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Relaxation helps ease back pain

(China Daily/DPA)
Updated: 2009-10-14 11:39

Back pain sufferers are far too prone to try to work through their pain, increasing stress and overtaxing muscles, a German researcher says.

The strain overburdens muscles, joints and ligaments, causing yet more pain, reports Monika Hasenbring of the back pain center at Ruhr University in Bochum. The physical problems can also weigh on the person's emotions, rendering him or her extremely moody.

The proper way to cope is to neither treat the pain as harmless, nor to pay it too much attention. The trick is to take an active approach.

Activity is better than being sedentary. It's also best to take breaks when stress levels rise, and it's a good idea to openly discuss problems with colleagues and bosses, because work conditions are often a cause of the problems in the first place.