Pain Management Through Medication
Today I saw my family doctor to go through pre-op paper work and have a basic check up. I always leave his office feeling better than when I walked in. I know, I know, I'm so fortunate. I can hear some of you reader’s groan, because that is not the case with most doctors. People tell me they wait forever, and then are rushed by a doctor who seems to have one hand on the door the whole time they are talking. I don't have that experience. Not with him. He cares, and he listens. Two qualities you would think would be a given for a family doctor, but I know from my past that is not always the case.
We talked a lot today about pain control. For a long time I would say my pain has been under control. That doesn't mean I was not in pain, but I was able to handle most daily activities and function with the amount of pain I was in. In the last year I have lost that control because of spinal stenosis and its severity. A recent surgery created acute pain, and now I have increased chronic pain from nerve compression and slippage of the disc. We are challenged once again to find the delicate balance.
There is a fine-tuning that happens with pain control. Balancing the medication with the side effects, particularly the sleepiness and brain fog - compared to pain relief. Every person is different. Some people want 100% pain relief. Well, I guess we all want that, but at what cost? For me the cost was too high. I could get to the 100% but, I couldn't live my life the way I wanted to. In fact I was asleep the majority of the time. I settled for about 70% and use other methods to help deal with the rest.
I'm going to break this down a little, because pain control is a complicated, it is a mix of medication, acceptance and lifestyle. I spent almost three years in the early days with inadequate pain control. This was partially because I had a doctor who didn't understand pain, but I was also not a very willing participant in taking long-term medication. I have learned quite a lot since then.
First off, you have to be willing to honestly try things, give them time to work for a reasonable amount of time. So many people start to decrease or add medication and other treatments to the mix before they even have given the first medication a chance to work.
When I was finally diagnosed and was under the care of a world class neurosurgeon things changed for me. It can change right now for you too if you are in pain. I am going to tell you step by step what I learned and how to tackle pain according to the top pain clinic in Canada.
I was referred to Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto where I met with head of pain control. There was a team and they worked with me, constantly fine turning a cocktail of medication to deal with neurological pain.
If you are at a doctors for pain that you cannot control at home, medication is likely what is needed, if only for a short time. So why then are we all so shocked and negative about having to take medication? We somehow think our bodies have betrayed us and we "should" be able to handle this on our own. Acceptance that you have reached a point where you need medical intervention to help with pain control is not a sign of weakness. Medication is not the enemy.
I remember my massage therapist was a constant in my life in the early days. She saw how much pain I was dealing with and offered all kinds of different modalities and natural remedies. Nothing had helped at all and the massages were a comfort so I continued. Once I got some pain relief from the medication, I remember telling her I hated taking pain medication. She calmly stopped and came around to face me. This woman who tried and practiced every type of
natural treatment in the world, gave me a mini lecture on how acceptance is the cure. She explained that right then, for me, accepting I needed to take medication was the cure I needed. I was shocked. I had expected her to be all against taking anything that wasn't natural. She asked me to be thankful every time I put the medication into my mouth that there was something to help me get back to who I used to be. She was right and I thank her for the beginning of my acceptance, which in turn gave me my life back.
1. Accept that for now, you need the medication.
2. Ask questions about what is being prescribed and why, both from the pharmacy and the doctor. Not Google, not your friends. Remember everyone is different. Great to talk about it with friends and to educate yourself, but remember your doctor has spent years studying this, its not a quick Google search.
3. In the early days of taking a new medication, ask to see your doctor frequently to discuss concerns.
4. Give the medication a chance to work before you decide it is not the drug for you.
5. For the first period of time on a new drug take as the doctor has prescribed for you without adding anything else to your regimen. You can't start a new exercise program the same week as a new medication and give a fair analysis its effectiveness.
6. Don' t expect perfection. Some drugs take a while to work and finding the right dosage can take several trial and error appointments. If it helps your pain at all don't dismiss it, it may just need some fine-tuning.
