Spinal Decompression Tables
Before the advent of modern spinal decompression machines, someone invented the spinal decompression table as a way to alleviate cervical compression in the back and neck. In many cases these devices were ahead of their time because back compression has not been fully understood until recent advances in chronic pain and sports medicine.
The way that spinal decompression tables work is by leveraging the natural gravity and weight of your body in order to elongate the spine and so alleviate the built up pressure on your spinal discs. Of course this is considered to be a temporary solution because as soon as you get up and walk or run some more your discs will begin to put pressure on your spinal connecting tissues again. However, for people that are suffering from constant pain on account of spine compression, this short period of sweet relief can offer a glimpse of normalcy in lives that often become anything but.
Constant spinal pain can cause anxiety and depression, on top of the pain’s ability to restrict movement. So as the chronic pain continues over time, a person gradually erodes their emotional support systems. The problem is that this erosion of social support actually enhances the perception of pain, as research has shown. The more anxious and depressed you feel, the more acutely you experience painful stimuli, and the more chronically you experience those painful stimuli the more dramatically you experience emotional discomfort.
While spinal decompression machines are currently quite rare in the United States, you may be able to get access to a spinal decompression table in your local area. This can not only provide temporary non-surgical relief from back pain, but also can provide you and your physician with some insight into the ultimate cause of your back or neck pain. If the spinal decompression tables work for your pain, then you know you are dealing with potentially correctable back compression, as opposed to more serious permanent tissue damage.