The end to your back pain can be as easy as choosing decompression therapy. When it comes to relieving back pain, most people make an appointment with their family physician instead of a trained chiropractor. The problem with this is that a general practitioner can only guess at what is causing the pain and has a tendency to write a prescription for the immediate pain while advising to use heat and ice as a means of relief. This may mask the pain, but it does not get to the root problem of what is causing the pain in the first place. If you go and see a doctor of chiropractic, he or she will give a proper diagnosis as to why you have intense pain in your back and probably use decompression as a means of relief. But, what exactly decompression is, is a question that deserves attention.

Decompression is a fancy word for traction. Traction has been used for many years to relieve pain associated with the back– lower, middle, or upper– and was used with ropes and pulleys. The sufferer would actually be tied to ropes and have their spine gently pulled in opposite directions to achieve a negative pressure on the discs in the spine. While this method did work, it took sometimes up to a week to achieve total relief. Who has that kind of time? Decompression therapy today has banished the pulley and rope system to the warehouse where it belongs. Today, your chiropractor will use a state of the art computerized table to achieve pain relief in a more efficient manner. But before you can receive this type of treatment, the origin of your pain needs to be determined.

Your chiropractor will need to take X-rays of your spine in order to determine if your pain is coming from a bulging or herniated disc. These two types of spinal injuries nearly always alleviated with the use of decompression. A bulging disc is where the disc slightly protrudes out of its cavity between the vertebrate. It may then brush on some nerves causing intense pain. On the other hand, a herniated disc is where there is a crack in the disc itself and the soft tissue inside the disc is spilling out. This soft tissue can also touch a nerve sending excruciating pain radiating down your arms, legs, and into other parts of your back. Decompression will gently pull the vertebrate apart and allow a vacuum to be created within the disc itself. This will suck the disc back into place and promote healthy blood flow in order to begin the healing process.

Along with decompression, a chiropractor will also use spinal manipulation and possible rehabilitation in order to strengthen the muscles around the injured area to prevent this same injury from occurring again. Decompression is a great source of relief because it is entirely non-invasive and proven 86% effective at relieving back pain associated with a bulging or herniated disc. There are no needles, no drugs, and no discomfort at all with this therapy. It is a great alternative to surgery which may never provide total relief.