Physiotherapy Can Help You Stop Using Opioids for Good

Jan 10, 2023

Health, Physiotherapy

If you’ve been suffering from severe pain for a long time and have found little to no relief from over-the-counter pain relievers, your doctor may want to prescribe opioids to control the pain.

However, as tempting as it may be to numb yourself with these powerful drugs, you are better off declining the offer. Opioid medications can cause significant problems in your life while not addressing the source of your pain.

As a result, the CDC advises patients to seek pain relief through physiotherapy instead.

Contact LAKE COUNTRY PHYSIOTHERAPY to request an appointment with a physiotherapist before taking another pain reliever.

Physiotherapy can help you manage your pain without the use of drugs, giving you the opportunity to wean yourself off opioids.

Contact our Orillia, Ontario office today to speak with a skilled physiotherapist about achieving this goal.

Why are opioids so harmful?

Opioid medications are used as a “nuclear option” for relieving pain that less severe methods cannot control, often as the last resort before major surgery.

Morphine and other opioids are used in combat and hospitals to relieve the pain of traumatic injuries, terminal cancer, and surgical procedures. Opioids like oxycodone and hydrocodone are also used to treat severe pain at home.

Opioids are so potent because they act directly on opioid receptors, which are the parts of the brain that process pain and pleasure. When an opioid binds to these receptors, it blocks pain sensations while inducing feelings of euphoria and well-being in the body.

How can I manage my pain naturally?

In some ways, opioids are too good to be true; in others, they are woefully inadequate for dealing with chronic pain.

These drugs can eventually replace the body’s own pleasure-producing chemicals, resulting in severe withdrawal symptoms.

This mix of positive and negative reinforcement leads to dangerous levels of addiction. Millions of people in the United States alone abuse opioids, and many of them die as a result of opioid-related overdoses.

Another limitation of opioids is that they do not actually help to heal anything. Even the most powerful pain reliever can do nothing more than temporarily relieve pain.

The underlying injury or ailments that cause the pain signals are still present and may worsen over time, affecting your functionality, health, and comfort.

How physiotherapy and pain relief work together

Physiotherapy not only helps to relieve your pain in a safe and natural way, but it also provides your body with the tools it needs to control or recover from underlying health issues.

Here are three examples of how our physiotherapist can use these techniques to help you feel better:

Here are just three of the ways our physiotherapist can use these techniques to get you feeling better:

Flexibility exercises increase your range of motion. Both passive and active exercises can flex arthritic joints or tight tissues. Over time, these exercises can loosen your muscles, promote joint lubrication, and reduce the inflammation that contributes to many pain syndromes.
Strength training improves posture, balance, and support. Many painful problems are caused or worsened by improper posture, musculoskeletal imbalances, and structural weaknesses that place too much stress on muscles and joints. Our physiotherapist can prescribe strength training to help your body stabilize itself and support its weight more comfortably.
Aerobic exercises can help you control inflammation. A physiotherapy program that includes walking, cycling, swimming, or other aerobic exercises can help you control inflammation by boosting circulation and altering hormone levels. It can also improve your blood pressure and sense of well-being while helping you lose excess weight.

You should consider physiotherapy if:

You’re interested in actually treating the underlying cause of the pain, instead of simply numbing the pain itself
Your pain is musculoskeletal or neuromuscular in origin (as opposed to cancer pain, for instance)
You suffer from a chronic, incurable pain condition that might otherwise require a lifetime on opioids
You’re experiencing issues such as addiction, depression, or physical side effects from opioid usage – or you’re determined to avoid such issues

Are you ready to begin?

Is pain preventing you from living the life you want? Are you tired of relying on drugs for temporary relief? If so, contact LAKE COUNTRY PHYSIOTHERAPY in Orillia, Ontario today to request an appointment and finally unlock long-term relief.

Physiotherapy Can Help You Stop Using Opioids for Good.