Help, It Hurts!
Pain. No matter what you do, from the day you are born, you will experience pain more than once in your lifetime. Pain, described as physical suffering or discomfort caused by illness or injury can manifest in different ways. There are two forms of pain, physical and emotional. At one time or another you will experience both.
Physical pain is pain you feel in your body. But, did you know there’re different types of physical pain? Here are the most common types: acute, chronic, neuropathic, nonciceptive and radicular. Acute is temporary due to an injury or illness. Chronic pain lasts longer and is mainly due to a health condition. Neuropathic is pain due to nerve damage. Nonciceptive pain (this one is new to me) is caused by damage to body tissue such as a fall. This pain is experienced in the joints. Last but not least, radicular pain. Radicular pain happens when the spinal nerve is compressed or inflamed.
Emotional or psychological pain occurs in your mind. It can be an isolated incident or a sign of an underlying mental condition such as depression or anxiety. Psychological/emotional pain are one and the same but, I like the term emotional pain better. Emotional pain can be intense and it’s duration short or long. It can be as debilitating as physical pain or worse. I believe emotional pain is often misunderstood or dismissed. Experiencing this kind of pain DOES NOT mean you are mental ill! We all experience trials and tribulations and, depending on the situation, can be warranted. But, people suffering from mental illness tend to feel their feelings more intensely than others.
Pain is much more than what it’s defined to be.
1. Pain whether it be physical or emotional, is personal. Let me explain, say two people have the same pain brought on in the same way. One may experience it more intensely than the other. It doesn’t mean one is strong while the other is weak. We are all built differently and have different tolerance levels.
2. Severe or long- lasting pain brings with it a lot of other problems. It debilitates you by taking you away from the activities you like to do. Pain reshapes your lifestyle, whether you have an active or relaxed lifestyle. The pain dictates what you are able to do and when. It also depletes your energy level. Dealing with pain alone or with the aid of pain killers may make you feel worn down or drowsy.
3. Pain affects your moods. Your “happy-go-lucky” attitude can deteriorate the longer you are in pain. Since it affects you in different ways, and brings with it a multitude of problems, your mood levels can become unstable causing you to snap at the most trivial occurrences. Pain’s friends anger, frustration and sadness can hit you over and over.
Self care is SO important when dealing with pain! Taking care of yourself can lessen the severity or length of pain or at least make it tolerable. It starts with getting plenty of rest. Your body needs time to heal so, take that extra nap. Drink plenty of water. Staying hydrated helps keep everything moving as it should in your body. Eat even if you are not hungry. Broth and saltine crackers are light and easy on the stomach. Try a hobby like reading a book, coloring, knitting or a game on your phone. Such activities lower your stress levels which in turn, helps your mood. Keep your mind active. A crossword puzzle, board games or card games keeps your mind focused on the present task and not your pain. Watching TV or movies are more entertaining, but if your brain has too much idle time it can direct more energy towards your pain. My daddy used to say “Too much of anything is no good.” In my experiences it has proven to be true. A variety of hobbies, games and puzzles can trick your brain and your pain.
We all have to deal with pain sometime in our lives. Why not try these methods to deal with it better? It couldn’t hurt. Ha, ha like the pun? I hope this helps. See my other articles on how to manage depression, anxiety and mental illness.
