Self-Managing Chronic Pain
The most important factor in managing pain is the role of the patient. Self-management is the best way to improve your level of activity, reduce disability and keep pain to a minimum. When people take control over their pain, they feel empowered and able to resume normal activities—or even learn something new. There is no better feeling than that, for people who have been controlled by pain.
If you would like to take charge of your pain management, these three steps will keep you on track:
Accept the pain. Accept that the pain is unlikely to disappear, but recognise that you can do things to mimimise its impact on your life and reduce the severity of the pain.
Change the way you think about pain. When you realise that pain in itself is not harmful and learn not to react to it in a negative way you can “retrain your brain”.
Pace yourself. Incorporate a sufficient amount of activity every day and keep it at an even level throughout the day. This will help keep your body conditioned, keep your pain to a minimum and reduce the risk of flare-ups sparked by overactivity.
Multidisciplinary (or interdisciplinary) pain management embraces a combination of medical, physical and psychological therapies and is the most effective way to improve function and mood, and reduce disability.
It also known as a bio-psycho-social approach because it aims to address all the factors that influence the pain experience. Multidisciplinary pain management involves a team of health professionals who will comprehensively assess your condition and work with you to achieve your goals—such as being able to return to work, or just being able to walk the dog—using a range of treatments and strategies.
Some but not all treatments may be eligible for a rebate through Medicare or your private health insurer. In multidisciplinary pain management your team of health professionals offer support and treatment, but you are required to take responsibility for your health and wellbeing on a day-to-day basis. Self-managing chronic pain includes tailored exercise, relaxation and pacing daily activities. Evidence shows that patients who embrace active self-management strategies achieve better outcomes than those who rely on passive strategies like medication.
Effective Ways to Find Lower Back Pain Relief, According to Doctors
Whether it was brought on by arthritis, nerve damage, bending the wrong way, or lifting something a little too heavy, lower back pain can be frustrating to deal with. But if you’re struggling, know that most people experience back pain at some point in their lives, and it’s one of the most common reasons people book doctor’s appointments and call out of work. In fact, it’s one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Treatments for lower back pain relief range from simple to complex, and the right course for you depends on how long you’ve been hurting, the severity of your pain, the location of your pain, and whether your pain is structural or muscular.
However, other factors, like your age and activity level, could cause back pain to last for up to six weeks, he says. People who don’t pursue extreme treatment tend to have fewer complications than those who end up rushing into invasive treatments before it’s truly necessary.
Reach for anti-inflammatory drugs.
Even as you practice patience, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), such as ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) or naproxen (Aleve) can help reduce back pain you’re pushing through. The research behind medicine guidelines for lower back pain finds that these may give slightly better relief than acetaminophen (Tylenol).
Find relief through ice and heat.
Break out that bag of frozen peas (or a cold pack, if you want to get fancy) for the first 48 hours after the pain sets in, and put it to use for 20 minutes a session, several sessions per day. After those two days are behind you, switch to 20-minute intervals with a heating pad.
Treating Lower Back Pain: How much bed rest is too much?
Back pain is one of the most common reasons why people visit a health care provider. The good news is that the pain often goes away on its own, and people usually recover in a week or two. Many people want to stay in bed when their back hurts. For many years, getting bed rest was the normal advice. But current studies recommend no bed rest at all and stress that staying in bed longer than 48 hours not only won’t help but it may, in fact, actually delay your recovery.
Staying in bed won’t help you get better faster.
If you’re in terrible pain, lying down for a day to help ease the distress may seem like a good idea, but moderating your activities and staying active in a limited way is a more effective way to control your symptoms. Research suggests that if you can find comfortable positions and keep moving, you may not need bed rest at all.
Research shows that:
Lying down longer than a day or two day isn’t helpful for relieving back pain.
People can recover more quickly without any bed rest.
The sooner you start moving, even a little bit, or return to activities such as walking, the faster you are likely to improve.
Long bed rest can lead to slower recovery.
Staying in bed for any prolonged period can make you stiff and increase pain. When you don’t move and bend, you lose muscle strength and flexibility. With bed rest, you lose about 1 percent of your muscle strength each day. And you can lose 20 to 30 percent in a week. It becomes more difficult to return to any activity. As you become weaker and stiffer your recovery takes longer.
Who needs bed rest?
Almost no one! The only people who might require time in bed are those with unstable spinal fractures awaiting surgery.
Products People With Chronic Pain Swear By
Everyone in our chronic pain community has their own tricks and techniques for coping with the pain. But there are so many lotions, oils, massagers, pillows and other tools out there meant to offer relief, it can be overwhelming to try and figure out which ones to try. We all know what works for one person may not work for you, but hearing which ones others have incorporated into their pain-relief repertoire can be helpful as you decide which ones to test.
So, we asked our Mighty chronic pain community to share the products they swear by. These are the tools (aside from medication and medical cannabis) that help give them that extra relief from their pain. Let us know in the comments what other products you swear by.
Naturals Pain Relief Rub
This topical pain lotion can be rubbed on the site of the pain itself, providing instant and long-lasting treatment
Arnica Skincare Gel
Arnica is a herb that, when applied to the skin, can provide pain relief. incorporates arnica into a shower gel that is lathered onto skin with water. It’s a U.K. product, so it’s cheaper to buy in Europe than the U.S.
Microwavable Rice Heat Pack
A pack filled with rice can be microwaved and laid across the painful areas. The pack featured above is especially designed to be applied to your neck.
Chronic Pain: The Pain management Plan
The Pain Management Plan
Developed by NHS Pain Specialists
Research-evidenced benefits (download paper 1 here) and (download paper 2 here)
Can be delivered with 3/4 brief patient contacts, face-to-face, by phone or email
Works brilliantly in a group setting
Includes a relaxation, breathing and stress management programme on CD (can be bought seperately)
In a research project 95% of people said they would recommend it to other people with the same problem
Now you can buy it yourself if a medically qualified person has told you…
You have Chronic Pain or Fibromyalgia
The pain is not from a life-threatening illness
The doctor has told you there is no cure for your pain
And the pain has not suddenly changed or got worse
The Pain Management Plan can help you live a better life despite pain. Please read all of the information on the site, see some sample pages, and look at the FAQs page before you decide to buy.