Chronic Pain Management in Opelika When Nothing Else Has Worked

Chronic pain management in Opelika is available at Herring Spine & Rehab on Gateway Drive near Tiger Town. We have been treating patients across East Alabama since 1981, and in 2005 we added Tiger Town Wellness to bring medical care directly into our practice. That means our chiropractic physicians and medical staff work together daily, under one roof, to address pain conditions that haven’t responded to treatment elsewhere.

Chronic pain is defined as pain that lasts three months or longer. It can come from an old injury that never fully healed, a degenerative condition that worsens over time, or a nerve problem that conventional treatment hasn’t reached. Whatever the source, chronic pain affects every part of daily life — sleep, work, mood, and mobility.

Our approach is non-narcotic. We treat the source of the pain rather than masking it with opioids, and we build a coordinated plan that draws on both medical and chiropractic tools.

What Causes Chronic Pain in East Alabama

Chronic pain in East Alabama often starts with an injury that wasn’t fully resolved — a car accident on Auburn Road, a workplace injury, or a sports injury that was treated for a few weeks and then left alone. Over time, the spine compensates, muscles tighten, and nerve function is affected.

We also see a lot of long-term conditions like degenerative disc disease, sciatica, cervical and lumbar radiculopathy, arthritis, and fibromyalgia. In a region where many people work physical jobs in manufacturing, agriculture, and construction, repetitive strain and cumulative wear on the spine are common drivers of persistent pain.

Chronic pain is rarely one-dimensional. It usually involves spinal dysfunction, nerve irritation, inflammation, and muscle imbalance all working together — which is exactly why a single-provider approach often falls short.

How We Assess Chronic Pain

Our providers conduct a thorough assessment when you come in, reviewing your history, symptoms, and any prior treatment. On-site X-ray is available at our Gateway Drive location with same-day results, so we can get a clear structural picture without sending you to another facility.

Our doctors of chiropractic also hold auxiliary staff privileges at East Alabama Health, giving them the ability to order MRIs, CT scans, bone density tests, and additional diagnostics when the clinical picture calls for it. Our medical team and chiropractic physicians review findings together and develop a unified care plan from the start.

Non-Narcotic Chronic Pain Treatment Options

Tiger Town Wellness at Herring Spine & Rehab handles the medical side of chronic pain management using non-narcotic approaches. Depending on your condition, treatment may include corticosteroids, NSAIDs, or muscle relaxants — prescribed or injected as appropriate — to manage inflammation and reduce pain signals while longer-term healing takes place.

On the chiropractic side, our doctors use spinal manipulation, Cox decompression technique, traction therapy, cold laser therapy, ultrasound therapy, and electrical muscle stimulation. We have four Cox decompression tables on-site, and our physicians are experienced with this technique, which is particularly effective for disc-related chronic pain and sciatica.

Spinal strengthening exercises are also part of many chronic pain plans. Building strength in the core, back extensors, and hip muscles takes pressure off the spine and helps prevent pain from returning. Our approach doesn’t just reduce symptoms — it works toward restoring function.

Why Opelika and Auburn Trust Herring Spine & Rehab

Herring Spine & Rehab has treated thousands of patients across East Alabama over more than four decades. Dr. Ron Herring has been in private practice in Opelika since 1981. Dr. Rod Herring earned Chiropractor of the Year from the Alabama State Chiropractic Association in 2019, and both doctors received Young Chiropractor of the Year honors from the ASCA earlier in their careers.

Our medical team includes Dr. Ronald J. Herring, M.D., who completed his residency at the Mayo Clinic, along with Jeff Sanders, F.N.P.-B.C., a board-certified family nurse practitioner. They work directly alongside our chiropractic team every day.

We accept most major insurance including BCBS, Aetna, Humana, United Healthcare, and Medicare. We do not use contracts — patients pay per visit and control the level of care they receive. One patient who has been coming to us for years put it simply: “By far the best and most professional chiropractor I’ve been to. I’ve been a patient here for 6 years and love it.”