Treating Physical Pain
Physical pain is the suffering or discomfort caused by a variety of reasons, which could be from a recent injury to a long-term condition.
When looking at acute (very recent) to chronic (happening for a long time) pain, there are some differences that help us when treating the pain.
Acute pain is short-term pain that comes on suddenly and usually involves some tissue injury, for example, tennis elbow, or twisted ankle. The sooner you start treatments, the faster the recovery period as you do not let the injury set in.
Chronic pain is long term pain that has lasted years and can range from mild to severe. Sometimes it is a past injury that just has not healed correctly, from long term stress or emotional issues, or it can be from an unknown cause. Regardless of the reason, it causes the patient a lot of discomforts. It is important to start a wellness plan to address the pain, as chronic pain does impact other areas of your life and can cause emotional pain such as depression and anxiety as well.
Kelly will ask a lot of questions about your pain, as it helps her determine the right treatment for you. It is important to treat the local area, but also understand if there are any underlying conditions that need to be addressed. For example, is the pain better with heat or cold, pain improved with pressure, is it sharp, stabbing, moving, etc. All these questions help Kelly determine the underlying condition as well as the exact location that needs to be addressed.
