Lower Back Pain Physio in Sheffield.
The most common reason people walk through the door.
Most lower back pain isn't structural damage. Scans rarely tell the full story. "Findings" like disc bulges and degeneration show up in pain-free people all the time.
Usually it's a mix of tissue sensitivity, stiffness, a protective nervous system, dropped load tolerance, and life stacking up. Sometimes a sensitive disc or nerve root.
What we do isn't guess. We work it out.
The four phases, applied.
01 / CALM
Hands-on, soft tissue, gentle movement, sometimes dry needling. Take the angry edge off.
02 / RESTORE
Get the back, hips and trunk moving properly again. Bend, twist, lift, load.
03 / BUILD
Strength work for back, hips, glutes, core. Loading the spine in ways that make it more resilient. Specific to whatever you want to do.
04 / RETURN
Lifting, running, sitting through a long day, picking up the kids. Whatever the goal is.
- Acute back pain that came on suddenly
- Recurring back pain that flares every few months
- Long-term back pain that hasn't shifted
- Sciatica-type symptoms going down the leg (see sciatica page)
- Stiffness more than pain
- Post-childbirth back pain
- Back pain in lifters and runners
Common questions.
Should I rest it?
First day or two if it's really angry. After that, gentle movement beats rest. Long-term rest makes things worse.
Do I need a scan?
Usually not. Most back pain doesn't require imaging.
Is it a slipped disc?
Discs don't slip. They can be irritated. Different thing.
What's a red flag?
Loss of bladder or bowel control, numbness in the saddle area, rapidly worsening leg weakness, fever with back pain, unexplained weight loss. Any of those, A&E same day.