Chronic Pain Treatment in Winchester, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Winchester, MO. Anyone who has had to deal with chronic pain knows how limiting it can be. Sometimes, it goes on so long that we lose sight of how good we used to feel. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably completing daily tasks like doing household chores, or the things we love most, whether that be dominating your local pickleball league or painting bowls of fruit.

Axes Physical Therapy is a collection of provider-owned physical and occupational therapy locations devoted to helping our Winchester, MO patients achieve positive outcomes through custom-tailored chronic pain treatment plans, built on techniques that have been proven to work. If you’re finally ready to move on from chronic pain, call the location nearest you or contact us online for effective chronic pain treatment.

What Type of Pain is Considered “Chronic”?

Chronic pain is pain that doesn’t go away after three months, which is generally considered to be the “normal” healing period. The pain can be constant or can come and go, can stay in one spot or radiate through your body, and can range from aching to stinging pain.

Based on research from the CDC, in 2019 almost a quarter of U.S. adults suffered from chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (or 36.4% of those who experienced chronic pain) suffered from “high-impact” chronic pain, which is persistent pain affects how somebody can work or enjoy other activities. Anyone who suffers from frequent pain symptoms will tell you that it causes far more than just physical discomfort. Chronic pain impacts quality of life and leads to significant economic costs. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

What Causes Chronic Pain?

Pain, in general, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. In most cases, pain is due to trauma, an infection, or other medical condition. “Acute pain” occurs at once, usually because of a discernible, underlying cause such as being hit with something, dental work, or surgery. It can last for anywhere from a moment to months while the injury heals.

By contrast, the causes of chronic pain aren’t always easily known. Sometimes an injury continues to cause pain despite the fact that, structurally, it has healed . Other times, it’s caused by an illness, or happens as our bodies weaken with age. Sometimes, there is no discernible 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 cartilage, tendons, and ligaments in our joints can become irritated or wear down from overuse or overexertion, causing joint pain.
• A variety of 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 disc injuries that affect the nerves in the spinal column.
• Cancer pain — Tumors can lead to pain when they bother other parts inside your body.
• Fibromyalgia — While experts are still trying to understand the exact cause of fibromyalgia, 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 pointers for managing chronic pain, and while many are effective, many of our Winchester, MO patients tell us that they have tried all of them and more and still can’t feel better. Often, physical therapy is the treatment that finally gets them relief and returns them to the things that are most important to them.

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

Chronic pain can be treated through a variety of means in Winchester, MO, including medication, chiropractic adjustments, massage, and consistent exercise. Studies show that making physical therapy a part of your treatment plan can lead to considerable improvement. You can 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. How often do you have pain? Does anything make it better or worse? How is limiting you in your daily life? After our evaluation, we’ll work in concert with you and your physician to come up with a personalized course of treatment aimed at getting you back a comfortable daily life.

Physical therapy can relieve pain by stretching and strengthening your body. Collectively improving those aspects of the best possible mobility relieves pain and enhances your daily life by allowing your body to work better, and interrupting certain body parts from sending pain messages to your brain. Depending on you, the nature of your chronic pain, your age, and your desired activity level, your treatment plan in Winchester, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s homegrown, feel-good chemical messengers, which not only eases pain but helps with related symptoms like stress and depression. A professional Winchester, MO physical therapist will guide through exercises aimed at improving your mobility without causing more 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. We’ll also show you light exercises you can do outside of our sessions.

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 Winchester, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently manipulate soft tissue. Research demonstrates that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is more effective 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 technique that more and more Winchester, 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 flow of nutrients to the affected body part.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS works by placing electrodes over the body part that’s causing you pain. It delivers low-voltage currents, which releases endorphins and awakens nerve cells that stop your brain from receiving pain messages.

Patient Education

Understanding the cause of your pain and how to cope with it can have a considerable positive effect on your chronic pain treatment in Winchester, MO. We’ll help you learn the best way to sit, stand, and move, in addition to healthy lifestyle suggestions like how to keep a healthy diet.

Other services we offer in Winchester, MO include:

• Beginner Running Program
• Spine Specialist Near Me
• MCL Injury
• Shoulder Pain
• Injury Prevention
• Mobility
• Knee Injury
• Joint Pain
• Sciatica

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Winchester, MO, our goals are clear: to achieve positive patient experiences and help our patients get back 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 carry the groceries in without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Winchester, MO today or schedule an appointment online for meaningful chronic pain treatment.