In today’s digital world, it’s become all too common to experience back pain. Many people are told to get a CT or MRI scan, and when the results come back showing disc bulges, degeneration, or a slipped disc, it can sound alarming. But here’s the truth:

Spinal abnormalities are common, even in people without pain.

The Stats You Need to Know

A landmark 2015 study by Dr. Brinjikji looked at thousands of people with no history of back pain. Shockingly, they found that disc degeneration was present in 50% of healthy individuals in their 30s, and the percentage increased with age.

What does this mean for you? 

It means that what shows up on a scan isn’t necessarily the cause of your pain. 

In fact, scans can often lead people to believe they are “broken,” when the root cause is something that can actually be treated with the right approach.

Figure A: Prevalence of spinal abnormalities in pain-free people (Brinjikji, 2015)

The Real Cause: Whole-Body Muscle Imbalance

At Pain Free Physiotherapy, we’ve found that up to 90% of our patients with lower back pain are actually suffering from a whole-body muscle imbalance — not just a localised problem in the spine.

This imbalance occurs when the upper body (particularly the thoracic spine) and the lower body (especially around the hips and legs) become stiff and tight. The lower back, stuck between the two, is forced to compensate.

Visualising the Problem: The Spring Diagram

To help illustrate this, imagine the human body like a set of springs:

Figure 1. In a healthy body, the central spring (representing your core and lower back) is taut and stable, while the springs above and below (upper and lower body) have more mobility and looseness.

Figure 2. In most back pain cases, the springs representing the upper and lower body are tight, while the core is loose, pulling extra load onto the middle coil (the lower back).

 

This extra load causes the lower back to overwork, wear down, and become painful over time. The issue isn’t the scan finding — it’s the underlying imbalance.

What Can You Do?

The first step to healing isn’t rest or surgery. It’s restoring balance. That starts with:

1. Activating your deep core stabilisers – specifically the transverse abdominis (TrA) muscle

2. Improving flexibility in the upper back and hips

3. Correcting posture and movement habits

Our team specialises in identifying these patterns and designing personalised programs that target the root cause — not just the symptoms.

What Can We Do?

At Pain Free Physiotherapy, our approach focuses on correcting the root cause — not just treating symptoms. Here’s how we can help:

• We perform a thorough assessment to identify muscle imbalances throughout your body

• We teach you how to activate and strengthen your core muscles to better support your spine

• We guide you through tailored movement and flexibility strategies to rebalance your body

Whether you’re experiencing occasional discomfort or chronic lower back pain, we can help you take back control — without relying on medication, injections, or unnecessary scans.

Call us today on 0421 333 609 or visit painfreephysio.com to find out more or book an appointment.

You don’t have to live with chronic pain. Start by understanding your body — not just your scan.

The post Why Your Scan Doesn’t Explain Your Back Pain (And What Really Does) first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

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As a physio and a regular gym goer, I am not immune to wrist injuries when pulling weights in the gym.

I remember that sharp pain that shot through my wrist every time I put weight on it. Is my career at stake? 

What did I do to make my wrist hurt? After COVID restrictions had eased, I realised that it was from suddenly returning to sports that increased my risk of injury. 

Not only that, but suddenly increasing the weight that I was not used to. That forces my wrist to be in awkward positions and then injury happens. 

What did I do then?

Changing wrist positioning to stop my wrist from bending too much took most of the pain away. I could do push-ups on bars or dumbbells keeping the wrist straight. But I could still feel that wrist pain slowly creeping in.

I also found that using wrist wraps helped to secure my wrist which also helped me with getting back to heavier weights. 

Away from the gym, I made sure to keep the wrist safe from sudden twists or bends. Rest was a major factor to allow my wrist to recover. 

It’s not just exercise that you can get wrist pain from, but it could be from other work related tasks, repetitive movements or trauma. 

So if you suffer from wrist pain and aren’t able to manage it yourself, contact our clinic on (07) 3273 8887 or book online at www.painfreephysio.com for a detailed assessment.

The post Physio hurts his wrist? first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

Feeling tired but can’t sleep?

In a bad mood because of your headache?

Got tight muscles but won’t stretch out?

Acupuncture & Dry Needling:

What’s the Point?

Acupuncture is traditionally a Chinese medicine technique that involves the use of fine needles to stimulate points on the body to help alleviate pain and treat a variety of medical conditions.

