Pain Management

Chronic pain could be due to many reasons. For older individuals, the aging process, bone and joint deterioration, wear and tear could lead to different forms of arthritis causing persistent pain and discomfort. Other medical conditions could also result in chronic pain like fibromyalgia, plantar fasciitis, lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow) and nerve impingement (sciatica, carpel tunnel syndrome, thoracic outlet syndrome). Sports injuries, soft tissue injuries, poor posture (standing, sitting or sleeping), being overweight, wearing improper footwear or improper lifting technique are other causes that can lead to chronic pain. Headaches or migraines is another type of chronic pain many individuals suffer on a daily basis.

Dr. Cheung focuses on the root cause of each patient’s pain and its manifestations like lifestyle, nutrition, work and daily activities, stressors and previous injuries to develop a personalized pain management treatment plan.  Typical approach includes lifestyle and dietary recommendations, herbal medicine and/or nutritional supplements to reduce inflammation and pain and complement any nutritional deficiencies that might have caused the pain.   Acupuncture, hydrotherapy and physical medicine are naturopathic therapies that are often used to alleviate pain leaving NSAIDS or opioid painkillers as the last resort.