Arrange a phone consultation!

 
with Dr. Tim
—Your Neck Pain Doctor
1-877-545-7272

Neck pain relief and improved function from neck pain or cervical pain achieved through telephone pain doctor who guides you through maze of pain treatments.

Have you ever wished there was a skilled rehabilitation doctor with expertise in neck pain that you could trust to guide you through the diagnosis and treatment of your neck pain?

Dr. Timothy Sams will coach you by telephone in your own home to help you cure or alleviate your neck pain or neck injury.

In a single consultation, I will help you understand your condition and develop a clear path for treatment that is best for you. As I have helped thousands of other people, as your neck pain and orthopedic rehabilitation coach, I can give you:

• An objective and candid discussion of your neck pain treatment history.

• A simple, thorough explanation of your diagnosis or multiple diagnoses, e.g., cervical injury, neck strain, cervicalgia, cervical sprain, or bulging disc.

• An understanding of various diagnostic tests for neck injury or pain.

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• An experienced assessment of cervical pain treatment options for neck pain relief and recovery including cervical fusion, pain injections, therapeutic modalities and pain medication.

• A description of possible types of pain injection, e.g., cervical facet joint injections, epidurals, trigger points, Botox, and selective injections for nerve pain.

• An understanding of the role of pain medication and when and how it is appropriate to use narcotics for neck pain relief.

• Discussion of spine surgery such as laminectomy, cervical fusion, or disc replacement; your candidacy for neck surgery, with options and success rates, especially for cervical fusion.

• Practical tips for healing cervical injury and relief of both cervical pain and cervicogenic headache.

• Insight into the difference between acute cervical pain (less than 6 months) and chronic neck pain (more than 6 months) and how that must affect treatment.

• Questions to ask your doctors and ways to get the best orthopedic rehabilitation for cervical injury, neck strain, cervical sprain, or even cervicalgia. Suggestions for alternative treatments for neck pain relief, e.g., acupuncture, Yoga, aqua therapy, neuromuscular re-education, feldenkrais.

• Strategies for recognizing the difference between increased cervical injury and increased cervical pain.

• Support and encouragement through your orthopedic rehabilitation and neck pain relief.

• Education about implantable devices such as spinal cord stimulator.

Cut Through the Confusion and Misinformation about Neck Pain

Confusion and misinformation are the rule with neck pain. Almost inevitably, there isn't one cause but multiple cervical pain triggers in combination. You may receive several diagnoses including bulging disc, cervicalgia, degenerative disc disease, cervical facet joint disease, neck strain, or cervical sprain.

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Did you know that Cervicalgia is a wastebasket diagnosis with the word cervicalgia literally meaning pain in the neck? You will likely obtain numerous treatment recommendations from physical therapy to trigger point to cervical facet joint injections, many of which seem to contradict each other.

Your doctors may view neck pain, neck pain relief, and orthopedic rehabilitation from the prism of their own specialty. Orthopedists see pain relief from laminectomy to cervical fusion for a bulging disc, degenerative disc disease, spondylolisthesis, or cervical stenosis. Neurologists tend to see neck pain relief or neck injury from a nerve pain or neuropathy perspective with expertise in diagnosing neuropathy and radiculopathy.

Family practice docs and internists may perceive mainly neck strain, cervical sprain, or other myofascial pain as the neck pain trigger with the belief that neck strain and cervical sprain usually resolve quickly.

Chiropractors may have a bias toward spinal misalignment, subluxation, cervicalgia, and cervical sprain with a long term view of cervical pain treatment and prevention.

Board certified pain physicians often view neck pain relief from the perspective of interventions, especially pain medication and pain injections including Botox, trigger points, cervical facet joint injections, radiofrequency nerve ablation, epidurals, and selective nerve root blocks. Wherein lies the truth?

Pain Relief for Acute, Severe Neck Pain

Neck pain relief for acute, severe neck pain (from cervical sprain to bulging disc) should be aggressively provided through pain injections, physical therapy, and pain medication, including narcotic pain medication. You do not have to suffer! Spine surgery, including cervical fusion, is a last resort option in orthopedic rehabilitation and cannot help for lingering neck strain or cervicalgia; only for bone or discogenic based pain.

Get Relief from Long-Term Pain

Pain relief for longer term, chronic neck pain should also be aggressively provided through movement therapies, pain medication including narcotics, pain injections with trial of cervical facet joint injections, and alternative pain management treatments. Since chronic neck pain is worsened by lowered serotonin levels, medications which increase serotonin (antidepressants) can be a valuable treatment option.

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Moreover, chronic neck pain, depression, and anxiety go together like Larry, Moe, and Curly, without the humor. With chronic neck pain, inaccurate diagnoses, failed treatments, family conflicts, and legal issues from personal injury, social security, or worker's compensation combine to foster depression and/or anxiety.

If you've had chronic neck pain or neck injury for longer than a year, research tells us that 30%-70% of your pain may not be caused by tissue damage but by other factors including: poor posture, gait, and body mechanics; bracing and guarding; wasting of the muscles and cervical facet joints; nervous system arousal; impaired sleep; medication side effects; decreased activity and exercise; overcompensation; and even physical therapies. This is true for diverse problems like degenerative disc disease, bulging disc, or neck strain or other neck injury.

The bottom line is that you may not have to suffer as much as you are! You can control these extra pain triggers that make your cervical pain worse. You can help yourself get better neck pain relief. You can also educate your physicians and teach them how to provide better neck pain relief. For chronic neck pain, a trial of cervical facet joint injections is almost inevitably necessary. Remember, physicians work for you even when they don't act like it.

If you are confused about cervical diagnosis or treatment options, or have questions about what you are going through, consulting with me can be your best opportunity to gain a clear direction.

Let me be your neck pain and orthopedic rehabilitation coach and guide you through the maze of diagnostic testing, medical treatments, pain management, disability and limitations, and the crushing effects of chronic neck pain or neck injury on family and finances. We can have a single summary consultation, or develop a longer term relationship through changing conditions or treatments.

About Dr. Tim Sams

I have over 20 years experience as a rehabilitation doctor. As a member of the American Academy of Pain Management, I have consulted to dozens of pain clinics, hundreds of orthopedic and spine surgeons, and have conducted over 40,000 sessions with pain patients and their families.

I have helped establish several pain management clinics with offices in multiple counties. Now, my expertise is available through the internet. I can be your neck pain coach in the privacy of your own home. You do not have to suffer alone through neck pain, rehabilitation, and painful procedures.

Schedule an appointment with me by phone and start the path to feeling better now.  

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