Physiotherapists in Shefford treat many different conditions including the issues profiled below.

Allodynia . An Abnormal Pain

Most of the pain we feel is .normal. in terms of being similar to what other people feel in similar situations of injury and damage. We get a standard pain after being injured which is the result of the tissue injury and the changes which automatically occur within the central nervous system in response to the incoming pain barrages. Our pains are proportionally related to the amount of unpleasant input we suffer and we only respond with pain to what we expect would be a painful stimulus. This is referred to as nociceptive pain and is the normal kind we suffer from in the way we expect to suffer in certain cases.

Allodynia is a painful response to a normally non-painful stimulus, such as touching, wind passing over a part of the body or the pressure of the water from a shower. Normally the result of a nerve injury but also occurring in pain syndromes such as fibromyalgia, allodynia is an abnormal pain response due to changes within the central nervous system. A heightened, amplified pain response is generated inside the spinal cord or brain, giving the sufferer a high level of very unpleasant pain in response to a trivial stimulus.

Staying Active after Whiplash

Part of the art of recovering from whiplash injury is to keep as active as possible without aggravating the pain too severely. Resting for a few days in the presence of severe pain is reasonable but longer periods of rest can be counterproductive and disabling. Most activities can be performed without the neck having full movement so the patient should get on and do what they can. Static postures should be avoided for too long and the patient encouraged to change positions and keep moving regularly. The movements should be progressed steadily every day to push the joints a little bit further each time.

When sitting the chair should be the right height and the person get up very regularly to vary the neck position. Office work can be much easier with a well adjusted chair and the computer monitor and keyboard in optimal positions. Driving should be for short periods with regular stops to get out and move around. Pacing general activities by splitting them up into shorter time slots is a very useful strategy, allowing the patient to continue activities or restart them again without causing a significant worsening of pain.