Chronic Pain Treatment Affton, MO | Physical Therapists Near Affton

Chronic Pain Treatment in Affton, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Affton, MO. If you suffer from chronic pain, you know all too well the debilitating effect it can have on your life. For some of us, it goes on so long that we forget how good we used to feel. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably performing basic activities like doing household chores, or the activities we love best, whether that be dominating your local flag football league or playing with your grandchildren.

Axes Physical Therapy is a collection of 15 physical and occupational therapy locations committed to helping our Affton, MO patients find meaningful relief through custom-tailored chronic pain treatment plans, built on techniques that have been proven to work. To get back to a pain-free daily life, call the location nearest you or contact us online for successful chronic pain treatment.

What Is Chronic Pain?

Chronic pain is pain that doesn’t go away after 12 weeks, which is how long it takes most people and conditions to heal. The pain can be constant or can come and go, can be localized or radiate through your body, and can change in severity from dull soreness to searing, intense pain.

Based on research from the CDC, in 2019 almost a quarter of adults nationwide dealt with chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (over a third of those who experienced chronic pain) suffered from “high-impact” chronic pain, defined as pain that, on “most days” or “every day,” affects how somebody can work or enjoy other activities. Anyone who suffers from pain frequently will tell you that it causes far more than just physical discomfort. Chronic pain impacts quality of life and leads to higher medical expenses. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

Why Do I Have Chronic Pain?

Pain, generally speaking, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. Often, pain is due to a specific incident or illness. “Acute pain” occurs immediately, usually because of a known, underlying cause such as an injury, dental work, or surgery. The pain lasts for anywhere from a few minutes to months while the injury heals.

By contrast, the causes of chronic pain aren’t always easily known. Sometimes an injury continues to cause pain after the tissue is repaired . In other cases, it’s caused by a medical condition, or degenerative disease. Sometimes, there is no perceptible cause for someone’s chronic pain. Common types and causes of chronic pain include:

Arthritis and other conditions that cause joint pain — The soft tissue in our joints can become irritated or wear down over time or due to an injury, causing joint pain.
Numerous different conditions that lead to low back pain — Up to 84% of adults will deal with back pain at some point in their lives. Causes can be poor posture or technique, repetitive motions at work, sciatica, or disc injuries that affect the nerves in the spinal column.
Cancer pain — Tumors can lead to pain when they grow and touch other parts inside your body.
Fibromyalgia — While experts are still trying to understand the exact cause of fibromyalgia, this refers to widespread muscle pain and tenderness.
Neurogenic pain and psychogenic pain — Sometimes, pain does not occur for a physical reason, but because there is dysfunction in the nervous system, or because of depression, anxiety, and/or stress.

There are many pointers for managing chronic pain, and while many can help you be more active in your daily life, many of our Affton, MO patients tell us that they have tried all of them and more and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy becomes their path toward meaningful pain relief and getting back to the things that are most important to them.

Chronic Pain Treatment Affton, MO | Pain Management | Physical Therapist Near Affton

Why Is Physical Therapy in Affton, MO a Great Option For Chronic Pain Treatment?

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of methods in Affton, MO, including medication, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, yoga, and regular exercise. Studies show that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to significant improvement. You can come to any Axes location in the Affton area for a free screening to better understand what might be causing your chronic pain. We’ll ask you questions to better understand how we can help you. How often do you have pain? Does anything make it better or worse? How is limiting you in your daily life? From there, we’ll work in concert with you and your doctor to design a customized treatment plan aimed at returning you to the things you love most.

Physical therapy helps by increasing your strength, balance, posture, and flexibility. Helping you achieve optimal movement health relieves pain and enhances your daily life by allowing your body to function better, and disrupting any signals to your brain that something may be wrong. Depending on you, the nature of your chronic pain, how old you are, and the activity level you wish to get back to, your treatment plan in Affton, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise increases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good hormone, which not only reduces pain but helps with any depression, stress, and/or anxiety caused by your pain. A licensed Affton, MO physical therapist will guide through exercises aimed at improving your mobility without causing further pain or injury. With guided exercise, we can re-train your brain to accept certain movements and positions without pain, rebuilding your brain’s trust in the rest of your body. Through guided exercise, we’ll be able to teach you safe exercises you can do on your own.

Manual Therapy and Soft Tissue Mobilization

Manual therapy incorporates therapeutic touch to encourage your body’s natural healing process and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Affton, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently move soft tissue. Studies have shown that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is better at treating pain than either technique used alone.

Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization is a form of manual therapy, except that instead of their hands, physical therapists use specialized tools like Graston®.

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new tool that is becoming more popular among Affton, MO physical therapist. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in damaged soft tissue. This eases pain as it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and stimulates the flow of nutrients to the region.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes where the pain is located. It sends low-level electrical currents to release endorphins and awakens nerve cells that prevent your brain from receiving pain messages.

Patient Education

Understanding the cause of your pain and how to cope with it can have a considerable positive effect on your chronic pain treatment in Affton, MO. We’ll help you learn appropriate posture and movement techniques, in addition to healthy lifestyle suggestions like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other services we offer in Affton, MO include:

Chronic Pain Treatment Affton, MO | Physical Therapy | Pain Management Near Affton

Call Axes Physical Therapy For Your Chronic Pain Treatment in Affton, MO

At Axes Physical Therapy in Affton, MO, our objectives are clear: to deliver positive patient outcomes and help our patients return to to their best life. Whether you miss being able to run across the pickleball court like you used to, or just want to carry the groceries in without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Affton, MO today or request an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.