Back Pain Treatment
At McBrearty Family & Sport Chiropractic, serving Canton, North Canton, and Stark County, we look beyond the painful spot to understand how your body is functioning, what may be contributing to the problem, and what needs to change so you can get back to the things that matter to you.
Understanding Back Pain
Back Pain Is a Symptom, Not the Whole Story
Your lower back is a busy area. Joints, discs, nerves, muscles, ligaments, fascia, the pelvis, hips, glutes, and abdominal muscles all work together when you sit, stand, walk, bend, lift, run, exercise, or work.
When part of that system becomes irritated, overloaded, restricted, or unable to tolerate its current demands, pain may be one of the ways your body gets your attention.
Sometimes the cause is obvious. You lifted something, trained hard, worked in the yard, or felt something happen during exercise.
Other times, back pain seems to appear without one clear event.
That is why we do not want to simply ask:
“Where does it hurt?”
We also want to understand:
“Why is it hurting, and what is not functioning the way it should?”
Common Factors We Evaluate
Muscle & Soft-Tissue Strain
Muscles and surrounding tissues can become irritated after lifting, exercise, repetitive movement, or sudden increases in activity.
Joint Movement
Restricted or irritated joints may influence how comfortably the lower back moves.
Disc or Nerve Irritation
Some back problems can involve symptoms that travel into the hip or leg, including sciatica-type symptoms.
Hip Mobility & Control
The hips and lower back work together during bending, lifting, walking, and athletic movement.
Workload & Overuse
Work, exercise, sports, yardwork, prolonged positions, and other demands can gradually exceed what your body currently tolerates.
Strength & Movement Control
Weakness or poor control in the hips or trunk can change how the lower back handles physical stress.
Highlighted Callout
We do not just chase pain. We look for the dysfunction contributing to it.
How We Evaluate Back Pain
We do not want to guess.
Your evaluation begins with your story.
When did the pain begin? Was there an injury? Where do you feel it? Does it stay in the back or travel into the hip or leg? What makes it better or worse? What does your normal work, exercise, or activity level look like?
Those details give us clues.
Then we evaluate how you move and function.
01. Listen
We learn how the problem started, what aggravates it, what helps it, and what you are trying to get back to.
02. Evaluate
Depending on your symptoms, we may assess:
Range of motion
Bending, rotation, and other movement
Strength
Hip function
Orthopedic findings
Neurological function when appropriate
Muscles and surrounding soft tissues
03. Identify the Pattern
We look for movements that are painful, restricted, weak, guarded, or different from side to side.
The goal is not simply to identify the spot that hurts.
The goal is to determine:
What is keeping you from functioning normally?
04. Treat & Reassess
When treatment is appropriate, we address the findings that appear relevant and then reassess.
Did your movement improve?
Did your strength change?
Did the painful movement become easier?
That response helps guide what happens next.
How We May Treat Back Pain
Your Treatment Plan Should Fit Your Problem
Chiropractic Care | Soft-Tissue Care & Active Release Techniques | Rehabilitation | When Imaging or Referral May Be Needed |
|---|---|---|---|
If the examination suggests that joint movement is part of the problem, chiropractic manipulation or mobilization may be used to help restore appropriate motion. But an adjustment is one tool, not the entire treatment plan. | Muscles and other soft tissues around the lower back, hips, and pelvis need to lengthen, shorten, and move effectively. When the examination identifies relevant soft-tissue dysfunction, we may use Active Release Techniques or other hands-on approaches. ART uses specific contact and controlled movement rather than simply pushing on a sore spot. | Feeling better is important. But if your back cannot tolerate lifting, running, working, golfing, exercising, or sitting through the workday, there is still work to do. Rehabilitation may include:
The specific program depends on what your body needs and what you are trying to return to. | Not everyone with back pain needs an X-ray or MRI. However, significant trauma, neurological findings, concern for fracture or another serious condition, or symptoms that are not progressing as expected may change the plan. Sometimes conservative care is appropriate. Sometimes the right next step is imaging or another healthcare provider. Knowing when not to continue treating is part of good care. |
Build Function & Capacity
Feeling Better Is Not Always the Finish Line
One of the concepts we use frequently at McBrearty is the Capacity Bucket.
Imagine the area of your body that is bothering you has a bucket representing how much stress it can currently tolerate.
Work puts stress into it.
Exercise puts stress into it.
Sports, yardwork, lifting, sitting, and other activities all add demand.
When the total demand repeatedly exceeds your current capacity, symptoms may appear.
Sometimes the movement that hurt was not the entire problem.
It may simply have been the last thing added to a bucket that was already nearly full.
The goal is not to avoid activity forever.
The goal is to build a bigger bucket.
Treatment can help restore movement and calm symptoms.
We want you to progress from:
Whether your goal is working comfortably, returning to the gym, running, golfing, lifting, playing sports, or simply moving through the day without constantly thinking about your back, we want your body prepared to handle it.
FAQ
Can chiropractic care help lower back pain?
Chiropractic manipulation can be one non-drug treatment option for certain types of lower-back pain. At McBrearty, we determine whether chiropractic care makes sense based on your history and examination rather than assuming every case needs the same treatment.
Do I need an X-ray before seeing a chiropractor?
Not automatically. Routine imaging is generally not needed for uncomplicated low-back pain without concerning findings. Imaging may become more important when trauma, neurological findings, suspected fracture, serious disease, or lack of expected progress changes the clinical picture.
What is Active Release Techniques?
Active Release Techniques, or ART, is a hands-on soft-tissue approach in which a specific tissue is contacted while it moves from a shortened toward a lengthened position. We may use ART when soft-tissue dysfunction appears to be part of the problem.
Should I rest when my back hurts?
Sometimes activity needs to be temporarily modified, but complete long-term avoidance of movement is usually not the end goal. We want to determine what your body can currently tolerate and gradually rebuild capacity.
Why does my back pain keep returning?
Pain can improve before strength, movement, and capacity have been fully restored. Returning immediately to the same workload that exceeded your tolerance before can contribute to recurring symptoms.
Can tight hips contribute to back pain?
The hips and lower back work together during walking, standing, bending, lifting, and athletic movement. If hip mobility or control is limited, it can change how the lower back handles those tasks.
How long will it take for my back pain to improve?
There is no single timeline that applies to every patient. Your history, examination findings, activity demands, severity of the problem, and response to treatment all influence recovery.
