Lower Back Pain Relief in San Francisco — Fix the Source, Not Just the Spine

Lower back pain is almost always a pelvic and hip problem — not a back problem. The Amari Method corrects the root cause. In-person in San Francisco or virtual from anywhere.

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San Francisco in-person · Virtual from anywhere · HSA/FSA accepted

Why Standard Back Treatments Don't Last

The back is where pain lives — but rarely where the problem starts.

Spinal Manipulation and Chiropractic

Adjustments restore motion to stiff spinal segments and provide real relief. The next step is correcting the pelvic and hip mechanics that caused the compression — so the adjustment holds.

Result: Relief that lasts when the root cause is also addressed.

Core Strengthening Programs

Core stability is important — but generic "core work" often strengthens muscles that are already overworking. If the hip flexors are already dominating and the glutes aren't firing, standard ab and back exercises can reinforce the compensation pattern that's causing the pain.

Result: Stronger compensation. Same pain.

Steroid Injections

Epidural steroid injections reduce nerve inflammation and can provide meaningful short-term relief — but they don't change the mechanical forces that are compressing the disc or joint in the first place. Without correcting the structure, the inflammatory process rebuilds after the injection wears off.

Result: 3–6 months of relief. Pain returns.

Why Your Lower Back Hurts — and Where the Problem Actually Starts

The lumbar spine is the endpoint of forces traveling up from the pelvis and hips.

Anterior Pelvic Tilt

When the pelvis tips forward — pulled by tight hip flexors and underactive glutes — the lumbar spine is forced into excessive extension. This compresses the posterior elements of the vertebrae with every step and every moment of standing. Most chronic low back pain originates here, not in the back itself.

Hip Flexor Dominance

Sitting for hours shortens and overactivates the hip flexors, which attach directly to the lumbar vertebrae. When they're chronically tight, they pull the lower back into compression from the front. No amount of back stretching fixes this — the hip flexors have to be specifically released and the glutes have to take over their role.

Glute Inhibition

The gluteus maximus is the primary hip extensor and the main counterforce to the hip flexors. When it's inhibited — which is extremely common in people who sit all day — the lower back muscles take over as the primary movers. Back muscles are postural stabilizers, not movers. Overusing them creates the chronic tightness and fatigue that becomes pain.

Your Specific Compensation Pattern

Whether your pain is from a disc bulge, SI joint dysfunction, sciatica, or non-specific tightness, the mechanical pattern driving it is identifiable. The Amari Method evaluates how force moves through your pelvis and spine and corrects the pattern creating your specific symptoms.

What Happens in Your First Session

Full assessment of your pelvic and spinal mechanics, targeted correction, and tools to maintain it — 60 minutes.

Structural Assessment

Dr. Garrett evaluates your pelvic position, hip flexor and glute function, spinal alignment, and movement patterns — identifying the exact mechanical pattern creating load on your lower back.

Pelvic and Hip Correction

The session targets the root cause: releasing the hip flexors, activating the glutes, and restoring neutral pelvic position. When the pelvis moves correctly, the lumbar spine decompresses.

Direct Back Work

Where needed, Dr. Garrett also works directly on the affected spinal segments — releasing the erector muscles that are overworking, mobilizing restricted joints, and addressing any nerve tension patterns.

Take-Home Exercise

You leave with the specific exercise for what was worked on that session — a targeted movement to maintain the changes and keep your back protected between sessions.

In-Person (San Francisco) or Virtual — Same Results

Pelvic alignment and hip activation work translate fully to video sessions. Virtual sessions are as effective as in-person for most lower back pain cases — including disc and SI joint issues.

Frequently Asked Questions — Lower Back Pain

I've had back pain for years. Is it too late to fix it?
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Chronic back pain — even decades-long — almost always has a mechanical component that can be improved. Compensation patterns and muscle imbalances persist over time, but the underlying structural pattern is still correctable. Many of Dr. Garrett's clients had been managing pain for 10, 15, or 20 years and found significant relief after addressing the root cause for the first time. Duration of pain doesn't predict outcome — the pattern does.
My doctor says my back pain is from degenerative disc disease. Can this help?
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Yes, in most cases. Degenerative disc disease is a structural finding — discs lose hydration and height over time, which is normal aging. But whether those changes cause pain depends heavily on the mechanical forces loading those discs. By correcting pelvic alignment and reducing compressive load, it's often possible to dramatically reduce pain even with significant degenerative changes present. The goal isn't to reverse the degeneration — it's to stop aggravating it.
What's the difference between lower back pain and SI joint pain?
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SI joint pain typically presents as deep, one-sided pain just below the belt line — often in the upper buttock or sacral area. It may refer into the hip or upper thigh. Lower back pain from lumbar sources tends to be more central and can radiate down the leg if a nerve is involved. Both are driven by pelvic mechanics and respond well to the same root-cause approach, though the specific correction differs based on the pattern.
I have sciatica — shooting pain down my leg. Can this help?
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In most cases, yes. Sciatic symptoms are caused by compression or irritation of the sciatic nerve — usually from a disc bulge pressing on the nerve root, or from piriformis tightness compressing the nerve in the hip. Both originate from the same pelvic dysfunction. Correcting pelvic position, releasing the piriformis, and decompressing the lumbar segments reduces nerve irritation at the source. Most clients with sciatica notice leg symptoms improving alongside the back pain.
I sit at a desk all day. Is that causing my back pain?
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Almost certainly contributing to it. Prolonged sitting shortens the hip flexors, shuts off the glutes, and encourages posterior pelvic tilt — all of which change the mechanical forces on the lumbar spine. The issue isn't sitting itself, it's what sitting does to the hip and pelvic mechanics over time. The tools from the Amari Method are specifically designed to counteract the effects of desk work and restore the muscle balance that sitting disrupts.

"Getting out of bed used to be this whole production — my husband would literally have to help me up. Every morning. I thought that was just my life now. After one session I actually felt something shift. I have two exercises I do every morning and honestly? My kids don't have to watch me wince anymore. That's the part that gets me."

— Sarah

Ready to Fix Your Lower Back Pain at the Source?

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