You’ve probably seen the headlines about opioid painkillers and the crisis that is gripping the nation. The truth is that opioids do not actually treat the cause of your pain. Instead, when you take painkillers, you are actually masking the pain for a short period of time. Opioid painkillers are also highly addictive, and people can become dependent on these medications. Due to the dramatic increase in addiction to opioids, you want to talk to your car accident doctor about all the options available to you for pain management and pain relief for an injury. One option for your treatment and healing process is physical therapy to reduce the need for opioid painkillers. Physical therapy can help provide pain management and pain relief with its non-invasive and drug-free approach to your healing and recovery process.
How Physical Therapy Can Provide Pain Management
Many doctors are looking to treatments other than painkillers to help provide pain management for injuries. When you visit a car accident doctor for an injury, they can provide you with an accurate diagnosis and thorough treatment plan that includes a wide variety of pain management and pain relief techniques. Physical therapy is an important aspect of many treatment plans after a traumatic event like a car accident. Many car accident injuries can affect your mobility and healthy functioning. A physical therapist can help you recover from a car accident injury so that you can get back to your daily routine and the activities that you enjoy.
Physical Therapy as an Alternative to Painkillers
Physical therapy can reduce the need for painkillers after you have been in a car accident. Your car accident doctor can talk to you about the benefits of physical therapy for your specific injury. Here are some of the benefits for people with car accident injuries who are looking for an alternative to painkillers.
Manual Therapy
Physical therapists utilize manual therapy that is non-invasive and drug-free. Manual therapy may include joint mobilization, therapeutic massage, and soft tissue mobilization. Hands-on physical therapy can help you experience pain relief without the use of machines or devices.
Cold and Hot Compresses
Your physical therapist may also alternate cold and hot compresses to help with symptoms of your car accident injury. Applying a cold compress to the affected area can offer a temporary numbing effect while also reducing swelling and inflammation. Applying a hot compress helps to soothe aching muscles and reduce stiffness.
Ultrasound
Ultrasound isn’t simply a tool used on expectant mothers. In fact, ultrasound can help provide pain relief with its warming effects. Ultrasound in physical therapy uses heat and friction to stimulate the healing of soft tissues in the body.
Dry Needling
Your physical therapy treatment plan may also include a technique called dry needling. This type of treatment offers pain relief by releasing trigger points. Dry needling can help with symptoms like inflammation and can also promote healing in damaged areas.
Stretching
Physical therapy will typically involve teaching you stretches that will help you work through your pain, stiffness, and soreness after a car accident. Depending on your specific injury, stretches can help to loosen your muscles and promote healthy blood flow and flexibility in the area.
Exercises
Your physical therapist will also walk you through exercises that can help you regain your strength and mobility after the accident. Exercises may involve some lite cardio to help get your blood pumping and sending oxygen and nutrients to the affected area. Strengthening the muscles and soft tissues around the injured area will also provide more support and stability.
The combination of physical therapy techniques can provide lasting pain relief for a wide variety of car accident injuries. Whether you are struggling with neck pain from a whiplash injury or recovering after a broken bone, your car accident doctor is here to help. Physical therapy offers you options for pain management that do not involve opioid painkillers, so you don’t have to worry about the risk of addiction and dependence. Instead, the benefits of physical therapy can help you experience lasting pain relief after a car accident and also help prevent complications like chronic pain in the aftermath.
Visit your car accident doctor in Conyers to learn more about how you may benefit from physical therapy for pain management and relief. At AICA Orthopedics, our car accident doctors and physical therapists all work together in one convenient location so you can get the quality care you need for your injury and recovery.