Do you experience chronic pain? You aren’t alone! Chronic pain can impact
the mind and the body. Over 80% of retired NFL football players reported having
pain daily. A recent questionnaire study of them found that
the greater the pain acceptance, the lower the pain intensity they had.
(1) Accepting pain is a challenge though! Luckily,
so many studies show that a little
optimism and physical activity improves pain and optimism. For these and more
reasons, Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries incorporates exercise into our chronic back pain
patients’ Manchester chiropractic treatment plans!
EXERCISE: GOOD FOR BODY AND MIND
Exercise benefits extend beyond the physical body
improvements. Exercise also improves the mind and outlook of a
person in pain, especially one dealing with
chronic low back pain. At the conclusion of a 3-month study of
chronic low back pain patients who either exercised or didn’t,
researchers found that pain disability scores in the exercisers
fell significantly more. In both groups, reduced
pain scores connected to higher self-efficacy scores
(feelings of independence). Chronic low back pain exercisers’ increased
disability showed a beneficial impact
on increased self-efficacy and pain relief. (2) Another study of 72 patients
before treatment for their chronic pain and after 3 months of treatment found
that improved self-efficacy was linked to lowered
disability whether they felt any decrease
of pain intensity. They concluded that helping chronic
pain patients tweak their sense of self-efficacy could be a
good way to help chronic pain patients cope with pain in addition to just
relieving their pain. (3)
OPTIMISM FOR A BETTER, LESS PAINFUL DAY
And an optimistic point of view toward
pain can be a positive! Fear-avoidance is a common problem for patients with pain. They do not
want to do anything to worsen their pain
and cause pain which leads them to move less and have less optimism for a life without
pain. Research indicated that patients with longer periods with pain who stated greater self-efficacy and
patients with higher pain disability and depression had lower self-efficacy. (4)
Understanding this, we encourage our
Manchester pain patients to be active and keep
living life! Improvement is just around the corner!
EXERCISE: Time to Move!
And we all know it: physical inactivity and sedentary
lifestyle are bad for us. Researchers even write that they are associated with chronic
musculoskeletal pain and can even heighten it! What
is the solution? Physical exercise, of course.
Researchers explained in a new study that exercise
programs combining several types
of exercise – flexibility, balance, aerobic, strengthening – tend to be more
effective. Such arrangements are also more flexible
to an individual patient’s issues. Light-to-moderate
intensity exercise done two to three times a week for just 4
weeks were found to be of greatest benefit
for chronic pain patients particularly for those with spine pain conditions like chronic
low back pain, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia. (5) Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries
formulates a strategy expressly for
each Manchester chiropractic patient.
CONTACT Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Kelly Brinkman on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as she
shares the effectiveness of the gentle
protocols of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management in treating
chronic back pain.
Schedule your Manchester chiropractic
appointment today. Whether you’re a retired NFL
player or NFL fan or neither of these, bring your chronic pain and worried mind
to Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries. Let’s work together to decrease
pain and fear of pain and improve your sense of
independence and joy of life with chiropractic and exercise!