Living
with chronic pain
What is chronic pain? It is a concept described a thousand
different ways by people of all walks of life. The biggest debate remains not
only in what is it, but is it treatable?
It is as vague as it is ambiguous; however, one thing is clear—many
people live day to day with chronic pain without respite.
According to an article by Embracing Women’s Health on pain
and migraine fundamentals, chronic pain partially or totally disables 50
million Americans in the
Pain warns us that something is not right, and has the
potential to rob one of their productivity, well-being and life. In ancient civilizations, pain was
associated with evil, magic and demons. Sorcerers, shamans, priests and
priestesses tried to ward pain off by using pressure, heat, water, herbs, rites
and ceremonies.
Medicine and health care have since advanced, yet herbal
remedies and holistic health options are still used. According to Maureen Carling, a registered
nurse and a pain management specialist, there are eight types of pain and only
two of them respond fully to opioids otherwise known as narcotics.
“The others respond to other types of medications,” said
Carling of England. “Some require an opioid and a second medication and others
require different medications altogether.”
Often chronic pain cannot be cured, but can be managed well
enough to improve significantly a victim’s quality of life.
Quanta St. Lawrence, owner of the Herbal Farmacy in downtown
“Natural is the best way to go,” she stated. “It’s a matter
of man-made versus something natural that God made. I have more trust in the
Lord than any doctor.”
The Herbal Farmacy offers 100 percent natural Chinese and
Western herbs, consultations about different illnesses, original proprietary
blends, and herbs in capsule or powder format.
St. Lawrence does acknowledge that whether the medicine is
synthetic or natural, it is mandatory always to consult an herbalist, physician
or naturopathic doctor.
“Never take anything without consulting a doctor. You cannot
self-diagnose or self-treat,” she cautioned.
The power of touch is another alternative to medicine. In
addition to being a Reiki practitioner, Neal Scott, the business manager of the
Mystical Attic, does not promote holistic health care over traditional health
care.
“They both have their place. We will not treat people who
aren’t seeing a traditional doctor,” said Scott. “Holistic care should not be
seen in opposition to traditional care, it should be used in conjunction with
other treatments.”
The Mystical Attic, described by Scott, is an “odd sort of
business like a meta-physical day spa” offering treatments like massage for
muscle and joint pain, Reiki, tarot readings, and shamantic healing.
The art of Reiki has been around for 2,500 years; and is a
Japanese technique used for stress reduction and relaxation. Founder Dr. Mikao Usui, defines the practice
as a
“Spiritual guided life force energy.” The focus is on the
whole person including body, mind and spirit emitting effects like peace,
security and well-being.
“This is only a means of treatment,” he said. “We treat the
symptoms, not the cause. Those underlying causes need to be treated as well,
they cannot be ignored.”
A 2005 survey conducted by the
Daniel Kean a physical medicine specialist at Sentera Care
Plex defines chronic pain as “pain that persists long after the expected
healing time.” According to Kean, pain that has been present for more than
three to six months is termed chronic.
Kean believes in a multidisciplinary approach of physical
modalities, exercise, wellness training, combined with interventional
techniques and pharmacological therapies. He attempts to educate the patients
and their families about different methods of treatments.
“I accept that the patients’ pain is real,” said Kean. “I
typically avoid excessive, unnecessary invasive procedures.”
Teresa Miles, budget project coordinator in the Hampton
University School of Pharmacy, suffered silently for years from chronic
pain. She suffered from abdominal pain
from 1998 to 2001, after doctors told her it was “all in her head.”
Finally, she was properly diagnosed and discovered she had
endometriosis, a condition where tissue that lines the uterus is found to be
growing in other parts of the body.
The tissue is normally shed; however, in this case it can
cause internal bleeding, degenerated blood and tissue shedding, inflammation of
the surrounding areas, pain, and formation of scar
tissue. In efforts to treat the pain, she had four laparoscopies, before undergoing a final surgical procedure.
“I would have handled the situation in my twenties if I had
known it was not normal,” said Miles. “I thought [the severe cramping] was part
of being a woman.”
Miles was not placed on any medication other than an estrogen
patch during her three-week recovery period. She was advised to rest and not
lift anything over 50 pounds.
Miles’ advice to other women is to thoroughly research a
gynecologist and have an ultrasound taken to know what is occurring in the
pelvic area.
“Take your health seriously,” she said. “As women, we tend to
look after others before we look after ourselves.”
The leading causes of chronic pain in women include
arthritis, fibromyalgia, migraines, neuropathic pain, and pelvic pain. Research has shown than sex hormones, as well
as psychology and culture play a role in how men and women receive pain
signals. Young children may learn to respond to pain based on how they were
treated when they experience pain.
“People are surrounded by people with chronic illnesses, but
most of us hide it,” said Mary Elizabeth “Bonnie” Gibbons, a nursing PhD
student at
“[Pain is] a journey in life with choices of independence
based on abilities which are shaped by suffering.”
Gibbons suffers from disabling arthritis, fibromyalagia, and
neuropathic pain down her left leg from spine damage. The next surgery Gibbons has scheduled is a
reconstructive spine surgery .She is currently off all of her pain medications
due to a life threatening drug reaction called serotonin syndrome, where
incompatible medications interact with each other.
“I’m so scared to have another reaction,” said Gibbons. I’d
rather sit on the recliner or the floor. I’d rather just tough it out. “
Gibbons says that chronic pain has affected her concentration
to the point that she has to write things down. She keeps a notebook about
herself handy as well as a list of all her surgeries in her palm pilot.
Gibbons tries to remain as self-sufficient as possible. She
recalls how she saw her mother suffer from pain and become homebound.
“After seeing my mother struggle, nothing keeps me home,” she
said.” I will rest like the doctors tell me to for my recovery period, but the
longest I’ll stay in is a month.”
Gibbons says that caring and confident people have helped her
relationship with her health and her self. In the past ten year, she also
describes herself as more religious citing “spiritual growth is an important
component of the healing process.”
“Every corner I turn, somebody is there to help me,” said
Gibbons. “People I don’t even know have helped me through the most difficult
times. I trust that the Lord will provide and I just keep going.”
Women are more likely to recover more quickly from pain, seek
help sooner, are less likely to let pain control their lives, marshal a variety
of resource coping skills, access support and seek distractions from pain.
“Chronic pain is a long lasting symptom that makes your
tolerance reach its pinnacle, almost to the point of submission,” said James.
People who suffer from plantar fasciitis complain of a sharp,
stabbing pain that is most pronounced in the morning.
James went through a prolonged healing process. She slept in space-gravitation boots to
stretch out her feet, reducing the amount of morning pain. After they became ineffective, James wore
custom-made basketball insoles to reduce the pain on the court.
“The healing process is a never-ending story,” said James.
“I’ve been told that you cannot be healed from plantar fasciitis, it is
something that will go away once my activity calms down.”
In the meantime, she relies on prayer, massage and Ibuprofen
to reduce the discomfort. In her own words, James does not consider herself a
victim, but a victor.
“In my mind I am healed by the blood of Jesus,” said James.
“Obviously, physically I endure pain sometimes, but I truly believe in my mind
that I am healed. The college and basketball experience is only four years of
my life, so I am going to live and love while given the opportunity.”
The writer is a junior
at the