An osteopath told me that some patients come to her because they have hurt their backs when sneezing and coughing. So, as winter approaches, yet more people may find their way to her door, unless they find a way of avoiding this problem to begin with, perhaps through looking after their backs by having Alexander Technique lessons.
One of the main reasons that this type of back problem can happen, is that when we hold ourselves in a fixed manner, with contracted muscles and habitual tension in the lower back, the
lumbar region, this tightness will be increased by the spasms of coughing and sneezing. This will obviously be more exaggerated if you have a long bout of coughing. The jolting can jar or strain the muscles, sometimes even damaging an
intervertebral disc, causing great pain.
However, if we learn to unlock our hips, knees and ankles so that they can bend and, ideally, allow our back to be freely lengthening, the muscles are able to respond more elastically as our ribs expand and contract with the sneezing. In this way, the jolt can be softened and ripples through us, rather than straining us. This way of sneezing and coughing can also be helpful for people after having abdominal surgery, possibly with the addition of holding the abdomen during the sneeze.
The more able you are to have a free neck and back, the more resilient your muscles will be. Even if you have not had
Alexander Lessons and learned how to do this, you can help protect your back if you remember to
Bend your knees
When you cough and sneeze