Arthritis pain is one of the most frustrating types of pain. It can be an intense chronic pain that can interfere with just about everything, from reducing your grip strength to making it difficult to shift between sitting and standing.
Many different types of medications are recommended to help ease the discomfort of arthritis pain, but the use of long-term pain medication comes with its own set of complications and health risks.
You don’t need to rely on pain medication to experience relief from arthritis pain. Alternative strategies, including physical therapy, can help alleviate the pain of arthritis by reducing inflammation and increasing range of motion, thereby supporting enhanced mobility and helping to significantly cut down on the amount of discomfort regularly experienced by arthritis.
What’s so dangerous about opioids?
Because this is not something that will naturally heal on its own, there is a growing danger of developing a dependency on opioid-based pain medication. Even worse, the relief offered by pain medications doesn’t work to relieve the inflammation or address the problem that is causing the arthritis pain, so as soon as the medication wears off or you opt to stop taking the medication you are likely to begin experiencing all of the pain and discomfort once again.
Opioids cause addiction in thousands of people every year and are one of the leading causes of death by overdose. In some cases, the use of opioids is unavoidable, however, physical therapy can drastically decrease a person’s reliance on them!
Why does physical therapy work?
Physical therapy is an incredibly helpful tool that can help to significantly reduce the pain caused by arthritis. Working with an experienced physical therapist can help to make a huge difference in your experience of pain, helping to improve your quality of life by reducing the chronic discomfort that so many people feel as a result of arthritis.
There are four big reasons why physical therapy can help to alleviate arthritis pain:
Experienced physical therapists can identify the source of joint pain and develop strategies to address the pain at its core.
There are some situations in which arthritis pain develops as a result of an injury, or in some cases may even be triggered by several environmental factors. Working with an experienced physical therapist can help to find the source of your pain.
Physical therapy uses specialized treatments that are designed to reduce arthritis pain.
Arthritis pain is frequently the result of inflammation, often due to overuse of a particular joint. There are some times that environmental factors can worsen arthritis pain, but in many cases, the pain will develop and worsen as a result of the way the joint is used.
Besides identifying the cause of the pain and working to reduce any actions that may be exacerbating the discomfort, your physical therapist can identify specialized treatments that may work to counteract some of that pressure. By doing this, therapy reduces inflammation within the body.
Attending physical therapy regularly can help to improve muscle mass and strength, thereby reducing pain from arthritis by supporting joints more effectively.
Strengthening your muscles could help to improve joint functionality by putting less stress on the joint itself, which in some situations will in turn help to decrease the level of pain associated with joint movement. If muscles have atrophied as a result of injury or lack of use, this could put added pressure on joints.
You need to be aware, however, that simply trying to work out to improve muscle mass surrounding an area inflicted with joint or arthritis pain is not recommended. A physical therapist can help direct you to engage in exercises that will improve muscle mass without increasing your risk of greater injury.
Physical therapy can reduce arthritis pain by increasing your range of motion.
Many forms of arthritis develop surrounding joints, and this can make it impossible to engage in a full range of motion. This may mean having difficulty or experiencing pain as you attempt to sit, especially if you are experiencing arthritis at the knees or hips
It could also mean struggling when you attempt to write or pick up a heavy item, as would be the case if you develop arthritis in the hands, wrists, or shoulders. Working with a physical therapist can help you to target the areas of pain and improve the range of motion, helping the joint to function optimally and helping you to experience less pain as a result.
Call our office today for more information
For too many people, a diagnosis of arthritis pain comes with an acceptance of that pain being indefinite, but that doesn’t have to be the case.
Long-term use of opioid-based pain medications can lead to a whole additional set of concerns. To start experiencing relief from arthritis pain, say goodbye to pain meds and contact Peak Performance Physical Therapy.
