How Physical Therapy Can Help Your Chronic Back Pain

Chronic back pain can have a significant negative effect on your daily life. It may prevent you from engaging in activities you enjoy, cause problems at work, and even affect other parts of your body from overcompensation.

If you are experiencing frequent back pain that is preventing you from completing daily tasks or affecting your quality of life, physical therapy can help alleviate your pain. Physical therapists are movement experts, and with their guidance, you can reduce your persistent pain and prevent future injuries.

It increases your flexibility.

Chronic pain can significantly affect your flexibility and limit your mobility, which can cause you to become more sedentary and avoid physical activity. Over time, a lack of movement will only exacerbate your pain and stiffness and contribute to a lack of muscle strength. Physical therapy effectively helps boost your mobility through exercises that work on increasing your flexibility and strengthening your back muscles.

It improves your posture.

Poor posture is a major contributor to chronic back pain. A physical therapist will analyze your posture patterns to address the root cause of your pain and help you use targeted exercises to relieve tension in your muscles and joints and improve your flexibility, which will help you maintain proper posture.

It may prevent the need for medication or surgery.

Physical therapy can be an effective alternative to medication, which can sometimes have undesirable side effects or become less effective over time. Physical therapists can adjust your exercise regimen to address your symptoms or evolving needs rather than simply increasing a medication dose to relieve pain. Using physical therapy to heal naturally may also prevent or delay your need for surgery, which can be life-disrupting or even cause further issues.

It's customized to your unique needs.

One of the biggest benefits of physical therapy is the fact that it is customized specifically for you. Your physical therapist creates your treatment plan to meet your needs, taking into consideration your unique symptoms, age, medical history, and other lifestyle factors. This way, your treatment can be adjusted based on your progress, resulting in a more successful recovery.

It prevents further injuries.

In addition to alleviating the pain you are currently experiencing, physical therapy prevents you from sustaining further injuries down the road. By boosting your flexibility, increasing your strength, and improving your balance and posture, you will reduce your chance of pulling a muscle and causing yourself more pain, especially if you play a sport or engage in physical activity often.

It improves nerve-related issues.

Many types of lower back pain, such as sciatica, are caused by compression on your nerves. Physical therapy stretching exercises will help relieve nerve irritation and compression by maintaining your disc alignment and improving your spine joint function.

Physical Therapy at Christian Health Outpatient Rehabilitation

If you think outpatient physical therapy services may be right for you, we would love to help you achieve your goals. Our highly skilled interdisciplinary team of professionals uses innovative approaches and state-of-the-art equipment to guide your recovery and heal your chronic pain. For more information about outpatient physical therapy at Christian Health, please call (201) 848-5518 or visit ChristianHealthNJ.org/Communities-Services/Rehabilitation/.