Prevent “Going Chronic”
“Pain management must always attempt to prevent the normal, healthy pain experience from ‘going chronic.’”
FACT: Pain is normal and necessary for survival.
FACT: Pain is complex. It is NOT just a sensation from the tissues.
FACT: Preventing pain from “going chronic” is possible.
If you know what “going chronic” means, then you likely have chronic pain. And you would probably agree with me — prevention is critical!
Here are several of my best prevention pointers.
For minor, non-emergent injuries (e.g. ankle sprain), avoid pain medications. Instead, protect and reduce activity of the injured tissues. Otherwise, continue your regular routine.
If your job entails repetitive actions or prolonged postures, know your limits. And before you hit your limit, slow down or rest to avoid overuse injuries.
Know the difference between soft tissue pain (muscles, tendons, skin), joint pain (bone-to-bone), and nerve pain (nerves). Some tissues need more time to heal so be more patient with them. Your expectations matter.
Believe that your body is designed to heal. Regardless of your past experiences or your parents’ past experiences, your body will do its best to recover as quickly as possible. Believing helps healing.
Stay in “good shape.” Depending on your work and lifestyle, make sure your body is prepared to handle your daily physical tasks. For everyone, that means flexibility, strength, balance, agility, and endurance.
Ensure enough good sleep. Since healing and recuperation happens when you sleep, you must prioritize your sleep.
Brighten up your mood. However you can…whenever you can…find constructive ways to enjoy life. Friendships, hobbies, sit-coms, whatever…
Value and practice P-E-A-C-E. Don’t just give it lip-service, really practice a peaceful state. Consider how you talk to yourself, how you talk to others, how you treat yourself, how you treat others. Consider meditation, yoga, tai chi, or nature.
From my above pointers, you can see that prevention of “going chronic” is a mind-body-spirit approach.
Going forward, bring together the whole of you.
