A pain specialist is a physician (usually an Anesthesiologist, Neurologist, Physiatrist, Psychologist or Physical Therapist) that specifically treats pain conditions.  Many times these specialists combine their efforts in a Pain Management Center for the most effective treatment of pain.  These physicians have not only trained in their specialty but they have special training in pain management allowing them to take over treating your pain where your family physician leaves off.  It’s important to know that your pain physician will just be managing the pain condition and will communicate progress with the family physician.  Having these open lines of communication between the physicians and patient will help the patient have better success for pain improvement.

How would Physical Therapy & Behavioral Medicine help a patient with pain?
Since chronic pain affects the entire person at different levels, physical therapy and behavioral medicine compliment the efforts of the actual pain specialist. Physical and manual therapy can be used to re-train muscles to do the job they’re intended, to strengthen muscles that have become imbalanced, to relax the body and teach better posture and lifting habits. Behavioral medicine can help with the very emotional side of chronic pain. Having chronic pain can make a person feel isolated or depressed that no one understands or believes they have pain. Sometimes a person’s lifestyle can also be part of their chronic pain problem, continuous stress, inability to relax, etc. A behavioral therapist can help teach the pain patient different coping skills, what sort of things trigger their pain, how to express themselves regarding the pain more clearly and how to relax. They can also do diagnostic tests to see how pain in the body corresponds to certain areas of the mind. Physical therapy and behavioral medicine help the patient become more mind body connected.