What is persistent pain?
Persistent pain is pain that continues past the usual time of healing. Doctors also call it chronic pain. It may follow an injury or surgery, or it may begin with no clear cause.
The pain is real. When pain lasts, the nerves and the brain can become more sensitive, so small movements or touch trigger a bigger alarm than the tissue deserves. This does not mean you are imagining it, and it does not mean you have failed to heal.
Why does it matter so much?
Persistent pain affects sleep, mood, work and family.
It makes people fear movement and stop doing what they enjoy. Then the body becomes weaker and the pain more sensitive.
It is common worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that low back pain, one example of persistent pain, affected 619 million people in 2020, about 1 in 13 [1]. You are not alone.
Our page on pain management describes the services we offer for it.
What does it look like in Ipoh homes?
It shows up in the small tasks of daily life. Think of a grandmother who cannot stand at the stove to cook, a shop worker whose back aches by noon, or a night-shift worker kept awake by a throbbing shoulder.
Heat and humidity can make people stiffer and move less, then pain flares after a long day at the morning market. Festive seasons ask a lot of the body, with hours of cooking, cleaning and hosting.
Some families say “it is just old age” or “rest more”. That advice can leave the person alone with the pain. We would rather ask what a good day would let you do.
What do we check at the first visit?
We begin by listening, for a good while. We ask when the pain started, what has been tried and what you hope to do again.
- Where the pain is, how it changes and what sets it off.
- How you move, stand, walk and sleep.
- Strength, flexibility and fitness.
- Your daily routine, work and family tasks.
- What scans, doctors and medicines have said so far.
- Your sleep, stress and worries about movement.
If anything suggests a cause that needs a doctor first, we tell you and help you take the next step.
How does physiotherapy help?
The goal is to help you do more of what matters, with pain that is easier to live with. We help the body trust movement again, step by step.
A plan can follow these steps.
- Agree on two or three goals in your words, such as cooking for the family or walking to the kopitiam.
- Learn pacing: doing a steady amount each day, not too much on good days and nothing on bad ones.
- Start gentle movement and strengthening at a level that feels safe.
- Increase gradually, so the body learns that movement is safe.
- Add sleep, stress and flare-up plans, and review at every visit.
WHO says that for low back pain, painkillers should not be the first-line treatment, and that physical therapies, psychological and social support and staying active can help [2]. Our glossary has short entries on pacing and graded exposure.
What can I do this week?
These steps are small and useful.
- Write down the two things you most want to do again.
- Walk a short, steady amount each day, the same on good and bad days.
- Break big tasks, such as cooking or cleaning, into short blocks with rests.
- Keep a regular bedtime, and keep screens away from the bed.
- Tell a family member what helps and what does not.
If a new symptom appears, such as numbness or weakness, tell your doctor.
When should I see a doctor first?
Go to a doctor or the emergency department if pain comes with fever, unexplained weight loss, a new lump, or pain that wakes you at night and keeps growing. Go too if you have new weakness, numbness, or trouble passing urine or stools.
See a doctor if your mood has become very low or you feel unsafe. Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun, Fatimah Hospital and Pantai Hospital Ipoh can see you for physical causes, and your doctor can arrange support for mood and sleep.
How do home sessions in Ipoh work?
A physiotherapist comes to your house, listens to your story and watches how you move in the places where pain bites. A family member can sit in, so the whole household understands the plan.
Visits are available across Ipoh now, and our Canning Garden centre is opening soon. Prices are quoted on WhatsApp after a short description. See how home physiotherapy works, and read about fibromyalgia, a related long-term pain condition.