You Don’t Have to Live with Chronic Pain

If pain becomes a constant companion, it can change your life. You might stop doing the things you love, your weight might increase, and you might become isolated and depressed. These and other side effects can exacerbate your pain and trigger a cycle that can be tough to break.

Our pain experts at Alpha Care Medical in Seaford, Millsboro, Harrington, and Dover, Delaware, specialize in pain management, which means we provide the most advanced, evidence-based treatments, including traditional and alternative techniques, to address pain from every angle. 

Even if you feel like you’ve tried everything and nothing has worked, there’s still hope. We are passionate about uncovering the root causes of chronic pain and creating a personalized treatment plan that addresses your unique symptoms. Even when pain stems from incurable conditions, we can still help you find relief. 

Common causes of chronic pain

Pain that sticks around long after your injury or illness has resolved — at least three months — is called chronic pain. More than 100 million people in the United States suffer from long-term pain, making it the No. 1 cause of disability. So, what’s behind all this pain, and why won’t it go away?

When pain lingers even after an injury has healed, it’s often due to a misfiring nerve that was damaged in the process. Often, irritated or inflamed nerves continue sending pain messages to your brain even when there’s no apparent reason. Other common causes of ongoing pain include:

• Fibromyalgia
• Complex regional pain syndrome
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Endometriosis
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Nerve compression
• Cancer
• Depression
• Arthritis
• Opioid withdrawals
• Post-surgical complications
• Post-amputation effects
• Headaches

Some chronic pain can be traced back to a specific cause, injury, or event, but many times, it remains a mystery, and that’s where we come in. We get to the bottom of your pain by applying the principles of functional medicine, a more thorough approach to the diagnostic process. 

Once we determine the culprit, we customize your treatment plan with a combination of various modalities that can ease your pain and restore your ability to function fully and enjoy life.

Types of pain management treatments

At Alpha Care Medical, we offer a wide variety of treatments that target your symptoms and relieve your pain. Here’s a look at several of them.

Physical therapy

We know — it hurts when you move. Ironically, movement is often the best medicine for some types of pain. Physical therapy is the art and science of using movement to relieve pain, increase range of motion, build strength, and restore mobility. 

We incorporate various stretches and exercises into a routine tailored specifically to your needs. We may also employ other physical therapy modalities, such as ultrasound therapy, heat and cold therapy, and/or electrical stimulation.

Massage therapy

Some chronic pain stems from muscle spasms and tightened knots of muscular tissue called trigger points. In this case, expert massage therapy can alleviate the tension and relax the muscles to stop the pain.

Nutritional counseling

What you eat can help or harm your body’s efforts to fight pain, particularly pain associated with inflammation. We often see patients suffering from chronic pain who have no idea that it stems from chronic inflammation. 

We help you understand the relationship between your diet and your pain and guide you to make better choices that support a pain-free life. 

A good start is adhering to the Mediterranean diet, which is rich in leafy green veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Our team helps you create a sustainable and healthy diet that addresses your unique needs, which may include specific nutrient supplements.

Acupuncture

This ancient Chinese technique has proven applications in modern medicine as well. At Alpha Care Medical, we use acupuncture to target and stimulate certain muscles, nerves, and connective tissues that are contributing to your chronic pain. 

The extremely thin needles trigger your body’s natural painkillers to flood the area and bathe your tissues in soothing relief. 

Behavioral therapy

Pain that stems from sustained stress, emotional issues, anxiety, depression, and the management of chronic diseases can often benefit from behavioral health treatments. This includes cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps you change your response to your pain triggers, and psychotherapy, which helps you dive deeper into your emotional issues so you can identify them, understand them, and gain control over them.

Medication-assisted treatment 

For those suffering from opioid addiction and withdrawals, pain is often one of the primary symptoms. Our medication-assisted treatment plan not only eases your pain, but it also gradually weans you away from the harmful substances and enables you to sidestep all or most of the withdrawal symptoms.

If you’re suffering from chronic pain, we can help. To learn more, book an appointment over the phone with Alpha Care Medical today.