Chronic Pain Treatment
Chronic pain affects around 15 million people in the UK, of that number around 5 million will struggle to complete daily activities, due to their pain.
It is defined as pain that lasts longer than three to six months and can be caused by a variety of underlying conditions, including injury, disease, and inflammation.
Chronic pain can come in many forms. Some comes from disease based conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis, Inflammatory Arthritis or Arachnoiditis. Some from injuries that simply haven’t cleared up and some from undiagnosed conditions.
However, your pain manifests, the reality is that it affects your daily life and work and it is important to resolve it in the best manner possible.
Disease based chronic pain conditions
One of the primary goals of Physiotherapy and Sports Therapy for chronic pain is to improve physical function and mobility. This can include exercises to improve strength, flexibility, and range of motion, as well as activities to improve balance and coordination. By improving physical function, patients can better manage their pain and participate in activities they enjoy.
It is essential that your therapist understands your condition and works around the limitations you have, whether that is fatigue based, mobility based or practicality based.
We start our assessments by assessing your posture. The simple act of realigning the body can be hugely helpful in improving chronic pain levels.
Movement is essential in maintaining a healthy body and this is no different if you have a chronic disease. Lack of movement creates more pain that further reduces the movement. This vicious cycle only goes in one direction and mobility gets worse and worse.
At The Reinge Clinic we tailor our strength exercises to your needs, with the aim of maintaining optimal posture levels. There is always a way to access the movement we need, and exercises can be made harder or easier, depending on your needs, abilities and pain levels.
We have successfully improved the pain and mobility in many clients with conditions such as Inflammatory Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s Disease. We regularly work with clients with hugely complex conditions and are one of the few clinics in the country with experience treating clients with the condition Adhesive Arachnoiditis.
Non disease based chronic pain
Non disease based chronic pain can be highly debilitating, affecting every area of your life. Many clients come to us having tried everything and are desperate for a resolution.
We take a different approach to chronic pain. We always start by looking at your posture and at the way your muscles fire. By understanding movement patterns and watching for incorrect muscle movement, we can often spot dysfunction that may have been missed elsewhere.
Weakness is a huge aspect in chronic pain that isn’t due to a disease. The muscles of your body are used to support joints and they do this day in, day out, for all of your life. The deepest muscles are there to ensure your body has stability and your joints are kept in the optimum position.
When these muscles stop working properly, the larger muscles take over and tire very easily. Sometimes your body will create layer upon layer of compensatory movement patterns and all of these will need to be undone to get back to the root of the problem and solve it.
This process can take some time and can be frustrating for clients. This is why we always include soft tissue massage work in our treatments. This speeds up the process of realigning and strengthening the body, and provides temporary relief from pain along the way.
Frequently Asked Questions about chronic pain conditions
Pain switches off muscles and means that the longer the pain continues for, the weaker your muscles become.
The role of Physiotherapy and Sports Therapy is to maintain your muscle strength and posture between flare ups of your condition.
This allows you to function better and limits future damage to joints and other structures that can come from weak muscles.
The NHS provide some useful tips for living with chronic pain here.
Ongoing pain can be caused by many things, but often tightness in the muscles creates pain. By loosening these muscles it takes away the stiffness and helps to take pressure of the joints.
We can also feel for changes in muscle tone and target the strength and stretching work, to help relieve stiffness around joints.
Massage is an incredibly useful tool when managing Chronic Pain. Tight muscles in themselves cause pain and mean muscles switch off. A tight muscle cannot shorten to do its job effectively.
A regular deep tissue Massage is one of the most effective ways of managing chronic pain conditions and in conditions such as Fibromyalgia, it is particularly effective.
Yes absolutely, in fact staying active is one of the best ways to manage pain.
We may need to modify the way you do your activity, or suggest rest/activity ratios; but rarely would you need to stop a sport or activity you love due to chronic pain or disease.
What Our Clients Say About Us?
Francis Butt
September 20, 2022
As always, brilliant evaluation, treatment and strategy. Thanks Ian!
Claire Kelley
October 10, 2022
Ian is brilliant at really working to solve the problem. He doesn't rush to get you back but gives you time for set exercises to work and then reassess. Would definitely recommend
Helen Littlewood
October 19, 2022
Totally looked after by Ian - really reassured that he can help and support me in my goals Thank you
Zoe Statters
October 20, 2022
Always upbeat, friendly, offers useful advice & service is always top notch, suggestions and treatments that actually work!
Neil Jones
September 5, 2023
Very knowledgeable and take time to listen, explain, treat and give and encourage exercise. Probably the best in the SW and will be a asset to Kenilworth so we will travel here to continue our treatment.
Ella Jude
September 5, 2023
Both Gina and Ian have given support when I have experienced pain due to a long term health condition. Both are very friendly and knowledgeable.
Ernie Boxall
September 5, 2023
I was invited to a Complementary visit with Ian at the Reinge Clinic in Kenilworth after watching a webinar on the effects of gait on both my movement and the wear on my training and walking shoes. I expected a short consultation, a video session and then some analysis but what I received was a consultation, a video session with shoes on and off, some physical treatment for tight glutes which were contributing to the faults in my gait and my ankles to increase the range of movement around the calf. This was followed by 3 specific exercises over the next fortnight to strengthen the muscles in my foot (yes, they are there and we rarely think about them.) I felt an immediate difference in my gait and in the glutes, I will be recommending the Reinge Clinic to my friends both the athletes and the non-athletes who are spending a fortune on worn shoes.
