POLL..Everyones Opinion Please

[VICourageous]

I see this question asked a lot and I know we are all different. What works for one might not work for others. Doing a Survey to see what Non-Additive Pain meds comes up the most. I do not like to put myself out here in the front line, but I have not seen a post on this since I joined. I sure many have been done and will roll around again someday.

I also wanted to share something with you all. As some of my MH friends know, I was in real bad all over body pain the other week that was just very, very painful. I am walking in my 11 month and it was not due to detox..BUT guess what??? The Dr called it SOMATIC SYNDROME..This is physical pain due to Emotional Distress and Turmoil in the Brain. Meaning that my Transmitters are trying to balance back at it is sending signals to the body. It had nothing to do with Fibro, Arthritis, Nerves, or Muscles. Just a Brain Pain..haha.

I also wanted to share what he said about prescribing ME any pain meds. Even if I could hand them to someone to hand out he said NO. Being a Addict he said that it will just start this back up and he will see me in 3 months or so in the same condition I was in Months ago. He said once it gets going again he knows I will find places or do things to get them other then being handed out if I want more. I just Love my Dr he talks to me in Dr language about the Billions of Brain Transmitter and Receptors because he knows that I find this very interesting these days.

I sure do hope this info helps some out here that are still in early recovery and experiencing some strange pain other then there original pain that they got the pills for in the first place.

SO What do YOU ALL use that is Natural or OTC for pain?? OH! Yes Exercise is the Biggest Key to it ALL..lol
Bless
vickie

[ActingBrandNew]

"I would encourage people to always continue working with their doctors to work on finding the best regimen for them, and insisting that their condition be managed by the appropriate specialist (ie neurologist, ortho, etc).  Never be closed minded or assume only one kind of modality would (or wouldn't) work. "

You bring up an interesting point that I wanted to comment on and wanted to add that people shouldn't be afraid to get a second...third...etc, opinion. For example, I have Degenerative Disc Disease and Spinal Stenosis. I saw a Neuro-Surgeon and he wanted to "cut" me. I saw a Neurologist who wanted to treat with Gaba or Lyrica. Saw A Physical therapist who felt he could make me better with PT. Saw a natural-path who thought he could "herb me to death" and my spine would be fixed....and so on.

I continue to work with doctors and am always open to there recommended modalities and through a "team" effort have found what helps my quality of life. Your right, there are many different types of pain which are treated differently.

[EvolverU]

Hi Vickie,

What a great questions! I'd like to second all the above posters in the following ways:

We evolved to eat the foods that grow naturally from the ground. We run into trouble when we eat a steady diet of processed, sugary, fried, 'dead' foods & 'dead' salt (meaning heated). An alkalizing diet is important to stave off disease/pain (which always exists in an acid environment in the body.)

I also agree that meditation, Yoga, inner martial arts like Chi Gong/Tai Chi/Akito are incredible healers (thus addressing the source of the pain.) Massage & hydrotherapy can be beneficial for certain types of pain (they both increase circulation, help with detoxification & move energetic 'blockages'. I'd add juicing to the list. When I was at a Wellness Center in FL, & drank wheatgrass juice twice a day, I discovered that not only did I have more energy & my liver numbers went back to normal but I only had to take a third of my Methadone take homes.

[nursegirl6572]

Good question vic.  The answer would depend on what KIND of chronic pain a person deals with. For example, some people suffer from musculoskeletal pain, some neurological kind of pain, etc.  Different conditions would warrant different meds.

I'm a big supporter of a multi-faceted approach that would include numerous different kinds of pain management, on top of anything pharmaceutical.  Like PT/OT, massage therapy, accupuncture, meditation, yoga, etc  Again, the KIND of pain would make the intervention choices change too.  Some would be appropriate for some and inappropriate for others.

I would encourage people to always continue working with their doctors to work on finding the best regimen for them, and insisting that their condition be managed by the appropriate specialist (ie neurologist, ortho, etc).  Never be closed minded or assume only one kind of modality would (or wouldn't) work.

Managing chronic pain as an addict does NOT mean there are no options.  It means a person has to think outside the box and get creative, which is why having a good doc is critical.  A doc who understands that the pain must be managed, and that nothing should be taken off the table, including narcotics.  IF indeed some kind of controlled substance is needed from time to time to help control severe pain, then one would want a doc that understands that it can be done, it just has to be done in a certain way.  What's unfortunate is that there are a lot of docs who get tunnel vision about the narcotic angle and then they struggle to help the person find a reasonable solution.  Managing pain is so important, for overall general health, both physically and mentally.

[ariley13]

OH I forgot about the  TENs unit! They are amazing and help so, so much. Especially with muscle knots and spasms. Thanks for bringing that up. You reminded me that I need to get another one!  :)

[ActingBrandNew]

I like what Airley brought up with the anti-inflammatory foods. She brought of cherries but you can throw most berries in for that matter. And, I wanted to add that its not only food that has anti-inflammatory properties but we need to watch what food NOT to eat because many do have the inflammatory properties.

I do a lot of herbs that I mention a lot but one thing I want to mention today is investing in a TENS (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) machine. I have one and use it almost everyday. I used it in physical therapy for over 6 months but thought to myself I could save some money just buying my own....so I did and its great. I have soooo much more function in my knee ans back. (Degenerative disc AND autoimmune psoriatic arthritis)

_________________________________________________________
Effectiveness of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Treatment of Hyperalgesia and Pain

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a nonpharmacologic treatment for pain relief. TENS has been used to treat a variety of painful conditions.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2746624/
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They really aren't that expensive either.

Hope everyone has a pain free day

-`ღ´-
Always,
ABN

[ariley13]

Hi my friend! I'm so glad that you posted this. I'm sure that someone else is having similar pain issues and they will benefit from this. I have just recently learned that cherries have great natural pain relief properties. I guess that they are a natural anti inflammatory. So eat lots and lots of cherries! For the type of injury that I have to my back, I have to resort to the stronger prescription anti inflammatory drugs when it's bad. I have a script for Toradol. It's supposed to be one of the strongest out there. My doctor told me that it's similar in strength to Morphine, but without the high. It does wonders for me, but can be very rough on your stomach, so it's not good to take for mild pain. On my mild pain days, I usually try to stay as active as possible and if I must take something, I do good old Ibuprofen. I am also a firm believer in the healing powers of massage. I think for your all over, generalized pain, getting a weekly massage (if possible) would do wonders. I hope that you can find some sort of relief. I know all to well how miserable it is being in pain all the time. Best of luck to you! Take care of yourself my friend!