One in five Americans suffers from it--here, some strategies for relief
-Susan Crandell, BettyConfidential.com
Two were in a very useful little newsletter called Bottom
Line. In a recent issue, Russell K. Portenoy, M.D., chairman
of the department of pain medicine at Beth Israel Medical Center in
New York, explains which over-the-counter pain relievers to use.
Because people respond differently to them, it's trial and
error to see what works best for you. Portenoy recommends beginning
with the one with the lowest risk of side effects, acetaminophen,
before progressing to the others (ibuprofen and aspirin).
The current issue of Bottom Line offers another
doctor's prescription for relieving back pain. Lee Hunter Riley
III, M.D., director of the orthopedic spine division at
Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, recommends this plan
of attack: Take an OTC anti-inflammatory such as ibuprofen,
naproxen or aspirin. Take it for two
weeks, even if the pain subsides; the effect takes time to
build.
After a few days, you should try to stay active, though not to
the point of intense pain. Riley reports that 95 percent of the
time, even acute back pain diminishes over two months. To soothe
your aching back, he recommends a heating pad, walking, a warm bath
or a diverting visit with family or friends. To keep pain at bay,
try Pilates or other exercises to strengthen the back and abdominal
muscles, and walk or swim to keep your joints flexible.
After suffering neck and shoulder pain, Wall Street Journal
reporter Melinda Beck investigates the connection between stress
and pain. When stress triggers the body's fight-or-flight
response, muscles contract and the body is bathed in stress
hormones, creating headaches and neck, shoulder and back pain. What
to do? Working out can blunt these effects, and biofeedback can
teach you how to manage your own stress levels. Finally, cognitive
behavioral therapy can disarm negative emotions that increase the
perception of pain.
Lynne Greenberg knows from pain, and she's written a book
that's a must read for anyone else suffering chronic
discomfort. The Body Broken chronicles the legacy
of a car accident: hideous, nearly unbearable pain, and
Greenberg's search for relief. She tries fusion surgery to mend
her damaged neck vertebra, nerve-block injections, a daunting list
of prescription painkillers, even marijuana and methadone.
Ultimately, she combines soul searching, literature (Milton is a favorite) and a stint in an in-patient pain clinic to ease her agony and develop a new outlook on her life. What's most powerful about this memoir is that despite consults with dozens of doctors, she does not cure her pain. She manages an even more difficult thing: learning to live with it. "I continue to move forward," she writes about managing chronic pain, "learning better ways of coping with my pain, still not certain of my final destination."
More on BettyConfidential.com:
Forget
the Aspirin, Think About Chocolate Cake
Breast Cancer Risk Could be Cut with Aspirin, Ibuprofen
