EFFECTIVE TREATMENTS FOR BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA
While you should always first seek advice from your doctor if you’re troubled by back symptoms, there are also many instances in which other therapies can be very helpful. In fact, your doctor may well refer you to a physiotherapist or, at times, suggest that you consult a practitioner of an alternative therapy as many of these have a proven track record in dealing very successfully with back problems.
The so-called ‘other’ treatments are normally divided into two main groups:
The ‘complementary’ therapies that work alongside of and often as virtually part of conventional medicine; and
Although the distinction between the two types of therapies is usually quite clear, it can become somewhat blurred when looking solely at how effective some of these ‘other’ therapies can be in dealing with back problems. For example, the relatively little known Alexander Technique is usually considered to be an alternative therapy. However, because it concentrates upon posture, something that is so directly and obviously relevant to back troubles, this method is perhaps more ‘complementary’ than ‘alternative’ when it comes to difficulties involving the spine.
Rather than try to classify therapies as either complementary or alternative, it seemed more logical in this book to separate them into two groups depending upon how commonly they are employed in treating back problems.
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