In Western Medicine, we use a couple of different variations both still using needles but targeting different points on the body.

It is one of the many skills that your therapist might use as part of an integrated approach to the management of your pain and inflammation.

How does Acupuncture Work?

Acupuncture works through the belief that the human body has 12 major pathways called meridians – each linked to specific internal organs and organ systems.

Acupuncture involves fine needles inserted at certain ‘acupuncture’ points to restore the balance of energy (also known as Qi – pronounced ‘chee’) which when unbalanced is believed to cause pain and illness.

Benefits of Acupuncture

How does Dry Needling Work?

Dry Needling is based on the theory that when trigger points develop in the soft tissues, they lead to neuromuscular dysfunction, which results in pain, decreased function and increased stress on the surrounding soft tissue structures.

Studies have shown that needling deactivates the trigger point and facilitates the muscle to relax and lengthen, alleviating the original problem as well as the secondary, referred pain area.

Benefits of Dry Needling

What does it feel like?

As the needles are inserted you may feel a slight pin prick, some patients feel nothing at all, followed by a deep ache, tingling, warmth or mild discomfort.

The warm heavy sensation at and around the needle is referred to as “De Qi” and is a sign that the body’s inbuilt pain relieving mechanisms are being stimulated.

For dry needling, if the therapist is needling into a muscle trigger point, there is often a ‘twitch’ response (the muscle jumps), which is a good indication the needle is in the affected area.

Ask about our Acupuncture services (available Thursday to Saturday) or our Physiotherapists who are qualified to perform Dry Needling.

The post Acupuncture & Dry Needling: What’s the Point? first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

Preparing for Hip replacement surgery

Dos and don’ts following Hip Replacement surgery

The hip replacement procedure before and after

Hip Replacement Rehab Stair climbing

The post Preparing for Hip Replacement first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

Pain in the low back or around the back of the hips? Painful when you’re walking or just standing? Are you pregnant and have constant hip pain? Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction can often be misdiagnosed as common low back pain. There are many causes of SIJ dysfunction, and women are at higher risk. Why? You need to watch this video to find out more! 腰或臀部疼痛？走路或站立時感到痛？您是否懷孕並且有持續不斷腰痛？ SIJ功能障礙的原因有很多，婦女的風險更高。為什麼？觀看此視頻以了解更多！ #SIJdysfunction #SIJpain #physio #painfree #SIJ功能障礙#腰痛

The post SIJ dysfunction – Hip/Low back pain first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

車禍後頸部疼痛很常見。突然施加在頸部的力有機會損壞肌肉，關節，骨骼，韌帶，椎間盤和神經。如果管理不當，頸部疼痛可能會長期發作，並將繼續影響日常生活。

若過去6個月內您有車禍造成疼痛，請聯繫我們，我們將提供初次免費諮詢。
#Whiplash #CarAccident #車禍 #頸痛 #恢復 #FreeConsult #免費諮詢

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The cause of lower back pain and sciatica can be outside the lower back and can be different among individuals. Watch the case studies to learn the number 1 reason why your back pain and sciatica pain doesn’t get better with treatments.

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The post True Cause To Your Lower Back Pain first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

Pain Free Physiotherapists regularly treat sciatica and have terrific results.

The sciatic nerve runs from the lower back down through the buttocks and along the back of each leg. Sciatica is pain along this nerve and is a relatively common form of back pain and is usually caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve from a herniated or bulging disc.

The pain from sciatica can be anything from infrequent and irritating to severe and debilitating. Usually, it affects only one side, the pain radiating through the buttock and down the leg and is often associated with a constant pain on one side of the buttocks, pain in the leg and/or buttock that may be worse when sitting , burning or tingling down the leg, weakness, numbness or difficulty moving the leg or foot or a shooting pain that makes it difficult to stand up.

Typically, sciatica is made worse by bending, lifting, sneezing and coughing.

While sciatica can be extremely painful and uncomfortable, it is rare that permanent nerve damage (tissue damage) results. Most pain is due to inflammation and will improve if the Physiotherapist is treating the right point on the nerve root (the cause of the pain).

Sciatica is a common problem for manual workers, sedentary office workers and is particularly prevalent during pregnancy.

Physiotherapy Treatment main objectives are

• find cause
• restore movement
• eliminate pain
• strengthen weakened muscles

Causes of Sciatica

The sciatic nerve is the main nerve in the leg and the largest in the body. It runs from the base of the spine, along the back of the thigh to the knee, where it divides into branches.

