Chronic Pain Treatment Barnhart, MO

Chronic Pain Treatment in Barnhart, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Barnhart, 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 what it feels like to live a pain-free life. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably completing daily activities like carrying in groceries, or the activities we love best, whether that be dominating your local flag football league or working in the garden.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of 15 physical therapy and rehabilitation locations dedicated to helping our Barnhart, MO patients achieve positive outcomes through customized and evidence-backed chronic pain treatment. To get back to a pain-free daily life, call the location nearest you or make an appointment for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Type of Pain is Considered “Chronic”?

Chronic pain is pain that lasts for longer than three months, which is how long it takes most people and conditions to heal. The pain can occur every day or every few days, can be localized or radiate through your body, and can be anything from stiffness to searing, intense pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 one out of five adults nationwide suffered from chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (or 36.4% of those who experienced chronic pain) had “high-impact” chronic pain, which is persistent pain affects how somebody can work or perform other activities. Anyone who suffers from pain frequently will tell you that it causes far more than just physical discomfort. Chronic pain affects quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also cause significant mental health issues and insomnia.

Why Do I Have Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, occurs when nerves called nociceptors perceive damage somewhere in your body, and send a signal through your spinal cord up to your brain. Often, pain is due to a specific incident or medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs suddenly, usually because of a discernible, underlying cause such as stubbing your toe, dental work, or surgery. It can last for anywhere from a few minutes to months while the injury heals.

By contrast, people can experience chronic pain for several reasons. In some cases there may be an injury that hurts even after it’s healed . In other cases, it’s caused by an illness, or degenerative disease. Sometimes, the pain isn’t caused by a specific condition, but rather from things like poor posture, obesity, or overexertion. Common types and causes of chronic pain include:

Arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, and other conditions that cause joint pain — The cartilage, tendons, and ligaments in our joints can become irritated or wear down from overuse or overexertion, causing joint pain.
Numerous different conditions that lead to lower back pain — Up to 84% of adults will deal with back pain eventually. Causes can be poor posture or technique, wear and tear at a physically demanding job, sciatica, or disc injuries that affect the nerves in the spinal column.
Cancer pain — Tumors can cause pain when they push up against other parts inside your body.
Fibromyalgia — While an exact cause isn’t yet known, this refers to pain that affects your muscles and joints throughout your body.
Neurogenic pain and psychogenic pain — Sometimes, there is no underlying musculoskeletal cause, but rather it’s caused by the nervous system, or because of psychological stress.

You can read our pointers for easing chronic pain, and while many can help you be more active in your daily life, many of our Barnhart, 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 a pain-free daily life.

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

How Do Physical Therapists in Barnhart, MO Help With Chronic Pain Treatment?

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of modalities in Barnhart, MO, including prescription or over-the-counter medications, chiropractic adjustments, massage, and consistent exercise. Research demonstrates that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to significant improvement. You are welcome to visit any Axes location in the Barnhart area for a free screening to learn what might be causing your chronic pain. We’ll ask you questions to better understand how we can help you. Do you experience pain every day? Most days? What makes it worse? What makes it better? How is limiting you in your daily life? After our evaluation, we’ll work in tandem with you and your doctor to design a tailor-made course of treatment aimed at returning you a pain-free daily life.

Physical therapy helps by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of the best possible mobility eases pain and enhances your daily life by making your body work better, and interrupting certain nerves from sending pain messages to your brain. Depending on you, the causes of your chronic pain, your age, and the activity level you wish to get back to, your treatment plan in Barnhart, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only eases pain but helps with any psychological stress related to your pain. A qualified Barnhart, MO physical therapist will lead you through exercises that will safely and effectively improve your mobility. With guided exercise, we can re-train your brain to accept certain movements and positions without pain, restoring your brain’s trust in the rest of your body. We’ll also show you light exercises you can do outside of our sessions.

Manual Therapy and Soft Tissue Mobilization

Manual therapy involves therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Barnhart, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently put pressure on soft tissue. Research demonstrates that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is better at treating pain than either technique used alone.

With instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, physical therapists use specialized tools, like HawkGrips®, instead of their hands, to improve tissue alignment and identify degenerative tissue and soft tissue restrictions.

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new treatment method that is becoming more popular among Barnhart, MO physical therapist. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in inflamed muscles, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. This eases pain as it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and stimulates the nutrient-rich blood flow to the region.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes where the pain is located. It delivers low-voltage currents, which releases endorphins and stimulates nerve cells that block the transmission of pain signals.

Patient Education

Understanding why you’re experiencing pain and how to cope with it can have a considerable positive effect on your chronic pain treatment in Barnhart, MO. We’ll teach you appropriate posture and movement techniques, in addition to healthy lifestyle suggestions like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other conditions we treat in Barnhart, MO include:

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

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Barnhart, MO, our goals are clear: to deliver positive patient outcomes and help our patients get back to the things they love doing most. Whether you miss being able to hit a breakaway layup like you used to, or just want to carry the groceries in without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Barnhart, MO today or make an appointment online for meaningful chronic pain treatment.