Back Up: Why back pain treatments aren't working and the new science offering hope

As a physio who specialises in persistent back pain, I must recommend this book to at least 10 people a week!Having read many of the cited authors / research, this book is a perfect consolidation of the up to date spinal literature, written in an engaging and accessible way.Whenever there’s a narrative shift in medicine, the new thinking at first seems absurd, until it doesn’t, and eventually becomes common sense.If you have back pain or are clinician that’s wants a great summary of the up to date research, I couldn’t recommend this more!

Crammed with science and research and anecdote about what is happening in the bodies of many (most) of us with back pain.The pinned review by someone with such severe back issues doesn't acknowledge that, with respect, the author is not writing for them who are in a very different category of severe issues.I work in the field of emotional trauma which really connected with a lot of the writing about fight-flight response our bodies have. My only criticism is that a clearer section on working with trauma response could have been really useful. But I get the feeling that in Oz, this work has entered the mainstream so maybe people have more access and sign-posting.Anyone wanting to work with their trauma response could look up vagus nerve exercises, breathing for fight-flight, exercises and self-talk to remind your brain that you are safe.I can honestly say that working with those kind of exercises as a result of reading the book 8 months ago, has completely shifted the amount of back pain I experience and my ability to manage it. Yay.Dr Lorimer Moseley's TED talk is a brilliant funny 'into' the science. Lauren Carrell's TED talk is a helpful personal experience.

I have a spinal cord injury and suffer from chronic pain, so after reading about this book in a Guardian article I thought it might be helpful. I haven’t finished it and don’t think I’ll bother. It doesn’t sound as though the author is an expert on the subject and so far he has claimed that slipped discs aren’t a real thing and that spinal cord stimulation is useless, based on some interviews with members of the public.I’m not a doctor, but I know that there are people with chronic neuropathic pain who have not benefitted from pain medication but do find some relief from spinal cord stimulation, which is not widely available in the UK (it is an option for people treated at some pain management clinics for certain conditions). In the UK at least, you would likely have had physio etc before even being referred to a pain management clinic.Also, despite what the author says, fusions are necessary for some people - I broke my spine in two places and as far as I am aware the fusion is what is holding my spine in place. I also know from experience that using a non-ergonomic chair can make the pain I experience agonising. And Lyrica/Pregabalin has made my life bearable - I have tried stopping it, as well as experimenting with other combinations of drugs, but the dose of I am taking is what works for me (and it doesn’t even get rid of the pain completely, it just makes it manageable).I wish I could get a refund, but I waited too long to start reading it.

Present for my father who suffers from back pain. Will have to come back to you in 6 months after he has put the words in the book into action. Here’s hoping there’s some good advice in the there 🙏

Written with many engaging personal accounts of back pain, including the author’s own, but also (importantly) backed with solid evidence from experts in the field and peer-reviewed scientific studies, this book is empowering for readers wanting to approach the treatment of their own back pain issues with all the available and unbiased information laid out.It is brilliantly written and so helpful.

Well researched book that helps to remove the fear from back injuries. I have definitely gained more confidence in my own back after reading this