Managing Chronic Low Back Pain: Non-Opioid, Integrative, and Patient-Centered Care

Living with chronic low back pain can feel like a never-ending cycle of trial and error. For patients, it isn’t just about physical discomfort—it’s about how pain disrupts sleep, mobility, and everyday life. I recently considered the case of a 60-year-old woman with chronic low back pain from degenerative disc disease. She had already tried physical therapy and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), but relief never came. When opioids were suggested, she immediately declined, worried about the risks of dependence. Injections also made her nervous. That left her wondering: what else is truly available, and more importantly, what actually works?