Reactions Following a Physio Session
Especially after the first session with a physio (if it’s your first time with a physio), you may have some reactions that you didn’t know to expect.
Typically there are three types of reactions after a physio sessions (including manual therapy such as mobilizations, manipulations and adjustments):
- hmm / meh – no difference today…but slowly improves through the next few days
- oh my gosh that is wonderfully good, my pain went from 70% to 30%
- ow! Much more pain today and tomorrow, but heyyyyy the pain feels nice and good on day 4???
Let’s go item by item.
Contents
Hmm / meh – no difference today…but slowly improves through the next few days
Some patients do not experience anything after the first session, and they sometimes feel like the session didnt work at all, or worse, “no one could help them after all”.
This isn’t always the case – we found one third of patients have a delayed healing reaction, kind of like unplugging a big bathtub of water – seems like nothing works…but it just takes some time for the healing to come through from all the pains and injuries.
These types of patients tends to feel better with time, gradually
Oh my gosh that is wonderfully good, my pain went from 70% to 30%
These are the kind of patients that tends to be already in acute sharp and bad pain, and responds particularly well to pain relief physiotherapy techniques. The sort that limps or very shoulder-drooped entry into the physio clinic but can run and jump out after the sessions.
Also for these types of patients, we tend to “rein” them in a little, so that they will not reinjure themselves (it is quite exciting to go from big pain to small or no pain); until the injury and issues are fully resolved.
Ow! Much more pain today and tomorrow, but heyyyyy the pain feels nice and good on day 4???
To be frank, most of the patients fall into this category, especially for patients with chronic pain ie have been having background nagging pain for some time but left it untreated until it became worse one day before finally coming to see a hand therapist or physiotherapist.
For these kind of cases, we have to “wake up” the chronic issues; which behaves very differently from fresh/new injuries. You see, new injuries will signal to the body and brain that there is an injury, to which the brain and body will send repair cells to the site to repair the injured structures. Contrast to this is chronic pain where pain is now “normal” and the body and brain do not send repair cells to long term injured or painful sites; so we have to use very specific techniques to “restart” the healing process.
For these types of patients, they tend to feel a lot more pain the next day, for a couple of days, and then start feeling better (like in #1 above).
Possible short term effects and reactions
Some of the more common short term effects and reactions
Negative
- pain and soreness to the joints, muscles and soft tissues
- numbness and tingling
- dizziness
Positive
- “good pain and ache”, kinda like what you feel after a good exercise session and massage
- pain relief
In the hands of experienced physios and hand therapists, the benefits are very clear in terms of recovery from muscle, bone, joint, tendon and ligament related injuries and conditions.
Where To Next?
- Go to Home / Start
- Learn and find out more about your pains (bones, muscles, joints, tendons, ligaments, nerves etc) at Pain Conditions & Injuries
- Visit our shop to see products we recommend for pain relief, heating, treatments and more
- Contact us
