Exercise classes provide an energetic and community-driven approach to fitness. They can be a whole lot of fun, but can also be intimidating, especially for those living with chronic pain. How can you be sure that your joints will tolerate the class you are taking? Which type of class will be best to help reduce the pain you already have?
One of the most common questions I get as a physical therapist is, “Should I use hot or cold to help manage my pain?” Heating pads and ice packs are simple and accessible pain management tools that should be included in the treatment arsenal of anyone living with a chronic pain. Many people tend to prefer to utilize heat, because they find it to be more comfortable and relaxing. Luckily, for many chronic pain sufferers, heat is in fact the better choice, but there are specific circumstances when ice should be used.
Outlined below are three easy to follow rules on how to choose between ice or heat when you have a pain flare.
I was speaking with a colleague (we will call her Jade* to protect her privacy and because I like that name) about my current gripes – stomach troubles, lack of energy, aching back, aching…everything. I told her I felt I had something underlying- a bigger problem that I just wasn’t ready to face yet. I knew this coworker has RA. I knew because she had told me, and not because she looked, acted or worked any different from the rest of us.
As someone living with chronic pain I’m sure you have had many people tell you how exercise will solve all of your problems. While good intentioned, those who do not live with chronic pain often don’t realize how difficult it can be to regularly work out while living with a chronic health condition. How can you effectively exercise when you are in too much pain to actually do the exercise? How do you build strength with muscles that are already tired and sore?
As a physical therapist it is my job to teach those living with pain—whether it be acute or chronic—how to complete strengthening exercises to help reduce that pain. Here are my top tips for reducing pain while completing your strengthening exercises of choice, whether it is weight lifting, resistance band training or body weight exercises.
We all know chronic pain comes with various challenges. When faced with any challenge we have a choice to make: succumb to it or develop the necessary skills to cope. This subsequently causes us to develop a whole new set of skills we never thought we’d become experts in. Here’s a feature of one skill I’ve added to my chronic pain resume: learning to fake smile.
On the left, as bad timing would have it, family picture day came around at the same time a cyst on my ovary decided to rupture. I also had just played in a soccer game so was looking SUPER sporty (i.e. sweaty, gross).
I’m about to get personal. Real personal. Believe me—it takes some bravery to talk about pelvic pain. But here I am, sitting, typing away, wondering when the day will come that my darn tailbone will stop hurting. It’s not something I love to talk about. Chronic pain is hard enough to talk about. Chronic pain near your lady parts feels straight taboo.
There’s nothing like coming back to a warm home after a cold winter day (except maybe when your heat is not working like mine right now!). Chronic pain can make us spend more time in our home than we otherwise might. Walking in the door should feel like a warm hug from an old friend. Here’s some tips on how we can bring some happy, healing energy into our homes.
You decide you have to change the paint color on your bedroom wall. YOU HAVE TO. You cannot spend one more day looking at the putrid green that the previous homeowner chose. You skip home from the hardware store in glee. You have found the perfect hue and you are ready to paint the day away. You won’t stop until every inch of the puke-green is gone. You wake up the next morning basking in the soft-yellow glow that is now your bedroom. You stretch your arms overhead and – oh man! Your elbow is messed up! The pain continues over several days prompting a trip to your primary care doctor. They send you to see a physical therapist for treatment of your painting injury. You’re back in ship-shape in less than a month!
This is a common way that a person might be sent to physical therapy. You strain a muscle, you talk to a doc, they send you to PT, you heal, and bing-bang-boom you’re done! Unfortunately, if you are reading my blog this story is probably not you. Often times those suffering with more mysterious onset or vague symptoms are not so quickly sent to physical therapy for treatment. In this post I want to highlight a few diagnoses that many people may suffer from but have no idea that physical therapy could help with including facial pain, pelvic pain, bowel/bladder dysfunction and Lyme disease. Note: you need to be diligent with your research, as these conditions should be treated by a physical therapist with specific training in these specialty areas.
