This entry was posted on Friday, April 25th, 2008 at 5:34 pm and is filed under Bad Backs, Top Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
I was training myself in the gym the other day and the usual banter was circulating around the gym. There was also the usual bad advice from untrained people trying to help others achieve their goals. Anyway, one such piece of advice was kindly given to a young man suffering back pain. The useful but also highly dangerous advice was to perform back raises to fix the pain. This shocked me as the helpful person, who we will refer to as John, is not qualified to give advice and carried out no tests or questioning to try and find out what the pain was being caused by.
Bad News
This is of course bad advice as if the cause of the pain was a slipped disc then no amount of exercise will necessarily help. Likewise if it was a recently torn muscle this type of advice will also not help and more than likely would make things worse. The work I have done alongside physiotherapists makes me more qualified than most to help, however not even I would suggest a stretch or exercise without a proper study being carried out.
The Story
One physio told me that they do not carry out any work on any patient without at least having a full x-ray first. This allows them to discount any potential causes that are not muscle, skeletal or nerve related. One patient they saw had all the symptoms of a pulled or strained lower back and they had been advised by friends to stretch and perform certain back exercises. However the pain just kept getting worse. It was only when they actually went to see a professional and an x-ray was taken that they were able to decipher that there was a tumor present causing the pain. Thankfully the patient made a full recovery, but that might not have been the case had they not seeked professional advice.
The Lesson
If you are not qualified do not advise people on their exercise or wellbeing. Your advice may prevent the person from seeking professional opinions that may actually help them. Your advice may actually make things worse, be a real friend and tell them to see a professional especially if they are suffering from pain.
If you read something in a magazine or online the advice (like ours – Beeble) maybe from a professional who knows a lot, but it can only really apply to you personally if you have been seen by the person. General advice is a good way to help people move in the right direction, however general advice only helps Mr. or Mrs. Average and they don’t really exist.
If you want to know what you should be doing to help yourself get fitter healthier and pain-free then seek advice from the appropriate professional. Failing that, see your doctor who will be able to point you in the right direction.
Good luck and if you have any questions please send them in by leaving a comment.
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