I need any information on INVERSION THERAPY please everyone! It's for back pain and you lie upside.?
Question:
Heat Bags, and applying intense pressure on the visibly inflamed areas, relax the muscles a little, but after hearing a little about "Inversion Therapy'',it sparked my interest because it just seemed to make sense. I do know this - that you purchase a device (possibly called an Inversion Table?) and you lay on it (face up on your back). I think you must be strapped to the thing or something,, and it swings upside down, so that you are virtually doing a handstand in the air, and most importantly - has anybody had much success with this Therapy? All information on the topic will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Answers:
The idea behind inversion therapy is to take the strain and pressure off of your back. If you hang upside down, the weight of your body will be suspended from below your hips, typically at the ankles. What this does is allow the spine to stretch using simple gravity. Your upper body is heavier than your lower body, so inverted, it will act as a natural weight pulling your vertebrae apart (gently). This relieves pressure on the disks of your spine.
By the way, if your back is inflamed at any point, you should be taking anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen. Also, you shouldn't be heating it! You should be ICING it! Inflamed means over-heated points in the muscle. Using heat as therapy only makes it worse. You want to take the swelling down...not increase it.
You sound like you have some similar problems to ones I've had. If I understand you correctly, your sway back means you have an exaggerated dip in your lower back...that is, the small of your back goes in (towards your belly) more than it should. This may give you the appearance of having a larger tummy than you actually have. And your posture is slightly hunched...meaning your shoulders are set at a forward angle. If you have BOTH of these going on, you must be in a lot of pain! Did you experience some sort of physical trauma to cause this? If not, you can alleviate a lot of your pain just by learning to sit and stand with better posture. You do this by specific stretching exercises, and crunches (unfortunately!). The greater muscle-tone you have in your abdomen, the more support you give your back, especially the lower back. It will help to correct your posture, which should alleviate a lot of your pain.
But anyway, back to the Inversion Therapy. Below are a few links I found that should give you the info you seek. I just perused them. I have no affiliation with any of the companies or their products. Just thought they may help you make some informed decisions. Good luck to you and I hope you find relief from your back troubles. Been there, done that. I feel your pain.
P.S. If you can at all afford it, invest in monthly massages. The best types for alleviating back pain are deep-tissue and shiatsu. Skip Swedish...that's the froo-froo feel-good kind. The other two work beyond the superficial muscle layer, as well as into your body's energy-meridians, getting to the real problems. The best time for the massage is a day or two before your chiropractic therapy. Bones and muscles interact and influence each other. If your bones are out of whack, they create stress points in your muscles (e.g. knots and spasms.)
If your muscles are tight and spasming, they yank your bones out of alignment. Taking a two-pronged approach really helps tremendously. I've been doing it for about 2 1/2 years now and have no more back trouble! Even if you can only afford a 1/2 hour massage, have the therapist concentrate on your back and neck muscles. It is SOOO worth it!
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