Back Pain Causes Treatments Remedies And Exercises

Nagging Pain In The back Below The Shoulder Blade

March 20th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed

If you have been experiencing pain in the back below the shoulder blade you are not alone. Eight out of ten adults will experience back-related pain at some stage of their lives. The pain will either be acute or chronic.

Acute Pain

* Lasts from a few days to a few weeks
* Responsive to rest and exercise
* Cause of the pain is not easily identifiable

Chronic back pain

* Lasts from a few months onward
* Pain is constant
* Periodically flares where the pain is worse
* Will settle back to the earlier, less intense, level of pain.

Treating the pain in the back below the shoulder blade

There are several things that can ease the pain in the back below the shoulder blade. First of all, rest. For a long time, the myth has been that bed rest was the answer to get rid of back pain. Sufferers would immediately go to bed, but the pain didn’t really go away. They would lay in one position for hours as it hurt too much to shift around. The pain in the back below the shoulder blade was not relieved, even if they lay on the opposite side from where the pain is coming from, or flat on their back.

Now, doctors have discovered that bed rest can be helpful for a day, or two at most. Beyond that, it will slow recovery, as the muscles are too likely to wither and loose strength. When the back, stomach, and leg muscles are weak, the body is more prone to muscle strains and sports injuries.

Heat therapy is often recommended for back pain. For some, using moist heat is best, such as a hot bath or spa. For others, they find that ice (cold therapy) feels better. Either is fine, so experiment with the pain in the back below the shoulder blade and see which works best in your case.

Beyond heat (or cold) therapy and rest, stretching and strengthening exercises can help immensely - both to relieve the pain now and to help the body avoid pain in the future. Start off gently, with stretching the muscles of the back, stomach, and legs. Once they are a bit warmed up, do some strengthening exercises so that they are better able to handle the everyday activities you like to do.

As far as medication goes, anti-inflammatory drugs like Acetaminophen can help reduce the pain and inflammation. However if the pain in the back below the shoulder blade remains, you should see your doctor who could prescribe stronger drugs such as muscle relaxants, narcotics, and injections of corticosteroids.