Back Pain and How Empower Physical Therapist + Wellness Can Alleviate It
Back pain is a physical discomfort around the spine area that can cause pain ranging from mild to disabling. Most back pain isn’t caused by underlying diseases, but rather overuse, prolonged sitting or lying down, poor posture, or sleep positions.
Many people who deal with back pain may turn to physical therapy to aid with pain relief. The goal of physical therapy is to reduce pain, restore mobility, and educate patients. Physical therapy is broken down into two components. The first is passive physical therapy and the second is active exercise.
Passive physical therapy is when the patient is the individual that is receiving the treatment rather than them doing the action themselves. The four types of passive physical therapy include heat/ice packs, TENS units, iontophoresis, and ultrasounds.
Using ice packs, followed by heat packs, first lowers the body temperature to reduce swelling and inflammation and then increases blood flow in the injured area. By increasing blood flow and circulation, the body can deliver the needed nutrients and oxygen to joints and muscles that will help the body to repair and heal.
TENS unit stands for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, which is a method of pain relief that involves the use of mild electrical currents. It uses sticky pads called electrodes to send electrical pulses to release endorphins to stop pain signals from being sent to the brain.
Similar to TENS unit, iontophoresis is a form of transdermal drug delivery (TDD) that also uses electrical currents to drive ionized drugs through the skin. The treatment uses the charges of the skin and the currents to push opposite charges of medications into the skin. It can reduce inflammation and is used by many patients with tendonitis and rheumatoid arthritis.
Ultrasound treatment uses sound waves that create vibrations through a hand-held machine. A physical therapist will rub the machine against the skin to deliver heat to the muscles to alleviate pain. In addition to passive physical therapy, active exercise is also a crucial part of recovery.
Physical therapists can also show different body exercises and stretches to alleviate back pain. For example, hamstring stretches to decrease back pain. Although some various stretches and exercises are supposed to help with pain, physical therapy is more specific to an individual. Physical therapists understand that one stretch may work for one patient, but not for another.
Doctors recommend going to physical therapy for three reasons. The first reason is distractions. Having a physical therapy appointment ensures that patients are focused on exercising for their appointment duration and are not easily distracted. The second reason is the mechanics of exercise. A therapist is there to help watch and make modifications if necessary. The final reason is educating patients on different exercises and working them into their lifestyle and home regimen.
By avoiding physical therapy and treatment, back pain can potentially become something more serious such as a spinal cord injury, a degenerated disc, or even a neurological condition if left untreated. It’s important to make health a priority.
If you’re wanting to make your health a priority, contact us today and we’ll make sure to get you back on the right track and help you alleviate your back pain. Call us today to get started: (703) 669-6100.