7. If you have some pain relief and you have a relapse, don't panic. Honestly think about what you did physically the previous day and that day. Sometimes we are afraid to admit something like caring for grandchildren is what caused the extra pain, so denial plays a part. Acceptance and acknowledgement is what's needed to help pain control. Then it becomes your decision if, and how you do that activity again. If you don't acknowledge the reason, doctors bump up medication for long term instead of knowing there was a reason for extra pain that day.
8. Keep track, but don't obsess about side effects. Some disappear after a period of time. And some are a reason for concern. Once again the pharmacist is a great help with this. They can tell you if it is likely the drug is causing symptoms or it may be you have the side effect because you saw it written somewhere.
9. Curtail your activities when you are going on, going off, or changing medications. I can't stress this enough. Sometimes your body and mind just need a minute to readjust. Yet we carry on with life like nothing is happening. Drugs are powerful, we know that, so give them their due and give them a chance to work or get out of your system.
10. Keep a chart of symptoms before the doctor's appointment and then daily while you are trying medications. Be very specific, the pain in my legs is burning throbbing and worst when standing Etc. It is also important to see when the drug is wearing off, and if you need a more long acting drug. It will remind you of how badly you felt that first day, and what if any are the changes from the medication.
This post is about medication. There are many other ways to control pain and I have had experience with most. I will feature them in other articles. The reason I have separated them is because it is important to find what works for you before adding everything else to the mix.
When newly diagnosed with a condition or disease almost all of us run around like a hyperactive child, trying this trying that. We are vulnerable and easily lead into whatever someone tells us is the next best thing. We change our diets, see every practitioner we hear is "good" and take every supplement we are told to. And yet we fight medication all the way. I understand and
empathize because I did it all too. As my sister Mary was told when recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia, " Be careful, there’s a lot of money to be made from people like you". And it's true, the newly diagnosed just want it to go away and often will try anything and spend anything trying to achieve that.
What I learned from the masters at the Mount Sinai hospital is to stop everything until there is about 70% control, then start to add it back one thing at a time and accurately assess each thing as adding value or not. When and only when I did this, I found what worked for me and what I was wasting a LOT of money on.
That's my approach now, I get myself to an even place and then add something - and I know if it add, takes away , or does nothing.
There is an exception and that is counselling. Talking about your chronic pain is important and it is important to do so with a trusted friend or family member, but it is even more beneficial to speak with an impartial person as well.
We talked a lot today about pain control. For a long time I would say my pain has been under control. That doesn't mean I was not in pain, but I was able to handle most daily activities and function with the amount of pain I was in. In the last year I have lost that control because of spinal stenosis and its severity. A recent surgery created acute pain, and now I have increased chronic pain from nerve compression and slippage of the disc. We are challenged once again to find the delicate balance.
There is a fine-tuning that happens with pain control. Balancing the medication with the side effects, particularly the sleepiness and brain fog - compared to pain relief. Every person is different. Some people want 100% pain relief. Well, I guess we all want that, but at what cost? For me the cost was too high. I could get to the 100% but, I couldn't live my life the way I wanted to. In fact I was asleep the majority of the time. I settled for about 70% and use other methods to help deal with the rest.
I'm going to break this down a little, because pain control is a complicated, it is a mix of medication, acceptance and lifestyle. I spent almost three years in the early days with inadequate pain control. This was partially because I had a doctor who didn't understand pain, but I was also not a very willing participant in taking long-term medication. I have learned quite a lot since then.
First off, you have to be willing to honestly try things, give them time to work for a reasonable amount of time. So many people start to decrease or add medication and other treatments to the mix before they even have given the first medication a chance to work.
When I was finally diagnosed and was under the care of a world class neurosurgeon things changed for me. It can change right now for you too if you are in pain. I am going to tell you step by step what I learned and how to tackle pain according to the top pain clinic in Canada.
I was referred to Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto where I met with head of pain control. There was a team and they worked with me, constantly fine turning a cocktail of medication to deal with neurological pain.
If you are at a doctors for pain that you cannot control at home, medication is likely what is needed, if only for a short time. So why then are we all so shocked and negative about having to take medication? We somehow think our bodies have betrayed us and we "should" be able to handle this on our own. Acceptance that you have reached a point where you need medical intervention to help with pain control is not a sign of weakness. Medication is not the enemy.
