Coping with emotional pain is an important part of managing chronic pain. Since physical pain so easily leads to insomnia, depression, and isolation—guaranteed to make the painful condition worse—a strategy is needed to avoid these pitfalls.
Use Online Resources
Savvy Internet users can find many helpful resources. For example, Painconnection.org is a non-profit organization devoted to improving quality of life and minimizing isolation of chronic pain sufferers. It encourages people to be proactive about their treatment with links to podcasts and information about classes, conference calls, and other programs related to pain management.
You can also find much needed support online, both online discussions and groups of people who meet in person. Meetup.com is a helpful website where you can find support groups for fibromyalgia, migraine headaches, autoimmune disease, and there are alternative health support groups as well. The healing power of groups cannot be understated. There are meetups for every interest—restaurants, movies, hiking, yoga—being active is an extremely important part of pain management and activities are always more fun with a group.
Read Books and Magazines
Every topic related to pain management is covered in a book. Goodreads.com is an excellent source with topics ranging from self-help techniques for pain relief to detailed analyses about the cause of the pain, and everything in between. Reading about pain management and other people’s similar experiences can be both soothing and enlightening.
Take a Break
A five-minute break to stretch or take a walk can minimize stiffness. Gentle stretching and slow movements—never force or bounce a stretch—can soothe aching muscles and provide instant relief. Quiet relaxing time is essential to pain management. Even if you rely on regular or intermittent pain medication, with self-care practices designed to provide pain relief, there is so much you can do to improve the quality of your life.