A muscle pull or strain is incredibly common if you’re doing anything active like sports or lifting heavy equipment, and these injuries can linger if you don’t treat them properly. It’s not all that difficult to treat a pulled muscle in your back, but far too often people assume that it will eventually just heal on its own if they simply keep going about their day, and that can cause symptoms to linger or even worsen. In today’s blog, we share some tips for quickly overcoming a pulled muscle in your back.
Overcoming Spinal Muscle Pulls
Pulled muscles in your spine tend to respond very well to specific non-operative treatments, so if you believe you’ve strained a muscle during athletics or while cleaning out the garage, here’s what you’ll want to do:
- RICE – RICE stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation, and it is an acronym to describe some helpful treatments for many minor to mild injuries. For starters, you’ll want to give your back some rest from strenuous activities to limit stress on the muscle while it’s in a weakened state. Next, ice and compression can help to limit swelling in the area, as swelling can serve to slow down the healing process. Elevation is typically recommended for injuries to the extremities, as raising your arm or leg can help to draw excess fluid away from the injured area. It’s less necessary with a back injury.
- Stretching – Gentle and controlled exercises can serve to improve your circulation and bring more healthy blood to a recovering muscle. Stretching will be a little uncomfortable after a muscle strain, so just stick with some light stretches and never push further when movement is uncomfortable.
- Pain Medications – Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications can help to manage discomfort and make it easier for you to perform your stretching exercises, but they should not be used as a crutch to mask discomfort so that you can keep playing sports or doing other strenuous spinal activities. You can take them to keep inflammation at bay during the initial stages of recovery, but don’t lean on them as your only form of treatment.
- Heat Therapy – After a couple of days, you may want to turn to heat instead of ice. Ice packs help to limit initial swelling, but once that has subsided, you’ll want to boost fluid flow in and out of the area. Heat can help to open up blood vessels and bring oxygenated blood to the recovering muscle tissue. A hot shower or a heating pad can do wonders a couple of days after your injury.
- Physical Therapy/Strength Training – You will want to gradually increase the amount of stress you put on your spine as you work your way back to normal activities. Strength training helps to ensure that your spine will be ready to handle the stress of physical activity when you’re ready to get back to strenuous activities. Slowly increase the amount of strain you put on your spine during your PT or strength training exercises so as not to overload your spine while it’s still working to recover from injury.
- Connect With A Spine Specialist – Finally, if you want to make the fastest recovery and reduce your risk of another spinal muscle strain in the future, connect with your primary care physician, a spine specialist or a physical therapist for individualized recommendations. They’ll be able to assess your specific injury and match a therapy plan to your wishes and goals.
If you want help overcoming a spinal muscle strain or a more serious back issue, reach out to Dr. Sinicropi and the team at The Midwest Spine & Brain Institute today at (651) 430-3800.
