Chronic Pain Treatment in Matson, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Matson, MO. Anyone who has had to deal with chronic pain knows how limiting it can be. Sometimes, it goes on so long that we forget what it feels like to live a pain-free life. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably performing daily activities like carrying in groceries, or the things we love doing the most, whether that be dominating your local pickleball league or painting bowls of fruit.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of 15 physical therapy treatment centers committed to helping our Matson, MO patients achieve positive outcomes through personalized chronic pain treatment plans, built 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 contact us online for successful chronic pain treatment.

What Type of Pain is Considered “Chronic”?

Chronic pain is pain that lasts for longer than 3-6 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 muscles or joints, and can change in severity from aching to burning pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 one out of five 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. Anyone who suffers from pain frequently will tell you that it causes far more than just physical discomfort. Chronic pain reduces quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also lead to anxiety, depression, and trouble sleeping.

What’s Behind Chronic Pain?

Pain, generally speaking, occurs when nerves called nociceptors detect damaged tissue, and send a signal through your spinal cord up to your brain. Often, pain is caused by a specific incident or medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs suddenly, usually because of a known, underlying cause such as falling, dental work, or surgery. The pain lasts for anywhere from a moment to months while the injury heals.

By contrast, people can experience chronic pain for several reasons. Sometimes an injury continues to cause pain even after it’s healed . Other times, it’s caused by a medical condition, or degenerative disease. 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 irritated or wear down over time or due to an injury, causing chronic pain in the affected joint.
• A variety of conditions that lead to lower back pain — Almost 9 out of 10 adults suffer from 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 disc injuries that impinge on the nerves in the spinal column.
• Cancer pain — Tumors can cause pain when they bother bones, your spine, or other tissue.
• Fibromyalgia — While an exact cause isn’t yet known, this refers to widespread muscle pain and tenderness.
• 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 depression, anxiety, and/or stress.

There are many suggestions for relieving chronic pain, and while many are effective, many people we see in Matson, MO 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 Matson, MO a Great Option For Chronic Pain Treatment?

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of modalities in Matson, MO, including prescription or over-the-counter drugs, 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 are welcome to come to any Axes location in the Matson area for a free screening to better understand why you might be suffering from chronic pain. We’ll get to know you and your pain better. 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 work in concert with you and your physician to design a tailor-made course of treatment aimed at getting you back a comfortable daily life.

Physical therapy helps by increasing your strength, balance, posture, and flexibility. Helping you reach the best possible movement health eases pain and enhances your daily life by making your body work better, and disrupting 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 Matson, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise increases endorphins, your body’s natural, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only alleviates pain but eases any depression, stress, and/or anxiety caused by your pain. A licensed Matson, MO physical therapist will 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 carried out without pain, rebuilding your brain’s trust in the rest of your body. We’ll also show you light exercises you can do at home.

Manual Therapy and Soft Tissue Mobilization

Manual therapy involves therapeutic touch to encourage your body’s natural healing process and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Matson, MO physical therapist will use their hands to safely put pressure on your muscles and joints. Studies have shown that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is better at treating pain than either technique used by itself.

With instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, physical therapists use specialized tools, like Astym®, 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 tool that increasingly more Matson, MO physical therapists are incorporating into their treatment plans. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in inflamed muscles and connective tissue. In doing so, it encourages the body to start to heal itself and encourages 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 stimulates nerve cells that prevent your brain from receiving pain signals.

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 Matson, MO. We’ll teach you the best way to sit, stand, and move, as well as healthy lifestyle tips like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other conditions we treat in Matson, MO include:

• Workers Comp' Physical Therapy
• Sprain and Strain Treatment
• Geriatric Physical Therapy
• Injury Rehabilitation
• Pain Management Services
• TMJ Treatment
• Herniated Disc Treatment
• Rotator Cuff Tear Treatment
• Running Injury

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Matson, MO, our objectives are simple: to achieve positive patient experiences and help people return to 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 without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Matson, MO today or request an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.