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Spinal Disease Pt 3
Spinal Disease Pt 3
Today, we have another structure to consider, and that is the ligaments that connect the spinal bones together. If you can image a spinal unit kind of like an Oreo cookie. You have two bones and a disk in the center. The disk is kind of like the cream filling in the Oreo cookie. Connecting the two bones are structures called ligaments. Ligaments are kind of like ropes that tie the bones together and help maintain proper alignment. Now if the disk is unhealthy and begins to wear down and thin, the bones will be closer together. With less space between the bones there will be slack in the ligaments that connect the bones. So basically, the ropes that hold the bones in proper alignment become loose because there is less space between the bones. Without the ropes holding the bones in place, abnormal motion happens in the spine. The bones begin to move too much and create what the brain perceives is instability. An unstable area of the spine is considered by the body to be dangerous. After all, there is a spinal cord running through these bones, without which we could not survive. To compensate for an unstable area of the spine, the body will try to create stability by tightening up the supporting muscles. The increased muscle tension supports the bones, and protects the spine from too much motion, and protentional injury. The cost of that stability is tight muscles, and restricted range of motion. Muscles are not meant to be that tight for long periods of time. The muscles get tired, sore, and can develop painful issues like trigger points. Consider the neck, which is often inured in whiplash type accidents. Whiplash tends to overstretch the ligaments or ropes connecting the bones, resulting in instability. People who suffer from whiplash type accidents often have very tight and painful muscles at the base of the neck and shoulder. You can almost always rub the shoulder of someone who has neck issues and find they also have very tight shoulder muscles. This is because the body is using the shoulder muscles to tighten up and stabilize the neck. A person with this issue may get a massage every week and still have experience the same tight muscles, no matter how much work is done to loosen them up. This is because the body is using those muscle to protect the spine. If the problem is not addresses, the symptoms will continue to return.
