Specialties & Services

Chronic or Acute Pain

Saint Luke’s pain management experts provide diagnosis and treatment for patients suffering from chronic or acute pain.

Our team focuses on creating individualized treatment plans, decreasing patients' pain and increasing their mobility, as well as reducing or eliminating patients' dependency on pain medication.

Our multidisciplinary team involves doctors and clinicians from a number of specialties, including anesthesiology, physical medicine, rehabilitation, and physical and occupational therapy.

Saint Luke’s provides:

  • Precision spinal diagnostics
  • Interventional pain management
  • Psychological management
  • Physical therapy

When traditional interventions are unable to relieve patients’ pain, Saint Luke’s pain management experts offer a new minimally invasive ablation therapy.

This treatment, called Cooled Radiofrequency Ablation (also Cooled RF or CRF), directly targets the sensory nerves causing pain. The procedure takes less than an hour, and patients resume normal activities within a few days.

Managing Chronic Pain

Both the brain and the body are involved in the pain response. The brain reads and interprets the pain signals from the body. This means that your mind has some control over how pain signals are processed. Mind-body therapies may help change how your brain reads pain signals. Talk to your doctor about trying any of the therapies listed below.

Learned therapies

  • Yoga. This is a mind and body practice. It combines physical postures, breathing methods, and meditation or relaxation. It can help you relax your body and mind and become more flexible. Tai chi is a gentle form of exercise. It uses movements that help you gain strength and flexibility.

  • Relaxation, visualization, and meditation. These are methods for relaxing muscles and concentrating on something outside of your body. This can reduce the feeling of pain. Or it can help you work through it.

  • Coping skills. These are ways of feeling more in control. These use humor, distraction, or positive thinking to put the pain in its place.

  • Biofeedback. This is a method for learning to have more control over your body. This can help you better control your response to pain.

  • Self-hypnosis. This is a way to train your mind to change your perception of pain.

Counseling and support groups

Group of three people sitting and talking.

  • Chronic pain support groups can help you feel less isolated. They can also give you tips for coping with pain.

  • Support groups for an underlying condition can help you learn more about controlling that condition and the pain that it causes.

  • Individual counseling can help you learn coping skills and methods. These include visualization and relaxation. Counseling can also help with mood problems. 

Complementary therapies

  • Massage helps you relax. It may also help relieve some kinds of muscle and joint pain.

  • Acupuncture and acupressure are treatments in which small needles or pressure is applied to certain sites on the body. They may set off the body's natural pain-control system.

  • Chiropractic is a treatment based on adjustments made to the spine and joints. It may help with some kinds of back pain.

  • Certain vitamins or herbs may help with some conditions that cause chronic pain. There is limited evidence that they work. And they may interact with your medicines. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before you try them.

Activity to Manage Chronic Pain

Exercise can help reduce pain. In some cases, exercise may help treat the problem that's causing the pain. Activity can improve your mood and your overall health. It can give you more energy, help you sleep, and help you control your weight.

Man bicycling on neighborhood street.

Stick with it

At first, chronic pain may flare up during exercise. But as your body becomes stronger and more flexible with exercise, it will be better able to relax. This will help to relieve pain.

Exercise safely

  • See your health care provider first. Talk with them before you start an exercise program. They can tell you what kinds or amount of exercise is safe for you.

  • Work with a physical therapist if needed. Do this if you haven't exercised in a long time or have physical limitations. Your exercise program should be tailored for your own needs and abilities. A physical therapist can teach you stretches and exercises that fit your condition and fitness level.

  • Start slowly, and keep going. Slowly increase your exercise time and intensity. Exercise several times a week. Don't just do it on weekends.

Ways to exercise

  • Do stretching and range-of-motion exercises. These are good for helping painful muscles and joints.

  • Choose low-impact forms of exercise. These include walking and biking. They also include swimming and other types of water exercise.

  • Don't do high-impact activities. These include jumping, running, and sudden starts, stops, or changes of direction.

  • Try strength training. Use light weights. Slowly increase the number of repetitions you do in a session.

Make a commitment

Work toward a goal of exercising at least 3 to 5 times a week for 30 minutes at a time. To help yourself work on this goal:

  • Choose activities you enjoy. Exercise with a friend or join a class.

  • Be more active in your daily life. Walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator. Walk instead of driving to do errands. Park your car further from your destination.

  • Keep a packed gym bag with you so you're always ready. Keep exercise clothes and shoes handy at work or in your car.

  • Set small goals. Reward yourself when you meet them.

Safe exercise tips

  • Start each session with a "warm-up" of slow exercise. Work up to a brisk pace. Then, slow down to "cool down."

  • Expect some soreness at first. If you feel increased pain after exercise, stop and call your health care provider.

  • Use heat or ice as directed by your provider.

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