Alternative Medicine LifestyleAlternative Medicine Lifestyle

Natural Health and Wellness

managing chronic pain

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How Acupuncture Helps With Chronic Pain

As people learn new information about side effects caused by medicines created by the pharmaceutical industry, many are moved to investigate alternative methods of dealing with chronic pain and other physical forms of suffering. One method that is quickly growing in popularity is acupuncture, which is an ancient method of interacting with the body’s organs and systems, but can acupuncture help with pain? The following article will be exploring how acupuncture helps with chronic pain.

How Does It Work

When you go to visit a professional acupuncturist, they will may use between 8 and 16 very thin needles placed at very specific points in the surface of the skin. Several points correspond to areas that may have some sort of disturbance or blockage which may prevent normal function of the various systems of the body. When your acupuncturist needles these areas, they intend to move or disrupt the blockage that is preventing your body from functioning properly.

How It Helps You With Chronic Pain

When the acupuncture needles are inserted in your skin at those specific acupoints, your body will release endorphins that can help to lessen or reduce chronic pain body. The professional acupuncturist will then allow you to rest for 20 to 30 minutes. After you have completed resting, the professional acupuncturist will remove the needles, and then your session is complete. Rounds of acupuncture treatments generally last around 3 months, depending on the practitioner and their specific methods of treatment.

Some methods of acupuncture treatment include agitating, spinning, electrifying the needles. These are generally done to increase the intensity and effectiveness of the acupuncture treatment and bring greater satisfaction to the client. In some cases, the practitioner may include a method called moxibustion, which is the burning of specific therapeutic herbs near the surface of the flesh.

Are Sessions Painful

Before a lot of people try acupuncture many of them asked if the procedure is painful.  the answer however is no. This is because professional acupuncturist uses extremely thin needles better much better than typical syringe needles which are made to pierce the skin by making a tiny cut as it enters.  the result is that a person being treated with acupuncture will experience very little sensation at all, in fact some people become so relaxed by the procedure and the atmosphere that they actually will fall asleep.

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Herbs For Chronic Pain

Herbs For Chronic PainNatural herbs, whether you get them from the store or farmer’s market or you can grow them yourself, can do wonders for your body. There are herbs that help with everything from migraines to fibromyalgia, and everything in between. If you have chronic pain, you should start using these types of healing herbs.

Ginger

If you have ever looked up the healthiest herbs or spices, ginger probably comes up frequently. Ginger is known as a superfood, and is often recommended for everything from indigestion and upset stomach, to inflammation in the body. Because it is so helpful for inflammation, that also makes it ideal for people who struggle with chronic pain as a result of muscle soreness or pain, and joint pain like arthritis. If you need to reduce inflammation and want a natural remedy, adding more ginger to your diet is a great place to start.

Feverfew

Now is a good time to learn about feverfew if it is unfamiliar to you. It might have a silly name, but feverfew is a very powerful herb and one you should be familiar with if you struggle with chronic pain. This herb has long since been used for bad headaches and migraines, as well as pain from tooth infections and stomach problems. People with other types of chronic pain, such as arthritis, are now also finding it beneficial. There are no serious side effects, but you should still talk to your doctor if using it, especially if you are pregnant or nursing.

Birch Leaf

Another herb to try if you have a lot of pain that is keeping you from living a normal life is birch leaf. This herb is from birch trees and provides health benefits like reducing your inflammation and keeping away more serious diseases and infections. Birch leaves act as a natural type of cortisone, which is often used for autoimmune conditions and arthritis. It can also be used like aspirin, helping to alleviating mild to moderate pain. Birch leaf comes in dried leaves to make tea with or extract from the tree bark that comes in capsules.

Turmeric

Turmeric is another type of herb that is also considered a superfood. It helps to relieve pain from arthritis and other forms of joint pain since it helps reduce inflammation. It can also long-term anti-inflammatory benefits and reduce pain. It is definitely worth a try.

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Chronic Pain Journal

Chronic pain can be caused by a multitude of issues. You may have a diagnosed illness or you may have something going on that your doctors are claiming is not as severe as you believe it to be. With chronic pain, you may experience the pain without knowing what triggers it, what causes it at the root level, and that leaves you wondering how to handle it. One of the ways you can begin to narrow down your chronic pain and the triggers is through journaling. That is where the Chronic Pain Journal comes in.

What is the Chronic Pain Journal?

