Medical reports show that up to 100 million Americans live with chronic or persistent pain. That’s nearly one in three people. This can spring from injury, infection or disease, and lasts for months on end. But even if you’re dealing with short-term acute pain, symptoms can make daily life difficult or impossible. At Olympia Orthopaedic Associates, they operate a Pain Management Center that helps patients overcome their issues, often non-surgically. Their pain management team is skilled at finding the root cause and easing your symptoms without exacerbating the original cause.
OlyOrtho Pain Management Specialists Treat Short-Term and Chronic Pain Issues
Physical pain is your body’s check engine light. It indicates when something’s going on under the hood and definitely shouldn’t be ignored or powered through. Unfortunately, many of us pull the old turn-up-the-radio-to-drown-out-the-clunking trick of popping over-the-counter painkillers. But ignoring issues won’t make them go away and can even cause the problem to become much worse in the long run.
For example, if you hurt your back doing household chores, for example, it may seem like remaining very still – and thus pain-free – is the way to go. But National Institutes of Health doctors explain that “not moving enough can weaken your core muscles, make the back pain worse and also lead to other health problems. Because of this, practically all medical associations worldwide recommend that people who have long-lasting or recurring back pain should exercise regularly and get as much movement as possible in daily life.”
Dr. Douglas Hunter is an interventional pain management doctor with OlyOrtho. He explains that “pain by definition is ‘an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling, actual or potential tissue damage,’ meaning that our emotional response has a huge impact on mental health and quality of life.”
You Don’t Have to Live With – Or In – Pain, OlyOrtho Can Help
Hunter recommends reaching out to the OlyOrtho Pain Management Center “when you are no longer able to function in daily life, are losing interest in things that you used to enjoy and are noticing that you are depressed or withdrawing from life in general.”
In his experience, losing function and mobility are key considerations. “Anybody who is no longer able to do things they need to do or want to do could potentially be helped by us,” he encourages.
At the Center they focus on treating the underlying cause, not just turning off the check engine light of physical pain. Hunter says this typically involves tackling the musculoskeletal or nerve issue at the root, “which can be very amenable to minimally invasive procedures and therapies we provide.”
Get Back on Your Feet Today Thanks to OlyOrtho’s Pain Management Center
When a new patient visits the Center, Hunter explains that their team goes over a full pain history, ongoing symptoms and current imaging before discussing likely diagnoses. If advance imaging or diagnostic procedures are needed, those will be thoroughly discussed as well.
The most common diagnoses they address are for lower back pain, radiculopathy or sciatica, neck pain, peripheral neuropathy and radiculopathy. “But,” he explains, “in all honesty, any part of the body is something we can evaluate.”
The Center’s team often begins with nonsurgical options for the spine, back and legs or hips and knees. These include things like physical therapy, ablations, injections and non-opiate medications. But if surgery is needed, they can offer the latest cutting-edge technologies like spinal cord stimulators, the Intracept procedure or peripheral nerve stimulators.
Hunter says there’s tremendous benefit in using local providers within a clinic which is close to home. “We know our patients better than anyone else and are easily accessible for any ongoing issues or new problems,” he explains. “It is always better to know the person who is treating you personally.”
In the meantime, he suggests setting regular reminders on your phone to stand, move and stretch. Doing so throughout the day releases tension and helps with maintaining good posture. But if your pain, stiffness, aching and tenderness persist, consider a visit to the Clinic. An accurate diagnosis and customized treatment plan help you experience pain relief in a very short period of time.
You can reach the Pain Management Clinic by calling 360.754.3460 or book an appointment online. Turn off that check engine light today and let your body work to its highest potential, this summer and all year long.
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