One of our most widely used form of pain relief at Lakeside Chiropractor is thermotherapy, it consists of using heat or cold (cryotherapy) to assist in relieving any pain from an injury to your soft tissue or musculoskeletal system. They impact the target area’s inflammation, swelling, blood flow and healing. It is easily accessible whether it is a homemade or store bought hot or cold pack. If that doesn't do the trick, try consulting our therapist or chiropractor for assistance. As mentioned before there are only two types of thermotherapies- heat and cold, each has its purpose. There is confusion regarding how or when to use them. So, we will give our break down of which suits your circumstances better.
Cold or cyrotherapy is used more on acute inflammation such as a very recent ankle sprain. It aids to limit inflammation, this is achieved by constriction of vessels causing less blood flow to specific muscle regions, such as neck. This can also help reduce any swelling or inflammation in the targeted muscle area. Cold also helps to reduce neuronal excitability which in turn reduces the pain receptors of the target area.
As for heat therapy, it works the complete opposite way of cold therapy. It also assist in muscle recovery but instead of constricting the blood vessel, heat therapy dilate (widen) the blood vessel to promote blood circulation to improve healing and loosening the muscle. Heat is used much more on chronic complaints or injuries.
Physical activity is essential for disrupting pain and increasing mobility that is associated with chronic conditions like arthritis and fibromyalgia. Gentle aerobics like walking, swimming, or cycling may help in reducing chronic pain and improve quality of life. In a review of non-pharmacologic treatments for chronic pain, researchers determined that exercise is in fact moderately effective. First of all, what is therapeutic exercise?
At Lakeside Chiropractic we utilise therapeutic exercise as a form of physical therapy which incorporates stretching, mobility and strengthening exercises tailored specifically to suit the needs of a patient on their recovery from injury. This exercise focuses on both strengthening and stretching movements. This will assist in strengthening the muscles around your injury as well as the affected area itself, and work on stretching the muscles to avoid re-injury.
There are many benefits for performing therapeutic exercise;
Exercise therapy combined with chiropractic achieves better results than a traditional exercise program.
It is not widely known but studies have shown that music can help relieve pain during and after surgery and childbirth. Classical music has proven to work especially well, but there's no harm in trying your favourite genre. By listening to any kind of music, it can distract you from pain or discomfort. Not only distracting you from pain but it also helps with improvement of mental health and overall wellbeing. Research have shown that it can reduce anxiety or stress, regulate moods and energy level and manage one’s anger and frustration. So, whether you are listening to Mozart or ACDC you will be sure to know that it is helping.In relation to body movement, coordination and physical function, it can help:-Improvement of gross motor skills and function control-Improve your fine motor skills and function-Increase with balance coordination-Helps regulate heart rate, breathing rate and blood pressure-Improves sleep as well!
Not just an indulgence, massage can ease pain by working tension out of muscles and joints, relieving stress and anxiety, and possibly helping to distract you from pain by introducing a "competing" sensation that overrides pain signals. There are so many types of massage out there but trigger point massage is easy to perform and it’s very effective on pain management and relief. Sometimes when there is an area of muscle tightness in muscle tissue, it can cause pain in other parts of the body. By relieving the trigger points, it can reduce the pain, muscle soreness and tension.
Some benefits also include:
Our chiropractors employ a range of soft tissue mobilisation or massage to help loosen the soft tissue before the adjustments as it assists in reducing muscular tension. If you need a longer session releasing the soft tissue, we have massage therapist that can help with that.
At Lakeside Chiropractic our chiropractors are well trained at identifying, diagnosing and treating musculoskeletal dysfunction which it may be causing you pain and discomfort. Our massage therapist is also specialised in remedial massage. If you would like to see one of our chiropractors or massage therapist, don’t hesitate to give us a call on (08) 9300 0095 or head to our website for more information and booking at www.lakesidechiro.com.au
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