First Assessment
Free
45 minutes, at home
- Full clinical examination at the patient's home
- The likely cause explained in plain language
- A realistic recovery plan and what it will cost
- No obligation to book any further sessions
Pain that arrives in the middle of a working day does not wait for a convenient moment. Around Hirabaug Chowk people stand behind counters, sit in the clinics and offices of the Hirabaug Business Center, or spend the morning on their feet at the market, and a sore back or neck still has to go to work with them. TENS is one way of taking the sharpness off pain so that you can keep moving, and keep up the exercise that changes the underlying problem.
The technique is described in general on our TENS therapy page. This page deals with how it is used at home in Hirabaug, and where its limits lie.
What TENS does and what it leaves alone
TENS stands for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Sticky pads go on the skin around the sore area, and a small unit sends gentle pulses between them. You feel buzzing or tingling. One common explanation is that this input competes with pain signals on their way to the brain, and the body may also release its own pain-dampening chemicals. The research is mixed: some people report clear short-term relief, others notice very little, and trials in different conditions do not agree. We therefore treat TENS as a helper and never as the whole plan.
It does not repair a joint, loosen a stiff shoulder or strengthen a weak back. Relief lasts while the unit is on and sometimes a little beyond. The gain comes from using that comfortable spell to walk, stretch or strengthen when you could not otherwise tolerate it.
Who tends to benefit, and who should not use it
TENS is most often tried for muscular back and neck pain, knee pain from wear and tear, and soreness around a healed surgical site once the surgeon is content. It is not for everyone. We do not use it, or we use it only after a doctor agrees, in these situations:
- a pacemaker or another implanted electronic device;
- pregnancy, for pads over the abdomen or lower back;
- pads over broken, infected, bruised or irritated skin, or over an unhealed wound;
- the front of the neck, the eyes or the head;
- skin that is numb, because you cannot judge whether the current is too strong;
- epilepsy, which calls for caution about placement.
It should never be used in the bath or shower, while asleep, or while driving.
A TENS session at home, step by step
- The physiotherapist asks about implants, skin problems, pregnancy and epilepsy, then inspects the skin and tests that you can feel light touch.
- Pads are placed around, not on top of, the painful spot, and you are shown where they sit.
- The current is raised until you feel a strong but comfortable tingle, then adjusted as your body gets used to it.
- While the unit runs, you do the movement that was too painful, for example sit-to-stand practice or a gentle back stretch.
- The pads come off, the skin is checked again, and we ask whether the relief lasted.
For a long-standing ache in the lower back, TENS may sit alongside the exercises in back pain physiotherapy in Hirabaug. When pain is deeper than the pads seem to reach, the physiotherapist may choose IFT therapy instead.
Judging whether it is working for you
Keep a short note: pain before, pain after, and how long the benefit stayed. If it lets you do more, it earns its place. If it adds nothing after a few uses, we stop and spend the time on something else. If a unit is recommended for use between visits, the physiotherapist will show you pad placement and sensible time limits first. Pads should be moved slightly each time, and the skin underneath looked at every time.
Pain that needs examining before anything is applied
Pain that wakes you every night, appears with fever or unexplained weight loss, follows a fall, or comes with chest tightness should be seen by a doctor, not masked with a pad. Sudden weakness, spreading numbness, or trouble passing urine or stool alongside back pain needs emergency care.
If you would like to try TENS under supervision, request a visit and mention any implant or skin problem. Our Hirabaug page lists the surrounding lanes, and the Swargate TENS page covers the wider area.