Don’t Wait on the Sidelines: Get Back In the Game with Physical Therapy
Choose Physical Therapy and Discover Pain Relief
Whether it’s a nagging ache that slows you down or a lingering injury that keeps you benched, life’s challenges can feel like an uphill battle. But what if you had a trusted partner to help you rebound stronger and stay active? Physical therapy isn’t just about addressing pain—it’s about unlocking your potential to live life on your terms.
At Bay State Physical Therapy, we believe that taking the first step toward healing starts with choosing a care plan designed around you. From personalized evaluations to hands-on treatment and guided exercises, our team is here to help you make every move count. It’s time to stop sitting on the sidelines and get back in the game—healthier, stronger, and more resilient than ever.
Make Physical Therapy Your First Line of Defense
Musculoskeletal issues stemming from the neck, shoulders, and back are extremely common, with approximately 1.71 billion people worldwide suffering from a musculoskeletal injury. But treatment for these issues often comes with significant downsides, such as:
- Long wait times for physician appointments, insurance referrals, and diagnostic testing, all of which prolong your pain as you wait.
- Dependency on pain medications and opioids to manage pain while waiting for specialist appointments and diagnostic testing.
- Additional costs of diagnostic imaging such as X-rays or MRIs.
- Time off from work to coordinate specialist appointments.
- Expensive and invasive surgical procedures before trying conservative treatment.
- Prolonged recovery times.
Up to 70% of U.S. adults will experience neck pain that interferes with their daily activities during their lifetime—and almost 70% of people who report shoulder pain experience it throughout their entire lives. Choosing physical therapy before seeking this more extensive medical care can help relieve pain and restore mobility while saving you valuable time, money, and hassle.
How Physical Therapy Can Help
Physical therapy is more than recovery—it’s a crucial step toward an active, healthy life. Your physical therapist works with you to understand your unique challenges and goals. Through a personalized evaluation, they’ll identify the root cause of your discomfort and create a tailored plan.
No two patients are the same, so your care will reflect your individual needs. You’ll learn what your care will include, the pace of your progress, and when it will conclude, depending on your specific condition and goals. A full course of physical therapy typically lasts about 8-10 weeks, with your therapist guiding you throughout.
Sessions may include guided exercises to build strength and mobility, hands-on treatments to ease pain, and expert advice to help you stay active and prevent future setbacks. Physical therapy not only addresses your symptoms but also gives you the knowledge and confidence to stay strong and healthy long after your sessions end.
By choosing physical therapy, you’re taking control of your health with a specialist dedicated to helping you live your best life—whether recovering from an injury, managing a chronic condition, or aiming to feel and move better, we’re here for you.
Personalized Programs
After conducting a thorough evaluation of your medical history, injury, symptoms, and daily activities, your physical therapist will identify the root cause of your pain and determine the appropriate steps for treatment. With your feedback, they will create a customized physical therapy care plan that will outline each step of your rehabilitation process.
Strength & Flexibility
Exercise is a common option used to treat persistent pain, and it’s proven to decrease inflammation, increase mobility, mobilize nervous tissue, and decrease overall pain. Taking a comprehensive look at your current health, pain levels, and ability, your physical therapist will prescribe the best stretches and exercises that specifically target and mitigate your pain for short-term and long-term relief.
Manual Therapy
Staying up to date on the latest industry innovations and best practices, physical therapists can use hands-on manual therapy and joint mobilization techniques, dry needling, and other strategies to ease pain, reduce swelling, and encourage healthy movement.
Discharge Plan to Maintain Function & Well-being
The final piece of your care is your discharge plan. All the hard work you’ve put into your rehabilitation has brought you to your discharge. Just like any exercise program, when you stop your home exercise plan, you risk a decrease in strength and function. So, like your physical therapist tells you, to maintain the best outcomes for your injury, keep up those exercises!
Your physical therapy care plan is a roadmap from your first appointment to your discharge appointment, giving you the tools you need to achieve your rehab goals and maintain your condition in the weeks and months ahead.
What If I Need Other Medical Services?
It can be difficult to understand whether your pain or injury requires the expertise of a specialist. We can help with that, too. Your physical therapist has the advanced training needed to screen your pain. With your health as the #1 priority, they will help explain what their findings reveal and will do so in a way that you understand completely.
If your condition requires further medical attention, they’ll refer you to a trusted specialist. But their work doesn’t stop there. They’ll continue to coordinate with your specialist to keep up to date on your condition. Based on your progress, if rehabilitation is needed at a later time, they will be ready and waiting for you, working with your full healthcare team to ensure you get the best outcomes possible.
