What’s happening to me?
Ok here's the deal. After a session at the gym you walk home and all of a sudden you feel something give, pain shoots through your body and movement suddenly becomes difficult. For some it might be a round of golf or maybe just an afternoon gardening. Either way, you being to question your pain and ongoing lifestyle… continuing with sports, playing with the kids even just enjoying everyday life. This is a common scenario and common thought process when your muscles go into spasm and your joints hurt.
What now?
The most logical next step people take is a visit to the general practitioner. By the time you get into your consultation you're convinced that your life is on a fast-track downward spiral. Then you hear the ominous words "Ahhh, you're in your thirties, you're getting on a bit, it's around this time that your body starts breaking down”.You are sent off for scans, perhaps a Cortisone injection, a course of anti-inflammatories, Xrays, CT scans or maybe an MRI. Days off work are complimented with a course of pain killers, anti-inflammatory drugs or even muscle relaxants. You can't sleep because of the pain and your discomfort makes simple tasks such as getting to the bathroom difficult.
Feeling helpless is common
It's around this time that you start feeling a little despondent even depressed. Feelings of helplessness is common and many compensate with unhealthy eating habits of potato chips, lollies, fizzy soft drinks or caffeine. These may make you feel a little bit better but we know they are not helping your condition. Sugar and junk food toxins makes muscles tighter, more constricted and unable to get the proper blood flow and nutrients needed to function. Combined with lack of movement and it's a wonder you can muster the strength to go to the toilet.
The diagnosis merry-go-round
Your follow up results can be confusing,vague and unresolved. Is it a disease, condition or a syndrome? You feel bamboozled with names like degenerative disk disease, prolapsed or sequestered disk, ligament dysfunction, facet syndrome, facet joint disease, spurring, arthritis, spinal stenosis, nerve impingement syndrome. sciatica or piriformis syndrome. The list goes on… and the medical merry-go-round starts.
For some the next step is physiotherapy, an ultrasound or electronic therapy. Stretching exercises are prescribed and pilates is advised as the only path to recovery. After six weeks of physiotherapy some of the pain and discomfort has subsided and your core feels a little stronger. However, something is still not right. You still feel tender and afraid to do something that might aggravate your injury. You go back to the doctor, back to the gym and back to square one with pain and discomfort.
A feeling of helplessness leads many to seek help from a chiropractor (that comes highly recommended by your friend) or an osteopath, an acupuncturist … and …. on it goes. Months later and hundreds of dollars out of pocket and not much has changed.
Stop right there, help is here!
Understanding the cause of pain
A high percentage of people’s pain stems from tight unbalanced (contracted or lengthened) muscles, connective tissue or restricted immobile feet and joints. These condition if left untreated lead to a rotated, hiked or shifted pelvis. This muscle- connective tissue imbalance, joint and pelvic dysfunction can be the cause ofany number of postural pain dysfunctions and syndromes.
When tight muscles and pelvic dysfunctions are left untreated these imbalances can and do lead to 'degenerative joint conditions’. Tight unbalanced muscles unevenly exert pressure on the body's joints, ligaments, tendons and discs. These same tight muscles force neighboring vertebrae together. This forced compaction is enough to cause pinched nerve roots that exit the spinal canal, causing pain and numbness in the extremities. This can also cause the vertebrae and pelvis to ‘twist' out of alignment. When the spinal vertebrae are pulled closely together, discs between the vertebrae may get ‘squeezed’ and eventually break down (bulge or rupture) from long-term compressive pressures.
Untreated muscle tightness and dysfunction can also alter the movement of other joints in the body including hips, knees and ankles. This leads to further injuries and bodily compensations that will eventually cause joints to break down.
Correcting balance for pain relief
Correcting the balance of your body’s muscle and ligaments leads to better movement and no pain. To make it simple to understand:
(a) The muscles, ligaments and joints on the right side of your body are the same as the muscles on the left side of your body. They have to be the same tension and length. If not, imbalance problems arise.
(b) The muscles, ligaments and joints on the back of your body, although different to the those on the front, still have to work together. They need to have equal strength, position and tension. If some are stronger than others - imbalance problems occur. This imbalance not only affects your back it will affect other joints in your body.
Correcting this imbalance works for back pain as well as pain elsewhere in the body. By using the principles of getting your body balanced and moving correctly, pain dissipates. Thousands of people have been treated by Wayne and those people remain pain free.
Eliminate pain
Take a step towards being pain free.
Make a booking with Wayne at Fusion Physical Therapy.