Back pain? The cross is not always guilty

Sleep, eating habits and mental well-being play a role

02/17/2015

Almost everyone knows back pain in case of mental overload or neck tension in performance pressure. However, most think of chronic back pain as a mechanical problem that can be resolved with pills, physiotherapy, or at worst surgery. Chinese medicine, on the other hand, often causes pain in the back to be due to faulty states of tension in the muscles, which in turn reflect mental health. It also plays a crucial role in the internal processes of the body, such as delayed infections or a poor metabolism.

So says Dr. Christian Schmincke, TCM expert and head of the clinic at Steigerwald: „Chinese medicine does not just diagnose spinal disease with x-rays. Much more crucial are tissue quality and metabolic processes, including their excretory processes.“ In the case of painful back problems, the supply and disposal of muscles and connective tissue is disturbed in the Chinese view. This has a negative effect on the strength, elasticity and adaptability of the fabric. In order to effectively treat the causes of these disorders, the holistic approach to treatment requires a detailed history. TCM experts are therefore interested in the subjective aspects of the disease such as sleeping behavior, eating habits, susceptibility to infection, sensitivity to cold and emotional well-being. The most important pillar of therapy will then be the Chinese drug therapy.

With individually formulated formulations of herbal ingredients, important diversion processes get under way. The herbal smells, which have been boiled as decoctions, help to release causal blockages on the front and back and to restore the balance of energy in the body. For example, ingredients such as broom willow and the roots of the Chinese lace tree help in the discharge of flammable substances. „Since the supply and disposal of muscles and connective tissue are disturbed in spinal diseases, also conducting procedures such as cupping or the preparation of leeches have proved successful as a therapy accompaniment“, explains Dr. Schmincke, who also supplements Chinese medicine with biological remedies. Acupuncture also helps relieve acute pain. „Targeted needling of the body points causes the first pain relief after just a few sessions.“ At the same time, body therapies such as tuina massages or psychotics and qigong mobilize deadlocked tension patterns - because inadequate movement and unilateral stress always result in reduced strength and reduced stability, which in turn lead to pain again. „About 70 percent of sufferers with chronic back problems feel that symptoms have persisted for more than two years after receiving treatment according to Chinese guidelines and need significantly less medication. So some back surgery could be avoided“, reports Schmincke.

Anyone who wants to make a contribution to alleviating or even preventing back problems, the expert recommends metabolic-relieving measures. So: especially in the evening little food, little alcohol, no nicotine, little coffee and less meat, sausage and protein-rich dairy products. Often already the short-term renunciation helps to achieve an effect.