Chronic back pain often has psychological causes

Although there are structural changes such as slipped vertebrae, herniated discs or wear and tear, in more than 50% of cases mental disorders such as stress, grief or loneliness may be the real cause of ailments. back. Because psychological stress can actually cause physical pain.Stress puts the body on alert: muscles tense, nerves irritate. In fact, pain works like an early warning system. But the nervous system can also completely control pain, so it loses its warning function and becomes autonomous. So the nerve fibers continually send pain impulses, the state of anxiety constantly persists. When the brain focuses on this, the so-called pain memory appears: after about three months, the brain begins to literally internalize the pain. He reminds us that certain movements can hurt and become dangerous.It’s a vicious circle: stress causes pain and pain causes more stress. The resulting cascade of signals leads to the fact that the pain is felt more and more intense. Many patients are afraid of pain and spare themselves. But it is precisely this avoidance that can lead to the fact that periodic pain actually becomes constant pain, “chronizing” it.Multimodal pain management can help break this vicious circle. At the same time, doctors, psychotherapists and physiotherapists work closely together, drawing up a therapeutic plan for several weeks, which includes three areas: Medical treatment, including medication, physiotherapy, psychotherapy.Ideally, the specialists will constantly exchange their points of view during the multimodal therapy. They often report surprisingly rapid success: many patients realize within days that reducing stress can also reduce pain.Behavioral therapy helps relieve back pain. An important condition for successful physical therapy is that patients must understand the relationships that worsen or improve their pain symptoms. Through therapy, patients regain confidence in their bodies. Whoever understands his pain can change his behavior and he will be motivated to work independently.See also: The therapist busted the myths about depression.