Experiencing a lower spasm is very inconvenient, annoying, and painful. The good thing is, it can be treated. All you need to do is to change your lifestyle and habits and try to have a good diet. Of course, frequent massage therapy can be helpful like what therapies provides, and they can reduce the frequency of back spasms.

A lot of people experience back spasms as it can happen to anyone in a sudden moment. It is often caused by a physical injury or those people who are always dehydrated, pregnant, or have a sedentary lifestyle that results in weaker muscles at the back.

What Does it Feel Like?

These spams happen when the muscles at the back are tense until they contract. Because it can be sudden, it induces pain and can be too annoying and uncomfortable. Most of the time, people experience a specific area where the muscle contracts, but some people also experience tension in the surrounding and nearby areas. Spasms can also be common in leg and hip.

The lower back spasm can be acute or chronic. Acute lower back spasms can happen all of a sudden while a person lifts or changes a certain position. It may make the person feel intense pain and/or difficulty in movement. Chronic lower back spasms happen regularly and may be caused by a physical injury that happened in the past. This provides a regular uncomfortable feeling as well as pain.

Symptoms of lower back spasms are the following:

• Trouble moving after moving, bending, or twisting in a certain angle
• Tension in the lower back
• Sudden pain at the lower back
• Chronic pain in the lower back
• Experiencing cramping sensation that often comes and goes
• Weakness in the lower back and surrounding muscles

How to Have an Immediate Relief from Spasms?

There are things you can do whether you are experiencing acute or chronic lower back spasms, and these are the following:

• Water – when a person is dehydrated, he might feel lower back spasms. So, to avoid and have a relief from spasms, it is advised to drink water or electrolyte drink to avoid being dehydrated.
• Massage – firm pressure caused by a massage can effectively reduce tension in the muscles and stop the spasms. To do this, a person can press on the affected area up to one minute before rubbing the surrounding area in a circular motion. Firm massage is oftentimes uncomfortable for most people, but it should not be painful. Also, if there is a pulse on where the person is massaging, it is important to not apply pressure.
• Medications – over the counter medications can also help reduce the pain and stop muscle spasms.
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen, can offer a person relief from the tension and pain. However, it might take up to an hour to feel the effects.
• Heat/Ice – both heat and ice can reduce the inflammation and ease the muscles affected. Also, alternating from hot to cold is very effective for this purpose. What you need to do is to apply a hot pad for 20 minutes, take 2 minutes break, and apply a cold pad for 20 minutes again.