Medical expert of the article
New publications
Back pain in the morning after sleeping and after eating
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Causes of morning pain in the spinal column and / or soft tissues of the back after an overnight rest can be different - from the banal inconveniences of a bed to serious diseases. If a person with a spinal cord injury also sleeps on an uncomfortable bed, the pains are quite strong and prolonged.
The improperly arranged sleeping place does not allow to completely relax a vertebral column, the tense muscles spasmodic, and in the morning we feel pain in the cervical, thoracic or lumbar part, and sometimes in several. The cause of this condition can be a too soft fluffy feather, a high or low pillow. Ideally, bedding (mattress and pillows) should be orthopedic.
Muscle spasms in the morning can be caused simply by the uncomfortable posture taken during sleep (this is a one-time situation), physical overwork, received on the eve of a trauma (stretching, displacement), a long sitting before going to sleep, for example, a computer game. In the case of gambling, a stress factor is added to the long-term sitting posture and visual tension, which also contributes to the development of muscle spasms.
The presence of scoliosis, kyphosis causes a prolonged pain in the morning after awakening, but the most common factor in the modern world is osteochondrosis. Depending on the localization of the pathology of pain after sleep arise in the cervical, thoracic or lumbar region. If you have a comfortable orthopedic mattress and a pillow in the morning, you suffer from back pain, you need to be examined for osteochondrosis.
In addition to this, back pain in the morning after sleep is a characteristic sign of collagenosis - connective tissue diseases affecting both cartilaginous and internal organs (ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, arthrosis and others). Morning pain can be accompanied by tuberculosis, diseases of the digestive and sexual organs (mostly felt in the lower back and coccyx), kidney disease (pain localized from the side and given back). Back pain in the morning can be psychogenic and be a reaction to a stressful situation (acute or chronic).
Only a qualified doctor can make the correct diagnosis after a thorough examination.
Back pain after eating
The association of pain in the back with eating is characteristic of many diseases of organs that participate in the digestive process.
The acknowledged gastroenterologists are the leader in this regard, the pancreas. For the acute period of its inflammation, pain is typical that compresses the patient with a hoop ( girdle ). But it does not always happen, in some cases, it just feels in the back (gives in the back). Usually under the left scapula or between the shoulder blades. The pain is often aching, appearing after eating, and with the intake of food its strengthening is connected.
In second place in the frequency of this symptom is the gallbladder, or rather - cholelithiasis ( cholelithiasis ). In this case, after eating, the pain gives in the back under the right scapula or between the shoulder blades and the waist. Such pain can be the only symptom of the presence of stones in the gallbladder or its ducts. And there may be other signs of dyspepsia - bitterness in the mouth, flatulence, metallic taste in the tongue. Very rarely, but with cholecystitis, pain can be felt in the neck area, more precisely - the right supraclavicular fossa. Especially, if these pains are combined with an increased body temperature, you need to urgently seek help.
"Hungry" back pain can be observed with a stomach ulcer (duodenal ulcer). Sometimes they are felt at night or in the morning on an empty stomach, there is a sharp, faint, hunger, nausea rolls to my throat.
In diseases of the intestine, lumbar pain may also occur, however, in this case, they are not associated with food intake.
Diseases of the digestive organs are manifested in addition to pain experienced in the back and associated with food intake, the presence of symptoms of digestive disorders - heartburn, nausea, constipation, belching and other.
Back pain after eating can also occur with osteochondrosis, because the internal organs are attached to the spine and the process of passing food through the digestive canal is reflected by pain in the spine, often in the lumbar region. Additional symptoms that indicate the presence of osteochondrosis can be increased pain in motion, dizziness, paresis of limbs, muscle weakness.
Such pains occur in diseases of the kidneys and the heart, in particular, with myocardial infarction. They give in the back, which makes it very difficult to diagnose without laboratory and instrumental research. In kidney disease, an additional symptom may be a violation of emptying the bladder. In case of a heart attack, pain is given to the left arm, neck, jaw and is accompanied by weakness, nausea and drowsiness.