Searching for a Back Pain Doc Near You, in NJ?

When was the last time you replaced your mattress? If we’re talking over a decade, improvements are required. When searching for a new one, pay attention to the material and degree of firmness, as these two factors are the ones that influence how much support you will be receiving. In terms of how much support you need, it depends on your weight, size, and, of course, personal preferences.

Avoid mattresses that are too soft and sink under your weight, but make sure the mattress does not feel like a wooden plank either. Although, if you have problems with your lower back, the second option may not be as bad as you think.

Ideally, you should choose a mattress that offers just enough support to take the pressure off the lower back. Dr George Hanna warns that an uncomfortable mattress won’t just contribute to morning back pain, but will also make you move around a lot during the night, in an attempt to adjust your position, which ultimately leads to poor rest and tiredness in the morning.

2. Old pillow

A reason just as common for morning back pain is sleeping on old pillows, which in time become too soft to provide adequate neck and head support. This leads to pain and stiffness in the neck and shoulders, as well as pinched nerves in the upper back area.

Our pain management specialists recommend changing your pillows every two years, or even often if they stop providing adequate support. As a rule of thumb, you feel your head just sinks in the pillow during the night and most of the weight falls on the shoulders, it’s time for a replacement.

Pillows are essential for sleeping alignment and may be utilized for more than just holding our heads and necks. For example, if you sleep on one side, you can place a firm cushion between your knees to align the spine properly and relieve additional pressure that may be placed on the lower back.

Memory foam pillows are often recommended by doctors, as they take up the shape of the person using it and provide more support.

3. Sleeping poorly

If you wake up with constant pain in the morning, it may be time to analyze how you sleep through the night.

Many people find it comfortable to fall asleep on their backs, but this position can often increase snoring and result in breathing problems. What’s more, because the natural curvature of the spine is altered when sleeping on your back, with more pressure placed on the core, it can lead to serious low back problems.

Sleeping on your stomach is not good either, as it flattens the curvature of the spine and can lead to vertebrae issues.

The doctor-approved sleeping position is sleeping on the side, ideally with a pillow placed between the knees. This is the posture that preserves the natural position of the spine and prevents back problems.

Some people find it difficult to fall asleep on one side. If this is your case, there may be some things you can try to make the previously mentioned sleeping positions less harmful to your back. If you like to sleep on your back, place a pillow under your knees, and if sleeping on your stomach makes you fall asleep the fastest, place the pillow under your pelvis instead.

4. Underlying health condition

On some occasions, morning back pain can be a sign of a more severe condition. Degenerative disc disease and spinal arthritis, for example, may cause sudden back pain, without any obvious triggers. This happens because, as we age, the normal wear and tear process of the vertebral discs accelerates, narrowing the lumbar spinal canal.

Pain may not appear the moment this process starts, which is why it can take months or even years to feel discomfort or experience issues performing everyday tasks.

The reason why pain is more discomforting in the morning is that there is a higher pressure inside the vertebrae discs. Degenerative disc disease can also be accompanied by symptoms such as weakness in the leg muscles, numbness in the limbs, pain that improves with walking and worsens with sitting.

If your morning back pain is accompanied by any of the symptoms above, it is highly recommended that you schedule an appointment with a specialist. Dr George Hanna, Dr Laura Lombardi, and Dr Shane J. Volney, our Harvard-trained pain doctors in Jersey City, are ready to help you find suited minimally invasive treatment options that will reduce the need for more intrusive surgical treatments.  Book an appointment in our conveniently-placed locations in Paramus on Route 17, near the Paramus Park Mall, in Clifton, NJ, on Route 46 E, past the Ford dealership, in West Orange, near the Essex Country Club, and in Woodland Park clinic, on McBride Avenue, right next to Woodland Park Dialysis Center.