Chronic Pain Treatment Foristell, MO

Chronic Pain Treatment in Foristell, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Foristell, MO. If you suffer from chronic pain, you know all too well how hard it is to express the effects it has on your daily life. For some of us, it goes on so long that we forget how good we used to feel. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably performing daily tasks like walking up the stairs, or the things 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 group of 15 physical therapy treatment centers devoted to helping our Foristell, MO patients find lasting relief through custom-tailored and evidence-backed chronic pain treatment. If you’re finally ready to move on from chronic pain, reach out to our location nearest you or request an appointment for safe chronic pain treatment.

What Type of Pain is Considered “Chronic”?

Chronic pain is pain that doesn’t go away after 12 weeks, which is how long it typically takes pain to go away after an injury, surgery, or illness. The pain can occur every day or every few days, can stay in one spot or hit different muscles or joints, and can range from stiffness to stinging pain.

Based on research from the CDC, in 2019 20.4% of American adults had chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (over a third of those with 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. Anyone who suffers from frequent pain symptoms will tell you that it causes far more than just physical discomfort. Chronic pain affects quality of life and leads to higher medical expenses. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

Why Do People Experience Chronic Pain?

Pain, generally speaking, 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 immediately, usually because of a known, underlying cause such as falling, dental work, or surgery. It can last for anywhere from a moment 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 despite the fact that, structurally, it has healed . Other times, it’s caused by a medical condition, 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 inflamed or wear down over time or due to an injury, causing joint pain.
A variety of conditions that cause lower 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, repetitive motions at a job that requires physical exertion, sciatica, or a variety of disc injuries.
Cancer pain — Tumors can lead to pain when they bother tissue, nerves, or organs.
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, pain does not occur for a physical reason, but because there is dysfunction in the nervous system, or because of depression, anxiety, and/or stress.

There are many suggestions for easing chronic pain, and while many are effective, many of our Foristell, MO patients have felt like they tried all of them and more and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy becomes their path toward lasting pain relief and getting back to the activities they love.

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

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

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of modalities in Foristell, MO, including prescription or over-the-counter drugs, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, massage, and regular exercise. Research demonstrates that including physical therapy into your treatment plan can lead to considerable improvement. You are welcome to come to any of our 15 locations for a free screening to learn why you might be experiencing chronic pain. We’ll ask you questions to better understand how we can help you. Do you experience pain every day? Most days? When does it come on? When does it get better? How is limiting you in your daily life? After our evaluation, we’ll work in tandem with you and your doctor to come up with a customized course of treatment aimed at returning you to the things you love most.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by increasing your strength, balance, posture, and range of motion. Helping you reach optimal mobility relieves pain and enhances your daily life by allowing your body to work better, and interrupting any signals to your brain that something may be wrong. 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 Foristell, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise increases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good hormone, which not only alleviates pain but helps with any psychological stress caused by your pain. A qualified Foristell, MO physical therapist can help you perform exercises aimed at improving your mobility without causing further pain or injury. With these exercises, your brain will come to understand that certain movements can be achieved without pain, rebuilding 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 incorporates therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Foristell, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently put pressure on your muscles and joints. Research demonstrates that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is better at treating pain than either treatment method used alone.

Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization is a form of 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 more and more Foristell, MO physical therapists are incorporating into their treatment plans. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in damaged 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 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 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 Foristell, MO. We’ll help you learn the best way to sit, stand, and move, as well as healthy lifestyle tips like diet recommendations.

Other services we offer in Foristell, MO include:

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

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Foristell, MO, we do what we do for simple reasons: to deliver positive client outcomes and help people get back to the activities they love. Whether you miss being able to hit a breakaway layup like you used to, or just want to carry the groceries in pain-free, speak to a physical therapist in Foristell, MO today or schedule an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.