Podcast Show Notes: Episode 3

My Back Pain Toolkit: 3 Game-Changing Products To Try

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Hey! Welcome to the podcast!

If you’ve been following me for a while, then you’ve probably heard me talk about the power of creating your own “back pain toolkit”. In this episode, I’m going to teach you about my three favorite products that are in MY back pain toolkit.

Side note, YES, since having kids I DO get back pain once in a while, which is another reason why I’m a huge advocate for being prepared.  

So I’m going to get you started with yours today by learning about a few of my favorites and then I’ll teach you how to use your intuition to decide if any of them are worth trying out for YOU. You’ll want to create a toolkit so that you can gain control, take charge of how your body looks and feels, and work towards creating a crazy healthy and happy body that is not under the control of the old-school idea that we’re stuck with chronic pain because of our genes.

So I absolutely love these toolkits for two reasons: 

Number 1 is that by having your own toolkit, you’ll have exactly what you need, when you need it most. You’ll also gain a new level of control knowing that you’re prepared. There’s nothing worse than walking through a drugstore when you’re feeling miserable, only to end up feeling even worse because you’re now overwhelmed and have a bag full of expensive items that you’re not even sure will help you feel better. 

Have you done this before? 

Ahhh I used to do this in college. I’d spend an hour roaming a CVS Pharmacy that was near my dorm and spend like 90 bucks on things I either never used or just didn’t work for me. 

Trust me, there’s a MUCH better way to do this. 

The second reason that I love having a personalized back pain toolkit is that it’s actually VERY empowering. Just the act of finding a cute basket or container to assign as your own personal back pain toolkit and spending the time connecting with your intuition and testing out products and filling the container with the ones that actually work really well for you…it’s a symbol of you taking CONTROL of the situation, of your body, of your LIFE and taking ACTION. 

It’s literally you telling the universe, okay yes, I’ve been dealt a crappy hand of cards and chronic back pain has become a consistent part of my life…BUT I’m not afraid of it. I’m not hiding under my covers. I’m not shrugging my shoulders and letting out a huge sigh because “well gosh darn it, this is just the way it has to be.” HELL NO! You’re telling the universe that yes, this sucks, but this isn’t all there is for me and I’m taking control of it right now... I AM IN CHARGE of how my body feels and looks. 

Ooooo. That just gave me goosebumps. 

I’m going to say that one again: I AM IN CHARGE of how my body feels and looks.

Have you ever thought of it that way? Yes, we all have genes that predispose us of having certain health conditions but there’s this thing called epigenetics. Epigenetics is the study of how your habits and environment can cause changes that affect the way your genes work. When this idea was discovered, it totally changed how scientists viewed health and wellness because instead of blaming every health issue on someone’s genes or environment (like where they grew up or something); they could now blame a lot of it on that person’s lifestyle. This could either be incredibly inspiring or incredibly frustrating because guess what? Now we know that we are (mostly) in control of our health, how we look, and how we feel. 

This explains why identical twins can exhibit different behaviors, skills, and health! Even though they might be raised by the same parents, there’s absolutely no way for them to experience every single little moment in the EXACT same way. These different experiences (no matter how small they may be) affect the way their genes are expressed. 

My identical twin daughters are an awesome example of this. Many times, one will get sick and the other won’t. One is a little heavier than the other. One has a few birthmarks that her sister doesn’t have. 

This is all because yes, their DNA started out identical but since the moment of their conception, they’ve experienced their own things in life from getting different levels of nutrients depending on what they eat to how they play each day. 

So. Whew. That can be a lot to handle. 

But looking at it from the other side, it can be soooo freaking encouraging.

Epigenetics tells us this: “Okay, yes, maybe you have chronic back pain. Your parents have bad backs. Your grandparents have bad backs, and your brother and sister both have bad backs, too. But don’t worry! Yeah, you may have a genetic disposition for back pain for whatever reason, but you can actually CHANGE how those back-pain-related-genes are working by changing how you treat your body. Eat healthier, exercise more, work on relieving stress…boom. Those genes are now changing and are not so in-control anymore.”