Katie Silverthorne
September 5, 2023
Gina is an absolutely marvel! I had incredibly painful and chronic shoulder pain that had been causing serious issue for over 2 years. I had been to lots of different practitioners - with no luck. Happily Gina set me right! I couldn’t be happier. ????
Angela Tadd
September 5, 2023
I went to Ian after with a chronic condition, diagnosed as compression whiplash. Ian offered great advice and also explained how this was affecting me. It helped considerably to understand the issue and why these exercises were so important particularly in relation to my posture. I needed a few appointments as I also developed a frozen shoulder. Ian was extremely supportive and offered friendly guidance, amending the exercises as the symptoms changed along the way. I would highly recommend the Reinge Clinic.
Rob Wilding
September 5, 2023
I went to Gina at Reinge with ongoing shoulder issues. Due to past experiences I was skeptical of physio work, but Gina was fantastic: patient, friendly, and put's everything in layman's terms so I could actually understand what was actually going on. She also identified a long-term undiagnosed issue (which many other 'specialists' have failed to even note before) within one session. After a few sessions, my shoulder is improving! Highly recommend to anyone.
Debbie Cooper
September 5, 2023
I began seeing Gina towards the end of 2020 due to having severe back pain. I have a lower lumbar fusion and 2 slipped discs. After a thorough inspection and assessment Gina was able to begin her diagnosis and spec out a plan for me. At the point of first meeting Gina I was in so much pain that I could barely be touched and now I am able to train, run and cycle again without feeling pain. I am now undergoing running assessments to understand where my issues are, how to rectify them safely and set realistic goals.
Joe Parker
September 5, 2023
The clinic has an ethic of finding, treating and eliminating the cause of pain, not just treating the effect. Gina has been tenacious in treating me with regard to my problems, even contacting my GP to initiate further help for me. I have conditions that haven't readily yielded to treatment, but that hasn't deterred Gina who has constantly, and consistently, sought answers and treatments that will work for me. She has stabilised my back problem - Spondylolisthesis - until surgery is carried out. Her work on my right knee has been exemplary. I have no hesitation in recommending her and Ian. Thank you, Gina . . .
Scott Brookes
September 5, 2023
5 stars for Ian! Deciding to get physio after an injury can be a daunting prospect, especially when trying to find someone who you can trust to take you from being in chronic pain and not being able to move, to moving in the right direction. Ian is extremely passionate about the mechanics of the body and isn't phased by taking on someone with a badly herniated disc. I was told that surgery was looking likely, but I wanted to try all other options first as surgery was no guaranteed silver bullet. Ian has been extremely supportive with explaining the issues, deciphering MRI scans and providing a tailored set of key stretches, both face to face and via videos to help in my road to recovery. I am back now cycling and swimming (better than i was before my injury!) and while i am less dependent on intense sessions with Ian, I am still a regular client as daily life still puts pressures on my body that need a professional to reset. I highly recommend Ian to anyone looking for injury recovery or general physio support, but also for anyone looking to change their mindset towards investing time and effort into trying to future proof their bodies from the risk of issues.
Steve Tipson
September 5, 2023
Gina solved my back problem. Having seen a number of physios with no success, Gina quickly identified the problem and put a plan in place. Within 4 weeks my back problem had gone and I was sleeping much better!
Vicki John
September 5, 2023
I came to see Ian on recommendation of my husband after being in a lot of pain with my feet and also having a numb little toe and having had no luck with a number of other people. He diagnosed me with having a trapped nerve in my hip causing the numb toe, he worked on it for a just couple of minutes and it improved! He then gave me ‘homework’ exercises to do and after three visits I was back to normal. I still can’t believe that it wasn’t picked up on by anybody, Ian was the first person to look beyond my foot to find the problem. As for my painful feet which turned out to be Plantar Fasciitis, he worked wonders on those too.
Lesley Hudswell
September 5, 2023
You don’t need to be sporty to benefit from seeing a Sports Therapist. Gina is helping me correct bad habits that started with my shoulder surgery decades ago. It’s tough when she tells you how many things are wrong but amazing when they start to come right. I’ll never be sporty, and don’t want to be, but I have much more energy and better quality of life since she started sorting me out.
Sue Shaw
September 5, 2023
At the beginning of 2016 and after 40 years of chronic nerve pain to the spine and lower limbs caused by a failed medical procedure in 1969 I was struggling to walk about or drive. After many visits to Frenchay Pain Clinic and after consulting numerous and diverse specialists my prognosis was extremely grim probably ending in being wheelchair bound. Fortuitously I visited Gina Reinge. I had absolutely no expectations, but after studying my MRI scan and examining my body, I was pleased to be able to report that after a few treatments, within weeks, the pain to the coccyx (which was the worst area) had all but disappeared. Gina is refreshingly honest and the results she has achieved with me are incredible and noticed by my friends and family. I cannot speak highly enough for the way that my quality of life has improved since I first saw Gina.
