Chronic pain

A friend of mine once talked me into doing acupuncture. I thought it was just some new age mumbo jumbo but he convinced me to try it, saying that his elderly and crippled dog found it so relaxing that she would fall asleep. I'm glad I did try it. Whether or not it works due to the reasons they give might be a stretch but I did notice that I also fell asleep while in serious pain though I had been unable to fall asleep under normal conditions. I also noticed that my pain and stiffness went away almost immediately. I should also point out that the acupuncturist was the first person to figure out that I had B deficiency anemia. My doctors did not test for that until later, after I had asked them to, following her advice. Though I had been seeing them regularly and frequently, this had not occurred to them.

I try not to take pills having seen first hand how easily some people can become addicted and how the dosage often has to be raised to achieve the same effects. Often the side effects of these pills is fought by being given yet another prescription, followed by additional prescriptions. I feel this is why prescription medication taken correctly is the 3rd leading cause of death in this country. It is very easy to over-medicate even when treating only one condition. Unfortunately, I've also seen first hand how natural remedies get marketed without any real scientific testing, or while making claims which are opposite of what scientific testing has found. It's sad that we don't have a Commission E in this country. We really wouldn't need to reinvent the wheel, just build on research which has already taken place. Most people aren't even aware of Commission E.

Meditation has also worked for me, as has simply keeping my brain occupied with other things. I actually stopped keeping a medical journal when I realized that it caused me to focus on the pain and other negatives, instead of helping to make the pain become more like white noise. What I find now is that instead of feeling the pain, I often feel the effects of the pain, such as exhaustion or inability to concentrate. I notice more when the pain is gone, at which point I become only too aware of how much pain I was really in.

Allopurinol is my preventive maintenance for gout and hopefully companion kidney stones. Colchicine was what I used together with Prednisone to get over the worst phase of gout. I figured it was necessary when I no longer could walk down stairs and had to slide downstairs on my butt. Since taking Allopurinol, I've been free of all symptoms for over a year now. If only I did not have to take these drugs.

Episodically I get back and or sciatic pain. I've discovered riding my bike and stretching quickly relieves this issue. Given this, I conclude it is a form of imbalance and/or shortening of my back or butt muscles. It works well for me, so I'll just keep riding my road bike while leaning on the aerobars.

Interestingly, a decrease (relative to the time I was mid 40's) in activity correlates directly with increased medical issues such as I described above. I conclude, I should spend more time doing things than sitting on my butt playing geologist. It does pay the bills though.

having said all that, I want to share that I have a working hypothesis that proposes I will live longer and remain healthier by staying physically and mentally fit. So check with me in 5 years and 10 years from now to see if the hypothesis holds up or if we need to revise or discard it.

rockdoc, very true, I agree with you. Exercise is key, as well as eating right. I used to walk 1 hour a day, plus three days a week ride 26 miles. I was in great shape, that's my goal for the summer, or at least be headed in that direction!

I follow you on all but eating right. My doctor has recommended a nutritionist to help me. I need to follow through on this. Got to get another 30 years out of this body so I can enjoy some quality time with my hunny. Let eating right become my goal for the summer.

I am with you, I will do the same...I should know better! :thumbsup:

How ya do'in Mike?

I am doing slightly better, this back surgery has been real tough. Slow healing, can't twist, bend, pick up anything over 10 pounds. No sleep unless I use Ambein. Also using TEN's unit, and ice. There has been some improvement, walking on treadmill has improved, that is great. So, improving..thank you lord, thanks for asking buddy!

Specific Stretching and Specific Strengthening is the best way to relieve or eliminate chronic pain. I have worked with hundreds of "lost souls" and brought them back to a pain free and strong way of life.
Let's take for example, low back pain. Contrary to popular belief, walking is one of the worst things you can do for it. The muscles that cause the back to be tight and painful get stressed out in a short range of motion such as walking. This muscle gets only a 1/4 of its' range walking.
You start to feel good, but only to a point.
Unfortunately not all stretching is actually helping. Many of them are "feel good" stretches. These address only the symptoms, not the cause.
There are movements that are destructive and there are movements that are constructive. Of course the constructive ones are the ones that treat the cause of the concern.
Eating of course, provides the nutrients to heal. Protein is the most important type of food to eat. You need much more of it to heal than to maintain or survive (many people do not even get enough for day to day living, hence one of the factors of obesity). But you do not want to eat all of it at one time, because one would not be able to utilize it correctly.
The body heals itself, but you must also enable it to if you want it to heal correctly.

Sam Moy, CPT, FT
Bailey Massage and Fitness