Living with chronic pain

Walking up stairs, bending over, reaching for an item on the top shelf—many of us don’t think twice about these small everyday tasks, but for some they are big hurdles. For people living with chronic pain, the ordinary can cause extraordinary suffering and daily life can become a struggle. Even visiting friends or going to dinner can create anxiety, as the prospect of steep stairs or pain-inducing activities seems daunting or risky. While millions of Canadians live with chronic pain—with over 18 per cent suffering from severe chronic pain—most cases remain under-treated and much of society uneducated about the facts. If you are grappling with chronic pain or know of someone who is, there are ways to minimize its impact on both physical and emotional health.

What is chronic pain?

According to the Chronic Pain Association of Canada, chronic pain has the following characteristics:

Lasts at least three months, past the point of healed injury
Intermittent (follows a pattern) or persistent (lasting more than 12 hours daily)
Usually results from a known cause, such as surgery, arthritis or osteoarthritis
Can be caused by abnormal processing of pain by the nervous system

If you have chronic pain, there are many non-medicinal and medicinal treatment options that may help you manage the pain.

Non-medicinal options

Massage. Visiting a professional massage therapist or having a friend or partner massage you at times when you feel anxious or before the usual times when pain is the worst can provide some relief.

Hot or cold. Applying hot or cold compresses can relieve certain types of chronic pain. Heat is better for cramping or aching muscles from exercise or a build up of lactic acid, while cold reduces swelling and inflammation from injury.

Topical creams. Topical analgesic creams can sometimes offer relief from backache or arthritic pain.

Exercise. When movement of the body triggers pain, the natural impulse is to avoid it as much as possible. But regular exercise can help you build strength and endurance. Starting very slowly and balancing rest with activity is crucial to success. Exercises like swimming or Tai Chi are gentle and low-impact options while yoga can help the body relieve pain through the natural releasing of endorphins—your body’s natural painkillers.

Posture. How you carry yourself during daily activities, especially at work, plays an important role in pain prevention. Create a safe work station and:

Sit with your knees even with or lower than your hips.

Make sure your feet touch the floor when sitting. If your chair is too high for this, get a foot rest.

Sit and stand up straight! Your mom was right: ensure your hips are in line with your shoulders and that you’re not hunched over.

Adjust your chair so your elbows are at a 90 degree angle and your wrists are in a neutral position. Also, invest in a back support pillow.

If you sit at a computer, ensure the monitor is at eye level so you don’t have to strain your neck by tilting your head up or down.

Alternative therapies. More and more healthcare professionals are beginning to acknowledge the benefits of alternative therapies as part of their patients’ journey to a pain-free (or at least pain-reduced) existence. This can include: acupuncture, acupressure, meditation and bio-feedback—a process which helps patients control the body’s physical stress response and discover a relaxed state that can often alleviate chronic pain. How these various therapies work and their overall effectiveness is still a matter of public debate, but there are definitely people who find some relief from them.

Medicinal options

Over-the-counter medication, such as acetaminophen, can help control mild pain while moderate to severe pain treatments such as codeine may require a doctor’s prescription. Discuss treatment options with your doctor and/or pharmacist and ensure prescriptions and the use of over-the-counter drugs are monitored for compatibility.

Help make conversations with healthcare professionals more productive by:

Keeping a diary of when you feel pain, what type of sensations you feel and their effects. Remember, you know your body better than anyone else.

Rating your pain on a scale of one to 10, zero being no pain and 10 being the worst.

Keeping a list of both medicinal and non-medicinal treatments you’ve already tried.

Bringing a friend or relative with you to make sure you don’t miss anything important during your visit.

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Living with chronic pain

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