Everyday pain management ideas

What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? Carpal tunnel syndrome is an overuse injury.  Common causes of the disorder involve repetitive fine motor movements: knitting, crochet, stitchery, computer usage, and video games, for example.  The symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome occur because the median nerve, which runs through the small bones of the wrist, becomes compressed by swollen tendons and the ligament that occupy the same passage between the hand and the arm.  Over time, the overuse causes  inflammation and eventually leads to nerve damage. What are the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome?   Early symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include burning, itching, numbness and/or tingling in the palm, the  thumb and first fingers of the hand. It is not uncommon to experience the sensation of hand(s) "falling asleep" during the night. Eventually the symptoms progress and this sensation may occur at other times of day; the patient's grip strength may weaken. It i

   For some chronic pain conditions, there are few or no medications to help treat the condition.  For other conditions, there are medications..but the pain persists on one level or another.  Adding complementary pain management techniques can help you to get the fullest relief possible.  Seek to control pain on three levels: mind,body and soul! This is a story about Summer Suleiman, a blogger and contributing writer for CNN…(based on the source below…) Years of dreaded episodes of fatigue, nausea and dizziness had come and gone. They would last for days at a time, haunting as a ghost, then disappearing without a trace. This began at age 5. At 24, she was still battling the debilitating symptoms that wreaked havoc on her body. And no one knew why. Finally, two years ago, a doctor provided the answer. The diagnosis: a rare genetic disorder called Familial Mediterranean Fever, a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by frequent attacks of fever, stomach and chest pain, a

I have seen this book a few times over the last couple of years...it's on my reading list and I will hope to read it in the next year.  I will report on my thoughts after reading it, but after posting this I hope to get some feedback from anyone who has read it....please share your thoughts for other readers! click the cover to see details @ Amazon! After reading a few of the reviews (average is 4.5 stars!) it is apparent that some think the book is a masterpiece and the writer is total genius.  I am excited to get started, and I hope you are too.  This book is available at major online book outlets, and maybe at your local library as well!

Karen Weintraub, Special for USA TODAY 7:03 a.m. EST December 15, 2013 This new understanding of fibromyalgia will hopefully lead to better treatments, doctors and researchers say. (Photo: Josh T. Reynolds for USA TODAY) Story Highlights For decades, doctors told patients their pain was the result of emotional hysteria More than half of fibromyalgia cases are really a little-known small-fiber neuropathy Most fibromyalgia patients have been treated with anti-depressants Fibromyalgia affects 1% to 5% of Americans, mainly women, but until recently, scientists had no idea what might be causing its severe and mysterious pains. For decades, doctors told patients their agony was imaginary, the result of emotional hysteria, not a physical ailment. But this year, researchers finally began to get a handle on the condition. "What's happened is in 2013 there's been this absolute explosion of papers," says neurologist Anne Lou

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People with chronic pain disorders come from all walks of life.  Rich, poor, young and old are affected by various health issues that cause chronic pain.  If you, too, suffer from one of these disorders--know that you are not alone!  If you belong to a support group, you know this to be true. In an earlier post I shared information about the importance of having supportive relationships when you have chronic pain issues.  This can make all the difference in the world! Your family and friends may not understand exactly what you are going through but they still can help you through those tough days. Life will go on whether you get caught up in your health issues or not.  It is a good idea to live life to the fullest and minimize the bad times as much as possible.   This is true for all of us, whether we have chronic pain or not.  I hope today you will decide that it is better to focus on the positive, if you have not already done so. Lastly, I will share with you some interesting t

After all this time of posting information about ways to manage pain and various chronic pain issues it occurred to me that I had not posted anything to describe pain management . So in today's post I would like to describe pain management in my own words..feel free to comment because these are my thoughts.  You can only enhance what I am going to say here with anything relevant you have to contribute! So here goes: Pain management is a sub-specialty of medicine. The focus of pain management is to reduce pain and suffering, improve quality of life, enhance functionality and mobility--using various medical modalities.  Among these modalities are: medications interventional radiology epidural injections physical therapy medical devices surgery non-medical devices physical therapy weight loss exercise diet psychological interventions spiritual interventions etc. Pain management seeks to control pain levels in a given person's situation. While there is is

