Can an individual’s psychological feelings factor into back pain?

It has been said in past years that an individual’s emotions and psychological well-being can have a significant effect on our physical health, that said they can have can have an effect on our backs. In general it is factors such as anxiety, stress and negative mood and emotions that increase the chance of developing back problems. These factors can greatly increase the chance of a spell of acute back pain turning into chronic back pain. The main type of individual that this effect s is the ‘Downer’, the individual that always applies a negative attitude onto a situation. “the glass is half full” rather than “the glass is half full”.

The reasons for this type of attitudes affecting a person’s physical health are not completely understood but can be put into two sections. Behavioural would be the first. A person with acute back pain often start to limit their movements, to try and avoid triggering additional pain, these hesitant movements promote unnatural stiffness & inactivity that in turn causes more pain.

The second would be depression. Symptoms of chronic pain and depression share some of the same biochemical roots.

These two sections can also be changed. By improving how an individual feels about themselves, it is possible to relieve some of the pain and prevent a stint of acute pain becoming chronic.

FACT

Not only is low back pain the most common cause of work-related disability for people under age 45, but it is also the most costly, with most of these expenses from workers' compensation payments and medical bills.

Can an individual’s physical characteristics initiate back pain?

As I have said before the physical condition of a person can affect whether they begin to suffer from back pain. There are many factors which can contribute to the levels of back pain that an individual suffers from. Build, weight, and height have different affects of a person’s back. Being overweight has an increased risk of having back problems. Generally people who are overweight do not pay much attention to their physical appearance, hence have a lack of core strength. So what do we mean by ‘core strength’ and why is it important?

Core strength refers to the muscles deep within the abs and the back, these muscles are where our movement begins, whether it be lifting up a bag or running. So what has core strength got to do with reducing the risk of back problems?

“the abs and back work together to support the spine when we sit, stand, bend over, pick things up, exercise and more. The torso is the body's centre of power, so the stronger you are in that area, the easier your life will be.”

So with improving your core strength with strengthening the abs and back muscles, these muscles will hold the spine in place with also making it easier to keep the correct posture.

So it is true, an individual’s physical characteristics can initiate and prevent back pain from becoming a problem.

Is the way we work and play a part of the problem?

Is the way we work increasing the likelihood of experiencing back pain? It can be said that certain jobs may affect back pain more than others. You may think that industrial workers who may need to lift heavy objects and have a very physical job may suffer the most but that’s not always the case. Two types of work that often involves the greatest numbers of back problems are drivers and office workers. Driving in notoriously hard on your back as it involves prolonged periods of sitting and exposure to vibrations. This and on average drivers are not in the best of shape can lead to lower back pain, in the lumber area of the back.


Office workers also suffer from back problems, these problems can range all over the back. The main reason for office staff experiencing back pain is them maintaining the same position for long periods of time. The correct position for an office worker to be seated is as shown in the picture above.

• Sitting up straight
• Eyes level with the top of the monitor
• Feet flat on floor
• Avoid crossing legs
• Knees bent at 90 degrees
• Adequate back support

Office based companies have spent a lot of time and money in aids to help their employees adopt this seating position while at work, companies are preventing their employees from being absent. Differing from the perfect seating position is an image of bad seating positions which I’m sure we all do, keeping the perfect posture while seated is hard work on the body, better for it but hard. It is easier to slip into one of these positions but in the long run, not good for the back.

I touched briefly before on drivers being in good shape, core strength is an area I will look into later, but has comfort more a priority to our backs?

Who is affected? A look at gender

“Low back pain is ubiquitous, affecting roughly 8 out of 10 people at some point in their lives. It's the fifth most common reason for visiting a doctor, one of the top reasons people miss work, and the most common cause of work-related disability in people under age 45.

In spite of being so common, low back pain remains something of a medical puzzle. Even after extensive tests, physicians often can't pinpoint an exact cause. Many people with low back pain visit one doctor after another only to come away with conflicting opinions. Most cases of back pain are ultimately classified as "idiopathic," meaning they have no known cause — yet the pain is all too real to the person affected.

