"Recognizing the Right Time: When Pain Signals It’s Time to Seek Treatment"

So you have pain and are wondering when is the right time to take action? Not everything needs a rush to treatment, whether that is home remedies or going to see a doctor. It is important to know when is the right time to act on pain to set you up for the best success.

I am sorry to tell you guys this, but patients get it wrong more often than not. A majority of patients try to "get through" the pain without doing anything about it. So when should you do something about the pain? The answer is complex but I will lay out the best scenarios to help guide you. The first scenario is if there is obvious trauma (i.e. car accident or fall) that causes immediate pain. It is always best to get checked out right away and make sure that there is nothing major causing the pain. The second scenario is severe pain, however, it is brought on, if you are in severe pain and cannot get up or move it is best to get some treatment right away.

These next scenarios probably fit a majority of patients. First, is the pain that continues to linger on even if it has gotten a little better. For example, your lower back started to hurt on a Monday and now it is a Friday and there is still pain. Even though pain may have gone down in severity, this is an opportune time to get it looked at and start a treatment plan before it gets worse, and before a longer treatment plan may be indicated. The sooner you act, the sooner the pain gets resolved, the less time you spend on treatment, and the more money you can save.

The next scenario is pain that continues to come back. When the neck pain started the pain would flare up every year. As you just let it "self-resolve" instead of one time a year, the neck pain is now four times a year. Again, due to you letting the pain self-resolve, your neck pain is now every two months, and then every month, and then every week, and then every day. This is the classic presentation of chronic pain affecting the body. When pains start to present this way, it usually takes a longer treatment plan and a more hands-on approach to get a proper resolution of your chronic pain.

It is very important to know when you should seek out care for your pains. Not only can it save you time, it can save you money (which we all like!). Away from those, it can also save you years of frustration, depression, and other emotions that almost always follow chronic injuries.

Are you ready to take control of years of pain? Book a FREE Discovery Call to see how we can help you.