When should you see a doctor for back pain?
Back pain is common, and many of us experience it at some point. It can be caused by an injury, overuse or a muscle strain. But when should you visit a doctor for back pain? And when can you manage it at home? In this article I offer some tips to help ease back pain at home. And, I look at which red flag symptoms mean you should visit a doctor.
What causes back pain?
Upper back pain and lower back pain can have lots of different causes. It’s not always clear what sets off back pain, but some common causes are:
- a muscle strain
- changes to the discs or joints in our back
- lifting heavy items if you don’t usually
- arthritis
- having an irritated or compressed nerve (sciatica)
- being inactive
You may also be more likely to experience back pain if you experience low mood, stress or depression.
What should you not do with back pain?
You might think that you should rest or lie down for long periods if you have back pain, but this advice is now outdated.
We now know from research that it’s important to try and stay as active as possible. You should avoid doing anything that makes your back pain severe. But if you’re able to, it’s best to return to your normal activities as soon as possible.
Depending on the cause of your back pain, avoiding your normal activities can make your pain last longer. And, it can also weaken your muscles which can make you more likely to experience back pain again in the future.
When should I see a doctor for back pain?
You should see your doctor if you have back pain and:
- feel generally unwell and have a fever
- have recently lost weight without trying to
- your back has changed shape, or you have a swelling in your back
- the pain isn’t better after resting and it’s worse at night
- it’s worse if you cough, sneeze or when you strain to have a poo
- the pain is between your shoulders rather than your lower back
You should also see your GP if your back pain is severe, or isn’t improving after a few weeks. They may send you for further investigations to find out the cause of your back pain, such as an MRI scan.
Your doctor may also refer you for physiotherapy, or you can find a local physiotherapist yourself privately.
How can you tell if your back pain is serious?
There are some symptoms that can be a sign of serious medical conditions. These types of symptoms are often known as ‘red flags’. These are signs that you should seek immediate medical attention. See a doctor immediately if you:
- are unable to control when you pee or poo
- have numbness or tingling in your bottom or genitals
- have pain in your chest
- experience numbness, tingling or weakness in your legs
- have back pain that started after an accident such as a fall or a car accident
How can I manage back pain at home?
To manage your back pain at home, the following tips can help.
- Take medicines to help with back pain such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like ibuprofen. Always read the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine to check if they are right for you. Speak to a pharmacist or your GP if you’re also taking other medications.
- Use heat or ice to help ease your pain. Some people find that heat packs, hot water bottles, or microwavable wheat bags can help to soothe their back pain. Make sure to wrap these in a towel so they don’t have direct contact with your skin to prevent burns. If you’re using cold packs or ice, only apply the cold for 10 minutes at a time, and leave at least 60 minutes between applications.
- Keep moving. Try to return to your usual activities as soon as you’re able to, and remember that some pain while recovering is normal. Start off slowly and increase your activity gradually. You could also try doing some stretches to help ease aches and pains. To help reduce your risk of back pain in future, keeping active and strong can help reduce the strain on your back.
- Talking therapies, such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) have been shown to be helpful for managing pain. CBT helps you understand how your thoughts affect your feelings and behaviour. if you would like to try this you can submit a self-referral form for CBT, or look into having talking therapy privately. Speak to your GP for more information.
- Maintaining good posture can also help to improve your back health. The video below has some useful tips to help you improve your posture.
How are you sitting right now?
Did you just shuffle in your seat?
When was the last time you took a break from sitting or changed your posture?
And do you know the best things to do to help your posture?
Well.
Fear not.
I'm here with Caitlin McNicholas, who's a Bupa physiotherapist.
And over the next three minutes, we'll give you three hacks for better posture that you can fit into your normal everyday life.
Let's go Caitlin.
Hack number one.
Your next posture is your best posture.
There is no perfect way to sit.
But we know through research that moving regularly is really important.
The recommendation can be to move every 20 to 30 minutes for 20 to 30 seconds.
We often find ourselves in these like hunched over positions, so to give ourselves a break out of it, imagine the posture that they talk about when you're posing for a school photo.
So you want to sit nice and tall.
Take your shoulder blades back, lengthen your neck, unclench your jaw, and smile.
Hack number two.
So give yourself some movement snacks throughout the day.
So we've already spoke about change in posture, but why not do a few different stretches at the desk or even going out for a walk at lunch time, or to go and make yourself a cup of tea?
Walking meetings are good at work.
Walking meetings would be perfect.
Yeah.
And some of the stretches that you could be doing at your desk could involve taking your neck from side to side, looking up and even extend and opening the chest and rotating the middle part of the spine.
So looking behind you, really feeling that nice twist on your spine and some shoulders.
Some shoulders.
Yeah, just to loosen everything up.
Hack number three.
Don't forget your legs.
We sit down for a long time during the day, and our body is great at adapting to the positions that we leave it in.
So oftentimes people are really tight into the hip flexors and hamstrings.
So you can be doing some stretches in standing or sitting, such as going into a bit of a hamstring stretch.
So just taking one leg out in front and pushing back until you feel the stretch in the back of the leg.
You can do that in your chair as well then.
Yeah, just perch on the edge of your seat and you can do it there.
You can do a quad stretch.
It requires a little bit of balance, but taking hold of the foot pushing your bum forward so you really feel the stretch at the front of the thigh.
And then the final one, it's a glute stretch.
This is definitely easier sitting down.
But we can try it here.
Crossing the leg over and sitting down into that so you feel a nice stretch into your bottom and lower back.
You want to hold those for about 30 seconds each, and you can repeat it a couple times on each side.
Brilliant.
Three minutes, three hacks.
Perfect.
If you’re worried about back pain, speak to your GP, a physiotherapist or pharmacist.
If you have a muscle, bone or joint problem, our direct access service aims to provide you with the advice, support and treatment you need as quickly as possible. If you’re covered by your health insurance, you’ll be able to get advice from a physiotherapist usually without the need for a GP referral. Learn more today.
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Sources Sources
- Back pain - low (without radiculopathy). NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries. cks.nice.org.uk. Last revised October 2024.
- Lower back pain. Patient. Patient.info. Last updated 10 October 2024.
- Assessment of back pain. BMJ Best Practice. Bestpractice.bmj.com. Last updated December 2024.
- What should I know about back pain? Versus arthritis. Versusarthritis.org. Last accessed August 2025.
- Back pain (lower back). Patient Information. BMJ Best Practice. Bestpractice.bmj.com. Published August 2021.
- Cauda equina syndrome. BMJ Best Practice. Bestpractice.bmj.com. Last reviewed July 2025.
- Back pain information booklet. Versus Arthritis. Versusarthritis.org. Last accessed August 2025.
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. UK Council for Psychotherapy. Psychotherapy.org.uk. Last accessed August 2025
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