Recently, we've been seeing a lot of back strains, due to shoveling, lifting, slipping, etc. When you first feel the "OH, THERE IT GOES" feeling of a back strain, the first thing you should do when you get home (assuming you can), is ice the area down.
Anti-inflammation is always needed in the first few days, whether it be icing or over the counter medications if you can take them. Just remember, there are dozens of studies revealing serious side effects of long term non steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) use, so dont use these for very long.
The next thing you should do is give us a call. We have a number of therapies to get you healed up; adjustments, traction, acupuncture, and/or massage therapy. We will use the therapy(s) that work best for you to get your range of motion back faster and flat out speed up the healing process. We see people all the time that say "Wow, why didnt I do this 2 weeks ago, I wouldn't have had to suffer so long?!"