Sciatic pain can be caused by many dysfunctions. Compression of the nerve root by a disc injury or muscle dysfunction is the most common cause. This, however, may not be the true structure causing the injury. In many instances, the actual structure causing the issue is not even located in the painful area. It is important not to fall into the trap of thinking that the painful area is the cause of the issue.

Though the pain may present itself in the lower back, it is likely caused by another structural dysfunction elsewhere in the body. The body works as a series of moving cogs, if a cog earlier in the chain malfunctions then it will affect the clockwork elsewhere along the track.

These structural malfunctions can result from a number of reasons including

• Sometimes, just sitting awkwardly can cause sciatica.
• Piriformis syndrome (tightness of the piriformis muscle in the buttock that compresses the sciatic nerve)
• Spinal misalignments, vertebral dysfunction
• Poor posture – wearing high heels, prolonged sitting, poor mattress
• Poor lifting technique and poor bending habits
• Spinal compressions due to osteoporosis

Diagnosis of Sciatica

Since there are many disorders that can cause sciatica, your physiotherapists’ first task is to determine the exact cause of your sciatic nerve interference.

Physiotherapy treatment

• Always begins with a thorough history,
• Spinal, orthopaedic and neurological examination.
• Special diagnostic imaging investigations such as X-ray, CT, MRI
• Posture pro scan may also be required to accurately diagnose your sciatica.

Treatment of Sciatica

As sciatica is due to pressure on the sciatic nerve, it stands to reason that treatment involves removing this pressure. Your Physiotherapy treatment aims to achieve this by reducing nerve pressure caused by poorly moving spinal joints as well as easing muscular tension in the lower spine, buttock and leg.

This is achieved by using a combination of the following techniques:

• Spinal mobilisations
• Massage therapy and trigger point therapy
• Stretching tight muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments
• Ultrasound and other electrical stimulation devices
• Advice in relation to how to minimise pressure and irritation of the sciatic nerve

In addition to this, you will be given a series of home stretching exercises and asked to apply ice and heat to help aid your recovery.

If you are suffering from sciatica at the moment please do not delay – you can achieve the best results when you address the symptoms early, simply contact us to begin your care today!

The post What is Sciatica first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.

Neck and shoulder pain seemed to be a never-ending nightmare that can only be relieved by massage, heat and painkillers, praying the condition will stay as it is; not getting worse. Many patients would have tried multiple remedies but with nil long lasting relief. The core problem is these patients receive treatments passively; they don’t actively prevent the problem themselves.

Below are ways to completely relieve neck and shoulder pain:

Using exercise to restore correct shoulder blade position:

Scapula or commonly called “shoulder blade” is the base support of neck and shoulder. As the picture shows, many muscles attach to scapula. The position of scapula would be normal if the surrounding muscles are balanced and vice versa. Pain usually happens when parts of muscles is too tight whereas other parts are too weak. This will make the scapula rotate downwards, which makes the shoulder position lower than the other side.

Treatments not only release tight muscles, but also strengthen loose and weak muscles, so that we can correct scapula back to the right position. You can try 2 exercises below:

1. Stand and place both hands on the wall. Slide both hands upward; slightly shrug the shoulder as you get to the end of range. Repeat 15 times for 3 sets.
2. 4-point kneel on the ground, knees in line with hips and hands beneath the shoulders. Imagine trying to elongate our arms and arch your back. Sustain this position for 15 seconds and repeat 3 times. You can do as many sets as you can in a day, especially after heavy lifting.

Correct posture:

As stated in introduction, the shoulder on the painful side is usually lower than the unaffected normal side. Thus avoid carry heavy bags or heavy items on the affected side. Support the forearm on armrest while driving or siting on the sofa. Ladies should try to use sports bra (the cross-link bra strap has less downward pull compared to usual bra straps). In addition, place reading material supported in an angle, position computer monitors slightly lower than centre of vision and frequent rest breaks during work will help in preventing shoulder and neck pain.

Physiotherapy and taping:

Majority of shoulder and neck pain actually resulted from incorrect scapula position. This problem can be fixed with specialized exercise and posture correction. Approximately 80~90% patients can achieve long-lasting and immediate relief. Most shoulder and neck pain is not the result of degeneration can recover within very short amount of time.

The post Neck and Shoulder Pain Syndrome first appeared on Pain Free Physio & Health.