8 Non-Invasive Treatment Options for Chronic Pain

Pain is the body's way of alerting us to its needs. It is what tells you to rest when you've injured your foot or broken your arm. Sometimes, however, pain can be debilitating and intense enough to sideline you from your daily activities.

If you suffer from unrelenting pain, consult with the Colonia chronic pain specialists for advice on the available treatment plans. 

What is Chronic Pain?

When pain persists for more than 6 months, it is considered chronic pain. It can manifest as lower back pain, neck pain, neuropathic pain, or nerve pain.

Treatment Options for Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is treated through medications, physical therapy, or surgery. When compared to other techniques, surgery has more risks, which is why non-invasive treatment options are popular among patients.

The most effective non-invasive treatment options include:

1. Massage

Apart from being an efficient way to reduce muscle fatigue and soreness, massage can be a treatment for pain. 

Massage reduces stress hormone levels in the body while increasing the production of depression-fighting chemicals like serotonin and dopamine. This relaxes your body and reduces any physical distress.

Additionally, getting frequent massages improves blood flow to your ligaments, muscles, and bones.

Massage treats muscle pain and spasms, sports injuries, swollen limbs, and whiplash.

2. Physical Exercise

When you experience extreme pain, you might want to become inactive. However, doing this is counterproductive as it weakens your muscles and makes the pain worse. Doctors recommend a combination of aerobics, stretching exercises, and core-strengthening exercises.  This combination works to reduce strain on your spine, increase your range of motion, and increase blood flow through your tissue.

Physical exercise helps with fibromyalgia, arthritis, pain, and lower back pain.

3. Physical Therapy

Physically therapy is a gentle and guided recovery approach offered to patients after serious events like trauma, stroke, or surgery. It employs techniques such as ultrasound healing, use of braces, electrical stimulation, and joint and soft tissue work.

Physical therapy aims to treat swollen limbs caused by cancer, pelvic pain, urinary incontinence, and fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is widespread fatigue and muscle pain.

4. Chiropractic Treatment

A chiropractor uses rapid, controlled force to adjust your spine and other joints. aiThis usually results in tension relief and increased range of motion. Have your chiropractor work with your doctor so he/she can have your medical history.

Chiropractic care treats chronic lower back pain, muscle pain, neck and shoulder pain, and headaches.

5. Hot and Cold Treatment

Heat and cold treatment is a simple treatment technique you can try at home. Heat relaxes your muscles, and cold minimizes swelling. This treatment alleviates herniated disc pain and pain caused by arthritis.

6. Diet Change

Inflammation is a known cause of chronic back pain. If you are dealing with chronic pain, you should adopt an anti-inflammatory diet.

Avoid eating fast foods and processed foods. Try to incorporate fruits, fatty fish, green vegetables, nuts, and seeds into your diet.

7. Electrical Nerve Stimulation

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) applies electrical currents through skin patches to the painful area. You may feel a soothing sensation or slight muscle twitch. Electrical nerve stimulation helps treat neuropathic pain, complex regional pain syndrome, and fibromyalgia

8. Weight Management

Extra weight causes significant strain to your muscles and spine. Maintaining a healthy weight can reduce and potentially chronic pain. 

In Conclusion

The main aim of treatment is to reduce pain, keep you active, and slow the loss of function. Your chances of success lay with how best you work with your health care provider.

Your doctor is likely to start you off with non-invasive techniques, then move to minimally-invasive options in case your pain persists. You may also need to apply a combination of two or more of these methods.