Cold Therapy - It's What's Good For Your Chronic Back Pain!

Cold vs. Hot, Heat versus ice, which is better therapy for my chronic back pain?

Cold Therapy for chronic back pain was the most contested topic around my house for years, and I was right in the middle of the wrong argument every time. Now, as I look back I have to admit that I was chicken to take on the extremely cold feel of the ice pack against any part of me. I argued that heat was the only way to go in relieving my chronic back pain because it helped blood circulation, supplying good oxygen to the injured area and aiding the healing process. I hadn’t even tried the ice pack or but I was continually singing the praises of the heating pad Now I must admit, I still believe in the good old heating pad. But, I want to let you know that I found one that works better and is better for you. If you want to know more about it check out: The Healthy Back Institute's Healthy Heat Healing Pad!

I’ve had 3 operations on my lower back and still have sciatica with leg cramping, a partially numb left foot along with the other usual conditions associated with and I would lay on that heating pad, until it seemed like I'd burned a hole in my side. For hours I'd lay there, soaking in the heat, even on a hot day, waiting for my back and leg pain to go away. I’m not sure when it was, maybe after my second back operation. Or, just after one of those times when everything went sideways and locked you up. I most likely injured my back in my own special way, but I had found myself desperate for relief, immediately. I was ready to try and do anything. Of course my wife had been telling me to try ice for years. And, I was finally ready.

Most evenings you'll find me sitting against or lying on one or two of those cold packs you place in the freezer over & over again. They almost always have a neoprene exterior and a jell like re-freezable liquid inside. They are washable and seem to last longer than they look good. I think I’ve only had one actually come apart and that was probably my fault. I’ve collected a variety of them now, some smooth & some with small ball-like pockets that press on the muscle areas like one of those beaded seat covers. I have a variety of different shapes and sizes for whichever part of the body you’ve twisted out of its original place or, just need a little temporary relief in, like around the neck and shoulders. You can quickly take them on or off.

Anyway, I remember the first time lying there in bed until my back was so cold I was afraid of frost bite as I had worked on the North Slope in Alaska in the oil fields for a few years, so I know what extreme cold is. Now today I sometimes come home from work or play with an ache and throw on an elastic support belt, which holds one or two ice packs, and wear it for an hour or two. I just can’t begin to tell you what you’re missing if you haven’t tried ice because you’re afraid to deal with the prospect of a little cold. That coldness, working to relieve my chronic back pain and swelling, combined with the compression effects of having something pressing hard against the hurt area, more often then not will amazingly work magic and give me immediate chronic back pain relief for hours! As I mentioned, I still use and believe in heating pads, but I definitely find the ice pack is very quick to relieve my chronic back pain. And, I can walk around the house or garage, with the ice and compression working, without 100’ of extension cord.

Cooling your muscle tissue does two things. It reduces the swelling, and it helps block pain receptors. This gives immediate relief to the injured area. The reasonable idea is to reduce the muscle temperature by about 10 degrees for 10 to 20 minutes. This will give you immediate pain relief for several hours. Just so you are aware, there are several contraindicating to cold therapy, so please check with your doctor before trying it out.
Remember “Cold,” it’s what’s good for chronic back pain relief, chronic neck pain relief, soft tissue pain and swelling.