Everyday pain management ideas

Is the brain hard-wired for pain? Analysis of white matter sheds new light on chronic pain       By Claire Maldarelli | Posted November 4, 2013 Posted in: Blogs , Health Blog Tags: back pain , brain , brain scan , chronic pain , diffusion tensor imaging , disease , health care , medicine , MRI , neuroscience , predicting pain , white matter The last thing anyone in pain wants to hear is that “it’s all in your head.” But a new study, published this month in Pain , revealed that some chronic pain might, quite literally, depend on the state of the brain. Analyzing the brain structure of chronic pain sufferers may help explain why some people recover quickly from an injury while others experience ongoing pain. Researchers think these findings could lead to more specialized pain treatment. Physical pain is one of the most universal forms of human stress. But not all pain is created equally. While acute pain is a temporary reaction of the nervous system to dise

KXLY TV  April 2008 via YouTube Today's post is a short video about water therapy and the benefits of water therapy for chronic pain patients.  Warm water relaxes the muscles, as stated in the video Additionally, the buoyancy of the water takes the gravity effect off the spine and joints for those who are overweight.  It's a lot of fun if you've never tried it! Source: http://www.kxly.com

This is a poster that I did for a Pain Awareness Fair that was held the hospital where I was working last year.  The poster is my attempt at trying to help health care professionals determine whether a patient is really an addict, or if their current pain management regimen is insufficient for one reason or another. While manning my poster, I presented this example to the various doctors, nurses and patients who visited my poster: A young woman who becomes a frequent visitor to an ER.  She always complains of headache, for which she is treated and given a prescription for pain medication at discharge. The staff think she is an addict and express their concerns to the ER physician time and time again.  The doctor, however, is unsure if this is the case or not. After this pattern goes on for a time, the young woman returns to the ER to thank the staff for all their help. She says she's going off to college and asks the doctor for a prescription so she can get medication wh

Source : Flickr.com

Pain is a normal part of the human existence.  At the same time, it is mystifying because the pain experience varies widely from person to person and from one medical condition to another.  I recently read a post @ Live Science that presented these surprising facts about pain. In a nutshell: 1) Pain is normal, but because of it can vary so widely there really is no single ideal way of treating it.  Billions of dollars are spent on pharmaceutical treatment for pain every year. 2) Scientists do not really understand pain--how it works and why.  If they did, they would be able to find better treatment(s) for it. 3) Chronic pain is different than acute pain, largely due to the stress of having to endure it for prolonged periods of time. Research findings indicate changes in the brains of people with chronic pain. 4)Sexual desire and migraine seem to be linked.  (You have to read the post if you really want to try and understand this one!) 5)Women have more nerve fibers

“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”                                                                               ― Ashley Smith

Reflexology, also known as zone therapy, is defined by Wikipedia as "an alternative medicine involving the physical act of applying pressure to the feet, hands, or ears with specific thumb, finger, and hand techniques without the use of oil or lotion. It is based on what reflexologists claim to be a system of zones and reflex areas that they say reflect an image of the body on the feet and hands, with the premise that such work effects a physical change to the body. It is questionable whether or not this specialized form of massage us the be all and the end all in the world of pain management.  But that does not mean it is useless either.  An April 2013 report in Medical News Today cites a small study that demonstrates increased pain threshold and tolerance when reflexology was used.  Additionally, Everyday Health  reports that, if nothing else, reflexology can help with the anxiety associated witch chronic pain. Sources:  Wikipedia, Medical News Today,Everyday Heal