Chronic Pain Treatment in Byrnes Mill, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Byrnes Mill, MO. Anyone who has lived with chronic pain knows the debilitating consequences it can have on your life. Sometimes, the months or years we’ve dealt with it leads us to forget what it feels like to live a pain-free life. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably completing basic activities like walking up the stairs, or the activities we love doing the most, whether that be sprinting down the court or being able to properly look after your children.

Axes Physical Therapy is a collection of provider-owned physical and occupational therapy centers dedicated to helping our Byrnes Mill, MO patients find lasting relief through customized chronic pain treatment plans, based on techniques that have been proven to work. If you’re finally ready to move on from chronic pain, call our location nearest you or contact us online for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Type of Pain is Considered “Chronic”?

Chronic pain is pain that doesn’t go away after three months, which is generally considered to be the “normal” healing period. The pain can be constant or can come and go, can be localized or radiate through your body, and can range from aching to burning pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 20.4% of U.S. adults had chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (over a third of those who experienced chronic pain) had “high-impact” chronic pain, which is persistent pain limits work or life activities. Chronic pain doesn’t just hurt you physically. Chronic pain affects quality of life and leads to higher medical expenses. It can also lead to anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

What Causes Chronic Pain?

Pain, generally speaking, occurs when nerves called nociceptors perceive damaged tissue, and send a signal through your spinal cord up to your brain. In most cases, pain is caused by trauma, an infection, or other medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs immediately, usually because of a known, root cause such as burns, cuts, broken bones, dental work, or surgery. The pain lasts for anywhere from a few minutes to several weeks.

By contrast, the causes of chronic pain aren’t always easily known. Sometimes an injury continues to cause pain after the tissue is repaired . Other times, it’s caused by an illness, or occurs as our bodies wear down as we age. Sometimes, there is no discernible cause for someone’s chronic pain. Common types and causes of chronic pain include:

• Arthritis and other diseases that cause joint pain — The cartilage, tendons, and ligaments in our joints can become inflamed or wear down over time or due to an injury, causing chronic pain in the affected joint.
• Numerous different conditions that cause lower back pain — Up to 84% of adults suffer from back pain eventually. Causes can be poor posture or technique, wear and tear at a job that requires physical exertion, sciatica, or disc injuries that affect the nerves in the spinal column.
• Cancer pain — Tumors can cause pain when they grow and touch other parts inside your body.
• Fibromyalgia — While an exact cause isn’t yet known, this refers to pain you feel in your muscles all over your body.
• Neurogenic pain and psychogenic pain — In some cases, there is no underlying musculoskeletal cause, but because there is an issue in the nervous system, or because of mental health issues or your personal history.

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

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

There are many possible options for chronic pain treatment in Byrnes Mill, MO, including prescription or over-the-counter medications, chiropractic care, massage, and regular exercise. Research demonstrates that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to significant improvement. You can come to any of our 15 locations 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. How often do you have pain? Does anything make it better or worse? How does your chronic pain affect you in your daily life? After our evaluation, we’ll form a team with you and your physician to come up with a customized treatment plan aimed at getting you back a pain-free daily life.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of the best possible mobility eases pain and enhances your daily life by allowing your body to work better, and breaking up any signals to your brain that something may be wrong. Depending on you, the causes of your chronic pain, how old you are, and your desired activity level, your treatment plan in Byrnes Mill, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only alleviates pain but eases any depression, stress, and/or anxiety related to your pain. A licensed Byrnes Mill, MO physical therapist will help you perform exercises that will safely and effectively improve your mobility. With guided exercise, your brain will come to understand that certain movements can be performed without pain, restoring 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 involves therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of muscles and joints. Your Byrnes Mill, MO physical therapist will use their hands to safely put pressure on your muscles and joints. Research demonstrates that manual therapy and guided exercise together are more effective than either technique used by itself.

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 technique that more and more Byrnes Mill, MO physical therapists are incorporating into their treatment plans. It involves using thin, filiform needles to penetrate irritated muscles, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. In doing so, it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and stimulates the flow of nutrients to the affected area.

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 stop your brain from receiving pain signals.

Patient Education

Understanding the cause of your pain and how to cope with it can do wonders for your chronic pain treatment in Byrnes Mill, MO. We’ll help you learn appropriate posture and movement practices, in addition to healthy lifestyle suggestions like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other conditions we treat in Byrnes Mill, MO include:

• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy
• Workers Comp' Physical Therapy

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Byrnes Mill, MO, we do what we do for simple reasons: to achieve positive client experiences and help people 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 Byrnes Mill, MO today or request an appointment online for meaningful chronic pain treatment.