A Holistic Approach to Navigating Stress and Finding Relief
Have you been dealing with persistent aches and pains? Are you stressed and tired all the time? Have you noticed the more stressed you get, the worse you seem to feel? At Kintsugi Physical Therapy & Wellness, our physical therapists take a holistic approach with our treatments; we like to say if you take the “I” out of Illness and add “We,” and you have wellness!
Stress plays a significant role in our overall health and well-being. Studies have found many health problems related to stress. For example, stress worsens or increases the risk of conditions like heart disease, depression, and obesity. Stress also influences our perception of pain and significantly affects our immune system and the body’s healing ability.
At Kintsugi Physical Therapy & Wellness, our goal is to understand the whole person to determine the health factors contributing to your struggles. We devise a plan tailored to your specific situation and work with you to make the appropriate adjustments to your lifestyle, including stress management strategies, to help you and your overall health.
What is stress?
Stress is a state of disharmony or disruption of a steady internal, physical, and mental state. Stress can be due to either physical or psychological stressors, and when it persists can negatively affect your health and well-being.
Essentially stress is our early warning system; just like pain alerts us to a physical problem, stress alerts you to what is happening in your environment. This alarm can help you get a handle on things in your life situation and can encompass many problems. Similar to pain, stress lets you know that something is wrong.
Under normal conditions, stress causes a natural reaction in our bodies and is an essential aspect of our ability to function and adapt to the challenges in our life situation. Stress triggers our nervous system, specifically the sympathetic nervous system (aka fight or flight) and our hormonal system (i.e., the endocrine system). In the short term, these responses lead to increases in pain threshold and changes in our ability to move and respond to danger.
Unfortunately, modern life is often filled with chronic perceived stress. The long-term effects of a heightened state of stress often lead to a lower pain threshold and, for some, hypersensitivity to pain. Some people experience a directionality of pain perception, meaning the situation and emotional factors can profoundly alter the strength of pain perceptions.
At Kintsugi Physical Therapy & Wellness, our physical therapist understands the interconnectedness of the body and how a problem in one area of the body is actually due to compensation or condition in another area of the body. We will get to the root of the problem and holistically work with you to help you find long-lasting solutions!
What to expect from your physical therapy sessions
We will start with a medical history and a comprehensive physical assessment to identify all the factors contributing to your specific condition. Our assessment will include a thorough history to understand your activity level, physical and mental demands on the body, and overall health status. Our therapists also understand how our life situation can directly affect pain, healing, and overall health and well-being.
Based on the findings from the evaluation, your physical therapist will guide you through a series of exercises designed to help your pain and/or injury and return you to your normal functional abilities. We will start with pain management and restoring mobility to the injured area and provide strategies to help you manage the stress in your life.
Next, we will focus on progressing your program to restore your function and prevent future injuries. Our goal is to give you the tools to resolve your conditions and better understand how to cope with life’s physical and mental toll on your body!
Request an appointment at Kintsugi Physical Therapy & Wellness today!
First and foremost, you should consult with one of our physical therapists as soon as you begin to notice pain, so you’ll be able to recover quicker and avoid disruptions to your health and well-being.
You deserve to live a life free of pain and discomfort, and our goal is to help you return to doing things you love without the threat of added stress to your life!
Your Next Steps…
Request An Appointment
Receive A Custom Treatment Plan
Work Hard and Progress In Your Recovery
Recover & Enjoy Life Pain-Free!