Review of "Treating Your Back & Neck Pain for Dummies"

Written by: Dr Loic Burn, Michael S Sinel and William W Deardorff Reviewed by: John Perrott (Summer 2007) Published by:John Wiley & Sons ISBN: 978 0 470 03599 3 Price: £14.99 + £3.00 p&p	Available from the BackCare Shop
This book will give you a plainly written understanding of your spine including your neck. It covers all of the possible specialists whom you might ask to help you and guides you in carefully selecting the kind of treatment that you need. In particular, the authors help you to decide whether injections or surgery are appropriate. Finally, there is a lot of practical advice on how to help your own body to recover and return to enjoyable activities like sex and sport. As a spine specialist, the great strength for me is the emphasis that our beliefs and reaction to pain influence our emotions and recovery. The chapter on the mind body connection is excellent.
The one weakness of the book is the high expectation placed on our over-stretched doctors and medical service. I would recommend this book to pain sufferers and to specialists alike. There is a wealth of experience in its pages.