      What is complex regional pain syndrome? Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic pain condition most often affecting one of the limbs (arms, legs, hands, or feet), usually after an injury or trauma to that limb.  CRPS is believed to be caused by damage to, or malfunction of, the peripheral and central nervous systems.  The central nervous system is composed of the brain and spinal cord, and the peripheral nervous system involves nerve signaling from the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body.  CRPS is characterized by prolonged or excessive pain and mild or dramatic changes in skin color, temperature, and/or swelling in the affected area. There are two similar forms, called CRPS-I and CRPS-II, with the same symptoms and treatments. CRPS-II (previously called

          By Karen Lee Richards   It's often difficult to distinguish between fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome . Are they unrelated, siblings or twins? Researchers and specialists are still trying to determine the answer to this question. Some experts believe they are two completely separate illnesses; others think they are two distinct disorders with many similar symptoms; still others feel they are different facets of the same disorder. To complicate matters, a significant number of people with FM also have CFS and vise versa. In a September 2002 article in Fibromyalgia AWARE , a publication of the National Fibromyalgia Association , Charles W. Lapp, MD, CFS/FM expert and researcher, states that "about 70 percent of persons with CFS meet criteria for FM and about 70 percent of persons with FM also meet criteria for CFS." Central Sensitivity Syndromes : Muhammad B. Yunus, MD, a pioneer FM researcher, beli

J ust browsing on Amazon.com, there is definitely some thought in this area.  The basic idea here is that by eating foods that are more nutritionally correct, you can reduce inflammation and as a result reduce pain levels.  This would make sense for any chronic pain situation where inflammation is the BIG problem--rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, ,many back pain issues, and the like.  I don't know if it works or not but I am here to share the idea with you because that is the purpose of my blog.  Below I will share the book that intrigued me the most. Ultimately, I believe that it is worth it to try just because most of us have much room for improvement in our dietary choices--and our dietary choices go a long way in improving or worsening our overall health.  Maybe it's not the be-all and the end-all but is sure can't hurt!

Shingles is a common--and painful problem for many people, especially the elderly.  Some people suffer a form of neuropathic pain (post herpetic neuralgia) for very long periods following a shingles outbreak.  Today I am posting this article from WebMD because it is highly important to know about this subject!     What is shingles? Shingles is a painful skin rash . It is caused by the varicella zoster virus. Shingles usually appears in a band, a strip, or a small area on one side of the face or body. It is also called herpes zoster. Shingles is most common in older adults and people who have weak immune systems because of stress, injury, certain medicines, or other reasons. Most people who get shingles will get better and will not get it again. What causes shingles? Shingles occurs when the virus that causes chickenpox starts up again in your body. After you get better from chickenpox, the virus "sleeps" (is dormant) in your n

Getting a handle on everyday stress can help you better manage the pain you're experiencing. By Juhie Bhatia Medically reviewed by Niya Jones, MD, MPH     It's easy to get stressed out when the pressures of work, family, and everyday life are weighing on you. These stresses can have not only an emotional impact, they can cause physical pain as well. Stress and pain are often closely linked. Each one can have an impact on the other, creating a vicious cycle that sets the stage for chronic pain and chronic stress. So, part of getting pain relief is learning how to better manage stress. "Lots of studies support the conclusion that what happens in the brain — depression , anxiety , being stressed out — can increase pain. At the same time, if you have more pain, you may be more stressed," says Jennifer Schneider, MD, PhD, a chronic-pain specialist and author of the book Living With Chronic Pain . "Each makes the other worse, so if you d

