All posts tagged: chronic pain

Contributor: Easy Chronic Pain Remedies That Are Cheap and Effective

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When chronic pain becomes a physical and a mental burden that is hard to overcome, you may be desperate to find a quick solution. What are some remedies to help temporarily ease chronic pain? Read to find out more. If you are suffering from chronic pain flare, it can be tough to find quick remedies. Most of the time, you want to stay in bed and call it a day. However, life does not always work that way. Sometimes we have to put on our capes and “save the day” despite the aches that run through our bodies. This is where some remedies for chronic pain can be effective. They may not be a permanent solution, but at least they can alleviate some discomfort during pain flares. Before looking over these remedies, it is important to understand what causes chronic pain for you to make sufficient lifestyle changes. Knowing the underlying cause of your chronic pain can be helpful in finding the best pain management solutions that will give you a better quality of life. …

Contributor: 12 Simple Ways to Show Love to Someone with Chronic Illness

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Living with a chronic illness can be incredibly difficult; so can knowing how to be there for someone living with a chronic illness. Try the following tips to show love to the friend or family member in your life who’s experiencing difficulties: Offer help Your loved one may find it difficult to ask for help, so offer yours before they have to ask. However, don’t assume you know what they need. Always let them tell you. Speak to your friend or family member like you would for anybody else, not with pity, but with simple kindness: “Hey, I’m going to town to buy a few things, is there anything I can get for you?” This way, they would be more comfortable to let you know what they need without sounding imposing or feeling uncomfortable that they might have inconvenienced you. Check in on them Your loved one may not want to pre-emptively burden others with their problems. Send them regular messages asking them how they are so they have the chance to unload. Asking them …

Contributor: Conquering The Pain Of Rotator Cuff Injuries

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Rotator cuff injuries (RCIs) are one of the most common causes of shoulder pain for people of all ages. They occur when damage is done to the group of muscles and tissues that surround the shoulder joint and are most prevalent in groups of people who perform frequent overhead motions. Examples include carpenters, painters, and baseball and tennis players. However, injury can also occur because of age. When the tendons are worn down, they can even tear. If you notice sudden pain or you have been battling pain for a while, take a proactive stance to injury and find the best combination of treatments so you can get back to normal life as soon as possible. Rotator cuff injuries can cause chronic pain The pain from an RCI can be acute or chronic. When the injury is caused by a sudden blow or brusque movement, acute pain can ensue but when damage is caused by wear and tear (which occurs in jobs that require frequent lifting, for instance), pain can be chronic. Symptoms that indicate injury or worn-out …

Guest Contributor: The Pain Companion by Sarah Anne Shockley

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  As many of you know, I write an occasional column for the Pain News Network. One of my compatriots there, Sarah Anne Shockley, recently published a book called The Pain Companion: Everyday Wisdom for Living With and Moving Beyond Chronic Pain that everyone who experiences pain or chronic illness should read. She was diagnosed with TOS (thoracic outlet syndrome) in 2007 and has lived with intractable nerve pain ever since. It’s a very easy read and covers the necessary topics for a chronic pain lifestyle manual, such as anger, acceptance, relationships, self-image, and more. It’s the way Sarah writes that stands out; she is accessible, not only because she’s lived it, but also because she can relate her unique experience to other types of pain and offer constructive guidance. My pain isn’t her pain, but she showed me that we’ve been in the trenches together. This talent always stood out to me in her columns for PNN, and it’s translated very well to book form. Since Sarah can say it better than I can, here is …