The Chronic Pain Journal is a typical journal, but centered around the idea of recording your pain for the day. The idea is that you are supposed to write down the pain you had, the level you had, and what you did for the day. You don’t have to do this in a typical diary form. You can basically do this in any way that you want to. The journal is open for you to choose the best method for you to get your thoughts out and to record your pain. It is small enough that you can take it with you throughout the day, so if you do start to feel pain you can record it at that time.

Ideally, you are journaling with the intent to go back and track your triggers. You want to go back and check the day and see what happened and see what may have caused more pain that day. You are given two pages a day for this, so you could ideally write on one page and use the second for the review of what you see at the end of the week when you go back and review your day.

What Makes the Chronic Pain Journal Different from other Journals?

Most chronic pain journals tend to have a set way that you are supposed to use the journal. There is a method to each one. Some may be a bullet list while others are a fill in the blank journal. What makes this journal different is that it is a free form option. You can choose to write how you want, journal how you want, and review how you want. This is more practical for some than others.

How Practical is the Journal to Use Daily?

The Chronic Pain Journal is practical for someone that wants a free form method of journaling. It can work well for some people. However, if you are looking for a journal that is more structured and geared to walking you through the journaling your pain steps, then this may not be as ideal for you.

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Healing Bath For Chronic Pain

Healing Baths for Chronic PainTips For Taking a Healing Bath

A healing bath is simple a bath that will allow you to be out of pain. Unlike a traditional bath, you are going to select certain things to add to the bath, whether it is essential oils for aromatherapy, or natural ingredients like salts or apple cider vinegar. Here are some tips for taking a healing bath and some different bath options available for your chronic pain.

Add Essential Oils

The first thing you can do when you want to take a healing bath is turn it into an aromatherapy bath. With aromatherapy, you are getting health benefits through your sense of smell, which is done with essential oils. When applied directly to your skin, essential oils usually need to be diluted with a carrier oils, but when you are taking a bath, no dilution is necessary. You just add a handful of drops to the bath water and enjoy the aroma. Choose some essential oils known to help with chronic pain, like lavender, chamomile, and peppermint. These are all soothing and relaxing, so they will help with stress and insomnia as well as the chronic pain.

Be Careful About Getting in and Out

This is something that might prove to be an issue for you, depending on the type of bathtub you have and what your chronic pain is from. If your main source of pain is in your back or you have arthritis, getting in and out of the bathtub can often be more painful and doesn’t really make a healing bath that effective. In this case, consider installing support bars if you are able to, or use a low bath seat if you have a deep bath. You will still relax in the water, but are a little bit higher off the bottom, so it is easier to get up. The support bars also help to support your body when getting in and out of the bathtub.

Choose the Type of Bath

Finally, let’s go over some different types of healing baths you can take. This will depend on the source of your pain and what healing you are trying to get. For example, if your pain comes from sore muscles or muscle inflammation, then you can try a bath with apple cider vinegar. If you are an athlete and most of your pain is from tight muscles and back pain, then add lavender, marjoram  herbs, rosemary, and eucalyptus leaves to a bath with Epsom salts in it. Oatmeal baths are also great, along with adding different combinations of oils or herbs.

Why You Should Try Aromatherapy Healing Bath

For chronic pain sufferers, there are a lot of different natural remedies, from herbs to essential oils. Speaking of essential oils, one of the top ways to use them is with aromatherapy. This is the practice of using the scents of essential oils to help with reducing your pain by stimulating the receptors in your nose, which can pass straight to your brain. Here are some reasons to consider aromatherapy if you suffer from chronic pain.

How Aromatherapy Help

The reason aromatherapy is so beneficial is because your sense of smell is one of the strongest and most important senses. Your response to stimuli is often from smell first, from warning you that there is gas or a fire before you actually see the smoke and flames, to letting you know something might be rotten before you can taste that it is. It is essential that you are able to smell things, both good and bad. So when you have a lot of bad pain, what you smell can make a very large impact. Positive, healing, calming scents go far in helping you to deal with the pain, if not help get rid of it.

For aromatherapy when you have chronic pain, you will typically use essential oils. While you can also get aromatherapy candles that you just need to burn, this can get expensive, and are not always as effective as using pure oils.

