Living with chronic back pain can make you miserable. While your pain may be more pronounced on some days than on others, the constant pain may detract from your quality of life. It may prevent you from pursuing things that otherwise would make you happy. You may even find it difficult to watch TV or read a book comfortably. While it may be seemingly impossible to manage your life with chronic back pain, there are some pain management solutions available that could make it easier to cope and even to find happiness with your life.

Meditate

Meditation is an excellent and completely free pain management option to consider. Pain can be exacerbated when you are stressed or when you focus constantly on the pain. Through the process of meditating, you clear your mind of negative energy and thoughts. You will learn to acknowledge that the pain is present in one area of your body, but you also learn to pay attention to the other areas of your body that feel healthy. Stress that may have been worsening your perception of the pain can be alleviated as well. Meditation can help you to feel more grounded and centered so that you can find joy in the smallest things.

Exercise Regularly

Regardless of the cause of your back pain, it can feel worse when your back is compensating for other areas of the body where you may have weakness. Exercising regularly helps you to tone and strengthen muscles throughout the body. In addition, your exercises may release pressure that could be exacerbating your pain. When pain is caused by or worsened by tense muscles, something as simple as stretching out your back, neck and hips can do wonders for pain management. Talk to your doctor or to a therapist about exercises and stretches that may work best for your unique health situation.

Lose Weight

Your back carries the brunt of your body’s weight. If you are overweight, your back is carrying more weight than it needs or even than it should. Maintaining a healthy body weight is important if you want to minimize or even eliminate the pain that you feel. Losing weight may sound challenging, but it may be as simple as adjusting your diet and starting to take walks around the neighborhood daily. As the pounds melt away, you may discover that at least some of your back pain is reduced.

Seek Professional Treatment

When back pain is serious and debilitating, professional treatment may be needed to help you get through each day. A chiropractor may perform a spinal manipulation for some relief. This type of treatment may need to be repeated periodically for ongoing relief. Your general practitioner or specialist may prescribe medication or recommend surgery. Keep in mind that some treatments simply mask the pain or provide temporary relief. Others may provide you with a cure that addresses the cause of the pain.

As you can see, there are many pain management options for dealing with your chronic back pain. Many people will try the at-home pain management options first before seeking professional treatment. Others may use at-home methods in an effort to reduce their dependence on pain relief medication. You may need to try multiple pain management methods before you find the ones that work best for you.

Christopher is an author and community blogger living with chronic pain. Researching and encouraging healthy ways to cope with pain through pain management and healthy practices.