Q. Should I just lie in bed and avoid exercise if I am having extra back pain?

A. Your therapist may suggest short periods of rest followed with brief exercises designed to reduce your pain. Prolonged bed rest is not healthy and can cause muscles to weaken and joints to stiffen. Some of the exercises you are shown can actually help take some of your pain away. Any exercises you do should be done only under the direction of your doctor or therapist. Extra pain after these or other exercises usually indicates that you are overdoing it. You may need to change the number of repetitions, the amount of pressure applied, or how often you are doing the exercises