Some pain management clinics would require you to have a referral from your personal or family physician before they can treat you. This could be because of insurance or other reasons. However, not all clinics or cases warrant a referral. In this article, we tell you how it’s possible to have pain management without referral.
Visit a Chiropractor
Having joint issues, back pain, neck pain, or other bone-related issues? The best medical professional to see in such situations is a chiropractor. This is one of the medical professionals you can see for pain management without referral. All you have to do is have a phone interview with the chiropractor before visiting them. If you were involved in an accident and hired a back injury attorney, they may also contact the chiropractor.
During your first visit, your medical history will be taken as one of the first key steps towards your treatment. The chiropractor will ask you about your past injuries, use of drugs or alcohol, any medications that you take, lifestyle habits such as exercises and diet, and any other medical condition that you have. This information will guide the chiropractor in giving you the best back pain treatment or treatment for any ailing condition.
Once your medical history is taken, comes the physical exam. This is when the chiropractor conducts various tests to assess your pain. This exam may include tests such as respiration, pulse, reflexes, and blood pressure tests. Tests will also be conducted to assess your muscle strength, muscle tone, range of motion of the affected part, and neurological integrity. The chiropractor may also watch the way you walk, assess the motion of the affected part, and conduct posture analysis.
After the tests, the chiropractor is set to arrive at a diagnosis that will determine the appropriate treatment you should get. One of the most common diagnostic studies in these cases is the X-ray, which is conducted during the physical exam. The x-ray is used to diagnose spondyloarthritis, recent trauma, and spinal deformities such as scoliosis.
Consult With a Respiratory Therapist
Do you have breathing problems and seek pain management without referral? Your best luck is trying to visit a respiratory therapist. A respiratory therapist is a medical professional that specializes in treating lungs or breathing problems. Although a respiratory therapist is not a doctor, they work closely with doctors to diagnose your condition.
You may be wondering when and why you might need the services of a respiratory therapist and not your typical doctor. In addition to situations when you’d prefer pain management without referral, you’d want to see a respiratory therapist if you have asthma, cystic fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchitis, emphysema, sleep apnea, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Other conditions that warrant a visit to the therapist include amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, and spinal muscular dystrophy. These are conditions that cause breathing problems and you’ll need to see a respiratory therapist.
When visiting the therapists, expect to go through a thorough assessment by the specialist. Assessment typically includes evaluation of your medical history, an interview, followed by a physical examination. During the assessment or interview, the therapist may ask about your environment, including questions about whether there are molds in your home or where you work. They may recommend that you get mold treatment services to eradicate the mold if your symptoms indicate problems arising from the presence of mold within your environment.
Based on the results from the evaluation stage, the therapist will develop a treatment plan. Depending on your needs, the treatment plan may include lifestyle education, education about your disease or condition, stress management, physical therapy, and breathing retraining. Respiratory therapists in a hospital setting also help in giving oxygen to patients with low levels of oxygen, monitor vital signs, provide chest physiotherapy, set up and manage ventilators, and provide breathing treatments that put medicine directly into the lungs of the patient.
Research Hormone Imbalances
Some diseases or medical conditions are as a result of hormone imbalance. This means that you have either too much or too low of the specific hormone. Identifying the root cause of your condition as being hormone imbalance means that it’s possible to get pain management without referral. This is because sometimes the remedy could be as simple as a lifestyle or diet change. But how do you find out if you have a hormone imbalance? You can start by doing your own research.
Hormones are chemicals that travel in your bloodstream and help in coordinating various functions by passing messages. The messages signal your body’s tissues and organs what to do and when to do. It is normal for some types of hormones to fluctuate throughout your lifetime. However, some changes are due to problems with the endocrine glands. In such cases, you’ll need hormone replacement therapy to rectify the problem.
As you do your research on hormone imbalances, one of the critical areas you shouldn’t forget to research on is the signs or symptoms of hormonal imbalance. Signs to look out for in women include insomnia, low libido, mood swings, rashes on the skin, irregular menstrual cycle, pain on the back or in the abdomen during menstruation, diarrhea or constipation, brittle bones, unexplained weight gain or weight loss, and excessive hair growth. Symptoms of hormonal imbalance among men include low libido, tenderness in the area of the chest, thinning hair, reduced hair growth, erectile dysfunction, and loss of muscle mass.
These symptoms could also be indicative of other medical conditions and not necessarily hormonal imbalance. To ascertain that you have hormonal imbalance, you’ll have to do blood tests that check your levels of hormones.
Control Your Emotions With a Pet
Why should you bother seeing a doctor for minor emotional problems when you have lovely dogs and cats in your home? Emotional support animals make it possible for you to have pain management without referral. This is because interactions with pets can minimize stress and anxiety symptoms. Dogs, for example, are able to interpret your body language, gestures, and tone of voice. Your dog knows when you’re sad and when you’re happy.