Sources:
- What is Arthritis & What Causes it? | NIAMSwww.niams.nih.gov › Health Topics
- Opioid Overdose Crisis | National Institute on Drug Abuse …www.drugabuse.gov › drug-topics › opioids › opioid-ove…
Iris Zink
Claudia Rivera-Salas
My name is Iris Zink and I have been a rheumatology nurse practitioner since 2000. I have served as the president of the rheumatology nurses’ Society. I have also served on the Board of Directors of rheumatology for advanced practice providers (RhAPP). I am 1 of 17 certified rheumatology nurse practitioners in the entire United States. I have lectured nationally and internationally more than 100 times on topics including Psoriatic Arthritis, Laughter is the Best Medicine, Intimacy and Chronic Disease, Sjogren’s, Women and Autoimmune disease, and Fibromyalgia. I am currently on staff at Grand Valley State University as a preceptor and as a guest lecturer. I am the co-author of the book Sex Interrupted: Igniting intimacy while living with illness or disability. I have also co-authored multiple chapters for the Core curriculum for the rheumatology nurses’ Society. In 2016 my husband Christopher Title and I opened Michigan’s first early arthritis intervention clinic run solely by nurse practitioners. We have expanded from an initial staff of 3 individuals to a staff of more than 14 individuals 9 of which are registered nurses or in school to be registered nurses. We believe in a holistic approach to managing arthritis and autoimmune disease. We believe in this patient-centered care and try to combine pharmaceutical, holistic, physical therapy, osteopathic manipulative medicine, acupuncture, and nutraceutical options into the patient’s plan of care.
Dr. Claudia Rivera-Salas, DNP is a bilingual nurse practitioner who specializes in rheumatology. Claudia has also been a nurse at Spectrum hospitals, done research at Grand Valley State University, and been a health educator in Detroit.
Lansing Rheumatology is currently accepting new patients.
Sarah Waterbrook, PTA
Dewitt Clinic
Sarah grew up in Okemos, MI, and first got interested in the medical field when working summers in her dad’s medical office. Sarah liked to see how people would progress in their care as they would first come in with pain and then see them go through surgery if that was what was needed and see them get back to doing the things they enjoyed before they started having pain. Sarah decided she wanted to help people too and found that the field of Physical Therapy suited her well. When choosing schools, she decided to go where the weather was warmer because she was tired of Michigan winters and shoveling! Sarah went to PTA school at Chattanooga Technical Community College in Chattanooga, TN, and she graduated in 2007. Sarah has had 15 years of experience working in different fields and states. She has worked in Florida, Ohio, California, and Michigan in various areas working in nursing homes, inpatient rehab, acute care, and outpatient settings.
Sarah came back to Michigan to be closer to her family and, in the process, reconnected with Aaron, a guy she knew from church and from working at summer camp in their early 20s. Their friendship blossomed, and now Sarah and her Fiancé Aaron are very excited to be getting married this September. They are looking forward to spending their life together doing things they enjoy, like going out on Aaron’s sailboat, hiking, camping, backpacking, and traveling.
Maegan grew up locally and graduated from Grand Ledge High School. She attended Michigan State University and earned a Bachelor of Science in Zoology. Following graduation, Maegan worked as a wildlife biologist for several years, where she participated in conservation efforts focused on amphibian and reptile populations throughout Michigan. Turtles are her favorite animal, and she currently keeps several of her own, including babies that she hatched and raised herself. Maegan developed a passion for physical therapy when she found herself as a patient after a sudden and life-changing medical episode in 2021. Her goal is to develop a new career in the medical field. Maegan enjoys spending much of her free time outdoors by taking her two dogs, Lilly and Finch, for walks, kayaking, and hunting for morel mushrooms during the spring.
Maegan Stapleton, PCC
Dewitt Clinic
As the days get longer and we’re spending more time enjoying activities outside, we become more aware of the pain that our body experiences. I remember personally seeing a patient, a plumber by trade, in our clinic. He was unable to work due to severe arthritis in his hands. With his range of motion severely limited, we needed to help restore the full function of his hands. The first step in treating arthritis is determining which type of arthritis we are treating. Osteoarthritis is the most common because it is caused by wear and tear of the joints, while rheumatoid arthritis is when the immune system attacks the tissue in the joints. No matter what type of arthritis you are dealing with, Peak Performance Physical Therapy wants to be there for you and help get you back to doing everyday activities with our patient-specific care. Let us help you reach your peak!
Thank you, Susan!
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