Living with chronic pain

Living with pain is a bloody pain. It can drive us to distraction and be a never ending source of misery. When tying your shoes or climbing out of bed feels like an Olympic event, you know you need to take some action. But what action will work and what is causing the problem in the first place? Chronic pain is like an unwanted friend who doesn’t get the hint and won’t leave. And ends up staying for dinner even when the real guests have arrived. And then spends most of the evening dominating the conversation about some tedious drama they’re unconsciously addicted to.

Let’s have a little butcher’s at what some of the causes of chronic pain often are: 

Muscular atrophy (wasting away) - Your sitting posture makes the Hunchback of Notre Dame’s look regal. You’re on your phone slash laptop seventeen hours a day, your shoulders are riding higher than your ears (the right one even higher), you’re legs are crossed (always the same way ensuring one leg gets some nice varicose veins) and the most exercise you get is swinging your arms in bed, at the end of the night, in a desperate attempt to get to 10,000 steps. 

You may have an old injury (from the black and white days) that never cleared the body, the scar tissue of which remains stuck and embedded in your body, causing you to walk with a slight twist. This builds itself through your physical structure like a Jenga tower and can affect everything from your knee to headaches. 

Inflammation - In simple terms, it’s your immune system’s version of an emergency response team. Got a sprained ankle? It rushes to the scene with swelling, redness, and pain to help you heal. But when it turns chronic, it’s like your immune system forgets to clock out and starts doing unwanted overtime. Suddenly, that helpful response becomes a slow burn that damages tissues, contributes to pain, and generally makes you feel like you’re starring in a B grade movie called, “Why does everything hurt?”. 

Inflammation can become chronic for a variety of reasons:

Food:

If you’re having a love affair with processed foods, sugar, and refined carbs, your body is probably going on strike. These foods trigger your immune system, sparking inflammation. You may also have an allergy you are unaware of. Too much wheat bread isn’t great for you. Eat like you’re planting a garden inside yourself. Some foods naturally reduce inflammation - leafy greens, berries, fatty fish (think salmon and sardines), nuts, and seeds. Anti-inflammatory superstars like turmeric, have some serious benefits.

Stress:

You know how you feel when you’ve been working too hard, haven’t slept, and your bank has forced you to go into a branch to sort out your telephone banking password so you can login to your account? Your immune system feels that way when you’re chronically stressed. Cortisol, your stress hormone, goes into overdrive, and before you know it, your body’s on high alert 24/7. Mindfulness practices, deep breathing, yoga or 5 rhythms can help lower cortisol levels. See a therapist. Swim in the ponds. Go for a ride on your bike. Smile. Phone a friend.

Not enough exercise:

If your idea of exercise is getting up to look for the remote (another Olympic event for people in chronic pain), your body’s circulation and metabolism will slow down, which can stoke the flames of inflammation. Move or be moved: Movement helps boost circulation and flushes out toxins. Forget Ironman triathlon—walking, stretching, or even dancing the tango with your cat counts. You could pay for a massage everyday but that would set you back about £30k a year and I’m still not sure it would work!

Emotional baggage:

Stress, anxiety, or trying to remember all your passwords can add tension that magnifies physical pain. Emotions can be painful too. And cause pain to spread through the body. Emotional habits (such as eyes always down, or tensing muscles unnecessarily can begin in early childhood and last all the way into adulthood, causing all kinds of pain. Be curious about your feelings rather than trying to push them away (your frontal brain is desperately addicted to thinking and will keep you spinning as long as you are able to stand). Try to keep broadening your perspective.

Nervous system shenanigans:

Sometimes, your nerves decide to keep sending pain signals long after the problem’s gone, like a song stuck on repeat. Nervous system dysfunction can be severe, debilitating and long-lasting. Many of these can be helped with a focussed approach and don’t need medication. Others obviously are autoimmune disorders and these can be very tricky and sometimes impossible to sort out.

The message: get help, take action, empower yourself (it costs nothing), educate yourself (that’s free too). Try to avoid putting chemicals in your body if you can. If you have chronic pain, please seek professional help.