Contributor: How to Maintain a Fulfilling Lifestyle When You Have Chronic Pain

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Approximately 11 percent of the U.S. population suffers from chronic pain, a condition that’s defined when discomfort lasts more than six months. An initial injury or illness morphs into a drawn-out period of physical and mental suffering with symptoms such as decreased appetite, mood swings, fatigue, disrupted sleep, and mobility issues due to pain. It can be difficult to enjoy old activities or keep up with simple, routine-based tasks, but it’s not impossible. By making a few lifestyle changes, chronic pain sufferers can maintain a fulfilling lifestyle without feeling restricted. Get Help for Regular Tasks Fatigue and pain can make it difficult to keep up with chores like cooking, cleaning, and pet maintenance. While physical activity should not be avoided, make things easier on yourself from time to time—especially if you’re going through a rough patch. Hire a cleaning service to do a deep clean so home maintenance is easier to manage. Use a grocery or meal-delivery service so you don’t rely on unhealthy food delivery as a source of nourishment. Hire a dog walker …

Contributor: Furnishings for Your Home to Help Ease Pain

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    Dealing with chronic pain is a challenging battle, especially as it is an extremely individualistic one. With more than 25.3 million Americans experiencing chronic pain every day for the last three months, it is a widespread issue that leads many people to seek the best methods for handling their pain. However, there are better solutions to managing joint pain that you can add to your home. In addition to treating chronic pain with proper nutrition and plenty of sleep, you can also adjust your furnishings and the layout of your home to ease and reduce inflammation. By adjusting your home in the following ways, you can benefit from an environment that is centered on comfort and wellness. Creating a soothing sanctuary for rest One of the most crucial ways to care for your body when dealing with chronic pain is to get plenty of rest. Having a relaxing space at home where you can go to kick up your feet, snuggle under a warm blanket, and listen to calming music is essential to managing both stress and …

Contributor: Go Holistic for Pain Management

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The best approach for pain management, especially long-term chronic pain, is holistic. Pain-killing medication is avoided — as well as their associated side effects, such as an addiction to prescription pain killers.  Holistic therapies are often more effective, too. The American Society of Addiction Medicine states that, of the 20.5 million Americans age 12 or older who had a substance use disorder in 2015, 2 million people had a substance use disorder involving prescription medicine.  The holistic way is totally natural, and the benefits are far beyond pain management.  As the population ages because of longer lifespans, chronic pain has become a bigger issue, the most common of which is lower back pain, followed closely by migraines and neck problems. Less stress using a holistic approach The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) has advised that there is growing evidence suggesting complementary approaches are working for pain management.  Holistic therapies change the way the person perceives pain, and this can be as a direct result of reduced stress …

How to Succeed on Your Terms When Life Interferes

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Success is only what you put into it. The harder you work for something, the better the success will be. If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. The harder I work, the more luck I seem to have. I Googled “stupid quotes about hard work and motivation.” How pithy are these quotes? How out of touch with reality are they? My reality, anyway. I think about quotes like this often, especially now, because I thought I was done with this blog. I thought it had taught me all I needed to know. Except… I had another MRI that shows degeneration above and below my two fusions, which explains the pain down my arms and up into my head that grows with intensity every day. Breakdown isn’t supposed to happen after a fusion for at least 10 years. My surgeon said that, unfortunately, I have “bad connective tissue.” Yay. This could lead to what is called the “ladder effect,” which is when you have fusion after fusion, laddering up and down the spine until there …

Contributor: The Latest Approaches To Joint Pain Management 

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Arthritis is now the most common cause of disability in USA, and it is on the rise. In a study by John Hopkins Arthritis Centre, the average time lost from productive work as a result of back pain and arthritis was a staggering 5.2 hours per week. Long-term use of pain-relieving medication can have unpleasant side effects, so let’s look at a few of Nature’s remedies that are at our disposal. These, in combination with stretching, weight loss and other techniques, may be useful tools in the fight against pain. Glucosamine – an amazing sugar Glucosamine is what’s known as an amino sugar, which means it’s a kind of sugar/protein hybrid. It is produced in our bodies, but its production naturally slows as we get older. It is needed to produce substances that are the building blocks of our cartilage – the layer of tissue that keeps our joints well lubricated – and reduce the possibility of our bones painfully grinding together, which is essentially what happens in arthritis. A supplement of Glucosamine may therefore help in the …