Just a quick survey. How many live with chronic significant physical pain as a result of disease, injury, congenital issues?
You can anecdote, but do try to be honest on this.
You could also suggest pain management strategies.
Beyond the advisable such as healthy eating, moderate exercise, etc., I use cannabis, likely more for the mind than body, as it can be a grind after a few years.
Nothing else. No pills. No physio. Although, I've considered a massage, just feel awkward.
A friend of mine was in us airborne. Has pain from all the jumps he did. To cope with it he uses yoga.
that and Tai Chi have been seriously considered of late.
more than once para land hard, but same with armor and mechanized infantry. mount, dismount, etc.
appreciate your input
For my spinal injury heat packs, bracing and painkillers. On bad days I can't walk and am in an astonishing amount of pain until the spinal fluid sucks back in and all the nerves stop spasing out, takes a day or two. I usually dont have a choice to just take days off when it flares up so have to crack on. Not the easiest thing to manage.
Physio exercises, weightlifting and stretches are a daily chore, managing injuries gets harder as you get older. Gotta keep muscle mass high and joints limber to stave off arthritis. If I'm rigid with gym routine flare ups are easier to manage.
I use a yoga balls to sit at my desk, I have one in the living room and one at work. I dont sleep with any pillows and have a rock solid matress. If Im on holiday or away with a soft mattress I have to sleep on the floor or I wont be able to walk the next day.
Mental strength is paramount and half the battle. Don't succumb and fight it as best you can. Get in touch with people with similar issues, attend injury rehab classes or stuff like that in your local area. The second you let it beat you youre doomed. Depression is a very real concern so keep an eye on yourself. If your alcohol consumption increases, problems sleeping and all the rest of it, tell the doc.
Lastly, if you have aches or niggles get them looked at. Dont "push through" injuries, its a falacy.
Massages, even deep sport ones, are good but temporary releases. I've never been able to replicate the results at home with wifey.
Physio is a much better, long term option, providing you do the exercises as often as they tell you and dont get lazy with it.
Chiropractor I wouldnt touch. Theyre not qualified enough in my eyes to rag my spine about but work for some i've heard
Yoga is ok, just stretching works better for me. Depends what your injury is.
I've had surgery on my spine which attended properly to one of my injuries. God that was a blessing long time in coming though. When you feel your tailbone curl up like a chameleon tail, you realize just what pain is.
No to chiropractors or opiates for anything more than a one off here and there as a last option. For me the last opiate I was on, was during post op. I was out within 24 hours. The pain was huge, but the other pain was gone, and I knew I was on the mend.
Keeping weight off, and even things like mitigating constipation can help with lumber type pains.
Your right, don't push through, demand proper treatment. Otherwise successfully remediation is diminished overtime.
I have chronic lower back pain thanks to a buldged disk. It causes me to have difficulties laying still so I can sleep. The sciatica down my right leg makes it feel like I have RLS.
To sleep, I take gabapentin. It doesn't make me sleep, but does allow me to lay still so I can sleep.
For pain during the day, I take kratom. I am unable to use cannabis for a number of reasons, so the kratom is a good alternative.
Answered "no" in the interest of honesty, but I am about to get botox in the back of my neck to help control (mostly seasonal) migraines. Really though, the question made me think historically. I had a climbing accident at 20 (useless twats at the university climbing club let me fall 15 feet on belay) broke a transverse process at T3...fractured T4. Spent 10 years battling pain and regular "lock-ups" and intercostal spasming that would force me to roll out of bed and crawl to the physio across the street. Opiates were part of my routine for a while, but I could tell they were weakening my constitution. Pot and massage were more helpful, but they fix nothing.
What did fix me was one extremely simple exercise suggested by a friend who teaches qi gong/yoga/dance. Every day I would spend an hour hanging my head...one vertebra at a time...starting with C1...maybe 5-10 minutes until it relaxed...moving to C2...stopping when I felt any significant pain and moving back to the preceding vertebra. It took me most of a year to work my way down to the thoracic region. As soon as I could bear it I began weight training again, and slowly the increased flexibility and strength (along with plain old time) fixed me up enough that I could stop being a pasty office-rat and go back to the heavy construction jobs I loved. Won't work for everyone, of course, but the hanging definitely helped me, and is something I still do when my back is out of sorts.
ASIA Chart
Use this as a guide. First time I had exposure was my neck down my right arm. After about 6 months of pain and lack of full control I went to the ER. I was told I had shoulder strain, and was given a script for T2s.. The next day I went to a sports physiotherapist. This young fella with a BSc said it sounded like herniated discs in my neck. He showed me the chart. Key point was I told the ER doc how it really hurt at 3 specific points down my arm.
The chart was a simple diagnostic tool he was obviously unaware of (in fact they still by and large are). Two days later a CT scan verified exactly what the physiotherapist had said.
I use this chart more often now.
ASIA is the American Spinal Injury Association.
Chronic unexplained pain starting 11 years ago after Vaccines.
No diagnosis after no diagnosis. Constant spine and shoulder joint pain. Then random other joints to each flare up. Weather plays big part in how bad it is before daily activities.
I try to keep active, avoid processed foods. Use CBD oil for the most helpful relief.
Spinal injury following a car crash, total paralysis from bottom of rib-cage. And scartissue constantly growing up the spinal cord, for now i take Codiene which knocks me out for hours, breathing and other relaxation techniques work when the pain is mild, when it's bad there isn't much that helps it
Osteo Arthritus and multiple operations due to many years of Rugby
Cannabis and marrying a physio help ease the ouch. Apart from that just learn to push it aside and remember the fun you had causing it in the first place.
i struggle daily with knee pain and some sciatic pain in my lower back.
exercise has strengthened my knees, but it also causes some of my pain. I avoid any impact causing exercises, such as p90x and HIIT training, as the impact on my knees causes major flare ups. I take cod liver oil, garlic oil and glucosamine sulphate daily.
as for my sciatic pain, it is random in its occurrence, so i just deal with it when it arises with some stretching and yoga.
Massage therapy, sometimes pain pills. Thinking of starting cbd oil.
that's a first, marrying someone for physical therapeutic reasons, not sexual...
jk
I dislocated my knee playing football a few years back. Partially torn acl, damage to the bone and torn meniscus. Had key hole surgery, was back in the gym within a few weeks, and playing football a couple of months later. Fast forward 1 football season and I get clattered by some turnip - Doc says I have soft tissue damage to the 'fat pad' in my knee. I was expecting to be back on the pitch within a few months. 6+ months later, still unable to play football, can barely job 50 meters.
I booked myself in for two low level laser therapy (LLLT) sessions - I was a bit skeptical at first but already, not even two weeks after my first session, the difference is astounding. I can squat (low weight) with no pain. Jog with no pain. It's crazy. Would definitely recommend it for tissue damage.
Give it a shot.
really good to hear that Lasky. Keep on pushing.
