For many people, the word “shock” conjures a mental image of lightning bolts and frizzled hair, and that doesn’t sound pleasant.
But noninvasive relief from stubborn pain? Well, that’s as pleasant as it gets.
When it comes to shockwave therapy, many people aren’t aware that this medical treatment a painless and effective way to treat stubborn sports injuries and other pain. In fact, misconceptions about shock therapy can keep people from getting the pain relief that they need.
If you’ve been referred for shockwave therapy and are nervous about the procedure, keep reading. We’ll give you four science-backed reasons not to fear your shockwave treatment. You’ll be shocked by all the benefits—we promise!
1. It’s Safe
Shockwave therapy is safe for virtually everyone. To understand how gentle it is, let’s look at how shockwave therapy works.
Shockwave therapy consists of directing acoustic waves (shockwaves) that carry energy toward a certain body tissue. When the energy waves hit the tissue, they cause cellular microtrauma. In response to this cellular stress, the body sends a cascade of healing chemicals to the targeted area, resulting in healing, pain relief, and restoration.
Clinicians first used an early type of shockwave therapy to break down kidney stones with sound waves. This type of treatment replaced surgery with sound waves. It’s more gentle, less risky, and far less painful, but still extremely effective.
Now, shockwave therapy is used for a whole range of health problems. Since it promotes cellular healing, many people love it for recovering from hard-to-heal sports injuries and chronic muscle pain. Preliminary research has also shown that shockwave therapy can stimulate angiogenesis (new blood vessel growth), which can relieve pain associated with ischemic heart disease.
From breaking down kidney stones to jump-starting the body’s natural healing process, shockwave therapy has lots of applications, and all of them are safe.
FDA Certification
Not only is the ESWT procedure itself safe, but the FDA regulates shockwave therapy devices. This means that the amount of electric energy given through certified shockwave machines is carefully regulated so that patients know that they are receiving a safe, standardized therapy every time.
2. It Doesn’t Hurt
One of the breakthrough applications for shock wave therapy is to treat erectile dysfunction. Before ESWT, there was no cure for ED, but studies have shown that ESWT can help men overcome ED permanently, leaving male enhancement pills behind for good.
And the best part? None of the men involved reported any pain during or after the treatment.
It’s not surprising that shock wave therapy doesn’t hurt. After all, it’s noninvasive. It simply uses sound waves to target a particular tissue. While a few people report some bruising and soreness following a shockwave treatment, it’s often described as feeling more like sore muscles after a workout rather than a painful recovery.
3. “Shockwave” Doesn’t Mean “Electroshock”
When it comes to medicine, it’s easy to confuse shockwave therapy with a completely different type of medical intervention: electroshock therapy. Despite the similarity of its name, electroshock therapy (EST) has nothing to do with shock wave treatment.
EST, which is sometimes called electroconvulsive therapy, is a psychiatric treatment for depression that doesn’t respond to medication. Even though it’s shown to be effective in certain cases, movies and media have given it a bad rap. As a result, many people can be nervous about going near any treatment that uses electricity in a therapeutic way.
Shockingly Noninvasive
Fortunately, shockwave therapy is nothing like EST. Instead of applying an electric current directly to your body, shock wave therapy uses sound waves to target your tissues. So not only is it far more gentle, but it’s much less invasive as well.
Plus, it’s more localized. To receive EST, you have to be unconscious so that the shocks can affect your whole system, but in shock wave therapy, you simply apply the acoustic waves to the part of your body that needs pain relief. If a clinician is giving you shockwave therapy, they will use a small nozzle-like instrument to direct the waves at the part of your body that needs to heal, or you can do it yourself with a certified home use ESWT machine.
The only thing you’ll be shocked by is how painless this effective therapy is.
4. It Has Minimal Side Effects
Like all treatments, shockwave therapy carries a few side effects. Fortunately, they are minimal and transitory, so they shouldn’t be an obstacle to getting the benefits of this treatment.
Studies have shown that the most common side effect of shockwave therapy is localized bruising at the site of treatment. Other side effects include reddened skin and soreness, all of which subsided quickly. Lower energy levels resulted in fewer side effects.
The same study discovered that a few people experienced migraines after shockwave therapy. This is the only moderately serious side effect that the study discovered, and suggests that people who are prone to migraines may want to take this into account before engaging in shockwave treatment.
Is Shock Therapy for Me?
If you’re looking for breakthrough treatment for erectile dysfunction, freedom from muscle pain, or recovery from a stubborn sports injury, then yes! Shock therapy can be for you.
Don’t let the scary-sounding name keep you from the help you need. Shockwave therapy is a pain-free, safe, and effective way to recover from a variety of musculoskeletal problems.
Oceanus specializes in both clinical and personal use shockwave devices. As an innovator in pulse therapy, we provide professional quality radial pulse therapy devices, affordable for your home.
Contact us today to find the shockwave pain management solution for you.