I’m an osteopath – here’s how to ease joint pain WITHOUT having to see a doctor
WHETHER it’s a dodgy back or achy hip, almost 10million of us suffer from pain every day.
That is one in five people in Britain having their lives made a misery. But what if you could do something to ease the pain?
Osteopath and recovery specialist James Davies has worked with top athletes, from Olympic champion Mo Farah to Premier League footballers like Jamie Vardy, and A-list clients such as David Beckham and Kylie Minogue. He is also Joe Wicks’ osteopath.
In his new book, Body, he sets out strategies for preventing pain and getting your skeleton into tip-top condition.
“I have seen every type of pain,” James tells Sun Health. “They are all messages telling us that something is wrong, something needs to be adjusted or healed.”
In an exclusive extract, we reveal four body parts highly prone to pain and key stretches and exercises you can do at home to help prevent it.
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NECK
If your neck is healthy, you should be able to…
- Turn your head to either side and look where your shoulders are pointing.
- Get your chin to your breastplate.
- Roll your head back so your nose is nearly pointing to the sky without feeling any pain.
Common problems:
HAVING difficulty turning your head? This can be a sign of moderate strain.
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If you experience pain in your mid-back or shoulder when looking down, this could be a strain to the trapezius muscle that covers the shoulders, neck, and upper back.
Loss of power in your upper limbs and lack of full range of movement in either shoulder would suggest a nerve-root irritation or referred pain from a joint.
3 exercises to support your neck:
FIGURE OF 8: Imagine you have two pencils where your eyes are and draw a figure of eight with your eyes.
As your neck loosens, make the eight larger but still within a comfortable range of movement. Draw this in both directions.
Now imagine the pencil is where your nose is and repeat the process. Finally, place the imaginary pencil under your chin and draw a few more.
Moving the point of the focus down through these positions loosens the muscles in the top, mid area and base of the neck.
NECK TURNS: Sit with your head facing forwards and your shoulders relaxed.
Then turn your head from side to side so you are looking towards each of your shoulders. Repeat several times on each side.
ARM SQUEEZES: Beat poor posture by opening up your chest. Hold your arms straight at a ten and two position with a relaxed neck and gently draw your arms back by squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Hold for several seconds, release and repeat a few times.
HIPS
If your hips are healthy, you should be able to…
- Bend your knee up towards your chest. Keeping your legs straight, one at a time, lift your leg to the side and away from your body more than 45 degrees and bring it back to your body without pain.
- Swing your leg backwards and forwards with your knee straight without pain.
- Walk backwards without pain.
Common problems:
Swelling and bruising: A sign of possible strain.
Hot, swollen hip, alongside a temperature: This could be a potential joint infection.
Severe pain, difficulty walking: Seek medical help — you could have a hip fracture.
Stiff, painful joints after moving in the morning: A key sign of osteoarthritis which your GP can diagnose.
Stiff, painful joints after not moving in both hips: Could indicate rheumatoid arthritis. Your GP can help with this.
Localised pain and tenderness: Potential inflammation of bursae — the small, fluid -filled pads that prevent tissue rubbing. This can be eased at home but seek help if you have a fever, feel hot and shivery or have sharp, shooting pain.
3 exercises to support your hips:
SWING IT: When standing, place one of your hands on a wall and gently swing your leg backwards and forwards.
Turn to face the wall and swing the same leg from side to side for ten to 20 seconds. Repeat with your other leg.
TOUCH SOLES: Lie on your front, and rest your chin on your hands. Bend your knees and allow the soles of your feet to meet.
Gently press the soles of the feet together and you should feel a stretch in your buttocks and upper thighs. Hold for several seconds.
WIDE BEND: Start with a wide stance and hold your hands out in front of you. Bend one of your knees and shift your weight towards it until it is bent at 90 degrees and the other leg is straight.
Gently raise yourself up, move your weight to the other knee and lower that one in the same way. Do this five times on each side.
SHOULDERS
If your shoulders are healthy, you should be able to…
- Keep your arms straight, and lift them away from your body one at a time in a semicircle until your hands point upwards.
- Move each hand behind your back until you touch the bottom of your opposite shoulder blade from below.
- Then move each arm across your body and touch the outside of the opposite shoulder.
- Complete circular arm swings forwards and backwards.
Common problems:
PAIN between the angles of 45 and 120 degrees, when you raise your arm away from your body until your fingers are pointing up, could be shoulder impingement.
Stiffness in one shoulder might be a frozen shoulder, caused when abnormal bands of tissue grow in the joint and stiffen it.
Pain and stiffness in both shoulders may indicate polymyalgia rheumatica, which can be linked to inflammation around the arteries in the temples. Contact your GP if you suspect you this.
3 exercises to support your shoulders:
ARM EXTENSION 1: Face forwards, take each end of a bath towel in your hands and hold your arms high in the “ten to two” position for several seconds. Repeat two to three times.
This exercise is very good for balancing out any rounded postures.
ARM EXTENSION 2: If you have a slight injury, stand upright and grasp the wrist on your painful arm with the hand of your non-painful arm behind your back. Gently pull the painful arm away from your back until you feel a stretch in the painful shoulder.
Hold it there for a few seconds before releasing. Repeat this several times. It also works if you are injury-free.
SELF-MASSAGE: Use the four fingertips of the opposite arm on the front of the shoulder and then hold for five seconds or make circular motions over your clothes.
LOWER BACK
If your lower back is healthy, you should be able to…
- Lean backwards 45 degrees without pain when seated.
- While standing with straight legs, lean down and touch your toes or shins.
- When standing up straight, bend your torso to the side. Your hands should be able to slide down the outside of your thighs to your knees.
Common problems:
LOW-level back pain, stiffness and tightness could be muscle strain due to overuse or inactivity.
Lower-back pain, a numbness in limbs and back, a tingly feeling, muscle weakness and problems bending or straightening are all signs of disc problems and could indicate damage to vertebra or nerve irritation.
In rare cases, people with pain, weakness or numbness in both legs and around their genitals may be suffering a medical emergency called cauda equina syndrome, where the nerves in the lower back suddenly become severely compressed and may require emergency surgery. Call 999.
Pain in the lower back and buttocks is likely to be sacroiliac (SI) joint pain, which is very common, particularly in pregnancy because these joints loosen to make childbirth possible.
As the pregnancy proceeds, the ligaments relax and the joint isn’t held together as well. There is also the weight of the baby pushing down on them.
3 exercises to support your lower back:
LIE DOWN: Lying on your back on the floor or a bed with legs raised should help relieve pain from most lower-back issues. Lie down for as long as you feel you need to, to give your body a rest.
KNEE LIFTS: Lie on your back with both knees bent and your feet on the floor. Use both hands to lift one knee towards your chest and hold it there for a few seconds. Do the same with the other knee. Repeat on both sides.
CHILD’S POSE: This pose is good for stretching your back muscles and taking pressure off the spine.
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From a kneeling position, sit back on your feet and lower your body so your head is close to the floor in front of your knees.
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Stretch out your arms in front of your head. Keep your neck in a relaxed position and your head facing the floor. Hold for 20 seconds. Repeat whenever you feel your lower back needs a break.
Body by James Davies is published by HQ, HarperCollins on September 1 in hardback, eBook and audiobook.