Photo: Capenergy

There are alternatives out there to what the pharmaceutical companies continuously punt. Instead of taking costly drugs, or going for specialist treatment somewhere, there are other methods that heal and relieve pain. The ancient Chinese art of ‘cupping’, for example, draws out toxins from the body while increasing circulation, oxygen intake and relief from pain. Electrotherapy is another alternative, with many benefits and uses.

What is electrotherapy?

Electrotherapy, according to an article on nsmi.org.uk, is a form of medical treatment that uses small electrical impulses to repair tissue, stimulate muscles and increase sensations and muscle strength.

Used mainly by physiotherapists as treatment for as many health issues as can be mentioned here, electrotherapy is used for, among many others, asthma, angina, endometriosis, fibroids, neck pain, back pain, osteoarthritis, and sports injuries. Most of these treatments can be done on non-invasive hand-held devices, while some are done by very expensive clinical apparatus. And there are many types of electrotherapy: from Transcutaneous Spinal Electroanalgesia (TSE) and Interferential current (IC) to TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) to Pulse Short Wave Diathermy (PSWD) and many more.

The effects and benefits

Photo: Tenscare

Depending on what the treatment is for, electrotherapy is usually quite a comfortable treatment and can be done at home, with many pain relieving products out there from manufacturers like Rio, TensCare and Beurer.

So if you have a bad tennis elbow, or perhaps you knocked your knees in a horse riding accident, you can actually undergo treatment, relieve pain and inflammation in your own at home. The main benefit of these treatments is that there are no side-effects such as those some may experience with pharmaceutical drugs; the machines work on the body’s bioelectrical processes. There is also no chance of becoming addicted to the treatment – and one can use these machines as much as one receives benefits from them. Lastly, most of these machines are non-invasive, meaning they do not penetrate the skin, so no scars and no discomfort. In fact most of the pain sensations are replaced by slight tingling.

Treatment

If your injury or ailment is of an acute nature, you might want to first consult a physiotherapist in your area. And perhaps the more you know the better, and the more benefit you can get from electrotherapy treatment, especially if you’re doing it at home. There are many online courses like the one through stonebridge.uk.com, which offers intensive courses to help you with technique, treatment, and so on. You’ll achieve better relief from pain, and, maybe you could even help others.

Tags: Beurer, electrotherapy, pain relieving, relieve pain, TensCare