Did you know that chronic pain negatively affects over 100 million American adults?  That’s actually more patients than those affected by diabetes, heart disease, and cancer combined. The standard treatment for chronic pain has been prescription medications, such as opioids, that only temporarily relieve the pain. As soon as the dose wears off the pain returns. Over time, the patient may very well build up a tolerance for the pain medication. The pain never truly goes away, it’s only masked by the medicine. That is one of the factors that has led to the current opioid crisis that’s ravaging through the country.

The challenge we face as practitioners is understanding the causes of chronic pain in order  to find better ways to treat the actual problem rather than simply masking the symptom with medications. So why do we feel pain? Although many people think that pain stems from damage to muscle or bones it can also derive from nerve tissues that are located within the various parts of our bodies. When muscles and bones respond to either acute or chronic stress the tissues in our bodies actually change. For example, the breakup of collagen bonded with your connective tissue or protein is being released from a cell.

The actual damage to the tissue isn’t causing you pain. It’s your brain. In essence, our brains decide that these changes are important enough for you to be aware of them by sending a warning signal. The signal is interpreted as pain. The signal can also feel like general discomfort including stiffness. So, what is the cause of chronic pain? Typically speaking, chronic pain results from nerve related impulses that alert your brain about damaged tissue. The alert is what makes you feel pain and discomfort. However, the actual damage to the tissue isn’t happening in direct proportion to the injury response.

The bottom line is that you may be feeling more pain than other people feel for the same exact type of injury. This may very well be due to a prior injury. Basically, your nerves are both sending and interpreting the wrong message, which leads to chronic pain. There are various causes of chronic pain. The good news is that physical therapy can help patients decrease the pain and sensitivity without the dangerous medication that only masks the pain on a temporary basis.

If you’re in chronic pain, please contact our office today to set up an appointment on a day and time that’s convenient for you.

There are many things that make Quiet Corner Physical Therapy different. First and foremost, our dedicated staff is completely devoted to making your physical therapy experience as easy and enjoyable as possible. We pride ourselves on providing each and every one of our patients with industry leading individualized care and treatment plans. The number one concern of our compassionate staff is your well being. Quiet Corner has the unique ability to utilize the most effective treatment techniques and services including cupping, paraffin, dry needling, mobility tools, E-stim, TENS, taping, traction, and joint/soft tissue mobilization just to name a few.

Our entire team truly cares about educating our patients because we know how much of an important role it plays in your overall healing process. We’re also proud of the fact that we use the latest technology to show you exactly where the problem is occurring. It also goes a long way in helping us to improve your current situation.