The Spine: Support System for Your Body

Parts of the Spine

The spine is composed of many parts that function together to allow you to move...and a whole lot of other things! Let's focus on movement for now.

Vertebrae - The Bones of the Spine
The vertebrae are the bony segments of your spine. They are joined to each other throughout the spine by "articulations" that allow smooth movement between the bones. The round part of the vertebra is called the "body" and the pointy part to the back is the "spinous process."

Within each section, there are a number of bones named for their number in the segment: 7 cervical vertebrae (C1-C7), 12 thoracic vertebrae (T1-T12), 5 lumbar vertebrae (L1-L5), 1 sacrum made of 5 fused vertebrae, 1 coccyx made of 4 fused coccygeal vertebrae. The coccyx is the lowest point of the spine that bends when you sit down and acts like a shock absorber while you sit. It's also known more commonly as the tailbone.

Facet Joints
Facet joints connect the vertebrae of the spine and allow movement. One faces up and one faces down to connect with the adjacent vertebrae.

Disc
The intervertebral disc (or disc for short) acts like the shock absorber of the spine. It holds the bony vertebrae apart and gives space in the spinal canal for the spinal cord and its nerves to pass through on their way to the extremities of the body. Its center is the "nucleus pulposus" which is normally 80% water-filled. The outer part is the "annulus fibrosus" which is made of rubberband-like rings (annular fibers) which hold the nucleus in place.

Curves and Sections
The spinal column has 4 curves - cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral - and 5 sections - cervical (C1-C7), thoracic (T1-T12), lumbar (L1-L5), sacral (S1-S5), and coccygeal.    

• Two curves are concave posteriorly (cervical and lumbar).
• Two are concave anteriorly (thoracic and sacral).

So, what's up with your spine? Contact Chiropractic Care, Ltd. We'll figure it out together, and get you back to enjoying your life!

If pain is preventing you from doing even simple tasks, give your Chicago Chiropractor neck and back pain specialists a call!

                                                      

Chiropractic Care Millennium Park - 30 N. Michigan Avenue - Suite 605 

Chicago, IL 60602 - Phone: 312-269-5556 

Chiropractic Care, Ltd. - 2417 W. 183rd Street - Homewood, IL 60430 

Phone: 708-798-5556

Gardening and Your Back

 

It is that time of year again and I can hardly wait to get my hands in the dirt. Gardening is hard work and can put quite a strain on your muscles, especially those in your back. Here are some suggestions for making the most of your garden while treating your back with care.

First, be sure to warm up your back muscles with some stretching before you go out, particularly in colder weather. Gardening may involve significant reaching and twisting, so be sure to start slowly and work your way up to longer gardening sessions. Be sure to keep water nearby and to take breaks often. If you start to feel any pain, stop and rest. Otherwise, you risk injuring your back and making it impossible for you to do anything at all in your garden.

Garden Layout

 •Use mulch on the surface of your garden. This should reduce weeds and help the soil retain moisture, so you don't have to water and pull weeds as often.
 •Use raised flowerbeds, which are both attractive and help reduce the need to bend down. You can grow vines and other trailing plants around the edges.

 Plants 

•Remember that slow-growing shrubs are less trouble to maintain than perennials or annuals. •Consider ground-covering plants to keep weeds under control. Weeding is hard on the back due to all the bending and pulling.

Tools 

•Use forks and trowels with long handles, and other tools with extenders to reduce your need to reach.
•Avoid heavy watering cans for irrigation. If you use a can, only fill it half way.

How to reduce digging

If you spread compost and fertilizer or manure over a flowerbed surface in the late autumn, the soil has time to settle before spring planting. Worms will take organic matter into the soil and you won't have to dig so much. This approach requires initial digging to level the soil and remove weeds, but over time you will be able to dig less and less. Many gardeners feel that this method is better than traditional "double digging" because it leaves the soil structure intact. Contact a specialist at your local gardening center for more details on this back-saving approach to gardening.

If pain is preventing you from enjoying your garden, give your Chicago Chiropractor neck and back pain specialists a call.

Please visit our website for more information.

               

Chiropractic Care Millennium Park - 30 N. Michigan Avenue - Suite 605 

Chicago, IL 60602 - Phone: 312-269-5556 

Chiropractic Care, Ltd. - 2417 W. 183rd Street - Homewood, IL 60430 

Phone: 708-798-5556

The Best..and Worst Sleeping Positions!

Our patients frequently ask about proper sleep positions. I recently found an article about the subject written by Nav Gill, D.C. and decided to pass it along.

You spend about 1/3 of your life sleeping- are you sleeping in a way that facilitates the best sleep possible? Are you waking up stiff with neck and shoulder pain every morning? What is the best position for sleep that will place the least stress on your neck and lower back? Let's discuss the 3 sleeping positions and how each affects you:

* Sleeping on Your Side

This is a popular sleeping position for many people. There is a natural tendency to sleep on ones side after starting out on your back. When sleeping on your side make sure your pillow has enough support in it to keep your shoulders relaxed. If your pillow is too low, your head will be tilting down and if it is too high your neck will be stretched -both of which can be very uncomfortable. That is why having a properly sized cervical support pillow is a good idea. To make this side sleeping position even more comfortable with the least amount of stress on your body, place a pillow in between the knees that keeps your legs hip width apart. This will properly support your lower back area.

* Sleeping on Your Back

Sleeping on your back is great because you can sleep in a position that supports your head and neck and lower back area. To combat any type of lower back stiffness or discomfort, sleep with a few pillows or a wedge, under your knees. If you use a cervical support neck pillow, you can allow your head and neck to be in the correct position. Sleeping on your back with a neck support pillow and positioning wedge for your lower back is the least stressful for your body. Keep in mind that you may start in this position, but most people move around during the night.

* Sleeping on Your Stomach

By far, the worst sleeping position is on your stomach. Not only does it place extra stress on your cervical spine and upper back area, but it also places stress on your lower back and stomach muscles. Sleeping on your stomach means your head and neck are turned to one side (so that you can breathe) for a prolonged period of time, which can create stiffness by the morning.

The best position for sleeping is the position in which you are most comfortable. Also, if you are trying to prevent sleeping on your stomach, sleep with a pillow to your side to prevent you from rolling onto your stomach. Remember, sleep is when your body heals and regenerates- find a position that is most comfortable for you to get the best sleep possible at night

We carry a full line of cervical pillows at our Homewood and Chicago offices. We have fiber filled and water based varieties. Please visit our website for more information.

                 

Chiropractic Care Millennium Park - 30 N. Michigan Avenue - Suite 605

Chicago, IL 60602 - Phone: 312-269-5556

Chiropractic Care, Ltd. - 2417 W. 183rd Street - Homewood, IL 60430

Phone: 708-798-5556