Depression is a common finding in chronic back pain sufferers. There is some question as to which comes first, the back pain or the depression. Either way, the depression should be considered and treated in order to have the best possible results from all other treatments.

Stress related to work or other aspects of life will commonly exacerbate back and neck pain. It is important to identify these stressors, and deal with them in a way that does not adversely affect the pain.

Fear and Anxiety is often generated when a source of pain has been present past a normal period of recovery. Questions begin to develop regarding the cause of pain. Do I have cancer? Am I going to be paralyzed? Fear and anxiety that begins to develop can make the pain seem greater than it is.

Disrupted Sleep Cycle due to pain can cause agitation, fatigue, malaise, mood swings, and irritability. These can all cause the pain to intensify. Reestablishing proper sleep cycle is one of the first steps in treating chronic pain.

Relaxation techniques are used to remind a patient to relax mentally and physically in order to decrease discomfort in an affected area of the spine. Mental and physical stress may sometimes contribute to neck or back pain and discomfort.

Distraction techniques are used to distract your mind away from the pain. These will sometimes include hobbies, which force the brain to focus on something other than the pain.

Pacing is very important in the recovery process. It is used to help control the amount of work a patient performs in a given amount of time, to avoid re-injury or fatigue that can cause rebound pain.

Biofeedback is a treatment, which uses electrodes to monitor muscular activity in the affected area of the spine, and displays it on a computer screen. This enables the patient to visualize the relaxation of muscles. This often times helps in decreasing the amount of "stress" that can settle in the back.