The body can be adapting for the effects of an injury long after the tissue has completely healed, causing chronic pain patterns. In fact, we see this with almost all our chronic pain patients.
People often accept living with chronic pain because an MRI scan or X-ray has indicated structural abnormalities, or funnily enough they show no changes so everyone says there is nothing wrong with you. The important thing is, are you compensating and if so why and how?
Adaptions often occurs as a threat response. If something is causing you pain, your body will subconsciously do everything possible to get you out of that pain, including changing movement patterns to avoid an area:
- bend away from it
- hitch up to protect it
- turn towards it or away depending on the feel in your body
- turn out a hip
- slouch forwards
- anything is possible really
This can lead to some areas working more, and others less, areas stretching or contracting more then others.
These postures done every day eventually become your norm, or your body’s perception of normal. It’s simply adapting to make your body more efficient for the time being by avoidance. However, making one habit more efficient can lead to other tasks becoming more strenuous.