those three categories are: 1) If your back pain is eased by standing or lying down; 2) If your back pain is eased by sitting down; and 3) When no position eases your back pain.

An example of a beneficial exercise for someone who experiences back relief in a standing or prone position is the hip flexor stretch. In this exercise the patient is asked to kneel on the floor with one knee bent and the other knee, while touching the floor, stretched in a backward direction. From that position, slowly push one’s hips forward until one feels tension on the upper thigh of the rear leg. Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds, repeat the exercise with the second leg, and repeat this overall exercise two to four times.

If one’s back pain is eased while one is sitting, one exercise that could help would be the double knee-to-chest. Lie on one’s back with knees bent, both feet flat on the floor. Slowly raise one knee to the chest, then the second, but do NOT raise both of them at the same time. Lower those legs one at a time, rest 30 seconds, and then repeat the exercise two to four times.

One of many exercises that can be employed by persons who experience no relief from their back pain is the clamshell. In this exercise one lies on their side, feet and knees together with knees bent. Raise the upper leg with feet together without allowing one’s hips to roll. Hold that position for six seconds, slowly lower that leg, rest for 10 seconds, and repeat eight to 12 times.

There are many effective lower back pain exercises, but the key is finding which ones work best to serve an individual patient’s needs.

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Added Articles
Lower Left Back Pain

What Are The Primary Causes Of Lower Left Back Pain?

There are many different causes of back pain that settle in the left side of one’s lower back. Yet, one consistent form of advice stressed by physicians who address that vary topic is to visit a doctor if the symptoms last three days or longer.

Lower left back pain, like any other place on the human body where back pain exists, can be extremely painful and, if not properly addressed, evolve into a long-lasting source of personal discomfort. To augment the healing process and reduce the time it takes to recover from this form of back pain, patients routinely are encouraged to get off their feet and lie down. For many people, because of the hectic lifestyles so prevalent in the U.S. today, this is not an easy assignment to accomplish. Still, it is the best approach if the pain is substantial and the patient is hoping to recover quickly.

Issues of disks compressing against the spinal cord near the lumbar vertebrae, the lowest section of one’s spinal column, can be sources of lower left back pain, especially when the Sciatic nerve is involved; but additional input is necessary to pinpoint the source of such pain. Possible culprits here would include herniated disks, slipped disks, fused disks, and vertebrae discovered to be out of alignment.

Doctors who specialize in back trauma often can detect which disk is generating the pain simply by learning from the patient where the pain is focused. For instance, if the pain goes down the back of one’s legs, there’s a good chance that patient’s Sciatic nerve is being compressed by the L4/5 disk. In contrast, these specialists often can pinpoint the L3/4 disk if the pain ceases at the inside of one’s knee. In such cases, the pain can be very severe and follow a path down the left side of the spine to the lower back, and then proceed across the waist and left hip en route to the top of the thigh before settling on the inside of the left knee.

In addition, if the pain exists in the left lower back of a girl, one likely cause could be PMS. But the possibilities don’t end there because she could be experiencing gas pains, growing pains, or just as likely could have a urinary tract infection.

Possible sources of pain in the lower left side of one’s back not detailed in this article include:

• Arthritis
• Strained or pulled muscles
• Cramp or stitch possibilities caused by running or dancing fast
• Bladder infections

If one experiences sharp pain to the left side of the lower back and that pain doesn’t stop there but instead radiates as far as one’s testicles, likely sources of that pain could be one’s appendix or the individual could have a kidney infection.

Yet another cause of pain in the lower left side of one’s back, if the pain can be traced as far as the soft area above one’s hips, can be narrowed down to kidney or even bladder problems. If such is the case, one suggested remedy is to drink volumes of cranberry juice in hopes the pain will be alleviated.

If this type of back pain persists longer than three days, physicians may prescribe an Epidural or Facet injection. These steroid injections are implemented to reduce inflammation to enable the disk, if a disk has been diagnosed as the problem, to retract and heal. The problem for patients is that these injections can be every bit or even more painful than the lower back injury itself. And the pain from such injections often lingers for two or three days after the shot has been administered.

If the lower left back pain one is experiencing is generated by compression on one’s nerves, the problem can be exacerbated by muscle spasms. In such cases, physicians commonly prescribe muscle relaxers to eliminate that type of additional pain.

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