As the summer months draw near, the last thing anyone wants is to experience any type of pain while they are trying to enjoy the warmth and sun. Medicines obviously help reduce chronic pain temporarily, but sometimes if you adjust your lifestyle just a little bit and practice healthier habits, you will experience long-lasting and sustainable pain-relief.
WebMD has put together a list of easy ways to deal with chronic pain. As you implement some of these habits into your life, remember that you also are not alone. As many as 1 in 3 people are dealing with some form of chronic pain.
- Exercise. If you’re hurting you might not want to exercise, but without exercise you might lose muscle and strength which will make the pain worse. Check in with your doctor about what sort of fitness routine you should follow (aerobic, strengthening, etc).
- Practice deep breathing and meditation. Take time out of each day to relax and calm your mind. Deep breathing, biofeedback, and meditation are all stress management techniques that relax your body.
- Avoid alcohol. Consuming alcoholic beverages might make you fall asleep easily, but the quality of sleep isn’t good. In order for your body to heal and experience less pain, you need to go through your REM sleep cycle which too much alcohol intake inhibits.
- Quit smoking. Smoking may give you temporary pain relief, but in the long run it contributes to the pain.
- Eat a well-balanced diet. Eating right improves blood sugar, helps maintain weight, reduces heart disease risk, and assists in digestion. Aim for a diet rich in whole grains, fresh produce, and low-fat proteins.
- Keep a pain journal. This habit can help your doctor understand your pain more so that it can be more effectively treated.
- Distract yourself. Thinking about pain can make it worse so occupy yourself with activities that you enjoy or, better yet, try some new ones!
- Know your medicines. Make sure that you know all the medicines you’re taking, what they do for you, and their side effects.
How can CladeHealth Tracker Help?
Although the application itself provides no immediate relief from chronic pain, CladeHealth Tracker certainly can help you with the last item in the bulleted list of pain-relieving habits. If you or a loved one is experiencing pain that interferes with daily functioning, it is crucial that you know and “own” all of your prescription information. When you go to update your pain journal, make it a habit to also update your CladeHealth Tracker with your medication information. In this personal health record, you can indicate the name of the medication, the doctor who prescribed it, the date it was prescribed, and in notes field you can include any other helpful tips, such as potential side effects, dosing indications, etc.
If you have various health care professionals who help you handle your pain, ease your mind with CladeHealth Tracker. With this smartphone app on hand 24/7, you will never experience the frustration of having to hunt around for your medical records when you visit a new health expert.
For more information: http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/chronic-pain-11/default.htm
