You have many options for pain treatment and control.
The opioid epidemic within the U.S. continues to grow, and a 2017 report from the National Initiative for Elderly Care shows that the crisis now affects older adults.
“Primary care doctors often don't have a lot of time to go through the different options available that can help relieve a person's specific pain, and it's easier and faster to write a prescription,” he says. “Also, doctors don't always know enough about other treatments to feel confident enough to recommend them.”
Even in case you aren’t depending on opioids, long-term use can have uncomfortable side effects equivalent to stomach upset, nausea, constipation, and risk of falls.
Depending in your condition, the placement of your pain, and its severity, other pain management strategies could also be available along with medication. If you end up reaching for the pill bottle mechanically, seek advice from your doctor about whether any of those treatments might profit you.
Physical therapy
Physical therapy could be an efficient first step in treating many common sources of pain, equivalent to back, knee, and shoulder pain.
In fact, a study published in May 2018 Health Services Research It found that individuals with low back pain who first consulted a physical therapist were less prone to receive an opioid prescription than those that first went to a primary care doctor. A therapist works with you to create individualized exercises, stretches, and body alignment positions that help loosen up tight muscles, reduce back and joint pain, and improve range of motion. .
Yoga
Much research has supported using yoga to assist with pain, especially back pain. A 2017 study by the National Institutes of Health found that individuals with back pain who took weekly yoga classes for 12 weeks experienced less pain and greater physical function than those that didn’t. Get educational details about pain management.
Yoga classes emphasized poses to assist strengthen the back and core muscles. Best of all, the yoga group was more prone to stop taking pain relievers after one yr than the education-only group.
Mind-body treatments
Pain is usually made worse by your response to it, equivalent to stress and anxiety. “Therapies like cognitive-behavioral therapy can help you manage your thinking and response to pain,” says Dr. Jamieson. “It doesn't directly cure the cause of your pain, but it can reduce your perception of its severity and perhaps prevent future episodes.”
With cognitive behavioral therapy, you learn methods to reply to negative pondering in a positive way. A therapist can show you how to explore your negative thought patterns, discover what triggers those thoughts and the way you react to them. With this information in mind, the therapist can show you how to develop strategies for when pain triggers negative thoughts.
Percentage of older Americans with chronic pain conditions.
Sources: Adapted from Journal of Pain Research, November 1, 2017, pp. 2525–38; vital health statistics, February 2014, pp. 1-161. |
Complementary therapies
Certain forms of complementary therapies have been shown to assist individuals with certain forms of pain.
Acupuncture. Acupuncture uses hair-thin needles which can be inserted into the skin. These needles are thought to stimulate nerves in your body in a way that overrides your pain. Some studies have found that the treatment helps relieve pain from a wide range of conditions, equivalent to back and knee pain, migraines, and fibromyalgia, while other research has shown no profit. For most individuals, it takes several treatments to see results. Be sure to decide on a licensed practitioner.
Massage therapy. Massage therapy might help with muscle pain in addition to pain made worse by stress and anxiety. For example, a 2015 study History of Internal Medicine See how an hour-long weekly massage might help individuals with chronic back pain.
After 10 weeks, nearly 40 percent reported that their pain had improved or disappeared, compared with only 4 percent of the control group treated with anti-inflammatory drugs. Another study found that 20 minutes of massage two and three days after cancer surgery reduced pain, stress and anxiety levels. Some massage therapists focus their work on people recovering from injuries or surgeries or could also be trained to treat specific conditions equivalent to back and neck pain.
Medical intervention
These forms of treatments can offer temporary pain relief and are helpful for people recovering from short-term painful illnesses. For example:
Botox injections. Botox is a neurotoxic protein that temporarily paralyzes muscles. Although it is usually used to smooth facial wrinkles, additionally it is used to temporarily treat musculoskeletal pain, equivalent to chronic neck pain and jaw pain.
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS). With TENS, a small battery-operated device applies a small electrical current through conductive pads which can be applied to the skin within the painful area.
The current creates a tingling or throbbing sensation and acts to disrupt pain signals from the nerves. It is usually used to treat persistent back, neck or shoulder pain. The science is mixed on its effectiveness — it may match for some people and never for others — but it surely's relatively secure for many, although individuals with pacemakers shouldn't use it.
“Pain can interfere with all aspects of life,” says Dr. Jamieson. “It could make you less energetic, interfere with quality sleep, and increase the danger of social isolation and depression. So anything that might help reduce and control pain, It ought to be considered, and fortunately there are a lot of options available besides pharmaceuticals.”
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