Chronic Pain Treatment Crystal City, MO | Physical Therapists Near Crystal City

Chronic Pain Treatment in Crystal City, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Crystal City, MO. If you suffer from chronic pain, you know all too well the debilitating consequences it can have on your life. For some of us, it goes on so long that we forget how good we’re capable of feeling. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably completing daily activities like carrying in groceries, or the activities we love most, whether that be dominating your local softball league or working in the garden.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of provider-owned physical and occupational therapy locations dedicated to helping our Crystal City, MO patients achieve positive outcomes through personalized 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 schedule an appointment for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Is Chronic Pain?

Chronic pain is pain that lasts for longer than 12 weeks, 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 dull soreness to stinging pain.

Based on research from the CDC, in 2019 20.4% of American adults dealt with chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (or 36.4% 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. Chronic pain doesn’t just hurt you physically. Chronic pain impacts quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also lead to anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

What Causes Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. Often, pain is due to an injury, an infection, or other medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs at once, usually because of a known, underlying cause such as burns, cuts, broken bones, dental work, or surgery. The pain lasts for anywhere from a moment to several weeks.

By contrast, the causes of chronic pain aren’t always easily identifiable. Sometimes an injury continues to cause pain even after it’s healed . In other cases, it’s caused by a medical condition, or happens as our bodies wear down as we age. 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 damaged or wear down over time or due to an injury, causing chronic pain in the affected joint.
Numerous different conditions that lead to lower back pain — Up to 84% of adults suffer from back pain eventually. Causes can be poor posture or technique, repetitive motions at a physically demanding job, sciatica, or disc injuries that impinge on 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 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.

There are many pointers for managing chronic pain, and while many can lead to greater comfort, many of our Crystal City, MO patients have felt like they tried all of them and more and still can’t feel better. Often, physical therapy is the strategy that finally gets them relief and returns them to the activities they love.

Chronic Pain Treatment Crystal City, MO | Pain Management | Physical Therapist Near Crystal City

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

There are many possible options for chronic pain treatment in Crystal City, MO, including prescription or over-the-counter drugs, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, massage therapy, and regular exercise. Studies show that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to significant improvement. You are welcome to come to any of our 15 locations for a free screening to better understand why you might be suffering from 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 tandem with you and your doctor to develop a customized course of treatment aimed at returning you a comfortable daily life.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by increasing your strength, balance, posture, and flexibility. Collectively improving those aspects of the best possible movement health relieves pain and improves your quality of life by making your body work better, and disrupting certain nerves from sending pain messages to your brain. 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 Crystal City, 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 Crystal City, MO physical therapist will guide 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 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 involves therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Crystal City, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently manipulate soft tissue. Studies have shown that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is better at treating pain than either technique used by itself.

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

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new treatment method that is becoming more popular among Crystal City, MO physical therapist. It involves using thin, filiform needles to penetrate damaged soft tissue. In doing so, it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and encourages the nutrient-rich blood flow to the region.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes over the body part that’s causing you pain. It sends low-level electrical currents to release endorphins and stimulates nerve cells that prevent your brain from receiving pain messages.

Patient Education

Understanding why you’re experiencing pain and how to cope with it can do wonders for your chronic pain treatment in Crystal City, MO. We’ll help you learn the best way to sit, stand, and move, as well as healthy lifestyle suggestions like diet recommendations.

Other services we offer in Crystal City, MO include:

Chronic Pain Treatment Crystal City, MO | Physical Therapy | Pain Management Near Crystal City

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Crystal City, MO, we do what we do for simple reasons: to achieve positive client experiences and help people get back to the things they love doing most. Whether you miss being able to run across the tennis court like you used to, or just want to carry the groceries in without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Crystal City, MO today or make an appointment online for meaningful chronic pain treatment.