When treating sports injuries, the main focus is to get the athlete back on the field as quickly as possible while maintaining the same level of fitness as before the injury occurred.
In pursuit of these goals, both conventional and alternative methods have been regularly used by physicians with varying degrees of success.
Sports medicine research has recently identified important roles for complementary and alternative medicine, commonly referred to as integrative medicine. Integrative medicine is now widely recognized as a value added strategy for treating sports injuries.
What Is Integrative Medicine?
Integrative medicine combines a variety of conventional medicine techniques with specific aspects of your body’s natural ability to heal itself. This enables doctors to use an evidence-based approach to treat injuries by looking at the patient as a whole.
According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, integrative medicine focuses on conventional medical care and complementary therapies as well as the following aspects of your body:
- Mind, body, and soul
- Physical nature of the injury
- Emotional state
- Mental and spiritual needs
Integrative Medicine vs. Conventional Medicine
Conventional medicine relies on “appropriate therapies” according to science, such as medication, physiotherapy, rehabilitation, and psychotherapy. On the other hand, when it comes to integrative medicine, physicians use healing-oriented medicine, such as yoga and acupuncture.
While the two are different, integrative medicine doesn’t completely reject conventional medicine. Integrative medicine seeks to deal with sports injury-related issues, such as chronic pain management, bringing together all the factors that influence recovery, for example:
- The nature of the sports injury
- Health history of the patient (any chronic diseases?)
- The overall health of the whole person
- Environmental factors that may influence health and recovery
- Nutritional habits
- Stressors, both physical and mental
- Training, participation and recovery protocols
- Social support structure
Complementary and Integrative Health Care for Sports Injuries
Positive results are fueling the growing interest of athletes to seek integrative medicine providers to treat sports injuries. The desire of informed consumers to avoid or reduce the lingering side effects of conventional therapies has also spurred the evolution of alternative medicine.
Types of Integrative Medicine Therapies
Integrative or functional medicine seeks to promote healthy behaviors, help the physical body attain optimal health, and aid in the recovery of athletes suffering from sports injuries using the following techniques:
- Yoga
- Acupuncture or dry needling
- Sports massage therapy by qualified massage therapists
- Chiropractic therapy
- Chinese herbal therapy
- Holistic psychotherapy
- Guided imagery to optimize success
- Culinary medicine and nutrition counseling
- Reiki
- Tai chi and other forms of movement therapy
- Laboratory studies to identify deficiencies and or toxicities.
Benefits and Risks of Integrative Medicine
When done by qualified healthcare providers and health professionals, functional medicine promotes a reduction in stress, better levels of relaxation, and quicker recovery from sports injuries.
However, while there are no major risks associated with integrative medicine, it should be noted that this is not meant to replace conventional techniques entirely but to complement them. It is a personalized approach to healing that should be supervised by qualified health practitioners.
Improve the Healing Process for Your Sports Injury Using Alternative Therapies
If you are looking for good medicine alternative therapies to help sports injuries heal faster, reduce stress, promote self-development, and provide a better sense of well-being, try integrative medicine at Spine Technology and Rehabilitation.