Introduction
If you’ve been living with persistent discomfort, you know how debilitating it can be. The sooner you understand how chronic pain physiotherapy can help, the sooner you can reclaim your life. In this guide we’ll show you how physiotherapy plays a pivotal role, and how it aligns beautifully with our five lifestyle pillars — Movement, Nutrition, Sleep, Stress, and Relationships — to offer a holistic path to relief.
What Is Chronic Pain?
Chronic pain is commonly defined as pain that persists for more than three to six months, or beyond the normal time of healing. Physically, it may start from injury or illness, but its persistence often stems from a complex interplay of tissue, nerve, mechanical and psychological factors. arXiv+2OUP Academic+2
It’s not just stiffness or an occasional ache: chronic pain can infiltrate daily life, limiting function, mood, sleep and relationships.
Types Of Chronic Pain
There are many types of chronic pain — here are a few common ones:
- Chronic low back pain – one of the most frequent reasons people seek a “pain physio” or “chronic pain physio”. PMC+1
- Neck or shoulder pain that persists beyond acute injury
- Chronic joint pain (e.g., from osteoarthritis or joint surgery)
- Neuropathic pain (nerve-related)
- Widespread musculoskeletal pain (e.g., fibromyalgia type presentations)
When considering physiotherapy for chronic pain, it’s crucial to identify which type you are dealing with — because the “physio approach” will vary.
Common Causes of Chronic Pain
Here are several of the major causes and contributing factors behind chronic pain:
- Structural tissue damage or injury (past trauma, surgery, ongoing degeneration)
- Nerve or neuropathic factors (nerve irritation, central sensitisation) OUP Academic+1
- Disuse, de-conditioning, altered movement patterns and fear-avoidance behaviour (you stop moving and this perpetuates pain) PMC+1
- Psychological and emotional factors — stress, poor sleep, anxiety, depression all amplify pain perception. OUP Academic+1
- Lifestyle factors — poor nutrition, disrupted sleep, prolonged sedentary behaviour, weak relational/support environment.
In short: chronic pain rarely stems from just one source. It’s multi-factorial, so the solution must be too.
How Can Physiotherapy Help?
Here’s where the magic happens — how a physiotherapist (or physio team) at Better Physio Group can support chronic pain physiotherapy in a way that integrates your lifestyle pillars. Book an appointment to work with one of our Physiotherapist’s
1. Movement
Movement is foundational. When you are in pain, you may want to rest — but paradoxically, too much rest can worsen chronic pain. Research shows that appropriate physical activity improves pain outcomes. PMC+1
At Better Physio Group, our physiotherapists will assess movement patterns, identify dysfunctions, create a tailored plan of gradual loading, sensorimotor training, appropriate mobilisations, and supervised exercise. For example: strengthening key muscles, improving posture, re-training movement habits. Studies show physiotherapy + exercise improves pain and function in chronic low back pain. PMC+1
We also use a bio-psycho-social approach: recognising that movement works not just by tissue change, but by altering nervous system sensitivity and behaviour. PMC
Tip for you: Even modest, consistent movement (think: walking, gentle strength, posture work) beats waiting for the “perfect” moment. The physio helps you start smart and build things up slowly at a pace that is right for you.
2. Nutrition
While physiotherapy is often movement-focused, nutrition is a silent pillar in chronic pain. Poor diet contributes to inflammation, impaired healing, fatigue and mood swings — all of which can exacerbate pain.
At Better Physio Group, we’ll guide you (or refer you) on how to adopt anti-inflammatory eating habits, adequate protein to support tissue repair, hydration, and avoiding dietary “draggers” like excessive sugar, processed foods or alcohol which can worsen pain perception.
Why it matters: Nutrition modulates your systemic resilience — when you feed the system well, your body has more “bandwidth” to recover and respond to physiotherapy.
Tip for you: Combine your physiotherapy session with food-habits check-ins. The better the “fuel”, the better the movement works.
3. Sleep
Chronic pain and sleep have a nasty two-way relationship: pain disrupts sleep; poor sleep amplifies pain. Without good restorative sleep, you’ll have higher pain sensitivity, lower thresholds, and impaired recovery. At Better Physio Group we recognise sleep as a non-negotiable pillar alongside movement.
Evidence: Poor sleep quality is associated with worse chronic pain outcomes. The nervous system is less able to “reset”.
In your physiotherapy plan we’ll incorporate sleep hygiene advice: regular schedule, darkened room, limiting screens before bed, managing pain flare-ups so they don’t hijack sleep.
Tip for you: If you wake in pain in the night, have a simple stretch routine the physio has shown you, this can reduce arousal and enable you to drift back to sleep. Good sleep amplifies all the other pillars.
4. Stress
Stress (both emotional and physical) is a major amplifier of chronic pain. When you are under stress, muscle tension goes up, nervous system arousal heightens, healing slows, pain signals get boosted. Physiotherapists at Better Physio Group integrate this into the plan: we can’t “just fix the tissue” — we must address the nervous system, the mind–body response, fear-avoidance patterns. PMC+1
We might use education (explaining pain neuroscience), movement techniques that down-regulate the nervous system, mindfulness, or breathing tools for flare-ups. This aligns with the multidisciplinary model of chronic pain care.
Tip for you: Map your stress triggers (work, family, finances) and integrate a short 5-minute “reset” that you do when pain spikes. The physio can show you how movement + breathing can flip the nervous system from “fight/flight” to “repair”.
5. Relationships
Yes — relationships matter. Chronic pain is isolating, frustrating, and can strain relationships. Lack of social support, poor communication, and loneliness all worsen pain outcomes. A recent scoping review found that people living with chronic pain emphasise the need for interpersonal care and support in physiotherapy services. BioMed Central
At Better Physio Group we emphasise the team approach: you + physio + your support network (family/friends) working on the plan. We’ll invite you to bring someone to sessions or share simple education, so they “get” what you’re doing.
Tip for you: Having a “movement buddy” or a partner in the nutrition/sleep/stress plan can boost adherence and reduce the load on you. Pain relief isn’t just about your body — it’s about your ecosystem.
Bringing It All Together: The Five-Pillar Approach to Chronic Pain Physiotherapy
So how does it all link?
- Movement brings physical resilience and reduces de-conditioning.
- Nutrition supplies the materials and internal environment for repair and pain-modulation.
- Sleep allows your system to reset, recover and reduce sensitisation.
- Stress control stops your nervous system from turning the volume up on pain signals.
- Relationships offer support, reduce isolation and anchor the habit change needed for relief.When you combine these pillars with specialist physiotherapy at Better Physio Group, you are not just “managing pain” — you are actively redesigning your lifestyle so chronic pain becomes a smaller part of your life, not the center of it.
Summary
Chronic pain doesn’t have to dictate your life — chronic pain physiotherapy via Better Physio Group offers a pathway to relief by tackling the problem from all angles: movement, nutrition, sleep, stress and relationships.
You deserve more than temporary fixes: you deserve an approach that builds resilience, restores function and gets you back to doing what matters.
Ready to learn more? Visit our Physiotherapy service page to book an appointment or to deeper dive into what we do. We offer a free online call if you would like to speak to one of us before commiting
Or check our “What is physiotherapy” blog to understand more.