A pain management physiotherapist is someone specialised in treating people with long-term pain.

Patients are referred to us by consultant doctors, GPs or other allied health professionals.
 
We see patients with a wide range of pain problems including:

  • Lower back pain
  • Sciatica
  • Neck pain
  • Headaches
  • Fibromyalgia
  • CRPS (Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome)
  • Osteoarthritis
  • Rheumatoid arthritis

How pain management physiotherapist can help

A pain management physiotherapist can teach how to manage your pain more effectively and help improve quality of life by:

  • Helping to understand more about persistent pain and why it is so different to acute pain
  • Working out the amount of activity and exercise that can be done without leading to an increase or flare-up in pain
  • Improving general strength and fitness by advising on exercises and stretches
  • Assisting the return to activities that have been cut down due to pain by setting goals
  • Advising on ways to improve sleep
  • Teaching techniques to help relax the body
  • Formulating a plan to reduce and manage flare-ups of pain 

If you have already had physiotherapy

Many people we see have already had physiotherapy with little or no long-term effect.

This approach is different as we will not generally use hands-on treatments, such as mobilisations or manipulation, or machines such as ultrasound.

Our sessions are based on self-management, to help people to develop the skills to better manage their pain, increase activity levels and reduce flare-ups.

These techniques have been well researched and are recommended for people living with long-term pain.

They are used in pain management clinics all over the world. 

Self-management

Self-management is about learning to help yourself, and take responsibility for your own health and well-being.

It is not about relying on other people, or seeking more medical tests and treatment (which are often unhelpful).

It is a way of helping you to cope better with the pain and difficulties that you have.

We aim to give you more skills to add to the ones you already use, to reduce the impact the pain has on your life.

Many people report finding this helping and improves their overall confidence levels, including getting back to doing things they had previously given up.

The result is a more enjoyable and fulfilling life: where they are in control of the pain, rather than the pain controlling them.

Further information

Please see: