Halloween is right around the corner, and we want to stay on theme with the spooky holiday by talking about ways to make your chronic pain condition less scary. So below, read up on some tips that can help you take more control over your chronic pain and prevent you from living in fear of your condition.

Making Pain Less Scary

One of the reasons why a chronic pain condition can be so frightening is because of our lack of control over the situation. Patients don’t know if today will be a good day or a bad day, and the anxiety with not having control over your pain condition can make physical symptoms worse. Below, we share some tips for regaining control over your chronic pain condition.

1. Stay Active – A pain condition can make it easier for a person to want to lie in bed and avoid participating in daily life, but that only serves to make your condition worse in the long run. Activity and exercise help to build muscle and release endorphins that act as a natural pain reliever. Being active also helps your mental mindset, which can go a long way in helping you calm fears or anxiety over your chronic pain condition. Force yourself to do some physical activity each day, even if it’s just walking around the block.

2. Get A Diagnosis – You might be hoping that chronic pain will just go away on its own, but that’s rarely the case. Passively treating the condition by looking for information online is limited in its ability to help you, and in many cases it can actually make a person more anxious over their pain due to over-diagnosing the issue. To get peace of mind over your condition, get a confirmed and individualized diagnosis from a pain management specialist.

3. Control What You Can Control – As we mentioned above, a lot of our fears over our condition stem from our inability to control the situation. And while you can’t control everything, you need to focus your attention and efforts on the things you can control, like your exercise levels, your diet and your willingness to actively treat your condition head-on each and every day. If you can say you’ve done all you can to help keep your condition at bay, then you shouldn’t lose sleep over your condition. You’re controlling what you can control, and sometimes that’s all you can do.

4. Improve Your Diet – Eating healthier won’t cause your back pain to vanish, but it does play a crucial role in being able to work towards less daily pain. A healthy diet will give you more energy to be active or to fight through the days when you just want to lay in bed. It can also help you keep off extra weight, which can sometimes exacerbate a pain condition. You don’t need to eat perfectly every meal, but keep your health in mind when meal planning.

5. Education – The more we learn about our pain condition, the less fear it holds over us. Never be afraid to turn to your pain specialist for answers to questions or concerns you might have. The internet can also be a helpful option if you make sure you’re finding information from reputable sources, but again, your care team will be able to provide the best advice for your specific situation, so lean on them for help along the way!

For more information, or for help with your chronic pain condition, reach out to Dr. Cohn’s office today.