Question for chronic pain sufferers...?

Question

Ive been here once before and i know all you can relate, i know everyone has their own way on what they do to ease their pain, my question is, What do you do besides your normal routine to deal with those harder days? Im having one now, in fact the last few days have been rough. I just need some ideas or do you just ride out the pain?

Answer 1

You have to break the pain cycle.

The Chronic Back Pain Cycle describes how the mind and body work together to cause chronic back pain. The cycle may begin with a muscle strain from over exertion or an accident. If the pain from this starts to interfere with our life, we are likely to become anxious or upset about it. Research has shown that this emotional distress actually  tightens our back muscles, which further increases our pain.

Soon a vicious cycle gets going in which our pain causes emotional stress, which increases the tension in our back muscles. This in turn causes more pain, which causes more emotional stress, and yet more pain. Along the way, we usually become afraid to use our back normally, which causes our muscles to become tighter and weaker. This cycle can last for days, weeks, and even years. It usually persists long after the original injury has healed.

Sometimes the cycle seems to begin "out of the blue," without any clear injury. In these cases, stress in our life has usually caused our muscles to become short, tight, and vulnerable to spasms. No matter how it starts, the Chronic Back Pain Cycle can soon take on a life of its own.

The solution begins by understanding that most chronic back pain actually isn't caused by damage to the structures of the back, but rather is due to the effects of muscle tension, stress, and inactivity. After receiving a medical evaluation, and learning why it is safe to resume normal activity, the fear and distress that accompanies chronic back pain begins to diminish.

Feeling some confidence, it is now possible to increase physical activity, step by step. Once you see for yourself that this does not, in the long run, significantly increase your pain, you are well on the way to recovery. You begin to relax further, move more normally, and develop the confidence needed to resume more and more activities. This leads to improved mood, less tension, and less pain.

Eventually, after regaining all normal activities and developing strength, flexibility, and endurance; you can live a normal life and no longer think of yourself as someone with a "bad back."

Hope that helps

Answer 2

Massage , Accupuncture , and Hydrocodone  

Answer 3

For chronic pain, i generally have hydrocodone from my doctor but if i am working i just take extra strength Excedrin. It works better than you think. I hope you get to feeling better. It is tough when you hurt all the time.