I am starting my 4 week PT today. I asked my physician assistant last week if I should take my medication before coming in for my therapy. He seemed indifferent about it. He said if I wanted to ok, if not ok. I was wondering, those that have gone for PT before, did you take pain meds prior to you appointment? I didn’t know if it was important that any pain I have, I would be able to tell the therapist about during the therapy, otherwise it is covered up by the prescription medication.
#1 by Orc on December 23, 2009 - 11:57 pm
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I don’t know your age but I recognize you as a regular in the seniors section. Based solely on that I would extend that if you deal with Osteo Arthritis then the issue with that joint pain is that it is associated with mechanical wear and tear in the joints which then can swell and become inflamed. The joint pain in that situation is a warning your body is sending you say “chill on using this joint for awhile”. You can help hold the swelling and inflammation down by taking Aspirin. Aspirin will help to reduce joint swelling and therefore pain. That’s what my care givers are telling me as to my care. Hope that helps…and also.. I enjoy reading your questions and answers. Good luck.
#2 by mistify on December 24, 2009 - 5:50 am
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It depends on the reason for why you are going. If it is for a post surgical condition such as a knee replacement, etc, I definetely would as it will allow for most range of motion.
if you are going for a non-surgical condition such as back pain, knee pain, etc, I would not take them because it is important for the therapist to know what types of things truely aggrevate your pain. The only stipulation would be if your pain is so severe that you cannot do any activity without increasing your already severe pain…then I would take it.
No pain medicine truely takes aways all mechanically induced pain, but it will take the “edge off.”
good luck
#3 by DeeJay on December 24, 2009 - 8:26 am
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I agree with Mr. Ed.
Pain meds do mask pain.
I was in physical therapy for 7 1/2 months – 3 days a week.
He worked my whole body but when it came to working my right knee – it was me who needed to let him know when it was too painful.
He said we could damage my knee if he bent it too far – it had to be just enough.
In my case the pain med. would have masked the pain.
By the way – before I started my therapy – iI was unable to pull my pants on or off. I can do that now – all by myself.
Keep it up and hope you benefit from your therapy.
I’m thinking since I’m not a doctor – I really shouldn’t be giving you my advice but lets just say that’s how it was for me.
DeeJay
#4 by Ya Ya Vegas on December 24, 2009 - 9:09 am
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JP it is my hope that your therapist will be able to assist you with this, Speak openly about your concerns. I do think there are times where that is necessary.
We did pre-medicate to work through the rehab process. However there are times where that impedes the process.
Therapists should know when it is to your benefit.
You should NEVER be in pain that is not managed.
The PA may need to make it available to you but it is doubtful that he/she will know what is necessary unless they are present during therapy. Most seldom are.
Wishing you the best.
#5 by rmbrruff on December 24, 2009 - 12:17 pm
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For me personally, I wouldn’t. The reason being, painkillers can allow you to stretch farther than you would without them. This can be bad because, if you overextend yourself, you won’t feel it. Our bodies have pain mechanisms for a reason. It’s so we don’t hurt ourselves worse than we already are. You need to be able to feel how far you REALLY can go in PT, and work from there.
Then I would take the painkillers immediately AFTER finishing my PT, before the pain kicks in.
#6 by alwaysme on December 24, 2009 - 5:45 pm
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I went to PT for my back for about 3 months. I did take pain medication for the first week, just because I didn’t know what was in store for me. After that I realized it wasn’t so bad. So I would suggest taking some just for a short time. Then lay off. Hope that helps(:
#7 by dora on December 24, 2009 - 11:27 pm
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Don’t know what the correct advice is, but I would take some kind of pain medication, maybe Tylenol for arthritis, because it would be hard to do what you are supposed to do if you are in too much pain. Good luck with it and hope it isn’t too bad.
#8 by Ladybug on December 25, 2009 - 2:13 am
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My daughter is a nurse and she always says, “An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure.” This breaks down to it being better to prevent the pain than trying to cure it after it gotten out of hand and requires more medication.
#9 by Tired Old Man on December 25, 2009 - 4:49 am
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I would,because it will help relieve the pain & soreness you would have after our sessions. I take some before i go to my dentist when i know i am going to get some work done. That way when the Novocaine works off the pain medicine is there!
#10 by gracie on December 25, 2009 - 11:01 am
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Jackie, I’ve been in PT a number of times….and the therapists always agreed that taking pain meds and muscle relaxants (if you’re on them) about two hours before usually made things easier. But talk with yours, just to be sure. Good luck!
#11 by mister ed on December 25, 2009 - 5:07 pm
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i would not — the meds will mask the pain and you could really be overdoing something causing a lot of damage but to be on the safe side talk it over with therapist!!!!
#12 by redcore8 on December 25, 2009 - 11:03 pm
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Why dont you ask your dr or the pharmacist. This is a dumb question really, they are trained professionals and the internet answerers are not
#13 by Grandma on December 26, 2009 - 1:21 am
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I’ve taken a relaxer before therapy for a torn rotator cuff. It was doctors orders. Make sure someone drives you if you do.
#14 by mdsweet1 on December 26, 2009 - 6:03 am
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I don’t know because the pain threshhold for all is a bit different , I wish you well and hope the therapy makes you feel brand new.
mdsweet1
#15 by Loren S on December 26, 2009 - 8:59 am
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If you normally need the pain meds to get through your day then by all means take them.
#16 by Anonymous on December 26, 2009 - 10:26 am
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Take your pain meds BEFORE you go and will probably be ready after you get through!!! I can’t believe your Dr. said it was inmaterial….your body will tell you for sure!!! Good Luck!!!! Let us know!!
#17 by ROXY. sheila from OZ on December 26, 2009 - 10:37 am
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since ur physician is indifferent about it ,why not wait and see how u feel at the time ?
#18 by Bens Wisdom on December 26, 2009 - 11:56 am
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I didn’t the first time just to see how it was. Took it after that, lol.
#19 by Fauna on December 26, 2009 - 1:27 pm
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OK, I’m gonna try here, I just finished working in a Physical Rehab Hospital for 7 years and I was a med nurse. Some of our pts got meds before pt and others did not, the above answers have it all covered. Sometimes the doc would say, let her try it first without and then if it is too painful, give her a little something.
We are only licensed to “practice medicine” but we’re not perfect yet, and folks want definite answers. Get all the info and then trust your own judgment.
My dentist just loves to get me on the other side of the situation. But I just tell him I am chicken and I ain’t gonna hurt. Actually he is very good about pain management.
And about the disagreement, there is a world of coordination between all those disciplines and there are as many ways to skin a cat as there are cats. Allow for the subtle differences.
Maybe some of this helps, I have 2 kids who want pat answers and don’t get them either. This internet can be the best and the worst about info, just get all the info you can from people you trust.
Sorry to go on so long. Personally I think they are way smarter than most folks know, it’s just such a totally, awesomely hard career choice.
#20 by rukiddin on December 26, 2009 - 5:45 pm
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I would. Therapy tends to make the pain worse because you’re making the painful parts work. That’s a pretty bad answer from the PT, but he did give you the go-ahead. You can always try the first time without meds to tell him when it hurts, but PTs tend to know where it hurts and even if they are hurting you, their goal is to get the painful part moving properly again. I believe I took my pain meds before I went, yet I knew what would hurt since that’s why I was going. And, therapy is painful enough that simple pain meds aren’t going to mask the pain–just dim it. Mine wasn’t as bad as say a knee replacement and yet I limped out of there. Stretching those with knee replacement is so painful for them that I winced just watching it–and they are on pain meds when they go. I would definitely take it before you go.