13 Pain Relieving Gifts for Back Pain for Caregivers (That Really Work).
There’s a lot of unique gifts for back pain floating around out there but most of them don’t work.
Take it from someone with lower back pain, bulging discs, sciatica, and wicked spasms that sometimes knock me right off my feet.
For 18 years I worked with aggressive children with substantial behavioral issues and for the past 5 years, I’ve been a caregiver to several members of my family. My caregiving journey started with my dad who had Lung Cancer and Paraneoplastic Syndrome so after a rapid decline, he required a wheelchair and physical assistance moving,
At my worst I spent over a month bent in half, I couldn’t stand up straight. I was keeled over, hunched in excruciating pain. I met with doctors and surgeons but anything they suggested didn’t even touch it.
I’d had back issues my entire life but nothing like this. This was significant and I had no idea I’d ever get better.
It was pretty terrifying thinking I’d be bent in half for the rest of my life. Living in constant agony. It affected everything… work, home, and time with my family.
Switching a load of laundry for example takes 10x the amount of energy when you can’t stand up. Even walking it from the dryer to the dining room table is takes every bit of energy you have.
You can’t get a good night’s sleep, you can’t even manage to get comfortable… every time you move you spasm.
Spasms are the worst, they come out of nowhere and they literally rock your body almost off your feet. It’s like an extremely painful jerking sensation that propels your body. It freaking hurts, bad. And you have no control over it, it just happens and you have to move with it.
Finally, I was given a series of cortisone shots all over my back and while it didn’t work immediately it finally helped me get back to normal.
But I understand the intense agony of back pain sufferers, it’s horrific.
It’s become my custom to need those same shots every two years… but I’m now on my 4th year without the shots because I’ve learned how to keep my back strong and healthy.
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Here’s Our List of The Best Gifts For Back Pain
1. Hot Cherry Pillows
This is always my #1 recommendation for gifts for someone with back pain. These pillows are absolutely amazing and will beat a hot water bottle any day of the week.
These pillows are practical gifts that will always be useful to achieving back pain relief.
If you’re looking for something to soothe the pain and provide comfort and healing, these pillows are genius!
Place them in the microwave for some heat therapy or in the freezer to deal with swelling or fever. They are 100% washable (right in the machine).
Hot Cherry Pillows are made with a soft material that feels great on your skin and are filled with cherry pits (note: they don’t mold, ever).
When the pits are heated they deliver an amazing warm heat that helps soothe your body and relieve aches and pain.
These pillows are great for someone who needs some relief from chronic or temporary back pain.
Hot Cherry Pillows are a gift that will help them through their entire journey. The pillows deliver warm, relaxing, pain relief straight to the source.
Hot Cherry Pillows are designed to make you feel better by providing comforting and relaxing heat even in your most uncomfortable moments. They are the perfect gift for chronic pain sufferers.
You can learn more about Hot Cherry Pillows here…
2. Massage Therapy
If you’re looking for a thoughtful gift a great idea is a massage. This is a gift of comfort and is another top recommendation for back pain.
It helps tremendously to have a massage therapist rub all of the stiffness and soreness out of your back using essential oils. It may seem like one of the more indulgent gifts, but chronic back pain sufferers will appreciate this.
A full body massage stimulates your nerves and gets things moving around by improving blood circulation and blood flow.
It helps reduce tension by (which literally feels like it pools in your back and it reduces muscle pain and soreness…
Because massage is the ultimate experience in relaxation, stress relief, and easing muscle tension. It does more than help with your back issues it promotes an overall feeling of health and well-being for your entire body!!
(A gift certificate or a gift card to a spa in their area is perfect.)
3. Back Stretcher
You can feel it when you have extreme pain in your back.
“Man, if I could just stretch that muscle out, I would feel better.”
A back stretcher helps you stretch everything out safely.
4. XL Super Soft Heating Pad
There are so many different kinds of heating pads and trust me, I’ve tried them all. But the one that works the best is super soft and fits over my entire back.
The velvet that surrounds the heating pad is super soft and comfortable, so you can relax on top of it and let the heat soothe your pain. You can also spritz with some water for a gentle moist heat therapy.
This heating pad is designed to heat up quickly, so you don’t have to wait long for it to heat up (it takes literally seconds) and it delivers the maximum amount of heat. Just choose one of the 6 settings available, position yourself accordingly and you’ll start to feel relief quickly.
This pad is large enough to tackle other problem areas as well, such as shoulders, spine, and stomach pain, so it’s a practical gift that can help with more than just back pain.
It has an automatic shut off so you don’t have to worry about falling asleep (which I do often), the heating pad will shut itself off after a certain amount of time. And you can always restart it if you need more relief.
You can’t go wrong with a super soft and luxurious heating pad. I use this every day to keep my back muscles strong and healthy.