One thing is clear, whether your back pain is acute or chronic: To regain your get-up-and-go, you need to do just that — become active, at least within reason. An extended stay in bed, for instance, won't help your recovery and may actually hinder it.”

It is said that men and women are equally affected by back problems, however in western society, men are more at risk of disk problems due to their careers. These men are more likely to be treated with surgery. The greatest difference is the number of men in jobs that involve heavy lifting, these men tend to rush back to work after a back problem which in turn can lead to more problems.

Studies suggest that men are three times more likely to develop ankylosing spondylitis, a severe but uncommon form of inflammatory arthritis that affects the spine. However, other studies have found that this condition afflicts men and women in equal numbers.

On the contrary, osteoporosis (loss of bone density and strength) occurs in women more often than men. This disorder can cause severe weakening of vertebrae and may eventually lead to vertebral fractures. Vertebral fractures can cause a loss of height and, more serious, a rounding of the back, commonly known as dowager's hump. This can be seen in old age (see picture below)l. Women are also especially susceptible to degenerative arthritis of the lower spine (a condition that generally involves the vertebral joints). They may also develop spondylolisthesis (an abnormal forward displacement of a vertebra relative to the one below it).

All together back pain can affect everyone, male and female. It is a problem that exists thought western society.

www.aolhealth.com

Why Back Pain?

Back pain is a serious problem in western society, over our lifetime 8 out of 10 of us will suffer from it whether it be acute of chronic back pain. However experts still do not fully understand it. To start there are questions that need to be answered, and with finding out the answers it may help my understanding of back pain.

• Has western society always suffered from the problem? Is it global?
• Where is the problem?
• Who are the sufferers?
• What are the causes?
• Is there any way from preventing back pain?


Answering the above questions will hopefully give me an insight to the problem and increase my understanding.

Another reason for me to approach this problem is I suffered from back pain recently. I suffered from acute lower back pain in the lumber region of the back, which is the lover back just above the pelvis. Now hoping this problem doesn’t turn into chronic pain. My pain started a few weeks before easter break, I then went on a week’s snowboarding holiday and the pain was excruciating, every night I found myself using pain relief gels on my back. When I got back to the UK I made an appointment with a chiropractor, and after a discussion with her the reasoning behind the problem was apparent, sitting at my desk for extended periods of time and lounging about on the sofa was the reason behind the problem, this and the strains from the holiday increased the pan. Posture was also an issue of mine that had a great effect on my problem. So to put it basically, for me paying some attention to my posture and sitting upright on the sofa and at my desk was the solution to the problem.

For some people it is not that easy, and most people don’t understand the reasoning behind the problems. So increasing people’s awareness and knowledge and understanding of the problem and changing their perception will hopefully help in the prevention and aid of back pain.

Honours Project

Project Title

How can Design help aid the solution of Back Pain? Can increasing consumers knowledge and understanding help change their perception and thoughts regarding back pain?

Core Design Values= Key Works + Short Statement


• Problem Solving
• Functionality
• Usability
• Perception
• Knowledge and Understanding
•
Over the past 2 years of studying Product Design, I have found myself as a designer and understand how to put my skills to best use. I see myself as a problem solver looking at a design brief with a strategic approach. I find myself best understanding and solving a problem by looking at a problem from the consumer’s perspective, stepping into their shoes and understanding how they feel.
Back pain is an issue that affects 8 in every 10 UK adults at some point in their lives. It is a serious problem that is understated compared to many other problems with the body. It is an issue that can cause much pain, suffering and stress for the consumer.

Project Aims and Thematic Outline

Using my design knowledge, I will focus on the issue of back pain. Through doing this I aim to increase consumer awareness towards the implications of bad posture. I will look at the differences between cultures, and how they deal with back problems. Looking at the differences in the working classes, using miners and finishing school as an historical example. .I will also look at social differences that have indirectly led to the problem, focusing on how back pain differs in different social upbringings. I will increase my understanding of etiquette. As an example of back pain today I will look at various people from different backgrounds and how back pain causes problems in their lives. As an outcome I want to change the consumer’s perception and increase their understanding of back pain.