Chronic Pain Treatment Clearwater, MO

Chronic Pain Treatment in Clearwater, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Clearwater, 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 causes us to forget how good we used to feel. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably performing daily activities like walking up the stairs, or the things we love best, whether that be flying down the court or working in the garden.

Axes Physical Therapy is a collection of provider-owned physical and occupational therapy locations committed to helping our Clearwater, MO patients find meaningful relief through custom-tailored and evidence-backed chronic pain treatment. To get back to the activities you love most, reach out to the location nearest you or contact us online for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Is Chronic Pain?

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 occur every day or every few days, can stay in one spot or hit different body parts, and can change in severity from dull soreness to agonizing pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 almost a quarter of American adults suffered from chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (over a third of those who experienced chronic pain) had “high-impact” chronic pain, defined as pain that, on “most days” or “every day,” affects how somebody can work or perform other activities. Chronic pain doesn’t just hurt you physically. Chronic pain impacts quality of life and leads to higher medical expenses. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

What Causes Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. In most cases, pain is caused by an injury, an infection, or other medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs at once, usually because of a discernible, underlying cause such as falling, dental work, or surgery. It can last for anywhere from a moment 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 . 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 and other diseases that cause joint pain — The soft tissue in our joints can become irritated or wear down from overuse or overexertion, causing chronic pain in the affected joint.
A variety of conditions that cause lower back pain — Up to 84% of adults will deal with back pain eventually. Causes can be poor posture or technique, repetitive motions at work, sciatica, or a variety of disc injuries.
Cancer pain — Tumors can lead to pain when they bother bones, your spine, or other tissue.
Fibromyalgia — While experts are still trying to understand the exact cause of fibromyalgia, this refers to pain you feel in your muscles all over your body.
Neurogenic pain and psychogenic pain — Sometimes, pain does not occur for a physical reason, but rather it’s caused by the nervous system, or because of psychological stress.

You can read our pointers for managing chronic pain, and while many can lead to greater comfort, many people we see in Clearwater, MO tell us that they have tried everything and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy is the treatment that finally gets them relief and returns them to the things that are most important to them.

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

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

There are many possible options for chronic pain treatment in Clearwater, MO, including medication, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, yoga, and consistent exercise. Research demonstrates that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan is incredibly effective for relieving chronic pain. You can visit any of our 15 locations 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? When does it come on? When does it get better? How is limiting you in your daily life? From there, we’ll form a team with you and your physician to develop a tailor-made course of treatment aimed at getting you back a comfortable daily life.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of optimal movement health relieves pain and enhances your daily life by making your body function 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 the activity level you wish to get back to, your treatment plan in Clearwater, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise boosts your body’s production of endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only reduces pain but eases any psychological stress you feel because of your pain. A professional Clearwater, MO physical therapist can guide through exercises that will safely and effectively improve your mobility. With these exercises, we can re-train your brain to accept certain movements and positions without pain, rebuilding how your brain processes messages. 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 promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Clearwater, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently put pressure on soft tissue. Research demonstrates that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is more effective than either technique used alone.

With instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, physical therapists use specially designed tools, like HawkGrips®, instead of their hands, to smooth out tissue 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 Clearwater, MO physical therapist. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in damaged muscles, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. In doing so, it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and encourages the flow of blood to the region.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes on the skin near where you are experiencing pain. It delivers low-voltage currents, which releases endorphins and awakens nerve cells that stop your brain from receiving pain signals.

Patient Education

Understanding why you’re experiencing pain and how to cope with it can have a significant positive effect on your chronic pain treatment in Clearwater, MO. We’ll teach you the best way to sit, stand, and move, as well as healthy lifestyle tips like diet recommendations.

Other conditions we treat in Clearwater, MO include:

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

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Clearwater, MO, our goals are simple: to deliver positive patient experiences and help people get back to the activities they love. Whether you want to be able to hit a breakaway layup like you used to, or just want to get out of bed in the morning without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Clearwater, MO today or schedule an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.