Top Essential Oils For Chronic Pain

While you can probably benefit from aromatherapy with any essential oils you want, there are certain ones to start with. The essential oils you want to use are ones that are good for pain management, but also excellent for calming and relaxing both your body and mind. For example, both lavender and chamomile are good for pain because they can relax you, which helps to handle the amount of pain you have. Some other essential oils that tend to help with pain during aromatherapy are peppermint, African marigold, clove, and wintergreen.

Ways to Use Aromatherapy

There are a few different ways you can use aromatherapy and essential oils for chronic pain. Since you want to inhale it, using an essential oil diffuser is a great option. These are easy to use and you don’t have to worry about using carrier oils to diffuse the essential oils. You just put a few drops into the diffuser, and inhale the scent when it begins coming out of the diffuser. Another option is to massage them into your skin, which gives you other benefits aside from the scent. However, you should not put oils directly onto the skin. They need to be diluted first. If you are planning on taking a bath, that is the perfect time to get some aromatherapy in by dropping some essential oils directly into the bathtub.

 

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Lifestyle Changes For Coping With Pain

Managing Chronic Pain

As you probably know if you are a chronic pain sufferer, it is not always possible to get rid of it entirely. However, this does not mean that you should feel out of hope. There are simple lifestyle changes you can make that will help ease the burden, reduce the severity and frequency of the pain, and help you to deal with it better on a regular basis.

Everyday Tips For Coping With Pain

There are things you can do every day that help you cope with your chronic pain. Some things you might already be doing, while others are good to start getting into the normal practice of. It is important that you keep trying to make changes in your life for proper pain management and mental health.

Try to Reduce Your Stress Levels

Stress has such a large impact on nearly every facet of your life, including your chronic pain. Regardless of where your pain comes from, stress is likely to trigger flare-ups and make it a lot worse. The best thing you can do is figure out what is causing your stress and work to reduce it. This might be spending time with people who tend to cause personal stress, work or financial stress that can be avoided, or simply living a more organized life to avoid personal, everyday stress.

Get Those Endorphins

Sure, you may not love exercise, but exercise loves you! It isn’t just good for controlling your weight or burning calories, but it can help to promote blood flow that helps reduce your risk for heart disease and high blood pressure. It also helps to release endorphins, the happy chemicals in your brain. When this happens, you not only reduce stress, but you can improve your mood and be able to handle your chronic pain a lot better. Plus, certain sources of chronic pain are reduced when you are moving your body more often, like mild forms of arthritis. There are many reasons to start exercising more often.

Reduce Your Alcohol Intake

Drinking alcohol may temporarily reduce your pain, but it is only hurting you in the long run. Not only is there a risk of addiction, but alcohol can get in the way of your sleep. Sleeping is extremely important when you are trying to cope with chronic pain, so you don’t want to get into the habit of putting a Band-aid on the pain with alcohol every day. Plus, alcohol is a depressant, so it can make your mood highs and lows a lot worse.

Join a Support Group

Chronic pain is not something to take lightly. It is easy to become overwhelmed by it and let it ruin your life. Unfortunately, even those who love you might not understand what it is like until they have gone through the same thing. It might be better to reach out to others also experiencing chronic pain with a support group.

Find Ways to Lessen Your Stress

Stress has a strong link with chronic pain, making it worse and keeping you from finding relief from the pain. If you are under a lot of stress, whether financial, personal or work stress, it is a lot harder to get control over the pain on a daily basis. A good lifestyle change to make is to find daily ways to manage your stress, whether it means getting help at work when you become overwhelmed, dealing with toxic people in your life, or trying to get a better handle on your finances.

Be Careful With Your Dietary Choices

What you eat or drink can also have a large impact on your pain level. If your pain is related to inflammation, you need to cut back on fried foods, red meat, and refined carbs, and go for fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains. Cut back on alcohol and smoking, and drink more water. These are healthy changes not only for your weight management and general wellness, but for reducing your chronic pain as well.

Exercise Outdoors

In general, exercising is very good for you, so it should come as no surprise that it is recommended when you have chronic pain. However, not only does exercising help with the pain, exercising outdoors helps even more. This helps distract your mind from the pain, allowing you to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air, be a little more social, and take in your surroundings. While on a scenic hike, you momentarily become transfixed in the surroundings and your pain subsides, even if just for a moment. This makes a big difference for anyone with chronic pain.

Explore Ways to Relax More

Relaxing your body and mind is important for managing chronic pain on a daily basis. Find things to help you unwind at the end of a long day or de-stress, whether that means taking a bath, enjoying a movie with your family, or getting out an adult coloring book.