Perhaps on this day we should reflect on the ability to feel pain...is it a blessing or a curse? There is a rare sensory disorder known as Congenital Insensitivity to Pain .  Those who are afflicted never experience pain.  Therefore, they do not get a "warning bell" like the rest of us to when something is wrong.  They may have no indication that something is seriously wrong, perhaps until it is too late. The pain experience is one of those things on life's journey that is unpleasant-but without it life would certainly not be the same.  Many of our negative experiences have positive counterparts and because of that, we appreciate the positives much more.  For instance, how could those who never know sorry truly know joy? Could someone who never knows hunger understand satiety? I cannot answer as to whether or not pain is a blessing or a curse for anyone else but myself. If I had to tell you my own thoughts right now, I would say that it is a little bit of both

Chemical commonly found in plastics makes migraines worse, researchers show November 12, 2013 By C.J. Janovy Lydia Vermeer, Ph.D. Researchers at the University of Kansas Medical Center have shown that a compound frequently found in plastics, Bisphenol A (BPA), can worsen migraine headache-related symptoms. The findings suggest that migraine sufferers might be able to reduce the frequency and severity of their headaches by changing their diets. Nancy Berman, Ph.D., a professor of anatomy and cell biology at KU Medical Center, is one of the country's leading experts on migraine . Building on her previous research showing a connection between migraines and the hormone estrogen, Berman developed a way to test potential headache drugs in laboratory rats. The discovery was significant because, while potential treatments are frequently tested first in animals, there had been no definitive test to determine whether a rat had a headache. "Curren

Is a cure for migraines on the horizon? Researchers are doing all they can to make it a reality. © iStockphoto /Konstantin Sutyagin Migraine is a debilitating condition that costs billions of dollars a year in healthcare fees, sick days and poor performance. It can change throughout your life depending on your stress levels, your hormone levels, your age and your triggers, which can also change. Doctors often diagnose migraines based on ruling out other problems, like heart and other brain issues. Migraine sufferers s

Migraine headache can be simply defined as severe head pain that lasts for several hours, sometimes even for days.  Usually the pain is only on one side of the head. For about  twenty percent of the 24+ million migraine sufferers in the US, it is accompanied by an aura--a sensory disturbance such as a visual disturbance, hallucination, numbness, or tingling . Migraine can be quite debilitating.  As a migraine sufferer myself, I cannot begin to tell you how many days of productivity I have personally lost due to migraine.  Multiply me by 24 million and...well, that's a lot!  The financial impact is also huge if you consider all the work days lost in addition to the money that is spent on doctor or ER visits and tests and prescription drugs related to this problem. What causes migraine, you might ask?  Well, the jury is still out on that but it is proposed that there is a cascade of neurological events that lead to the swelling of blood vessels in the brain. Pain and inflam

Brain scans reveal that people with fibromyalgia are not as able to prepare for pain as healthy people, and they are less likely to respond to the promise of pain relief. This altered brain processing could explain why people with the mysterious chronic ailment feel pain more intensely and don't respond as well to narcotic painkillers, the researchers said. Their findings are published in the Nov. 5 issue of the journal Arthritis & Rheumatism. People without fibromyalgia can mentally alleviate some types of pain that people experience, explained Dr. Lynn Webster, president of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. "For people with fibromyalgia, that capability seems to be dampened if not eliminated," Webster said. "They may not be able to respond the same way to medications or our intrinsic [natural] mechanisms for dealing with pain." The authors used an MRI to scan each participant's brain as a blood pressure cuff painfully squeezed the pati

Sciatica pain results from pressure or damage to the sciatic nerve.  This nerve originates in the spine and runs down through the buttocks and the back of the leg...so if you've ever literally had a pain in the butt, it is possible that sciatica is the problem.  The cause of the pressure can be from a number of sources...for instance,  compression in the spinal cord due to disc injury or a tumor. The sciatica pain sensation can vary widely..it can present as a numbness or tingling, dull ache, burning, and in severe cases the pain can make movement quite difficult. Over time, it is possible for sciatica to resolve on its own.  If it does not, it is important to seek medical help to determine the root cause of the pain. The usual first course of remedies for sciatica include ice application to the affected area for the first 48-72 hours, followed by heat.  Over the counter pain medications such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen are also appropriate.  Bed rest is not recommen