Chiropractic therapy diagnoses and treats problems involving nerves, bones, muscles, and joints. Chiropractors believe that manipulation of muscles, the spine, and other joints helps the body heal itself and relieve chronic pain. Chiropractic medicine is the third largest health profession in the Western world. More than twenty million people are treated each year. Manipulation is…
DetailsChi Kung, also known as Qigong, is a Chinese practice that integrates physical postures, breathing exercises, and mental focus. The word “Chi” means life force or vital energy, and “Kung” means skill achieved through consistent practice. Practitioners of Chi Kung believe most physical problems, including chronic pain and diseases, are related to imbalances of vital…
DetailsOne specific meditative practice is called the body scan, which is adapted from an ancient Burmese practice. Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D., writes in Full Catastrophe Living that the body scan “is an effective technique for developing both concentration and flexibility of attention simultaneously. It involves lying on your back and moving your mind through the different…
DetailsBiofeedback is a technique that can help you learn to control some normally involuntary processes by raising your awareness of signals from your body. This is accomplished using specialized equipment that allows you to monitor bodily functions such as blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension, sweat gland activity, and skin temperature. Biofeedback may be beneficial…
DetailsAromatherapy literally means the therapeutic use of scents to change moods. Essential oils distilled from plants, flowers, trees, bark, grasses, seeds, and fruits are used to treat a variety of ailments including fatigue, tension, stress, and, most importantly here, chronic pain. Aromatherapy is also one of the fastest-growing natural remedies being used today. It works…
DetailsPractitioners of acupuncture believe illness, including chronic pain, is due to imbalances of energy in the body. Acupuncture is a component of traditional Chinese medicine in which the body is seen as a balance of two opposing and inseparable forces or energy—yin and yang. Yin represents cold, slow, or passive aspects of the person, while…
DetailsBe mindful of what works best (when, how, etc.) for your chronic pain while you are trying many approaches. For example, for some, applying heat followed by cold to the painful area works best. Other people do better with just heat or cold alone. For still others, usually those with neuropathic or nerve pain, their…
DetailsThe safest way to discontinue prescription medications is under medical supervision in an inpatient detox center. If you are unable to access such a setting, then you should consult with a medical provider to see how best to proceed. Depending on the dosage of the medications and how long you have taken them, your doctor…
DetailsI entered this world in June of 1960 as happy as can be, or so I’m told. At age two, after some uncontrollable bleeding episodes, I was diagnosed with hemophilia B. From that point on, a “normal” life for me was a protected life, free from most activities that could cause me to bleed. The…
DetailsTraditional chronic pain management uses a multitude of interventions, including medications. This is a relatively new subspecialty of medicine. Most chronic pain management specialists are trained as anesthesiologists, and usually go through a fellowship training program to learn to deal with chronic pain. Opiate medications are the primary drugs used to treat chronic pain and…
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