Five tips for managing chronic pain
Living with chronic pain can be extremely challenging. Managing chronic pain effectively can be even harder. When you are in pain like that, it interferes with your ability to do everyday activities. Going to work, taking a walk, or playing with your children become arduous tasks.
Incorporating lifestyle changes can help ease your daily pain level. Check out our 5 quick tips for managing and reducing chronic pain at home.
1. Reduce stress in your life
Research has found that stress intensifies chronic pain. Negative feelings like anger, anxiety, and stress can increase the body’s natural sensitivity to pain. There are several techniques you can use to help reduce the stress level in your life:
- Listening to calming music or relaxation tapes
- Using guided imagery
- Employing progressive muscle relaxation
2. Exercise
Exercise boosts endorphins, which are brain chemicals that help to improve mood. Exercise also strengthens muscles, helps maintain a healthy weight, reduces the risk of heart disease, and helps prevent re-injury and further pain. Dr. Puppala can recommend an exercise routine that is right for you.
3. Join a support group
Living with chronic pain can feel like a battle every day. Joining a support group with people who are also dealing with chronic pain and understand what you’re dealing with can help you feel less alone. You can also benefit from the wisdom that group members will provide from their experiences.
4. Keep a pain log
By tracking your pain level and activities every day, Dr. Puppala can more effectively treat your pain. Keeping a daily journal, or log, of your pain levels will help you track pain. To do this, record your pain level on the 1 to 10 pain scale at the end of each day. Make a note of what activities you did during the day as well. Every time you visit the doctor, take this pain journal to help your doctor understand your chronic pain and physical functioning level.
5. Eat a healthy diet
A diet low in fat and sodium helps you maintain a healthy weight, improves blood sugar levels, aids in the digestive process, and reduces the risk of heart disease. Fresh fruits and vegetables, whole-grain breads, cooked dried beans and peas, lean meats, and low-fat yogurt, cheese, and milk are great options for a healthy diet.
You can help make a difference in your health!
A variety of strategies can help you manage chronic pain. Personal efforts to exercise, reduce stress levels, and eat a healthy diet can really make a difference. Interaction with a support group can help you psychologically deal with pain issues, and logging pain levels daily can help your doctor develop a protocol to relieve your pain.
Dr. V. K. Puppala, whose office is in Villa Rica, Georgia, has expertise in the treatment of a variety of chronic painful conditions including neck and low back pain, intractable neuropathic pain, joint pain, headaches, and myofascial pain syndrome. He is dedicated to achieving superior pain relief and functional restoration outcomes. Patients from Douglasville, Hiram, Roswell, Marietta, Carrollton, and Kingston, GA choose Dr. Puppala as their doctor for pain relief. If you need to consult a doctor about pain, please call Dr. V. K. Puppala’s office for a consultation at 770-MAP-PAIN.