Aromatherapy and Back Pain

Today many people suffer from lower back pain. This may be a result of poor posture, standing too long at work, or from a previous injury. For those who deal with back pain, they know that the pain can become unbearable. Back pain can cause great discomfort and can hinder the enjoyment from a person's life. Living with chronic pain can take its toll on the emotions as well, and can lead to mood swings and a negative outlook of life. The best remedy is to avoid injuring the back to begin with.
One of the best ways to prevent back pain is to watch your weight. Being overweight can lead to chronic back pain. When the abdomen becomes overstretched, the back muscles will be used to counteract the effect of slack abdomen muscles. By keeping the abdomen toned and not becoming overweight you can save your back a lot of injury in the future.
Pregnancy is another cause of back pain. When a woman is pregnant, the growing baby will stretch out the abdomen and the back will feel the effects. You may even have a mental image of a pregnant woman standing with her hands held on her lower back. Some women even have greater amounts of back pain during pregnancy when the baby sits on the Sciatic nerve. This may result in excruciating and debilitating back pain. Thankfully, this type of back pain is temporary and will subside once the baby is born.
It is important that you prevent back injury at the workplace as well as at home. This may mean that you wear a back brace at work when picking up heavy objects. Also, you should always bend at your knees when picking something up. Many people make the mistake of bending at the waist to pick up heavy objects and this can result in strained back muscles, or back injury.
If you are suffering from back pain then you should schedule an appointment with your chiropractor or family physician. It is important that you nurture your spine, and if you suspect an injury do not put it off. You may need to take a course of prescribed treatment so scheduling an appointment is very important.
Aromatherapy also offers some great benefits to easing back pain. Along with Aromatherapy, you can also do some gentle Yoga stretching exercises. Always check with your chiropractor or doctor before starting any exercise, but Yoga is wonderful for the spine and most likely will be recommended by your doctor.
You can take hot oil baths to relieve the pain as well as have hot oil massages on your back. There are many natural essential oils that will help relieve the pain. To make a great hot aromatic pain-relieving bath, use 10 drops of Eucalyptus and 10 drops of Peppermint added to your bath. Soak in the hot bath for at least 20 minutes to achieve the full therapeutic benefits. If you are pregnant, make sure that you read the safety precautions on the label of any essential oils that you are using.