Pets can also reduce loneliness. When you’re lonely, you may experience a wide range of emotions. Pets can encourage you to be more playful or exercise. The positive effects include improvement in your cardiovascular health. In addition, pets provide meaningful companionship for older adults. These benefits are among the key reasons why you should always take good care of your pets. When they are sick, have an animal doctor attend to them.
These wide range of benefits of pet ownership are backed by various studies. Studies have shown that people with pets have lower blood pressure in stressful situations compared to people without pets. In addition, pet owners have lower risks of hypertension compared to those without pets. Furthermore, playing with your cat or dog can elevate levels of dopamine and serotonin. Studies also show that pet owners over the age of 65 make 30 percent fewer visits to doctors compared to those without pets within a similar age group.
Go to a Med Spa
Not all types of pain warrant a visit to a physician. Maybe all you need for that back pain is a good massage from a professional masseur. You can visit a med spa to have various types of back or neck pain resolved,and this is one method of pain management without referral.
Although you can visit a traditional spa and get a message, a med spa goes beyond to provide specific services that are beneficial to your overall health. In addition, you can only find professionals like acupuncture doctors and other trained medical staff in med spas. Also, med spas have specific medical equipment that you’ll not find in conventional spas.
A medical spa combines the services of a conventional spa and the medical services available in medical centers. It’s like having a hospital and a spa under one roof. Med spas also offer treatments such as detox, post-cancer recuperation, fat burning, metabolic optimization, and medical weight loss. Other services you should expect from med spas include chemical peels, reflexology, varicose vein treatment, and laser hair removal.
Medical spas come with numerous health benefits. For example, state-of-the-art equipment means that you’ll get the best treatment available. This equipment can conduct quick and accurate medical tests. In addition, med spas offer a relaxing environment for recuperation. A typical hospital environment includes the smell of drugs, the suffering of other patients, and the presence of huge medical equipment. This is not a conducive environment for healing. Med spas give you an environment where you can heal in a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.
Invest in Alternatives to Traditional Medicine
Seeking alternatives to traditional medicine is also one way of receiving pain management without referral. Also known as complementary or integrative medicine, alternative medicine is medical treatments that are used instead of conventional or mainstream medicine.
Some types of alternative medicine are also applied in traditional medicine. A good example is acupuncture. Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medical technique that uses needles to stimulate various points around the body. Thin and sterile needles are stuck into your skin to help your body’s natural healing process start. Other alternative medicines applied in traditional medicine include homeopathy, Chinese or oriental medicine, ayurveda, and naturopathy.
Chiropractic medicine is another alternative medicine used in the management and treatment of back injuries, neck pain, and similar problems related to your spine. We have already discussed the specifics of what you should expect from a chiropractor in this article. Yoga, massage, tai chi, and body movement therapies are other forms of alternative medicine that involve touch.
Other alternative medicines target the mind. This is because good mental health is key to your overall health. This is why some people meditate or subject themselves to hypnosis. However, the use of a local psychic reader has no scientific backing for its effectiveness in healing.
Alternative medicine also involves the use of herbal medicines and the adoption of specific diets. The keto diet is an example of a popular diet that is claimed to be effective in preventing and healing specific conditions.
Have a Dentist Look at Your Jaw and Neck
One of the areas you never want to experience pain is in your mouth, specifically your teeth. You can have pain management without referral for your teeth by directly going to a dentist, not a general physician. In such scenarios, dentist appointments are enough and you don’t need referrals. The dentist may have to look at your neck and jaw as part of the assessment process.
One of the reasons why dentists assess jaws and neck is when they’re checking for oral cancer. This is a normal routine when undergoing a dental exam. The dentist will feel your neck to detect any lumps which could be signs of cancer.
You’re supposed to see your dentist twice a year when you don’t have any problems with your teeth. However, many people wait until they have teeth problems before they can see the dentist. We forget that early visits can help prevent future problems. The dentist is able to detect these problems early, even before you start showing obvious symptoms.
If you see your dentist every six months, you make it possible for the dentist to identify some types of medical issues in their early stages. Did you know that a dentist can detect diabetes? Receding and bleeding gums could be signs of diabetes. The dentist will take your medical history combined with your symptoms to make an educated guess. If the dentist suspects you have diabetes, they’ll refer you to a regular doctor for further testing.
Getting pain management without referral means dictating the terms under which you want to get specific medical services. This not only saves time, you also get to consult directly with a specialist in the specific condition or disease that you have. For example, you can directly consult with chiropractic if you have a back injury or a respiratory therapist if you have breathing problems.
