Back Pain: The Facts is aimed at people who want to help themselves. Affecting nearly everyone at some time in their lives, 40% of people will have experienced some form of back pain within the last year, with around 5% of sufferers taking time off work within the last month. Long-term back pain causes a great deal of distress and unhappiness, affecting work life, income, home life, relationships, fitness and mood. Back Pain: The Facts uses clear, succinct chapters to give advice about every aspect of managing back pain, as well as answering frequently asked questions from sufferers. A key element is empowerment through understanding why back pain starts and why it persists. There are chapters promoting stretching, exercise, relaxation, communication, and advice on sexual relations, as well as considerable emphasis on helping with thoughts and feelings.

Section 1 - Understanding back pain 1. How is the back constructed? 2. What is back pain? 3. Scans, x-rays and that word 'degenerating' 4. How did the pain get to take over my life? Section 2 - Medical treatments 5. What different types of professionals could help? 6. Can my back pain be cured by injections or surgery? 7. Can I take medications for my pain? Section 3 - Self treatments 8. Thoughts and feelings 9. Communication 10. Relaxation 11. What is the role of exercise and movement? 12. How much activity can I do? 13. Specific stretches and exercises Section 4 - Bringing things together: real patients' tales 14. Coping with a new pain: what can I expect from treatments? 15. Making sense of scan results and finding a cure 16. Home life is difficult 17. Nights are the worst time 18. My pain has got a whole lot worse Internet resources

John Lee , Consultant in Pain Medicine, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Suzanne Brook , Lead clinical Specialist Physiotherapist in Pain Management, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, H. Clare Daniel , Consultant Clinical Psychologist at the Pain Management Centre, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery and the NHS Islington GP Direct Access Physiotherapy Service, London