When you’re living with chronic pain, every day can feel like a battle. You might struggle to get through your regular routine or feel overwhelmed by the pain.
If you’re like most people with chronic pain, you’ve probably tried all sorts of things to get relief: special diets, yoga, acupuncture, and painkillers. But what if we told you there was another solution that could help reduce your pain and improve your quality of life? Physio might be the answer for you!
With the help of a physiotherapist, you can find relief and start managing your chronic pain effectively.
What is chronic pain?
Globally, it is estimated that one in every five people, or approximately 1.5 billion people, suffer from chronic pain, with the prevalence increasing with age. Chronic pain is a major cause of human misery and disability.
Chronic pain is defined as pain that lasts longer than the standard healing time for damaged tissues, usually over three months. Chronic pain is a disease in and of itself, involving multiple body systems and always involving the central nervous system.
Chronic pain can occur anywhere in the body for various reasons, and everyone experiences it differently. The pain ranges from mild to severe and occurs on most days.
Common causes of chronic pain
Chronic pain can be classified as nerve pain, pain caused by a bone, muscle, or joint condition, or pain caused by cancer.
Chronic pain can also result from illnesses such as migraines, osteoporosis, arthritis, and other musculoskeletal conditions, as well as from an injury or surgery. Chronic pain does not always have an apparent cause, though.
When you have an injury, nerves send signals from the injured part of your body to your brain, informing it that there is a problem. These signals are interpreted as pain by the brain.
When someone suffers from chronic pain, the nerves that carry pain signals to the brain, or the brain itself, behave abnormally. The nerves could be overly sensitive, or the brain could be misinterpreting other signals as pain.
If acute pain is not treated or treated correctly, it can progress to chronic pain. The more prolonged pain goes untreated, the more likely it will become chronic.
What to expect at your first physiotherapy appointment
Our physiotherapists will begin by thoroughly assessing your current condition and body function. Following that, with a better understanding of your unique experience with chronic pain, we focus on an educational approach to managing flare-ups and pain management.
During your initial consultation, we will:
- Discuss your medical history.
- Pinpoint the problem.
- Determine a timeline for how long it will take for things to improve.
- Conduct immediate actions to alleviate pain.
- Define a recovery plan that addresses your objectives, including the anticipated number of appointments and costs.
Our treatment model provides a clear direction and immediately actionable steps for people suffering from chronic pain. We will create an individualised plan and help you gain confidence in your situation, freeing you from ongoing appointments.
Managing chronic pain with physiotherapy
We understand how chronic pain works at Hub And Spoke Health. We intend to address physical and psychological factors contributing to a person’s pain experience. Since a person’s beliefs regarding pain can significantly impact treatment success, we consider all these factors and beliefs.
We see a wide range of patients who are in chronic pain. Many people have been suffering from this pain for many years, and it can be caused by various conditions such as low back pain, fibromyalgia, arthritis, disc or nerve pain, etc. However, chronic pain has similar effects on a person’s physical and mental state regardless of the cause.
For these conditions, a more comprehensive and long-term approach is required, and we assist in guiding our patients through this rehabilitation process.
People suffering from chronic pain avoid painful physical activity. As a result, deconditioning, muscle weakness, and fitness can lead to more pain.
Persistent pain may prevent you from working, or you may fear that participating in sports or social activities will aggravate your pain.
We set goals for you to achieve throughout the treatment program to track your progress. Treatment will include a combination of manual therapy and movement exercises to help you achieve your individual goals.
Final thoughts on physio solutions for chronic pain
You and your physiotherapist must collaborate to determine the causes and symptoms of your pain and how to alleviate it.
Chronic pain treatment aims to reduce pain and improve function so that you can resume your daily activities. There are numerous options for treating pain, some of which are more beneficial than others.
Whatever your treatment plan, remember that chronic pain is rarely cured but can be managed. Your pain levels can be reduced, and your quality of life can be improved.
Book an appointment at Hub And Spoke Health today for your chronic pain management assessment and treatment plan.
