Chronic Pain Treatment Defiance, MO

Chronic Pain Treatment in Defiance, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Defiance, MO. Anyone who has had to deal with chronic pain knows the debilitating consequences it can have on your life. Sometimes, 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 performing basic activities like carrying in groceries, or the things we love best, whether that be flying down the field or painting bowls of fruit.

Axes Physical Therapy is a collection of provider-owned physical therapy treatment centers devoted to helping our Defiance, MO patients find meaningful relief through personalized chronic pain treatment plans, based on techniques that have been demonstrated to work. If you’re finally ready to move on from chronic pain, call the location nearest you or request an appointment for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Is Chronic Pain?

Chronic pain is pain that lasts for longer than 3-6 months, which is how long it takes most people and conditions to heal. The pain can be constant or can come and go, can stay in one spot or radiate through your body, and can be anything from aching to agonizing pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 almost a quarter of adults nationwide suffered from 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,” limits work or life activities. Chronic pain doesn’t just hurt you physically. Chronic pain affects quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

What’s Behind Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. Often, pain is caused by a specific incident or medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs at once, usually because of a known, root cause such as stubbing your toe, 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. In some cases there may be an injury that hurts despite the fact that, structurally, it has healed . In other cases, it’s caused by a medical condition, or happens as our bodies weaken with age. Sometimes, there is no perceptible cause for someone’s chronic pain. Common types and causes of chronic pain include:

Arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, and other conditions that cause joint pain — The soft tissue in our joints can become damaged or wear down from overuse or overexertion, causing chronic pain in the affected joint.
Numerous different conditions that cause 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, wear and tear at work, sciatica, or a variety of disc injuries.
Cancer pain — Tumors can cause pain when they grow and touch bones, your spine, or other tissue.
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 — In some cases, there is no underlying musculoskeletal cause, but rather it’s caused by the nervous system, or because of depression, anxiety, and/or stress.

There are many suggestions for easing chronic pain, and while many can lead to greater comfort, many of our Defiance, MO patients tell us that they have tried all of them and more and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy is the strategy that finally gets them relief and returns them to the activities they love.

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

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

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of modalities in Defiance, MO, including medication, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, yoga, and consistent exercise. Research demonstrates that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to considerable improvement. You can visit any Axes location in the Defiance area 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? What makes it worse? What makes it better? How is limiting you in your daily life? From there, we’ll form a team with you and your doctor to come up with a tailor-made treatment plan aimed at getting you back to the things you love most.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of optimal movement health eases pain and improves your quality of life by making your body function better, and interrupting any signals to your brain that something may be wrong. Depending on you, the nature of your chronic pain, your age, and the activity level you wish to get back to, your treatment plan in Defiance, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good hormone, which not only alleviates pain but eases any depression, stress, and/or anxiety caused by your pain. A qualified Defiance, MO physical therapist can guide through exercises aimed at improving your mobility without causing further pain or injury. With guided exercise, your brain will come to understand that certain movements can be achieved 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 incorporates therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Defiance, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently manipulate your muscles and joints. Research demonstrates that manual therapy and guided exercise together are 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 Graston®.

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new tool that increasingly more Defiance, MO physical therapists are incorporating into their treatment plans. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in irritated soft tissue. In doing so, 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 over the body part that’s causing you pain. It sends low-voltage electrical currents to release endorphins and stimulates nerve cells that block the transmission of pain messages.

Patient Education

Understanding why you’re experiencing pain and how to deal with it in your daily life can do wonders for your chronic pain treatment in Defiance, MO. We’ll help you learn the best way to sit, stand, and move, in addition to healthy lifestyle suggestions like diet recommendations.

Other conditions we treat in Defiance, MO include:

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

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Defiance, MO, our goals are clear: to deliver positive patient experiences and help our patients return to 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 walk up the stairs pain-free, speak to a physical therapist in Defiance, MO today or make an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.