- September 9, 2023
Is persistent and aggravating pain limiting your physical abilities? If so, our physical therapy treatments can help provide chronic pain relief, even if you’ve tried physical therapy before.
The process of pain doesn’t always affect us in traditional ways. Sometimes it can linger for days, weeks, or even months because of an underlying condition. We call it “chronic pain” when pain persists for three months or longer. Chronic pain is both physically and emotionally debilitating. At Good Hands Physical Therapy in Bridgewater, NJ, we know your needs and have had success in treating many patients suffering from chronic pain.
In many cases, chronic pain stems from a neurophysiological origin. Chronic injury, illness, anxiety, and feeling depressed are interlinked in a complex web, which leads your neurological system to always be on high alert.
Chronic pain can appear in many forms, but most notably, back pain, joint pain, nerve pain, or headaches. It usually occurs due to one of the following causes:
Overuse injuries are very common, and they can occur in any part of the body that is used repetitively in your day-to-day life. For example, the actions of standing, walking, working, and exercise and the various ways you perform them,can all take a toll on your body. If proper techniques aren’t used, overuse injuries are bound to occur. This can result in damage to your joints and muscles, therefore causing chronic pain. For example, if you perform heavy lifting at work many times a day, with improper techniques, this can lead to chronic back pain. With physical therapy, you can learn how to properly move your body in your everyday life, in order to avoid these issues.
There are many diseases that can lead to chronic pain, including arthritis, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, shingles, neuropathy as a result of diabetes, and more. These can all result in chronic pain, which can be alleviated through physical therapy treatments.
Surgical procedures are sometimes unavoidable. While they may be necessary for alleviating certain conditions you are facing, the post-surgical recovery period can result in a great deal of pain. Surgical repair of an area of the body is fine when trying to correct a structural problem, but we often compensate in our movement for the pain we experience. Weeks, months, or even years of compensatory movement often causes additional pain after surgery if the movement is not corrected. Physical therapy offers post-surgical rehabilitation services that can help speed up recovery time, relieve pain, and reduce the risk of chronic pain in the future.
Acute pain can be defined as pain that goes away on its own in a few hours, days, or weeks. An example of acute pain is a minor ankle sprain, as the pain will subside shortly within a few days.
Chronic pain is a constant discomfort that lasts for 3-6 months or longer. There are several reasons why people may experience chronic pain, and it is the most common reason for seeking medical help. By limiting your mobility, creating a dependence on prescription drugs, or even causing anxiety and depression, it can greatly decrease your quality of life. However, you can avoid this by reaching out to us at Good Hands Physical Therapy.
Pain relief and discovering the root cause of the pain to treat it, rather than hiding the symptoms with medication is one of the main goals of physical therapy.
Our Bridgewater, NJ physical therapists are highly-trained movement experts who diagnose physical problems and directly treat underlying structural causes surrounding those issues. Our physical evaluation will study the weak areas of your body, focus on the paces with limited range of motion, and search for any imbalances in gait or standing. All of this helps to find the underlying causes of your chronic pain.
Once the evaluation is complete, our physical therapist will create a treatment plan tailored to your individual needs. This can include specialized, pain-relieving modalities, soothing manual therapy techniques to help restore soft tissue and joint movement, and gentle targeted exercises to improve your strength. Your treatment plan will consist of in-clinic treatments, as well as an at-home program to ensure that you are remaining healthy and active at all times.
If you are ready to find relief for your chronic pain for good, contact Good Hands Physical Therapy in Bridgewater, NJ today to make an appointment. Our dedicated physical therapists would be happy to meet with you and guide you on your quest toward long-lasting pain relief.