You can find the one I use here…
5. X-Large Gel Ice Pack
The fastest way to tackle the worst back pain is to use a combination of heat and ice. Heat soothes aches and pains, but ice does the major healing. It naturally reduces swelling and inflammation and it calms nerves to allow for healing.
This Magic Gel ice pack comes with a wearable compression brace that is made to attach to both lower and upper back areas, so it can tackle the pain in whichever area of the back is feeling it…and the compression wrap protects from direct contact with skin.
This is a great gift idea, the gel cold packs are strong, sturdy, and most importantly flexible (rather than stiff and rigid), so it can conform to your body and make contact with pain areas for maximum relief.
You can also heat this pack in the microwave and it stays hot for up to 18 minutes.
You can find the best Ice pack on the market here…
6. Back Brace
These are a life saver as they help to provide extra support when you need it, or when you can feel an episode coming on.
It isolates the movement in your back which calms muscles and prevents additional damage.
But from the perspective of someone who uses this… it helps you keep your back steady, and supported and it cuts down on tweaks and aggravation.
Tweaks and aggravation are exactly what gets everything started with back pain… one little tweak and things go downhill fast.
As an added bonus it acts as a posture corrector as well, so that can help with pain as well.
You can find the back brace I love here…
7. Lumbar Support Pillows
If you have back problems, you absolutely need extra support when you’re sitting. Chairs, couches even car seats don’t offer the support your back needs.
I can always feel it when I sit, like my back muscles are taking the brunt of the weight, trying to hold me up and I can feel the stress on my back and the pain lurking just around the corner.
A support pillow takes all that away. I literally have a support pillow that stays on my spot on the couch and I can’t live without it. If I don’t use it I can feel the aggravation and the pulling begin.
This is a great gift for back pain. A practical and necessary gift for keeping their back strong and healthy.
You can find a good back pillow for chairs, couches, and the car here…
8. Salonpas
My mother-in-law swears by these patches for back pain. They help tremendously. You just stick them right on your back where the pain is and they deliver long-lasting pain relief.
They work for between 8-12 hours so there’s no need to keep reapplying. They’re also safe to use at night while you’re sleeping, so you can get relief and (maybe even some actual sleep!) when it’s time for bed.
You can learn more about Salonpas here
9. Bio Freeze
If a little cold therapy is the answer, Bio Freeze targets the muscles and joints to relieve aches and pain. Add a little heat to this gel and you’ll feel additional relief.
You can learn more about Bio Freeze here…
10. Capzasin Cream
Is a deep penetrating pain relief cream for arthritis, so it’s helped me on some of my worst days.
It’s designed to relieve neuralgia (shooting or burning pain) can you say sciatica, anyone?
It penetrates deep into your muscles to give you some much needed relief.
You can learn more about Capzasin Cream here…
11. Icy Hot Max with Lidocaine Patch
Anything with lidocaine is a hit for me. Lidocaine helps!
This lidocaine patch helps me find relief quicker. Just stick it on your back and let it do its thing.
It makes a huge difference in sore muscles the level of pain I’m feeling and helps me relax enough so that I’m not super tense all the time (which makes the pain so much worse!)
You can grab Icy Hot Max with Lidocaine Patch here…
12. Advil/ Aleve/ Motrin
These work the best for back pain.
They are over-the-counter pain relievers are classified as NSAIDs, so their main job is to relieve swelling, stiffness, and pain by reducing inflammation from joint and muscle injuries.
The anti inflammatory properties of the pills are extremely helpful overtime for reducing back pain.
IMPORTANT: People on blood thinners (Eliquis, Pradaxa, Coumadin, etc.) cannot take NSAIDs as it can increase their risk of bleeding. If you are creating a gift basket with gifts for back pain, double-check before including any of these products.
13. Tylenol
I was on Eliquis as a result of a heart condition called A-fib and for people who cannot take NSAIDs because of blood thinners, Tylenol Arthritis should help them get some relief.
It’s not as good as an NSAID, as the anti-inflammatory properties are a major piece of relieving the pain, but this bigger dose is more effective than the original dose at soothing and relieving pain.
If they can’t take an NSAID this is probably your best over-the-counter option.
P.S. If you’re a family dealing with a cancer diagnosis, we’ve got you covered!
The Cancer Binder Pack will walk you through the quick and easy system we used to organize our medical information. Step-by-step instructions, printable forms, and monthly calendar pages so you can ALWAYS find what you need when you need it.
And, the best part it’s 100% FREE when you sign up for our weekly emails which are packed full of quick tips and inspiration to help you keep going through this insanely stressful situation (from someone who is living it)...
You can get the Cancer Binder Pack here…
Need more gift ideas for caregivers?
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