Acute pain comes on suddenly and can be extremely uncomfortable. Sometimes there seems to be no good reason for it. Sometimes it comes on at the time of an injury, or it could be hours later.
The good news is acute pain is self-limiting and will go away with time (often a day or two), and conservative management.
If you have acute pain we can help by taking a history, providing an examination and an assessment to ensure you get the right treatment and information, such as:
- An understanding of what is happening.
- Gentle, hands-on therapy to reduce pain and tension.
- Take home self-management strategies for resolution.
- Referral for further investigation if needed.
Common types of acute pain may include:
Low back; neck; shoulder; headache; radiating pain like sciatica; inflammation; flare-ups of recurring or persistent issues.
Acute Pain
Recurrent Pain
Recurrent pain is not easily defined. It can be part and parcel of chronic and persisting pain, or it may be a pain that you forget about for a while until it comes back again.
Often we might not realize that there is pattern or frequency because the pain is so intermittent. Sometimes that's all it ever becomes, but when recurrent pain starts coming more frequently and takes longer and longer to resolve, it might be time to take action so it doesn't become persistent.
We can help by taking a history to document patterns, frequency and if the problem is trending worse, not better. We can provide an examination and an assessment to ensure you get the right treatment and information, such as:
- An understanding of what is happening and patterns that might be associated.
- Hands-on therapy to reduce pain and tension during a recurrence.
- Take home self-management strategies to help change the frequency, pattern, and intensity.
Common types of recurrent pain may include:
Back; neck; shoulder; knee, hips; wrists.
Persistent pain, also known as chronic pain, is both a growing problem and healthcare burden in Canada and across the world and the most common reason people seek treatment from a healthcare professional. One in five Canadians experience it. The pain can be debilitating, but it can also be invisible. People with persistent pain are often isolated even in a crowd and may not be believed by friends, family or health professionals.
Current research is showing that pain is influenced by many factors including biological, psychological and social inputs. That means there isn’t just one contributor to pain, and there isn’t just one possible solution for management and change. Multi-modal treatments like combining manual therapy, therapeutic exercise and information within a multidisciplinary program are being shown to be more effective for long-term change and management of pain. Making a plan to coordinate more than one type of treatment is a good way to reach these goals.
Unfortunately, many musculoskeletal practitioners are not up to date with the most recent information. We are abreast of current pain knowledge and can help you by:
- Listening to your story no matter how weird it seems because we know pain can be strange.
- Providing information about pain, based on an understanding of pain physiology.
- Help develop a realistic plan for change and/or management.
- Providing manual therapy for pain relief, wellbeing or helping to meet short-term goals.
- Suggesting coping strategies, such as a flare-up plan or other pain and tension interrupting techniques.
- Being a supportive part of your healthcare team.
Common types of persisting pain may come with conditions like:
Arthritis and other joint conditions; inflammatory autoimmune; migraine; post surgery; back pain; fibromyalgia.
Persistent Pain
