Osteochondrosis is called degenerative change in the articular cartilage. If we show this process in a few words, then the soft “spacer” between the bones becomes thinner and stops completely fulfilling the shock-absorbing function assigned to it. As a result of pinching the nerve endings, pain occurs, mobility is impaired. The process extends to the surrounding muscles, affecting internal organs.
Therapeutic treatment of osteochondrosis at home aims to alleviate the patient's condition and return him to an active life. Let’s take a look at popular and available methods to help you get rid of attacks and prevent recurrence.
Causes of disease
Doctors joke that spinal deformity is the human price to pay for the ability to walk upright. In this ironic statement, of course, there is some truth, but more often than not, the patient himself is the real culprit. The most common causes of osteochondrosis are: inactive lifestyle, overweight, stress.
Hobbies for alcoholic beverages and smoking also contribute. Nicotine makes bones brittle, inhibiting collagen synthesis, which is responsible for the elasticity of cartilage tissue. Alcohol causes tissue dehydration, helping to cleanse calcium. No less dangerous is the passion for a strict diet that limits the intake of minerals and vitamins.
Hereditary factors and age-related changes play an important role in the development of osteochondrosis. In addition, flat feet, wearing high-heeled shoes, contribute to the development of pathology.
Those who are stressed are at risk for this disease. These are developers, servers, movers. However, representatives of inactive professions suffering from osteochondrosis are not uncommon.
Medicine
Osteochondrosis of the spine often worsens after doing housework or gardening, increased physical activity, hypothermia. In such cases, the first priority is to eliminate the strong sensation of pain that interferes with normal movement.
One way to stop an attack quickly is to take medication (analgesics) or injections to relieve pain. After the acute pain has subsided, other methods of treating spinal osteochondrosis can be used. Home therapy includes:
- take drugs from various groups;
- warms up and rubs;
- exercise;
- massage and massage yourself.
Medical treatment of spinal osteochondrosis at home is done using various gels and ointments. This procedure improves blood circulation, relieves tense muscles, and relieves inflammation. There are a large number of specialty drugs on the pharmaceutical market that can be used to relieve the symptoms of pain in osteochondrosis.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs relieve major symptoms. To restore a worn intervertebral disc, it is necessary to use chondroprotectors.
Chondroprotectors aim to stimulate the formation of inter-articular fluid and restore cartilage structure.
Alternative Medicine
Treating osteochondrosis on your own at home can be very effective.
However, you should not use advice without consulting an expert. An examination should also be performed to confirm the correct diagnosis.
As a rule, folk methods for treating osteochondrosis are based on the use of plant or animal raw materials, bee products, and chemicals. The latter includes ethyl alcohol, kerosene, turpentine. This liquid is used to make compresses, tinctures or medicinal ointments.
Compound milling
Easy to prepare at home, the solution can help stop the onset of pain during the worsening of osteochondrosis. To complete it, you need:
- Alcohol or vodka 1. 5 cups.
- 2 tsp iodine solution.
- Camphor 2 tbsp. spoon.
Mix the liquid components, shake. Use as needed, but not more than twice a day. It is important to keep the lower back warm after rubbing.
Healing Bath
Treatment of osteochondrosis with folk remedies also includes water procedures. Conifer baths will help reduce muscle tension and calm the nervous system. Medicinal raw materials can be prepared independently or ready-made extracts can be purchased. For the first method, you need a cone and twigs of pine, pine or spruce, which are first boiled for half an hour, and then insist for a day. To prepare the bath, you need to add a glass of infusion or 50 grams of ready-made dry extract to water at a temperature of 37–39 degrees.
In the treatment of diseases of the musculoskeletal system at home, turpentine emulsion is often used. The composition includes the following ingredients:
- white emulsion 550 grams;
- purified water 0, 5 liters;
- salicylic acid 75 grams;
- 30 grams of soap shavings.
Heat water to a boil, dissolve soap in it, add salicylic acid and mix with turpentine. Pour the prepared mixture into a bathtub at a temperature of about 40 ° C.
The duration of the procedure is about half an hour. The temperature must be constant, for this you need to add hot water periodically to the bathtub. The duration of treatment is 5-7 days. Doctors do not recommend bathing during the worsening of osteochondrosis, accompanied by severe pain.
You can also treat osteochondrosis at home with dry heat. For such a procedure, buckwheat or salt is used, the product is heated in a pan. After placing the hot mass on a clean piece of cloth, the application is rubbed onto the lower back, isolated with a blanket and left to cool. Heating is done in two or three steps, about 45 minutes.
