Middle Back Pain Relief
Mid Back Pain Relief
Wanting middle back pain relief is a common and often painful postural problem. Usually related to weak or poor posture, it can begin with an injury, accident or from long-term habits. Over time, posture stress causes pain and breakdown (Arthritis/Degenerative Joint Disease) in the spine and other joints from daily wear & tear.
Middle back pain is usually positional. This means it gets better, worse or different as body position changes. Frequently episodic, mid back pain may come on after a lot of activity or without any apparent cause. Another common complaint is mid back pain after sleeping. In most cases, it is triggered as your body adapts to mechanical stress, weak posture and adaptive motion.
- Excessive sitting and poor sitting position in front of a computer for hours
- Standing, bending or being in an awkward position that creates back pain
- Sleeping position that causes strain or stiffness
- Chronic posture stress such as carrying a heavy backpack, handbag, or child
Related Conditions: Postural adaptive muscle strain; Pinched nerve in back; Intercostal Neuralgia; Rib out of place; Thoracomyodynia; Thoracic neuralgia
Self-Help Solutions to Relieve Middle Back Pain
Understanding that in most cases mid pack pain in the result of some type of mechanical stress, poor positioning when sleeping, lifting, working or carrying, and weak core and posture tells us how to relieve middle back pain will require habit changes and focused effort to improve posture.
1. Do posture exercises daily to strengthen posture
- Begin a Strong Posture exercise program to strengthen balance, correct alignment and get stiff joints moving full range again
- Be sure to do the ball back stretches for middle back pain
- Strong Posture exercise program will teach you to be aware of body positioning in every activity in life, work to recreational
2. Relieve mid back pain by being conscious of your posture
- Notice throughout the day, is your head tall and centered over your torso?
- Shoulders should be back and relaxed down to allow your chest to open
- Keep your pelvis tucked and centered when sitting, standing or lifting
3. Change body position and posture frequently
- Adjust your desk chair to be optimum height and position
- If you’re uncomfortable, ‘working through the pain” will make it worse
- If you spend a lot of time in the car check your seat position and support
- Alternate which arm or shoulder you use to carry weight like a box or suitcase
4. Keep Moving – The body is made to move
- Take frequent breaks to practice your stretches to relieve middle back pain
- As you’ll learn in the Strong Posture exercise program, stretch in the opposite direction you use your body throughout the day
5. Best way to sleep for upper back pain and mid back pain
If you experience mid back pain after sleeping, creating a new habit of being able to sleep in a different position is important. Try:
- On your side, with a pillow under your upper arm, and a contoured cervical pillow under your neck to keep head aligned with your spine.
- Consider memory foam or supportive fiberfill pillow.
- Experiment with a pillow between your knees to reduce strain and pain in the middle back
- Change your sleeping position if you are a stomach sleeper!
1st steps for middle back pain relief
- Waking with back pain after what should have been a great night sleep is frustrating and can be scary. If you don’t get relief when you were still for hours allowing your body to recover – then how will you ever get better?
- Rest won’t fix a mechanical or positional problem, and rest won’t strengthen weak posture. In fact, lots of rest (or sitting) can make it worse.
- Your first step is making a change in how your body moves. Begin a Strong Posture exercise program (either find a posture specialist, read a posture exercise book, or do the online posture course) to correct posture, strengthen your core and back a step at a time, and get your body moving fluidly again.
- Then, start integrating the other lifestyle changes suggested, one at a time.
See Posture 101 to learn more about the importance of posture, and you’ll be amazed to learn posture affects every body function from breathing to blood pressure!