Health Complaints you shouldn’t ignore

At times, we’re all guilty of dismissing aches and pains, simply hoping they’ll go away on their own. However, it’s important to recognise when those signs could be pointing toward something more serious.

In fact, in a survey we put out to out to our patients, a whopping 35% said they would have had their problems for over a year before getting it looked at. We also had many comments from people wishing they hadn’t suffered for so long before consulting an osteopath.

Of course, everybody’s perception of pain is different, so it’s always best to get a professional osteopath’s opinion to find out what is the actual cause of the pain. The most important piece of information for us is what symptoms you’re experiencing.

If you are suffering from any of the following, it’s best not to ignore it and come straight to us for our help:

• Numbness or pins and needles in the leg, foot, arms or hands
• Lightening/shooting pains into the extremities
• Pain that lasts more than a week – don’t let your problem become chronic (longer than 3 months), as these typically take longer to resolve
• Regular, unexplained headaches

The type of injury.

The type of injury you’ve suffered is equally important for us to know. For instance, if you’ve had a bad fall or accident of some description, it’s likely you have been checked over in A&E and told you’ve suffered soft tissue damage. But this might not be the full story. Slips and falls onto the coccyx can lead to spinal pain in the future.

As osteopaths, we enjoy and excel at examining and treating patients who have had traumatic injuries and they generally respond extremely well to treatment.

What you should go to your GP for?

Unfortunately, osteopathy can’t fix everything! You should absolutely consult your GP if you’re experiencing excruciating pain, and they may prescribe you anti-inflammatory pills, stronger pain killers, and maybe a muscle relaxant, or refer you for further tests.

Here are some symptoms you should discuss with your GP...

• A fever associated with the pain
• Extreme fatigue
• If you experience night pain
• Unintentional weight loss or gain
• A pins and needles sensation or numbness in your saddle area (bottom and perineum)
• Any incontinence associated with lower back pain

At the end of the day, think of it like this; would you put off getting your car serviced until it broke down? No, so why wait until your pain gets worse? Get yourself checked out by a health professional sooner rather than later.

For further advice regarding keeping yourself healthy, please contact us on 01722 512 043.