No. You Don't Have to "Just Live With It" - (Guest Blog by Dr. Stacy Snow, DPT)

Author: Dr. Stacy Snow, DPT

If you’ve ever had an injury or aches and pains that just wouldn’t go away, (and who hasn’t, really?!), you know how much that can affect your life. You’re trying to be healthy, you’re eating better, and trying to go out for a run or to that yoga class you love, but the pain is so distracting and makes it hard to be present with what you’re doing. You used to love tying your shoes to go for a run or stepping into class, or even just getting down on the floor and playing with your kids. But now it’s not even fun anymore because all you’re thinking about is how to get into a position that doesn’t hurt.

You don’t have anything ‘major’ going on. It’s just the nagging knee pain or the pain in your heel every time you put your foot down. You feel like it’s not so serious that you need to go see someone for it. And really, who would you even see for such a thing? It’s just something you have to live with, right? I mean, you are getting older and that just goes along with it, doesn’t it?

As a holistic health physical therapist, I can tell you that the answer is  No.  More than likely, you don’t have to "just live with it!" These types of things are what we specialize in. If you are having a problem that has lasted more than a couple days, that isn’t going away on its own with rest, ice, heat, or exercises that you may have learned on Google, then you should schedule an appointment with a physical therapist.

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(Pain) You don't have to "just live with it!"

More than likely, you have some soft tissue or joint restrictions going on that require specific manual therapy to fix the issue and start the healing process. You probably also need some help figuring out better ways to move your body or little tweaks to improve your posture. You could also benefit from a program of the right exercises for your specific problem, instead of just basic ones found on the internet. It’s commendable that you’ve tried so many things to help yourself, but sometimes those things just aren’t enough and require a little more specialized treatment.

When you work with a holistic physical therapist, no problem is too small. If it is bothering you and keeping you from doing what you love to do or causing pain or discomfort while you do it, then it’s worth looking into. We will do a comprehensive evaluation to look at what’s going on, see how your joints are moving, what the muscles, tendons, and ligaments feel like. We will check your strength, your range-of-motion, and see how you do with specialized movement tests. We’ll chat about how long it has been going on, if you’ve had other problems before, and what other areas of your body are feeling like. We’ll talk about what else is going on in your life, such as are there any stressful events or are you having trouble falling and/or staying asleep? We’ll figure out how this problem has been affecting your life and what it has been keeping you from doing and why it is causing you to feel pain while you do it. Together we’ll create a treatment plan that takes all of those things into account, with a goal of getting back to doing whatever it is that you need or want to do as quickly as possible.

Listen to our "Ask The Expert" Interview with Dr. Snow

​Going to physical therapy doesn’t have to be a big event! It’s just something you do when something isn’t feeling quite right and you know you just need a little assistance with feeling better and getting back to the important things in your life. An expert physical therapist can show you how to take your health back, put the pain behind you, and learn ways to prevent it from happening again in the future!

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About the Author

Dr. Stacy Snow is the Owner of Tranquil Place Physical Therapy & Wellness in Falls Church, Virginia. She holds a Doctorate Degree in Physical Therapy and is a holistic health physical therapist who focuses on helping her clients feel better and get back to doing what they love to do. To schedule a complimentary 30-minute in-office Discovery Session to see if physical therapy is the right solution for you, you can reach Stacy at [email protected] or by scheduling here. Your health is your greatest asset. Stacy can help you create a plan to take the best care of it, and you!