Chronic Pain Treatment in Owensville, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Owensville, 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. 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 basic tasks like doing household chores, or the things we love best, whether that be dominating your local pick-up league or picking up your grandchildren.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of 15 physical and occupational therapy centers devoted to helping our Owensville, MO patients find meaningful relief through customized chronic pain treatment plans, based on techniques that have been demonstrated to work. To get back to a pain-free daily life, call the location nearest you or contact us online for successful chronic pain treatment.

What Is Chronic Pain?

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 be localized or hit different body parts, and can be anything from aching to stinging pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 20.4% of American adults suffered from chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (over a third of those with chronic pain) suffered from “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 reduces quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also lead to anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

What’s Behind Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, occurs when nerves called nociceptors perceive damage somewhere in your body, and send a signal through your spinal cord up to your brain. In most cases, pain is due to an injury, an infection, or other medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs at once, usually because of a discernible, root cause such as stubbing your toe, dental work, or surgery. It can last for anywhere from a few minutes 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 weaken with age. Sometimes, there is no observable cause for someone’s chronic pain. Common types and causes of chronic pain include:

• Arthritis and other conditions that cause joint pain — The cartilage, tendons, and ligaments 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, wear and tear 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 tissue, nerves, or organs.
• Fibromyalgia — While an exact cause isn’t yet known, this refers to widespread muscle pain and tenderness.
• Neurogenic pain and psychogenic pain — In some cases, pain does not occur for a physical reason, but rather it’s caused by the nervous system, or because of mental health issues or your personal history.

There are many pointers for managing chronic pain, and while many can help you be more active in your daily life, many of our Owensville, MO patients tell us that they have tried everything and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy is the strategy that finally gets them relief and returns them to a pain-free daily life.

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

There are many possible options for chronic pain treatment in Owensville, MO, including medication, chiropractic adjustments, massage, and consistent exercise. Studies show that incorporating physical therapy into your treatment plan is incredibly effective for relieving chronic pain. You are welcome to visit any of our 15 locations for a free screening to learn what might be causing your 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 does your chronic pain affect you in your daily life? From there, we’ll form a team with you and your physician to come up with a tailor-made course of treatment aimed at getting you back to the activities you love most.

Physical therapy helps by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of optimal mobility eases pain and improves your quality of life by allowing your body to 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 Owensville, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s natural, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only reduces pain but helps with related symptoms like stress and depression. A licensed Owensville, MO physical therapist will lead you 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, 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 involves therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of muscles and joints. Your Owensville, MO physical therapist will use their hands to safely manipulate soft tissue. Studies have shown that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is more effective than either technique used by itself.

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

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new technique that is becoming more popular among Owensville, MO physical therapist. It involves using thin, filiform needles to gently create small tears or rips in irritated muscles, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. This eases pain as it encourages the body to start to heal itself and encourages the flow of nutrients to the region.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes where the pain is located. It sends low-voltage electrical currents to release endorphins and awakens nerve cells that block the transmission of pain signals.

Patient Education

Understanding the cause of your pain and how to deal with it in your daily life can do wonders for your chronic pain treatment in Owensville, MO. We’ll teach you appropriate posture and movement practices, in addition to healthy lifestyle tips like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other conditions we treat in Owensville, MO include:

• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy
• Workers Comp' Physical Therapy
• Migraine Relief
• Sprain and Strain Treatment

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Owensville, MO, we do what we do for simple reasons: to deliver positive patient outcomes and help our patients 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 get out of bed in the morning without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Owensville, MO today or request an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.