Suffering from lower back pain? Let’s talk about the causes of lower back pain in women and, more importantly, how you can avoid and fix them.

You’re probably familiar with many of these causes of lower back pain in women:

• Fatigued musculature (Back Spasm)

• Menstrual Cramps

• Poor alignment

• Kidney Infection

• Herniated Disc

• Poor Posture

• Overuse

• Endometriosis

• Pregnancy

• Disc Degeneration

• Spinal Stenosis

• Spondylolisthesis

• Malignancy

That’s just to name a few. There are way too many causes of lower back pain in women to go into. But I want to zoom out for a minute and talk about some big-picture concepts that will help with most causes of lower back pain in women.

If you need immediate help dealing with your lower back pain, schedule an appointment with me now, your chiropractor in South Jordan, Utah.

The Number One Cause of Lower Back Pain in Women

The number one cause of lower back pain in women is muscle spasms that come from long-term demand. Your poor muscles are constantly trying to do a job that’s just a little too much for them.

Our bodies are amazing at compensation. Even if we happen to be “lazy,” our musculature has soldier mentality. “Do the job or die trying!”

This sounds really extreme, and you probably don’t recall many “do or die” low back demands.

That’s because the sneaky variable in managing lower back pain in women is time.

Your body is great at managing stress. Thank goodness, because stressors are all around us, and always will be.

Some stress is good. It’s how we grow. We adapt and improve in response to stress. That’s the basic concept of exercise, and it’s also how our immune systems work.

But over time, a constant, low-grade stress that is never resolved (unlike a workout or recovering from an illness) creates an incredible demand on your body.

The good news: There is a lot you can do to fix it!

More good news: Some of it will provide immediate relief.

The “bad news” is, that’s actually good news in disguise: It’s gonna take some retraining on your part. That’s hard, because you’re used to doing things the way you’re used to doing them.

But if you wanna look at it another way, you can say, “All I have to do is change these couple of things and my back will stop hurting basically forever?!” To me that’s empowering!

Simple Ways to Fix the Causes of Low Back Pain in Women

Have you ever seen a server holding a heavy tray of food?

Doesn’t that seem precarious to hold it so high, and where you can’t see it? Why then, do people do it?

The further something is away from the central, stable point, the more it effectively weighs.

Think of a see-saw. The closer in toward the middle you are, the less effect you’ll have on the other person. Which is nice, because you can adjust for weight on a see saw by simply scooting forward or back.

Why am I talking about old-school playground equipment, when we’re talking about the causes of lower back in women? Because you are also a giant lever (and pulley) system.

When you are standing or seated upright, your weight is resting, for the most part, on the structure of the bones, and the cushioning of the cartilage in between. It is a very biomechanically advantaged position, which means that it is efficient in its use of energy.

Every inch that you lean forward; to look at your computer screen, to do the dishes, to work on that painting, to bathe your kids, adds more effective weight that your muscles have to hold up.

For one day it’s okay. You might feel a little tired at the end of a long day. You might even be a little achy. But it’s really no big deal, right? You go to sleep, and feel fine in the morning.

Now multiply that by your job! (or your hobbies, or the “stuff” you’ve just gotta get done!) Say you spend 4 hours per day in front of a computer…so focused on your work that your sitting posture is the last thing on your mind.

The muscles in your back, that were designed for dynamic movements and maintaining posture, are now under constant strain to hold up a weight that it didn’t really need to hold in the first place. You’re working out, but with nothing but pain for your efforts.

Think through your daily life for a minute right now and come up with a few ideas of how you are going to remember to sit and stand properly to avoid the causes of lower back pain in women.

Exercise Your Core to Fix the Causes of Lower Back Pain in Women

Now that we have addressed improper stress on your muscles, let’s talk about some good stress: exercising your core.

I know, everyone knows you should work out, and be fit. If you aren’t doing it already, what are the chances one silly internet article on the causes of lower back pain in women is gonna change your mind?

I’ve had 7 babies. 6 of my own, and a surrogacy. Over time with that much weight pulling me forward all the time, I developed an accentuated lumbar curvature. This would create an unstable situation in anyone, but I started out with a lumbar scoliosis and two birth defects to begin with.

This Photo is me after baby #7

I used to have constant dull low back pain, and occasional severe back spasms. The deck is stacked against me, and I was facing a life of back challenges, with an ironically physically challenging career of tossing other people around to help with THEIR back pain.

I decided that I wasn’t going to let that happen to me! Knowing that the only way to physically change the bone arrangement is through surgery, a fix wasn’t the answer. So what options are left to me to fix the causes of lower back pain in women?

Support, stabilize, and strengthen.

First, I decided that I would add as little extra demand on my back as possible. I simply cannot afford to carry extra weight, or my body hurts.

Second, the only way to support the structural components of the spine is through strong stabilizing musculature surrounding it.

Imagine yourself trying to do a task you’re not quite strong enough to do. Curling a dumbbell that’s just a bit too heavy, for example. Your muscles start to fatigue and shake, and eventually fail.

If you keep trying through stubbornness, you’ll probably end up with a muscle strain. But if you build up your strength, you know you can get to the point that curling that dumbbell is a piece of cake.

It’s the same in your back. Strained, fatigued muscles get inflamed, and that causes lower back pain in women.

And so I really focused on deep core strength.

This is me now.

And third, I knew that I needed to stay balanced and aligned. So I’ve addressed my chronic short muscles, and the corresponding weak, unengaged muscles to restore balance, and I see my chiropractor regularly for my own alignments.

Despite scoliosis, low back birth defects, and after 7 babies, I can do all the adventuring I want!

I know that’s not the easy way. I even know it’s the obvious way. But It’s also the way that works the best and is the most fun!

There are so many causes of low back pain in women, but nearly all of them are improved when your body is aligned and efficient.

Chiropractic adjustments help to both get you out of pain immediately, and also, to keep you aligned and moving properly to avoid back spasms and back cramping in the future.

Unfortunately, there’s no silver bullet to fix the causes of lower back pain in women.

You and I make a great team!

If you’re really ready to do something for your low back pain, back ache or back cramps, schedule an appointment with me today, and let’s get you on your way to your most active and pain-free life!

Sincerely, Dr. Gina

South Jordan, Utah Chiropractor

(435) 668-2033