A practical approach to healing common back ailments Stella Weller Contents Introduction Chapter 1 Background on the Spine Spinal bones Supporting muscles Chapter 2 What Can Go Wrong Back and neck pain Spinal components Diagnostic tests Chapter 3 Coping With Pain Functions of pain Pain relief Physical therapies Hands-on therapies Posture and movement therapies Mind-body therapies Medications Surgical approaches Chapter 4 Posture Matters Body moves Sport Chapter 5 Healing Back Exercises Why exercise? Stretching Warm-ups Healing back sequence Alternative healing back sequence Back on the ball Warm-ups Swiss ball exercises Other ways to use the ball Cooling down Chapter 6 Ailments and Healing Options Spinal cord and nerves Bones Joints Discs Abnormal spinal curves Ligaments and tendons Muscles Multiple structures Backache in pregnancy Non-spinal causes of back pain Glossary Bibliography Index