I am more than certain that there are people out there who don't think lifestyle changes or alternative/complementary medical practices can do very much to help people with various maladies, chronic pain included. And many of us do rely first on traditional medicine, and maybe come to find later--or never--that these treatment options can be much more than the icing on the cake!
About five or six years ago, I was twenty five pounds overweight..and like the folks I'm referring to, it never occurred to me that weight loss would help all that much. Sure, I have arthritis in my knee and if I just avoid activities that cause pain, I'll be alright, I thought. But I have learned so much since then. I did manage to lose the extra weight with the help of Weight Watchers programs. In and of itself, it made a big difference in the way I felt. More energy and less pain in that arthritic joint..but that was only the beginning!
As time went on I learned to eat healthier. And even now I could make improvement on that, but just by adding more fruits and vegetables and less bread, deserts, mashed potatoes, and sweets, I have come to an even better place! It's not an easy road but it was definitely worth it in the end.
If you need more proof to change your mind, here are some more points to ponder...looking beyond my personal experience.
We have an elderly cat living in our household. A few weeks ago he was unable to have a normal bowel movement. He was in terrible pain; it looked much like a woman in labor. He was straining so hard it caused him to vomit. No quality of life in that, for sure. We visited our veterinarian who confirmed the problem...but the treatments available were limited due to the fact that this cat is a diabetic. The vet decided that the best hope was to change the cat's diet to a different prescription diet from the diabetic food he was on. She suggested that it was our only hope; if treatment failed, it might mean that we should consider euthanasia.
Today, this very same cat is pretty much back to normal. His diabetes is stable and he is able to do his business in normal fashion. All because of a change in diet!
If you've perused this blog before you've seen many posts about various kinds of diets for various purposes and other lifestyle enhancements and modifications too. If you suffer from chronic pain and you are looking for a way to enhance the quality of your life, you might just want to give one (or more) of these a try!
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About five or six years ago, I was twenty five pounds overweight..and like the folks I'm referring to, it never occurred to me that weight loss would help all that much. Sure, I have arthritis in my knee and if I just avoid activities that cause pain, I'll be alright, I thought. But I have learned so much since then. I did manage to lose the extra weight with the help of Weight Watchers programs. In and of itself, it made a big difference in the way I felt. More energy and less pain in that arthritic joint..but that was only the beginning!
As time went on I learned to eat healthier. And even now I could make improvement on that, but just by adding more fruits and vegetables and less bread, deserts, mashed potatoes, and sweets, I have come to an even better place! It's not an easy road but it was definitely worth it in the end.
If you need more proof to change your mind, here are some more points to ponder...looking beyond my personal experience.
We have an elderly cat living in our household. A few weeks ago he was unable to have a normal bowel movement. He was in terrible pain; it looked much like a woman in labor. He was straining so hard it caused him to vomit. No quality of life in that, for sure. We visited our veterinarian who confirmed the problem...but the treatments available were limited due to the fact that this cat is a diabetic. The vet decided that the best hope was to change the cat's diet to a different prescription diet from the diabetic food he was on. She suggested that it was our only hope; if treatment failed, it might mean that we should consider euthanasia.
Today, this very same cat is pretty much back to normal. His diabetes is stable and he is able to do his business in normal fashion. All because of a change in diet!
If you've perused this blog before you've seen many posts about various kinds of diets for various purposes and other lifestyle enhancements and modifications too. If you suffer from chronic pain and you are looking for a way to enhance the quality of your life, you might just want to give one (or more) of these a try!
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