Surgery Or Physiotherapy: What Helps With Pain

If you want to stay fit and exercise regularly, you are also subject to a certain risk of pain.

Tensions, injuries such as strains or sprains, that's all part of it. But sometimes the pain persists. Then what works best?

Physical Therapy Is Better Than It's Reputation

This form of treatment sometimes has the reputation of being a kind of gymnastics for old people, but that misses the point. Physiotherapy is a specialized type of therapy that focuses on the musculoskeletal system and can help to eliminate the cause of pain. Not only massages and mobilizing measures are used, but also targeted training to build up the necessary muscles.

In a practice you will find various training devices - but they are used differently and much more specifically than in the fitness center. Nothing is done here for the bathing figure, because mostly fascia and deep-lying muscles are zones that are functionally very important, but make little impression on the beach. Specially adjustable underlays are often used for massages and manual therapy. 

Building Muscle Helps In The Long Run 

Many orthopaedists are now of the opinion that muscle building is particularly helpful for back pain. The deep muscles in particular can help to stabilize the skeleton and make painful movements smoother. Joints are less stressed where the supporting muscles are developed.

Even with osteoarthritis or disc problems, this can help to relieve painful areas. Unfortunately, the prescription of physical therapy and exercise programs is being replaced by drugs by physicians looking to save on their budgets. Although these help in the short term and can also be a prerequisite for getting moving again, they do not solve the root problem with pain.

Don't Train "Through The Pain".

Most of the time, pain is a useful signal from our body that something is wrong. They protect minor injuries from causing more serious problems, advise us to rest inflamed joints and give overworked muscles a break.

Some trainers recommend ignoring this signal and still calling up the normal workload. One can only advise against that. Light exercise, warming up, and stretching can help, but attempting painful movements should only be attempted under professional supervision, such as with a physical therapist.

Surgeries Are Often Unnecessary – And Not A “Permanent ” Solution Either

Many patients want a quick, reliable solution that ideally requires little work. Training is complex and, for example, back  to reduce pain is not a glorious occupation. So promises from surgeons to fix the problem with a simple operation quickly sound tempting.

Today, this view of treating every difficulty surgically is not so common among orthopedists, but patients should still be informed about different options. The use of screws or artificial joints is also not an indefinitely durable solution: After about 10 to 15 years, these high-tech modifications are worn out and have to be replaced.

With advancing age, these procedures become increasingly risky and recovery more time-consuming. So if you can avoid surgery by regularly exercising your muscles, you should seriously consider this option and at least try it to see if it can improve things.