chronic pain strategies?

[HollyDay]

I'm sure there are folks here who have lived with chronic pain longer than I have.  I'm hoping some of these dear folks can pass on some wisdom.  I'm wrapping up a year of physical therapy and looking at what lies ahead for self care and management. 

[gardenmom5]

depending upon the cause of your pain . . .

 

I had a MCL injury 2 1/2 years ago.  it was not properly or adequately treated by a SPORTS MEDICINE dr.  then a year later, it was all reinjured in a car accident.  (I was minding my own business at a stop light and was hit head on.  never put your foot on the break.. . . . )

 

I had varying levels of constant pain that affected my entire leg due to a muscle injury and a twisted bone in the knee joint.  a chiro was able to help with the twisted knee joint, but I still had pain from my hip to the foot because of how muscles were twisted and pulling on each other.  I was doing regular senin-so shiatsu and daily massages, as well as walking (it helped to walk, until it didn't.)

 

blow my mind - I just switched to NDT for my thyroid treatment, and after getting close to an optimal dose, I felt this wave of cold go down my leg and a lot of the pain and sensations of weakness just disappeared.  not 100%, but huge improvement. that was two weeks ago. just as I was getting in with new therapists to see if we could resolve this.

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

Don't you have fibro? Do you have a good doctor?

 

My dh has learned to do some PT on me that he does every single night. It is stuff that I can't do myself. It has made a world of difference.

 

I have to walk a fine line between too little exercise and too much. Too little leaves me in pain. Too much leaves me in pain.

 

I could write a book on other things I do. If you have questions about specific things, just ask.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AngieW in Texas]

My 18yo is in constant pain and will be for the rest of her life. It is the hallmark characteristic of her condition.

 

She has a professional massage every two weeks with a therapist who uses trigger point therapy. This particular therapist was recommended to her by her physical therapist. We tried spacing out the appointments, but she was in too much pain that way. Every two weeks is the sweet spot to keep her body functional.

 

She also exercises on a regular basis. She has to be careful because she has a limited amount of time each day that she stand or walk. The more she is vertical, the more pain she is in. During the school year, she goes to the gym 2-3x/week. She spends a lot of time on the bike, some time on the row machine, and then does some arm work. Mostly she sticks with things that she can do sitting down because of the pain that increases whenever she is standing. For the summer, she is going to the pool and swimming laps 2x/week and also going to the gym 1-2x/week.

 

I am still hoping for more pain relief for her. The constant pain started two years ago. The massage and the exercise are enough to keep her mostly functional and that's about it.

[TravelingChris]

YOU may want to go to a pain clinic. If you can tolerate them, pain pills may be a solution.  I was on pain pills for a number of years and they really helped.  Fortunately, my underlying disease is better managed right now and my pain level is low enough that I don't need them anymore.  But if it gets worse again, I will be back at a pain clinic and getting them again.

[Joules]

My 18yo is in constant pain and will be for the rest of her life. It is the hallmark characteristic of her condition.

 

She has a professional massage every two weeks with a therapist who uses trigger point therapy. This particular therapist was recommended to her by her physical therapist. We tried spacing out the appointments, but she was in too much pain that way. Every two weeks is the sweet spot to keep her body functional.

 

 

Definitely agree with this.  Two weeks is about the sweet spot for me, too.  I can't stand spending the money on myself.  It feels decadent, but it is absolutely a medical help when it comes to pain and reducing auto-immune flares.