Is Age Causing Your Lower Back Pain?

One of the many joys of working in a vocation where you help people is that you get to see/hear the impact you have on people’s lives, especially when we promote frequent adjustments. In the past month I've heard highlights include going to concerts, starting a gym membership for the first time, riding bikes and of course now the weather’s a little better, gardening!

Two specific examples come to mind with the latter, my two oldest clients - Brian (82) and Rita (89). 

Both have been out and active this month weeding, potting, trimming hedges, mowing lawns and all while feeling great. 

So why do I hear so many people suggesting that their age is a main contributing factor in their lower back pain? Scratch that, so many YOUNG people!

I can understand the mindset of finding answers and assigning blame to something, fear of the unknown causes turmoil wherever it lands. But really is assigning blame to an unchangeable and wrong factor really a good thing? Ultimately where does it get you? ‘My back hurts but to be fair I am old now I'm nearly 40’. Really?? I guess we might as well just load the shotgun up then huh? 

Ultimately everyone ages the same way. We all grow a day older every day. That includes your co-workers, peers, family etc. So let me ask, do they all have the same issues too? Does every single 40 year old suddenly just wake up one day and their back just crumbles? Probably not. So there must be something else going on.

The next one in the firing line is usually ‘the abuse that I’ve put my body through’, mainly from active/manual workers/people whose jobs require lifting. Again though just ask the same question. Does every joiner have back pain? Or was 50 year old Dave over there just born lucky? 

There are many contributing factors in pain generation. Activity can be involved for sure, if you have poor lifting posture for instance you can cause extra stress on the body in certain places. Age only factors in in the sense that you’ve maybe done said ‘poor lifting’ for longer, but they aren’t the cause. Past traumas, diet, neurological habits, self care and many other factors are also involved and guess what? They’re influenceable! 

So the next time you find yourself blaming age for your woes, just remember - it’s very rarely a limiting factor. Things are absolutely influenceable and can make huge changes to how you live. Take that proactive ‘first step’ and start looking after what’s yours for as long as you’re alive!