Caregivers: Protecting Your Own Back When Helping a Parent Move

Caring for a parent often hurts the carer's back. Learn safer ways to help someone move, the strength exercises that protect you, and when to see a doctor.

Protect your back by moving your parent with your legs and hips, not your spine, by getting them to do as much of the movement as they can, and by building the strength you use every day. Two or three short strength sessions a week are a better investment for a carer’s back than a support belt, which has not been shown to prevent back pain. See a doctor quickly if back pain comes with leg weakness, numbness or bladder or bowel changes.

Why do so many caregivers end up with back pain?

Caring for a parent adds a daily physical load: helping on and off the toilet, in and out of bed, into the car and in the shower. The movements are repeated, often twisted, and done when you are tired, after work or after a poor night.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of caregivers of stroke survivors found that about 54 per cent had low back pain (5 studies, 644 caregivers). That figure comes from one condition, and rates vary by setting, but it shows how common the problem is among family carers.

In Malaysia, much of this care is done at home by adult children, many of them also raising their own children and holding down a job. Many homes also have features that raise the load: low beds, narrow bathrooms, wet tiles and steps at the front door.

The Lancet low back pain series makes two points worth knowing. Most back pain has no single identifiable structural cause, and staying active, with graded exercise, is part of management for most people. Rest and fear of movement tend to make it worse.

How do I help my parent move without hurting my back?

Start with these principles.

• Let them do the work. Ask them to lean forward and push, and give just enough help.
• Stay close. The further the load is from your body, the more your spine works.
• Bend your hips and knees, not your waist. This is the hip hinge. See how to do a hip hinge.
• Avoid twisting. Move your feet to turn, not your trunk.
• Count, then move. Say “one, two, three, stand” so you both move together.
• Prepare the space. Raise the bed or chair height if you can, clear the path and dry the floor.

Helping from a chair to standing

1. Bring the chair against a wall or place it so it cannot slide. Have a walking aid within reach.
2. Ask your parent to shuffle to the front of the seat with feet back under the knees.
3. Stand in front, feet shoulder-width apart, one foot slightly forward. Knees soft.
4. Ask them to lean forward, “nose over toes”, and place their hands on the armrests or on your forearms, not around your neck.
5. On “three”, they push up while you straighten your own legs. Keep your back long.
6. Let them steady before you move. Do not walk until they are stable.

Do not pull under the armpits. It strains your back and can injure their shoulder.

What about getting off the floor?

If your parent has fallen, do not rush to lift. Check for pain, head strike or loss of consciousness. If they are hurt, cannot move a limb or are confused, call for help. If they are unhurt and willing, our guide on how to get up from the floor shows a staged method using a chair. Never lift a person’s full weight alone.

When to use equipment

Transfer belts, a raised toilet seat, grab rails and a shower stool reduce load on both of you. A hospital-type bed with adjustable height makes dressing and changing much easier on the back. Ask the treating physiotherapist or occupational therapist to show you the right technique with your parent’s actual condition. For safer bathrooms and stairs, see safe stairs and bathrooms for older adults and reducing fall risk at home.

What strength exercises protect a caregiver’s back?

Caregiving needs hip, leg and trunk strength, plus the ability to carry and brace. Aim for two to three sessions a week of 20 to 30 minutes. This also fits the WHO recommendation of muscle-strengthening on two or more days a week for adults.

You can learn the details in how to do a glute bridge, how to do the bird dog and how to do a suitcase carry. Home options are in strength training at home in Malaysia, and the wider plan is in strength training for longevity. If you only have 10 minutes, a few exercises from the exercise library and a short daily mobility routine are still worth doing.

Use a 5 kg bag of rice or a filled 5 litre water container as a first weight if you do not own dumbbells. Increase slowly, over weeks, not days.

If you are doing this after 40 and have not trained before, start with the strength training for beginners over 40 guide.

What does a simple weekly plan look like?

A plan you can keep beats an ideal one you drop. For a carer with about 25 minutes, three times a week, try this:

1. Warm up, 3 minutes. March on the spot, hip circles, 5 slow hip hinges with no weight.
2. Strength, 15 minutes. Goblet squat, Romanian deadlift with a light weight, glute bridge and band row, 2 sets of 8 to 10 each, resting 60 seconds between sets.
3. Carry and brace, 4 minutes. Two suitcase carries per side with a 5 kg bag, then 2 rounds of bird dog.
4. Cool down, 3 minutes. Slow breathing and gentle hamstring and hip stretches.

On days you cannot train, take 10 minutes to walk. A short session is better than none when you are worn out, but if you are consistently exhausted or low in mood, speak to your own doctor. Carer fatigue is real and deserves support, not just a workout.

Tell your parent what you are doing and why. Many older people feel guilty about being a burden, and seeing you look after your own back can make them more willing to accept transfer aids and outside help.

How can a caregiver fit exercise in?

Time is the main barrier. These tactics help:

• Do the session while your parent naps or watches TV, in 10-minute blocks.
• Take a short walk after dinner. In hot weather, early morning or after sunset is more comfortable.
• Keep a band and a light dumbbell where you will see them.
• Ask a sibling or domestic helper to cover one hour so you can attend a class or see a physiotherapist.

The wider picture for carers is in our caregivers page and the ageing parents hub.

When should a caregiver see a doctor about back pain?

Most episodes ease within a few weeks. Get urgent medical care for:

• numbness around the groin, buttocks or inner thighs
• new difficulty passing urine or stool, or loss of control
• weakness in a leg, or a foot that drags
• fever with back pain, or unexplained weight loss
• severe pain after a fall or a hard knock
• pain that is constant, worse at night and not eased by position

See a physiotherapist if pain lasts beyond two to three weeks, spreads down the leg or keeps returning. Our guide to exercise for chronic back pain outlines what a graded programme looks like.

Key takeaways

• Caregiver back pain is common and mostly comes from repeated lifting, twisting and tiredness.
• Move your parent with a hip hinge, stay close, avoid twisting and get them to do as much as they safely can.
• Use equipment such as a transfer belt, shower stool and adjustable bed, and ask a physiotherapist to teach technique.
• Strength training two to three times a week for 20 to 30 minutes protects your back better than rest.
• Numbness in the groin, bladder or bowel changes, leg weakness or pain after a fall need urgent medical review.