So think of epigenetics as you’re building your back pain toolkit. No matter what the tool is, it’s something that is changing part of your body, and therefore changing your body chemistry and promoting those lovely back-pain-related-genes to chill out. 

So let’s do this!

The FIRST tool that I love is a reusable hot-slash-cold gel pack. These things are so cheap, so easy to use, and work soooo well. Most people already have one in their freezer and I can’t tell you how many times my clients have told me, “Oh my gosh why didn’t I think of that?”

For example, if my lower back starts tightening up and is achy for a few days, I love alternating between heat and cold. This means heating it up in the microwave, wrapping it in a small towel, and sitting down with it on the achy spot for about 15 minutes. Then, I throw it back in the freezer and an hour or two later, I’ll take it out of the freezer, wrap it with a small towel and sit again with it for about 15 minutes. I aim to do this about 3 times per day when my back is really bugging me. 

If I were dealing with low to medium-grade constant back pain that’s been there for years, I’d try to create a schedule that worked for me. Like, if I had a 9-5 desk job then maybe I’d try to use it at work, 15 minutes of heat and 15 minutes of cold in the morning and then do the same again in the afternoon. 

The SECOND tool that I love and tell all my clients about are Epsom Salts. This one’s tricky if you don’t have a bathtub but not impossible. The goal is to spend 20 minutes in a bath mixed with about 2 scoops of epsom salts to relieve sore muscles. This old-fashioned technique has been used forever and it can be really effective at relieving sore muscles and an achy back. People also swear that it helps reduce stress and tension, which is always a plus. Research hasn’t shown us why it works but they assume it has something to do with the magnesium in the Epsom salt. 

At my house, we have the classic American-style shower-bathtub combo which means when I take a bath in it, my 5-foot-6 frame is definitely squeezed in. But I don’t really care! I just bend my knees and try to stay as submerged in the water as I can. I like to picture the epsom salts soaking into my muscles and working their magic. Just for fun. 

Okay so the THIRD tool that I love for my back pain toolkit is my exercise ball. I can’t say enough about this one! You can use it for stretching and even for sitting, like while working on your computer, for short periods of time. The best moves for relieving back pain are drawing figure 8’s with your hips while sitting on the ball followed by pelvic tilts forward and backward. The goal is to feel a nice stretch in your low back with these moves. Your range of motion changes when you’re on the ball, versus if you were stretching on the floor, which is why it feels so good. If your upper back is what bothers you the most, then you can kneel on the floor behind the ball and rest your forearms on the top of the ball and gently arch your upper back up and down. This also feels amazing after hunching at your computer all day. 

So now you know my three favorite tools! Pretty easy, huh? Here’s how to decide if trying one or all of these is right for you:

Sit quietly and close your eyes. Take three deep breaths and think about one of the tools, such as the hot/cold gel pack. Continue taking slow deep breaths and picture yourself using the gel pack as I described. Really take a moment to feel how it might feel to put it in the microwave, pick out a small towel from your kitchen drawer, sit on your couch or at your desk at work and see yourself using it. Maybe you set a timer. Maybe you schedule it in your phone calendar so you get an alert at 10am and 3pm each day to heat it up or pull it out of the freezer. Keeping your eyes shut, here’s the key: how does it feel as you go through those steps and as you use the gel pack? Does it just feel like a ton of work that sucks and is overwhelming? Or does it feel empowering, like damn. YES. This is something I could easily fit into my day and it’s exciting to be taking action.

Which one was it? That’s your answer.

Your action step for this episode is to try this process with the three tools you just learned about and see how your intuition feels about them. 

Keep in mind, this process takes about 1-2 minutes. You don’t have to deeply meditate on this topic for 30 minutes. I mean, you could if you wanted to! I don’t know about you, but I definitely don’t have time for that. It’s a skill that takes a little practice but it’s there for you, if you want it to be. 

I KNOW you can do this. I believe in you and I admire your strength and power to take control of how your body feels and looks by learning this new technique. 

Until then, find me over on Instagram and let me know how this worked for you. And as always, DM me with any questions. I’d absolutely LOVE to help.