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So what exactly is pain?

Fusion-Southport offers an impressive range of specialist remedial massage treatments. Lisa has been qualified in massage since 1993 and over the years has treated hundreds of injuries and painful conditions, in addition to lecturing and training holistic, beauty and sports therapists in her techniques. To explore the possibilities of regaining control over painful conditions book online or message to arrange a free consultation (you can visit the clinic or opt for a telephone consultation).

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If you're reading this you're probably experiencing pain, or someone you care about is. Everyone experiences physical pain throughout their lifetime but some of us will have reoccurring acute pain, or develop chronic conditions over time, which significantly affect our physical and mental state.  

Any health practitioner will tell you that pain is an indicator of a healthy body. It's your body's way of trying to limit what you do to allow time for healing to take place. Unfortunately, some painful conditions become a viscous cycle of inflammation, restricted movement, disturbed sleep and lead to further physical and mental problems.

Everything from your genetics and the type of job you do, to the lifestyle you choose affects your body's health and its ability to repair itself.  For example, if there's a history of arthritis in your family, chances are you're going to be more prone to joint pain. If you are sat slumped over a desk for 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, you can bet your hips, lower back and shoulders will suffer. If you're overweight and do little exercise your muscles will be straining to support your joints. If you're experiencing stress your pain threshold drops so pain is more obvious. Add to this any injuries you have sustained through your life (such as falling down the slide when you were a kid or whiplash from a car crash) and you will have scar tissue and possibly misaligned joints which can cause problems later on in life.

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So, what exactly is pain?

The nervous system is responsible for transmitting messages to and from the brain. Nerves are found in all parts of the body and extend to the spinal cord, which in turn extends to the brain. The nervous system could be thought of as a series of electrical circuits.

 

When you experience any sensation (pain, touch, temperature) a 'message' is sent through nerves to the spinal cord which passes the messages to the brain. The brain interprets the message and sends back a response which informs the body how to react to the sensation. This is done in a flash.​ 

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Consider if you burn your finger - your hand is pulled away in a quick reaction without you even having to thinking about it. In addition to reflex responses the brain will send messages to other systems of the body, including the blood, to flood to the area to protect and commence healing. This is why an injury becomes red and inflamed (or swollen). In most cases it takes up to 48 hours for your body to get full control of an injury site and at that time any inflammation that has been protecting the area starts to reduce.

If you do not (or cannot) listen to your body and allow an injury to heal, or if the injury is substantial, the inflammation may not reduce or may reoccur which can hold back the speed at which healing takes place. When this happens you'll need some sort of intervention to get you back on track to good health.

Why do some many of us get back pain?

Frankly, our species is still evolving and we've not yet got to the stage where we're fully equipped to be upright. We still have a tail bone (the coccyx) which is useless and maybe by the time that stops growing the rest of the back structure will be in a better state to deal with the pressures put on it. The bad news is that anyone reading this will not be around to see that day.

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In addition, the back is a very complex compilation of joints supported by multiple layers of muscles, which all serve to support the rest of the body in one way or another. If you have an injury in your ankle, your hip will eventually start to hurt. Similarly, if you have an elbow injury, chances are that your shoulder will start to ache. Add in that your back distributes weight through the body, then anything that causes it to become out of balance will start to cause you problems.

Ways to manage pain

Popping a pill will help reduce the sensation of pain, of course. Anti-inflammatories and pain killers work well together to reduce swelling and relax the body so that it is in a better state to start healing. Whilst medicine has its place, take care when using it to manage a significant or reoccurring injury, as removing inflammation and the pain sensation goes against your body's natural healing mechanism. Remember pain is there for a reason.

If there's excessive swelling at the site of pain use a cold compress to gently ease it. If there's no swelling try a heat pack to bring more blood (and endorphins - the body's natural pain killers) to the area.

If you're experiencing pain in your legs or arms try to raise the affected area frequently. This encourages natural drainage of the limb.

Try to get good quality sleep. Easier said than done, but sleep gives your body chance to regenerate damaged tissues.

Move. Don't stretch, strain or push exercise, but move gently to remind your muscle fibres and joint nerves what they should be doing.

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Treatment for painful conditions

Massage is not a luxury that is only available for those who just want to enjoy being pampered. Clinical research shows that touch therapies such as massage significantly reduce symptoms of debilitating conditions. Regular massage can help you find serious relief for painful conditions. It decreases muscle tension which will be contributing to your pain, increases endorphins to naturally reduce pain, and improves blood functions, so promoting the healing process. It improves the range of movement at joints.

 

Fusion-Southport offers an impressive range of specialist remedial massage treatments. Lisa has been qualified in massage since 1993 and over the years has treated hundreds of injuries and painful conditions, in addition to lecturing and training holistic, beauty and sports therapists in her techniques. To explore the possibilities of regaining control over painful conditions just message (or book online) to arrange a free consultation. You can visit the clinic or opt for a telephone consultation.

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