Find Relief and Knowledge With Your Physical Therapist
When you choose physical therapy, you can experience pain relief, gain an understanding of your unique injury diagnosis, and find a partner in health for the years ahead. With physical therapy, you’ll experience a true partnership. A licensed medical professional that works with you to create a customized recovery plan for long-lasting relief. We’ve listed the many benefits of choosing physical therapy—now it’s time to take action so you can experience the value it can bring to your life. Schedule your evaluation at Bay State Physical Therapy today!
Break Free From Headache Pain
Over 45 million Americans suffer from headaches, making it the 3rd most common disease in the world, impacting 1 out of 7 people. While there are many different “triggers” such as alcohol, chocolate, scents, and other factors that cause headaches and migraines, most people who suffer from chronic or recurring headaches have underlying neck problems that contribute to their headaches.
According to Stanford Health Care, some of the common types of headaches include:
- Tension
- Cervicogenic or neck muscle-related
- Migraine
- Secondary headaches from an underlying condition, such as fever, infectious disease, or sinus disorder
Regardless of the type of headache, waking up with pain can interfere with your day no matter what is on your calendar. Furthermore, while many of us are comfortable relying on pain medication to deal with the symptoms of a migraine or headache, there are other options to get to the root cause of your pain.
Physical therapy treatments are designed to help the body function at its peak. No matter how old you are or the frequency with which you have them, dealing with frequent headaches can be incredibly frustrating, but physical therapy can offer relief.
Choose Physical Therapy for Headache Relief
How Can Physical Therapy Help?
Headaches and migraines are often associated with myofascial trigger points (tight and tender points in a muscle) and muscle spasms in the neck, shoulders, and upper back. Many headaches can be triggered by physical and/or emotional stress resulting in tension headaches. Tension headaches can be very painful and debilitating and can possibly trigger migraine headaches.
Visiting a physical therapist is an excellent alternative to traditional medication management of headaches. You can decrease the intensity, frequency, and duration of headaches with the help of Bay State Physical Therapy.
Here are four ways physical therapy can reduce headache pain:
Importance of Exercise
Studies have shown that increasing your activity levels can decrease pain and inflammation. Physical therapy also improves your range of motion as well as joint health and promotes overall health.
Education on Triggers
Physical therapists want their patients to understand the triggers that contribute to their headaches, such as poor posture, eye strain, and even sleeping in the wrong position. Recognizing these triggers can help patients prevent as many painful headaches as possible.
Hands-on Care
Physical therapists provide hands-on treatment techniques designed to increase the mobility of your head and neck, decrease muscle tension and spasms, and improve posture. If additional modalities are needed, such as dry needling, your physical therapist will make a recommendation to help you get the most out of your therapy sessions.
Focus On Posture
Do you spend a lot of time staring at a screen or driving in a car? Do you have a forward head or rounded shoulders? If so, your upper cervical spine may be causing pinching of nerves. Therefore, one aspect of care your physical therapist may implement includes correcting your posture and addressing tight pectoral muscles or weakened upper back muscles.
Don’t Ignore Your Headaches – Overcome Them!
Cut through the fog of your headaches with help from Bay State Physical Therapy! Your physical therapist will help get to the root cause of your pain and empower you to take control of your headaches to live a life full of motion. To schedule an appointment, contact your nearest Bay State Physical Therapy office, or click here to request an appointment.
Neck Pain Relief
Did you know that headaches and neck pain are often connected? Many types of headaches, especially tension and cervicogenic headaches, stem from tightness and dysfunction in the muscles and joints of the neck and upper back. When these areas become stiff or strained, they can trigger or worsen headache pain.
The good news? Targeted neck exercises can do more than relieve neck pain—they can also reduce the frequency and intensity of headaches by improving posture, restoring mobility, and easing muscle tension.
Brittany L., PT, DPT, CSCS, the Clinic Manager at our Bay State Physical Therapy – Halifax clinic, is here to guide you. Brittany treats many patients dealing with both neck pain and headaches and has advanced training in concussion evaluation and treatment. As an ImPACT Concussion-trained and certified specialist, she provides expert care for patients seeking relief and improved function.
This month’s exercises focus on strengthening and stretching the neck and upper back, helping you address both neck and headache pain with a proactive approach. Incorporating these movements into your daily routine can support your long-term health goals and empower you to take control of your pain.
