Say Goodbye To Expensive Over-The-Counter Medicine, and Hello To Physical Therapy!
The society that we live in today is highly medicated. Go into any grocery store or pharmacy and you’ll notice tons of over-the-counter pain medications. Doctors also consistently prescribe heavier pain relievers as well, including the opioids that have become increasingly abused over the years. Drug addiction is everywhere, and it’s an ongoing battle that patients are actively fighting.
If you’ve ever sustained an injury, you know that it can turn your daily life upside down. Whether it’s a car accident, a sports-related injury, workplace injury, or even an accidental fall, the pain from a sudden injury can leave you feeling hopeless. To fight this, many people turn to pain-relieving drugs, such as opioids.What many don’t realize is how much more harm these medications do their body than good.
If you’re dealing with chronic pain but you don’t want to pump your body full of addictive medications, you’ll be thrilled to find out there is a healthier, safer alternative: physical therapy. Physical therapy is a natural and effective solution to chronic pain that will help you feel better in the long-term. Let’s look into how this form of natural treatment can improve the quality of life you’re experiencing!
Physical Therapy: A Healthier Option Than Opioid, Steroid and NSAID Use
If you keep up with the news on a daily basis, you’ve most likely heard about the dangers opioid medications pose. These narcotics, which include both illegal drugs and prescription medication, are the cause for at least 115 overdose deaths in America every single day.
The APTA states that clinicians “[…] should consider opioid therapy only if expected benefits for both pain and function are anticipated to outweigh risks to the patient.” Opioids are extremely powerful and can interact with other drugs in a dangerous way. They also lead to abuse and addiction as well.
Steroids are another dangerous class of prescription medication, and pose many risks and dangers to your health. Epidural steroid injections are used to relieve pain, but can cause arthritis in the hips, cataracts, stomach ulcers, elevated blood sugar, and nerve damage stemming from the injection itself. Even ordinary NSAID’s such as ibuprofen are capable of causing liver problems and bleeding in the stomach, which is worrisome, because many people who don’t even have chronic injuries use these daily.
Physical therapy can prevent you from having to deal with all of these unpleasant side effects. Some cases of severe pain might still require you to take medication, but physical therapy helps plenty of patients decrease — or even eliminate — their dependence on pain medication.
Our physical therapists will use a combination of treatment techniques to help get your pain condition under control, no matter if it’s from an acute injury, or a wound from a recent surgery. Physical therapy is a good option for you especially if you’re looking for ongoing chronic pain management that doesn’t include constant drug usage, or if you’re already on other essential medications and you’re worried about how they will interact with your pain meds.
How Can a Physical Therapist Relieve Your Pain?
Since everyone is different, and everyone’s pain conditions vary, physical therapy treatments must as well! Your physical therapy pain management plan might be different from someone else’s, depending on your specific problem. If you are struggling with pain from a recent injury, your therapist might decide to use massage therapy, heat, ice, ultrasound, or other techniques to ease your pain and speed up the healing process.
When you are able to safely move around and exercise, a physical therapist will prescribe easy stretches, walking, swimming, or cycling to help with the mobilization process. These kinds of physical therapy are great for helping restore movement to soft tissues, allowing them to move more easily and comfortably. They are also good for keeping arthritic joints mobile and lubricated.
Strengthening exercises can restore and rehabilitate damaged muscles so that they will stop causing you pain. Physical therapy also involves certain exercises to help improve your posture, balance and gait.
It’s Up To You To Remain Pain-Free
Your physical therapist will teach you what to do, but all the work isn’t on them! In order for therapy to be successful for you, you have to put in the effort. Our physical therapists here will take the time to educate you about your pain, and the importance of continuing your stretches and exercises at home for long term relief, but ultimately you make the choice to engage fully in your journey towards getting rid of pain!
Contact Our Office Today!
It should be clear now that opioids and over-the-counter drugs are not your only pain management option. There are a multitude of treatment options available to you through physical therapy. Our therapists are here, waiting on your call! Contact Hand In Hand Rehab today to learn more about your natural alternatives, and get back to living a drug-free, pain-free lifestyle.
