5 Myths About Chronic Pain
Did you know that many studies have shown that the extent of an injury or disease is not necessarily the best predictor of whether or not a person will develop chronic pain?
Many research studies of the past few decades have completely disproven many of the things we thought we knew about chronic pain and its management. Below are 5 myths about chronic pain and the real facts about this managing chronic pain.
MYTH 1:
If I hurt my back really badly, I need to get on an opioid for pain control. If my doctor doesn’t give me Percocet (or Lortab or Tramadol, etc.), then he or she isn’t helping me and doesn’t care about my pain levels.
Fact:
Almost everyone will experience back pain at some point in their life.
Many studies have shown that starting a patient on an opioid will delay healing by months, and likely increase the patient’s pain in the long run.
Truly, the risk of prescribing a patient an opioid for back pain is one of the worst things a medical provider can do.
MYTH 2:
If I have a herniated disc or “bad knees” or “bad back,” I need to get on a pain medication.
Fact:
The spine and joints, like most body parts, are built to heal themselves of a great deal of damage, and the vast majority of people with herniated discs or weak joints do not live with chronic pain. However, they need to be informed about their treatment options and do things to help themselves.
MYTH 3:
My pain specialist recommended I see a counselor and therefore he/she thinks I’m just crazy.
Fact:
Although it is true that chronic pain can cause depression, the opposite is also true. You are more likely to develop chronic physical pain if you have a history of depression, anxiety, mental illness, or a history of childhood emotional trauma. But no one is suggesting it is all in your head! The mind affects the body and the body affects the mind!
Unresolved emotional distress will cause your body to release large amounts of stress hormones, increasing physical pain in all its forms. Therefore, a great many people find improvement to chronic physical pain and real healing by getting psychological help.
MYTH 4:
After I told my pain specialist all about my chronic pain, he or she told me I had to quit smoking. Obviously, he/she wasn’t even listening to me.
Fact:
If your pain specialist tells you to quit smoking, it’s because he or she wants you to heal completely. Did you know that the two biggest predictors of whether or not a person will develop chronic pain are smoking and unresolved emotional distress or childhood trauma?
Although you probably don’t want to hear this, if you are serious about being pain free, you will have to quit smoking. If you choose to continue smoking, it is likely that no matter what you do, you will continue to be in some amount of pain for the rest of your life.
We don’t know all the reasons why smoking causes so much chronic pain, but some believe it is because nicotine is a vasoconstrictor which prevents the body from clearing out normal day to day wear and damage to cells. Also, the inhalation of hydrocarbons produces free radicals (responsible for cellular damage and even cancer). Smokers get sick more often, and do not heal as fast or completely as non-smokers.
MYTH 5:
If I have chronic physical pain, there is nothing that is as effective as an opioid.
Fact:
Although opioids can provide immediate relief, they are a terrible choice for chronic pain in the vast majority of people.
They can increase depression and anxiety, cause dependence or addiction, lead to constipation, rot the teeth, decrease your pain tolerance, and require an ever increasing dose to control the pain.
Many studies have shown that opioids actually prolong or prohibit the healing process.
Effective Alternatives for Treating Chronic Pain
A great many people are able to get relief and true healing with some or all of these suggestions:
- Anti-inflammatories (ibuprofen, naproxen, meloxicam, celebrex, toradol, diclofenac, etc.)
- Steroids, given orally or injected into the painful area.
- Joint injections or spine injections with steroids or restorative agents.
- Topical pain creams or patches (name brand preparations, or specially made concoctions made for you by the pharmacist).
- Topical ketamine creams for localized pain.
- Ketamine treatments!
- Muscle relaxants.
- Antidepressants which lessen the sensation of pain (cymbalta, venlafaxine, amitriptyline).
- EMS (electrical muscle stimulation).
- TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) which often immediately alleviates pain and promotes healing.
- Laser treatments of injured joints, spine, shoulders, etc.
- Chiropractic treatments.
- Physical therapy and strengthening of muscles which support weight bearing joints and the spine.
- Emshape, Emsculpt, or Emslim machines which use high frequency electromagnetic pulses to strengthen key muscle groups without exercise, thus supporting the spine and weight bearing joints better.
- Exercise in general to increase the body’s natural endorphin release and burn stress hormones.
- Counseling to identify and address triggers to pain, fear, anxiety, and to resolve emotional distress contributing to physical pain.
- Anti-inflammatory diets which naturally decrease the body’s inflammatory substance production.
- Anti Seizure meds which decrease nerve firing (gabapentin, lyrica, depakote, topamax).
- Botox, especially for headaches, but also for chronic muscle spasming in the neck or extremities.
