Natural Approach to Pain Management

23 Sep Natural Approach to Pain Management

So often I meet people who have been struggling with pain – obviously it’s a big driving force behind why they seek help. I think more people are seeking out conservative care, particularly when they are faced with the option of surgery or heavy medications.

More research is demonstrating that chronic pain has a lot to do with your brain and sensory nerves over-firing.  Certain organs in your body are over-firing, and others may be underfiring and this imbalance in the body not only causes pain, it may also cause:

• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Stress
• Disability

Many people are on a range of medications for pain management – however it may not necessarily be addressing the cause.

What’s important to me as a practitioner is not the diagnosis; it’s you as a person.  I aim to find a way to support your body to better cope with the stress that’s happening on your nervous system.

Here’s my top 3 tips to help alleviate your pain, naturally:

1. Keeping active
   • Gentle walking
   • Tai chi
   • Yoga – deep breathing exercises and meditation
   • Stretching – helps gently break down scar tissue, improves flexibility, loosens tight muscles
   • Core strength – helps stabilise your spine, particularly lower back pain
2. Heat therapy – helps relax muscles
   • 20mins on/20mins off
   • Bath with Epson salts
   • However if have an acute flare up of your chronic condition – like a new injury, it’s best to avoid heat, and possible switch to ice as treatment
3. Consult with a health care practitioner who specialises in chronic pain and the nervous system.

Chiropractors are experts in managing the spine and nervous system.  As a Chiropractor, I aim to treat the main cause of your pain.

There are 3 causes of stress to our spine and nervous system:

• Physical stress your body is under – such as poor posture, or accidents and trauma suffered
• Chemical/Nutritional stress – such as heavy medication use, pollution, smoking, alcohol, personal care products, cleaning products, poor diet
• Emotional stress – depression, argument, financial/work stress

This may contribute to spinal misalignment and nervous system irritation.  My job is to re-establish normal function of muscles, joints and the vascular system, helping to eliminate the root causes of chronic pain.

Some people may hesitant or have a fear around chiropractors because the perception of us is that we are “bone crunchers”. Let me reassure you that this is false!  I manage many patients with chronic pain, and utilise very gentle, low force treatments. This does not involve any manipulation. Patients respond very well to this treatment, as my aim is to calm the nervous system, restore function to restricted joints, and ease muscle tension – getting to the root cause of the problem.  To find out more information on Chiropractic treatment, see my previous blog post here.

I also may incorporate Neuro-Emotional Technique (NET) into your treatment program. This treatment uses muscle testing to help identify where we hold stress in our body.

Stress may be aggravating your pain, and pain may be aggravating your stress – it becomes a vicious cycle!  Over a long period of time, this stress can actually be stored in your body and create these chronic problems.

Have you ever felt your neck and shoulders tense up when you’ve just had an argument with someone, or your lower back pain flares up after a busy stressful day at work?  Clearly stress has a physical response on the body, sometimes without us even knowing it on conscious level.  NET can identify this stress, and remove it from the body, helping you achieve improved mindset and reduced pain.

If you or someone you know is struggling with long term pain, touch base with a healthcare practitioner such as a Chiropractor, Osteopath, Naturopath or Massage therapist (just to name a few).  The right therapist should be able to help you with your problem, or guide you to someone who can!

Some images from freedigitalphotos.net