Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is an often invisible illness that can have a detrimental impact on a person's quality of life. Pain is usually considered chronic or persistent when it lasts for more than three months despite prescribed treatment or medication. Chronic pain is relatively common, affecting approximately 43% of people in the U.K (BMJ, 2018). In addition to physical pain lasting longer than three months, symptoms of chronic pain also include the following:
- Fatigue
- Irritability
- Sleep disturbance
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Isolation or loneliness
- A loss of identity
Causes
Chronic pain sometimes occurs after an injury or operation, often through a condition called central sensitisation, where the nervous system becomes stuck in a persistent state of high reactivity. This persistent state of reactivity maintains pain even after the initial injury has healed. Nerve damage can also be a trigger for chronic pain. Certain health conditions such as Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Athritis and Endometriosis are associated with chronic pain. Sometimes chronic pain begins without an obvious trigger or cause.
Treatment of Chronic Pain
There are numerous treatments for managing chronic pain, including prescription medications and physical and psychological therapies. Usually a combination of approaches is required. Psychological approaches to managing chronic pain usually begin with exploring any thoughts, emotions and behaviours that may be increasing or maintaining the experience of pain and working with people to break these cycles. Exploring links between stress and pain can also be helpful, especially when combined with stress management and relaxation techniques. Psychological therapy can help you to explore the links between your emotions and pain and develop effective coping strategies.
Pacing physical activity is an important aspect of pain management, which can help to prevent the "boom and bust" cycle that often happens in chronic pain, where a person pushes themselves to get a lot done on their "good days", which then results in a flare-up of pain and decreased activity. Physical conditioning is another important aspect of chronic pain management. People with chronic pain often (understandably) begin to avoid exercise. Over time this can lead to physical deconditioning, which increases pain in the long term and limits activity further. A gradual and graded return to some physical activity can be an important part of pain management.
If you are interested in an individualised pain management programme designed specifically for you, please contact me.