Although all folk remedies are based on natural ingredients, they cannot be called safe. Do not forget about individual intolerance. Obviously, turpentine or kerosene is not suitable for people with sensitive skin.
Herbal preparations
Non-traditional osteochondrosis treatment at home is incomplete without a prescription for herbal medicine. And this is as follows:
- For compresses, you can use a mixture of herbs consisting of St. John's wort. John, dandelion root and burdock leaves. The dried, crushed raw material (20 grams each) is poured with boiling water, insist in a closed vessel and a piece of cloth is folded in several layers impregnated with cold solution. Apply the compress to the sore spot for 20-30 minutes.
- Mint and sage in equal parts, pour water and boil for 10 minutes. Broth is taken orally twice a day for half a glass or used at the site of localization of osteochondrosis in the form of compresses. For its preparation, take 3 tablespoons of crushed raw material per liter of water.
- Mother and stepmother flowers are poured with 4% ammonia, insisting for 30 days in the dark. It is used as a swab to relieve pain and swelling during exacerbation of osteochondrosis.
Massage and massage yourself
Traditional treatment - massage - will help get rid of osteochondrosis. Thanks to this procedure, the neck muscles and the entire shoulder belt are fully relaxed. It is also important that a properly performed massage can help relieve pain and improve metabolic processes. At the same time, the patient's blood pressure also returned to normal.
It is possible to treat osteochondrosis at home this way only if there is a good masseur who knows all the subtleties of this procedure. But self-massage can be a good substitute. Its implementation methodology is studied and mastered in moderation. In order not to endanger yourself, you need to know a few simple rules:
- Proper self-massage for osteochondrosis should be done exclusively with the fingers. In this case, the movement of the fingers must be initiated from the spinal space to the periphery.
- Movement should be smooth and light, with no force. It is very important not to make sudden movements and not to rush.
An example of a classic self-sequence might look like this:
- Warms the skin with a rubbing and caressing motion.
- After that, while in a sitting position, you should do a gentle blow with your hands in the area affected by osteochondrosis.
- Finger movements and light strokes should be done for 3 minutes.
This procedure must be performed daily for the entire treatment of osteochondrosis. If possible, family members can do the massage, but it is very important that minimum movement strength is used.
Physiotherapy training
Another method of dealing with osteochondrosis is recovery gymnastics. This procedure is mandatory for home treatment as it helps to strengthen the muscles of the affected area. Performing exercises, the patient's muscles tense and relax, creating the necessary load on the affected area.
Important!All exercises should be done slowly, otherwise exercise therapy can be harmful.
Slow rotation of the head to the side is most effective for the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis. Depending on the affected area, exercise can be used to strengthen the upper and lower muscles. And with the help of hand movements in the shoulder joints, cervical muscle tension can be reduced.
For the preparation of the correct set of exercises for the treatment of osteochondrosis, you must consult a specialist. He or she will choose the complex to tell and show which exercise is most effective for each individual case, as depending on the affected area, a specific muscle group must be involved. It is very important to follow your doctor's instructions so that the treatment is beneficial and does not endanger your health. If the sensation is painful during gymnastics, you should stop training and inform the specialist so that he corrects the exercise set. To get the maximum effect, regardless of the complexity of the case, in addition to gymnastics, you need to use an applicator, do your own massage and use medication for the treatment of osteochondrosis.
Helpful Hints
When osteochondrosis is diagnosed, the neurologist prescribes complex therapy. Home treatment alternates with physiotherapy, massage, injections and medication. Exercise therapists strongly recommend that it be not limited to bed rest, even during periods of exacerbated osteocondrosis. Moreover, they claim that some exercise can help relieve pain as well as medications.
It should be noted that the modern approach to the treatment of osteochondrosis is different from the methods used a few decades ago. Patients perform relaxation and meditation exercises to relieve stress. The disease is not only treated by neurologists, but also by psychotherapists.
Here are some tips to help reduce osteochondrosis:
- Need to strengthen the muscles of the back and abdomen, they will create a kind of support frame. To do this, you need to do stretching and flexibility exercises every day. It is also important to monitor your posture while working or walking.
- Everyone should choose the right sleeping position to relax the spine as much as possible. If a person sleeps on his back, then it is useful to place an extra pillow under his feet in the knee area. Lying next to you, pinch between your thighs.
- To get rid of osteochondrosis, therapy alone is not enough. Doctors recommend quitting smoking and alcohol, which damages joint tissue. It is also worth maintaining a healthy weight.