Chin Tucks
- Sit or stand with your back straight
- While looking straight ahead, slowly draw your head backward using the muscles in the front of your neck to initiate the movement
- Continue this movement until your ears are aligned over your shoulders, always keeping your head level with the floor
- Avoid tilting your head upward or downward while pulling backward
- Hold for 5 seconds
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 10 repetitions
Scapular Retraction
- Sit in a chair with your back straight and your arms resting at your side
- Slowly draw your shoulder blades together and downward (imagine you’re holding a pencil between your shoulder blades)
- Hold for 5 seconds, then return to the starting position
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 10 repetitions
Cervical Isometrics (Side Bend)
- Gently place your hand on one side of your head near your temples
- Keeping your head in a neutral position and looking forward, apply gentle pressure through your palm using your arm muscles
- You’re attempting to push your head to the opposite side – resist this motion using your neck muscles while keeping your head in a stable position
- Hold for 5 seconds, then repeat in opposite direction
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 10 repetitions
Upper Trapezius Stretch
- Stand with your head in a neutral, relaxed position
- Gently place your right hand on top of your head
- Allow your right ear to move toward your right shoulder, feeling a gentle stretch on the left side of your neck
- Allow the weight of your hand to aid in the stretch, but don’t force it beyond a comfortable, light stretch
- Keep your shoulders level while you stretch
- Hold for 30 seconds then slowly return to a starting position
- Repeat 3 times before switching to stretch opposite side
Cervical Isometrics (Extension)
- Gently place your hand on the back of your head
- Keeping your head in a neutral position and looking forward, apply gentle pressure through your palm using your arm muscles
- You’re attempting to push your head backward – resist this motion using your neck muscles, while keeping your head in a stable position
- Hold for 5 seconds
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 10 repetitions
If you suffer from neck pain or headaches, working with a physical therapist can help. Choose PT First for neck pain relief and call your nearest Bay State Physical Therapy location to get started today!
Dry Needling
Dry Needling is a technique that involves inserting a very thin needle into a tight muscle to cause a contraction followed by its release. Unlike acupuncture which targets the meridian line to balance the flow of energy, dry needling targets the specific point of a muscle where pain is present. The needle causes a “twitch” which causes the muscle to release the longstanding contraction.
When muscles become overburdened, they can develop knots that are called trigger points. Trigger points can be a source of longstanding pain, and when not resolved can limit muscle function. When the very thin needle your physical therapist uses is inserted into the trigger point, it triggers a ‘contract and relax’ reflex of the trigger point. This in turn helps to draw oxygenated blood to the painful area to release muscle tension and promote healing.
Dry needling is a service provided by a specially trained and certified physical therapist. It is also just one of many services available for treating trigger point pain. Before beginning dry needling, your physical therapist will thoroughly discuss the process and answer your questions so that you have a clear understanding of dry needling.
5 Dry Needling Questions You Might Have
Now’s the time to stop ignoring your pain! Physical therapists have many tools at the ready to help their patients, and one of those is called dry needling. Here are some common questions and answers about dry needling.
1. How Big Is the Needle?
Dry Needling utilizes a very fine monofilament needle to penetrate the skin and myofascial layer, commonly targeting trigger points. The needles used come in varying lengths, and your physical therapist will choose the appropriate needle based on where your trigger point is in relation to the surface of your skin.
While you may be very familiar with the needles that are used for injections or IVs, the dry needle your physical therapist uses is very different. That being said, if you want to see the needle before you try dry needling, don’t hesitate to ask your therapist to show you!
2. What’s a Trigger Point?
Myofascial knots or myofascial ‘trigger points’ are the result of the bands of tissue and muscle becoming tight or tense. While trigger points can occasionally improve on their own, left untreated these knots can lead to more significant pain. Trigger points can cause:
- Pain at the trigger point
- Muscle weakness
- ‘Referred’ pain in other areas of the body region
- Reduced range of motion
If you are dealing with any of the above symptoms, your physical therapist may recommend dry needling.
3. What’s the Science Behind Dry Needling?
Dry Needling is based on contemporary knowledge of musculoskeletal and neurological anatomy, pathophysiology, and evidence-based research. Dry needling targets discrete, hypersensitive spots in the fascia of the skeletal muscle known as trigger points. Trigger points can be a source of longstanding pain, can limit movement, and affect function.
More simply, a very thin needle is inserted into the tender spot of a muscle to “trigger” a contract/relax response. This response stimulates oxygenated blood to be drawn to the area of the trigger point. In turn, this releases the trigger point and promotes healing.
4. What Conditions Can Dry Needling Help?
Your physical therapist will discuss your medical history and help determine if you are suitable to try dry needling. Dry needling can be beneficial for many of the conditions that physical therapists treat. Some of the most common include:
- Muscle pain in the low back
- Tennis elbow or Golfer’s elbow
- Shoulder and rotator cuff pain
- Neck pain and chronic headaches
- Hip and leg pain
- Osteoarthritis
- Sciatica
5. Will it Hurt?
When performed effectively, dry needling elicits a twitch response as the area of the muscle contracts and relaxes. Some patients describe the sensation as a short muscle cramp that quickly relaxes. Most patients say they are surprised when the muscle twitches but that it is not painful and does not hurt.
Learn More about Dry Needling
If you are injured or are dealing with pain, you are not alone. As your partner in health, Bay State Physical Therapy is just a call or click away. Contact your nearest Bay State Physical Therapy location or click the button below to request your evaluation.
Recent Newsletters