Everyday pain management ideas

If you read a lot of articles about medicine, as I do, you will see many acronyms in the text.  It can be very frustrating when an author uses lots of acronyms in their writings, especially for folks who are just wanting to learn more about a given medical condition.  I have been reading these articles for years and I have to say this newfangled way of writing can be a pain--no pun intended! For that reason, I decided it might be nice to create a post with some of the more common acronyms in texts about pain management.  I will do my best to at least give you a "heads up" about specific acronyms as I use them.  In this way, you will at least have a way to understand what I am talking about! Image source:soft9000.com So, without further ado, here is a short list of common terms you might see in medical writings and doctor's notes regarding pain management issues. Acronym                       ...

When someone is in a trying situation...and a chronic pain condition is one of those...it's not always easy to know what to say, or how to say things without sounding insensitive.  I recently came across an article about this very subject.  Here is a link to the article; if you prefer a "short list" of some taboo phrases, read on! "But you don't look disabled..." "...I thought you'd be better by now." "Essential oils would probably fix that!" "Your poor husband and kids!" "How much disability do you get?" "Oh come on, it's not that bad." "So do you take any good drugs?" "Are you contagious?" "You don't have to work?  Must be nice." Source: Buzzfeed.; wikimedia

Most of us have heard of acupuncture, but have you ever heard of auricular therapy ?  It's a specialized form of acupuncture that focuses on treating pain by inserting needles in the ear. Developed by a French physician in the 1950s, it is rooted in ancient Chinese medicine. In this form of therapy, each area of the body has a corresponding point on the ear. As such, needles placement to treat a patient's pain will depend on the specific area of bodily discomfort. This type of alternative medical treatment can be provided by a number of practitioners, including biofeedback specialists, acupuncturists, chiropractic doctors, reflexologists, and others. Almost any area of the body can be treated by this type of acupuncture; however, literature suggests that headaches, chronic pain, detoxification from addiction, relief of nausea, and reduction of hypertension are common conditions of persons seeking this approach as a remedy. It is thought that auricular therapy works i...

Some people think trivia is fun...and I suppose that it can be fun.  Since Lyme disease is so prevalent and can cause a person a lifetime of pain and other issues, I thought it was important to point out some important (trivia) points! Lyme Disease is  caused by  a bacteria  known as Borrelia burgdorferi . It can only be transmitted to humans via an infected tick. A tick must be attached its host for at least hours to cause an infection. Seventy to eighty percent of those infected with Lyme disease will develop the classic “bulls eye” rash several days to several weeks after becoming infected. Most cases of Lyme Disease occur in late spring to early summer.  The largest number of infections occur in the Northeast and Upper Midwest areas of the USA. Most cases of Lyme Disease  are successfully treated by a course of antibiotics lasting a few weeks. Not all ticks carry Lyme Disease! Only 25-50% of ticks are carriers of  dise...

One thing is for sure about Lyme disease: it's bizarre.  You might know someone who's been infected, maybe even someone with chronic Lyme as I am about to describe.  To begin with, many people who have Lyme disease are not aware of it in the early stages...perhaps because they do not recall or did not recognize a tick on their body.  Perhaps they did not have any symptoms in the early stages of illness.  Later on in its course, the disease symptoms come and go.  So it may seem like these periods of illness are not related.  But maybe they are--and it all begins with that one tiny tick that was never even obvious. One person who speaks freely of this problem is author Amy Tan.  She has posted on her author web site a long story about how she believes she may have been infected, and they many problems she has experienced over the course of her illness.  At one point her problems was thought to be Multiple Sclerosis..so she was tested for tha...

I have been thinking about this post for a few days now...it all started when I ran into an old friend one day last week.  This individual told me that--after being diagnosed with Lyme disease some time ago--has been diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis.  I knew that some of the symptoms of Lyme Disease are very much like the symptoms of RA...so, can Lyme Disease cause RA? Damage to hand and finger joints caused by Rheumatoid Arthritis (source: Wikimedia) After doing some research, I found out some very interesting things about the answer to my question. According to what I believe are very reliable sources-such as the CDC, Mayo Clinic, and Cleveland Clinic here is what I can report: The cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis is unknown, but it is suspected that genetic factors may predispose a person to the condition. The actual disease process may actually be triggered by a virus, bacteria, or other environmental factor. The arthritic features of Lyme Disease and Rheum...

Those of us who live in areas where Lyme Disease is prevalent have learned about the early symptoms and why early diagnosis and treatment are key to preventing a whole host of problems.  If you are not up to speed on this topic, here is a brief overview: Deer tick (Source: Wikimedia) Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that is caused by an organism known as Borrelia burgdorferi. A person or animal can become infected with this organism when an infected deer tick, commonly found in the US and approximately sixty other countries across the globe, attaches itself to a "host". The early symptoms of infections in the human population are varied. They include a flu like illness (fever, chills, muscle aches, joint pain, and/or nausea), a characteristic "bulls-eye" rash around the site of the tick bite, Bells Palsy, or perhaps no symptoms at all.  It is reported that 30% to 80% of all patients diagnosed with Lyme disease report some/all of these symptoms. ...