Exercise Combats Sitka Chronic Pain and Related Distress
Do you experience chronic pain? You’re not alone! Chronic pain can influence the mind and the body. Over 80% of retired NFL football players experience pain daily. A recent questionnaire study of them revealed that the greater the pain acceptance, the lower the pain intensity they had. (1) Accepting pain is hard though! Fortunately, so many studies show that some optimism and physical activity improves pain and optimism. For these and more reasons, Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka incorporates exercise into our chronic back pain patients’ Sitka 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 end 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 decreased significantly more. In both groups, lowered pain scores connected to higher self-efficacy scores (feelings of independence). Chronic low back pain exercisers’ improved disability reflected a beneficial effect 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 reduction in pain intensity. They summarized that helping chronic pain patients tweak their sense of self-efficacy could be an effective addition to the treatment of chronic pain patients beyond just pain relief. (3)
OPTIMISM FOR A BETTER, LESS PAINFUL DAY
And an optimistic attitude toward pain can be a positive! Fear-avoidance is a not-too-unusual a problem for patients with pain. They do not want to do anything to worsen their pain and cause pain which leads to less movement and less optimism for a life without pain. Research showed that patients with longer episodes of pain who expressed greater self-efficacy and patients with higher pain disability and depression had lower self-efficacy. (4) Understanding this, we support our Sitka pain patients to be physical and keep living life! ’Better’ is coming!
EXERCISE: Time to Move!
And we all know it: physical inactivity and sedentary lifestyle are bad for us. Researchers go so far as to write that they are associated with chronic musculoskeletal pain and can even aggravate it! What’s the solution? Physical exercise, of course. Researchers explained in a recent study that exercise programs that combine a variety of forms of exercise – flexibility, balance, aerobic, strengthening – tend to be better. Such arrangements are also more adaptable to an individual patient’s issues. Light-to-moderate intensity exercise done two to three times a week for a month were demonstrated 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) Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka formulates a strategy specially for each Sitka chiropractic patient.
CONTACT Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Kelly Brinkman on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as she shares the effective gentle protocols of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management in treating chronic back pain.
Make your Sitka chiropractic appointment today. Whether you are a retired NFL player or NFL fan or neither of these, bring your chronic pain and worried mind to Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka. We’ll work together to decrease pain and fear of pain and increase your sense of independence and joy of life with chiropractic and exercise!