I remember my massage therapist was a constant in my life in the early days. She saw how much pain I was dealing with and offered all kinds of different modalities and natural remedies. Nothing had helped at all and the massages were a comfort so I continued. Once I got some pain relief from the medication, I remember telling her I hated taking pain medication. She calmly stopped and came around to face me. This woman who tried and practiced every type of
natural treatment in the world, gave me a mini lecture on how acceptance is the cure. She explained that right then, for me, accepting I needed to take medication was the cure I needed. I was shocked. I had expected her to be all against taking anything that wasn't natural. She asked me to be thankful every time I put the medication into my mouth that there was something to help me get back to who I used to be. She was right and I thank her for the beginning of my acceptance, which in turn gave me my life back.
1. Accept that for now, you need the medication.
2. Ask questions about what is being prescribed and why, both from the pharmacy and the doctor. Not Google, not your friends. Remember everyone is different. Great to talk about it with friends and to educate yourself, but remember your doctor has spent years studying this, its not a quick Google search.
3. In the early days of taking a new medication, ask to see your doctor frequently to discuss concerns.
4. Give the medication a chance to work before you decide it is not the drug for you.
5. For the first period of time on a new drug take as the doctor has prescribed for you without adding anything else to your regimen. You can't start a new exercise program the same week as a new medication and give a fair analysis its effectiveness.
6. Don' t expect perfection. Some drugs take a while to work and finding the right dosage can take several trial and error appointments. If it helps your pain at all don't dismiss it, it may just need some fine-tuning.
7. If you have some pain relief and you have a relapse, don't panic. Honestly think about what you did physically the previous day and that day. Sometimes we are afraid to admit something like caring for grandchildren is what caused the extra pain, so denial plays a part. Acceptance and acknowledgement is what's needed to help pain control. Then it becomes your decision if, and how you do that activity again. If you don't acknowledge the reason, doctors bump up medication for long term instead of knowing there was a reason for extra pain that day.
8. Keep track, but don't obsess about side effects. Some disappear after a period of time. And some are a reason for concern. Once again the pharmacist is a great help with this. They can tell you if it is likely the drug is causing symptoms or it may be you have the side effect because you saw it written somewhere.
9. Curtail your activities when you are going on, going off, or changing medications. I can't stress this enough. Sometimes your body and mind just need a minute to readjust. Yet we carry on with life like nothing is happening. Drugs are powerful, we know that, so give them their due and give them a chance to work or get out of your system.
10. Keep a chart of symptoms before the doctor's appointment and then daily while you are trying medications. Be very specific, the pain in my legs is burning throbbing and worst when standing Etc. It is also important to see when the drug is wearing off, and if you need a more long acting drug. It will remind you of how badly you felt that first day, and what if any are the changes from the medication.
This post is about medication. There are many other ways to control pain and I have had experience with most. I will feature them in other articles. The reason I have separated them is because it is important to find what works for you before adding everything else to the mix.
When newly diagnosed with a condition or disease almost all of us run around like a hyperactive child, trying this trying that. We are vulnerable and easily lead into whatever someone tells us is the next best thing. We change our diets, see every practitioner we hear is "good" and take every supplement we are told to. And yet we fight medication all the way. I understand and
empathize because I did it all too. As my sister Mary was told when recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia, " Be careful, there’s a lot of money to be made from people like you". And it's true, the newly diagnosed just want it to go away and often will try anything and spend anything trying to achieve that.
What I learned from the masters at the Mount Sinai hospital is to stop everything until there is about 70% control, then start to add it back one thing at a time and accurately assess each thing as adding value or not. When and only when I did this, I found what worked for me and what I was wasting a LOT of money on.
That's my approach now, I get myself to an even place and then add something - and I know if it add, takes away , or does nothing.
There is an exception and that is counselling. Talking about your chronic pain is important and it is important to do so with a trusted friend or family member, but it is even more beneficial to speak with an impartial person as well.
