Chronic Pain Treatment Womack, MO | Physical Therapists Near Womack

Chronic Pain Treatment in Womack, MO

Chronic pain treatment in Womack, MO. Anyone who has had to deal with chronic pain knows the debilitating effect it can have on your life. For some of us, the months or years we’ve dealt with it leads us to forget what it feels like to live a pain-free life. At it’s worse, the pain can keep us from comfortably performing basic activities like walking up the stairs, or the things we love best, whether that be dominating your local pickleball league or working in the garden.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of 15 physical therapy treatment centers devoted to helping our Womack, MO patients achieve positive outcomes through personalized and evidence-backed chronic pain treatment. If you’re finally ready to move on from chronic pain, reach out to our location most convenient for you you or make 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 takes most people and conditions to heal. The pain can be constant or can come and go, can be localized or hit different muscles or joints, and can range from dull soreness to stinging pain.

According to the CDC, in 2019 20.4% of adults nationwide dealt with chronic pain. 7.4% of adults (or 36.4% of those with chronic pain) suffered from “high-impact” chronic pain, which is pain that occurs on more days than not that affects how somebody can work or perform other 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 higher medical expenses. It can also cause significant mental health issues and trouble sleeping.

What’s Behind Chronic Pain?

Pain, generally speaking, is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. Often, pain is caused by a specific incident or illness. “Acute pain” occurs suddenly, usually because of a discernible, underlying cause such as being hit with something, dental work, or surgery. The pain lasts for anywhere from a moment to several weeks.

By contrast, the causes of chronic pain aren’t always easily known. In some cases there may be an injury that hurts even after it’s healed . In other cases, 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, bursitis, tendinitis, and other conditions 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.
Numerous different conditions that cause low back pain — Almost 9 out of 10 adults will deal with back pain eventually. Causes can be poor posture or technique, repetitive motions at a physically demanding job, sciatica, or a variety of disc injuries.
Cancer pain — Tumors can cause pain when they push up against 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 — 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 pointers for relieving chronic pain, and while many can help you be more active in your daily life, many people we see in Womack, MO tell us that they have tried all of them and more and still can’t find relief. Often, physical therapy becomes their path toward meaningful pain relief and getting back to a pain-free daily life.

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

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

There are many possible options for chronic pain treatment in Womack, MO, including medication, spinal adjustments by a chiropractor, massage, and regular exercise. Studies show that including physical therapy into your treatment plan can lead to significant improvement. You can come to any of our 15 locations for a free screening to learn what might be causing your chronic pain. We’ll get to know you and your pain better. Do you experience pain every day? Most days? Does anything make it better or worse? How does your chronic pain affect you in your daily life? After our evaluation, we’ll form a team with you and your physician to develop a customized course of treatment aimed at returning you to the things you love most.

Physical therapy helps by increasing your strength, balance, posture, and flexibility. Helping you achieve the best possible mobility eases pain and enhances your daily life by allowing your body to function 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 your desired activity level, your treatment plan in Womack, MO may include:

Guided Exercise

Exercise releases endorphins, your body’s natural, feel-good hormone, which not only alleviates pain but helps with related symptoms like stress and depression. A professional Womack, 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 performed without pain, restoring 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 incorporates therapeutic touch to promote healing and relaxation of the surrounding tissues. Your Womack, MO physical therapist will use their hands to gently move your muscles and joints. Research demonstrates that manual therapy combined with guided exercise is more effective than either technique used alone.

With instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, physical therapists use specially designed tools, like HawkGrips®, instead of their hands, to smooth out tissue and pinpoint degenerative tissue and soft tissue restrictions.

Dry Needling

Trigger point dry needling is a relatively new tool that more and more Womack, MO physical therapists are incorporating into their treatment plans. It involves using thin, filiform needles to penetrate irritated soft tissue. This eases pain as it stimulates the body’s “healing mode” and stimulates the nutrient-rich blood flow to the affected body part.

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 messages.

Patient Education

Understanding why you’re experiencing pain and how to deal with it in your daily life can have a considerable positive effect on your chronic pain treatment in Womack, MO. We’ll teach you the best way to sit, stand, and move, as well as healthy lifestyle suggestions like diet recommendations.

Other conditions we treat in Womack, MO include:

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

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

At Axes Physical Therapy in Womack, MO, we do what we do for simple reasons: to deliver positive client experiences and help our patients get back to their best life. Whether you want to be able to run across the tennis court like you used to, or just want to carry the groceries in without discomfort, speak to a physical therapist in Womack, MO today or schedule an appointment online for lasting chronic pain treatment.