By Sam Carson
There are several methods of treating your chronic pain, from over the counter and prescription medications, to acupuncture and other more natural methods of pain management. It is important to realize, however, that no single method of pain management should be expected to be your cure-all. It is better to adopt a combination of different methods to effectively treat your chronic pain.
If you have mild to moderate pain, this can usually be relieved with over the counter drugs. There are also a wide variety of topical creams that you can use that can be easily applied on your skin, which will help relieve your pain, from arthritis to common muscle cramps. These are a good option for some people who don’t like to take pills. The creams are said to work very well. There are no side effects such as diarrhea or upset stomach because you do not ingest the topical creams. They may not be as strong as the pills but in some cases such as arthritis it can help reduce the pain significantly.
Capsaicin is one of them; the way it works is that the cream is set to block the pain that is in transit to a substance called substance P to the brain. Capsaicin is also found naturally in hot peppers, which are said to help with some pain. Other forms of topical creams are brands like Camphor that contain menthol and eucalyptus, both of which are great for aches and pains of the body and can be found in such products as Icy Hot. Other products you may have seen in the drug store are Ben Gay, Flexall and Aspercreme. These are good for mild-to-moderate pain but they don’t work on severe pain.
If you don’t have any luck relieving your pain with over the counter medications or creams, consult your doctor. He’ll be able to advise and prescribe stronger pain relieving drugs. Drugs like Hydrocodone and Oxycontin are very good at relieving pain, but can sometimes lead to addiction. Patients take more and more, since the effect dwindles over-time.
Your doctor may also recommend physical therapy, especially if your chronic pain is injury related. Physical therapists can manage a lot of pain related ailments, such as chronic neck and back pain, spine and joint problems, sporting related injuries, and more. If prescription medication and physical therapy are ineffective in treating your chronic pain, you may need surgery or in severe cases surgical implants that constantly deliver your body pain medication.
Many people and doctors believe that drugs and medicines are the answer to easing or managing your pain. But many herbalists believe that you don’t need medications to help with the pain. They believe that alternate methods like acupuncture may be able to help. Acupuncture is great for people who are under a lot of stress and after they have a treatment they swear by it. The needles may throw you off because it looks like it hurts but they are trained professionals and they know how to insert the pins as not to hurt you.
Here’s 3 easy ways you start managing your chronic pain now:
1. Consume plenty of Vitamin D. Studies have shown that Vitamin D helps build stronger bones and muscles and help with chronic pain.
2. Get good nights sleep each and every night. The body heals itself during our sleep, and not getting enough good sleep can bother painful conditions.
3. Eat a healthy and balanced diet. Avoid foods with sugars and bad carbs, these kinds of foods cause inflammation and pain.
For additional information and resources on Chronic Pain and Pain Management, visit this site on Chronic Pain [http://www.painsweb.com]. The author Sam Carson is a chronic pain patient and publisher of PainsWeb.com [http://www.painsweb.com] His website specializes in conveying targeted information about all types of Chronic Pain and helps you find associated information, patient resources and forums etc to manage your pain.
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