Questions about physical therapy?

I have an ache in between my neck (right side) and right shoulder. I have tried the doctors but now want to try my hand at physical therapy. I have a couple of questions about this.

1: Will the physical therapists do something similar to what a massage therapist would do (massage the ache away) or is it something more similar to a chiropractor?

2: I had to go through my doctor to get an order for this therapy. I will in the very near future be looking for individual health insurance. Does something like having physical therapy for a month old neck ache hurt my chances of getting approved for individual health insurance? Is it similar to having something like hypertension on your record or does it matter?

Has anyone had a neck/shoulder ache for this long as well and had a physical therapist make it go away? How long did yours take to get better?

There are many different types of physical therapy techniques, so what they will do may vary depending on how they practice. However, at the very least, they will perform an evaluation and take objective measurements and discuss with you how the problem is affecting your day to day function. Based on the assessment, the therapist will get an idea if the problem is muscular such as a strain, discogenic (coming from a disc), etc. The type of treatment you receive will depend highly on the results of the evaluation. Massaage MIGHT be involved...but I can tell you that I RARELY use it unless it is a strain or muscle tension. This is because massage will only cover up the problem if the real problem is coming from posture, weakness, etc. When I do use massage, it is usually in combination with exercise, manual therapy (similar to the chiropractor...but a much slower and controlled technique), and possibly modalities. This is probably consistent with most physical therapists. In the end, it all depends on what I find. If you go in there expecting a massage, you might walk out disappointed. Just remember that we want to do what we feel will fix the problem.

Regarding insurance, I cannot see that this would inhibit you from getting a policy...it is not as though you've had chronic problems for many years.

Regarding length of treatment, most people I see who have a neck problem have an underlying disc problem...I would say I am successful with most patients, but there are always people I cannot help due to advanced degeneration, etc. Most are seen 2-3 times a week for 4-6 weeks...on average, 6-8 visits.

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