When considering a pain management doctor or when being referred to one, you may be
wondering how pain management can help you.
What you think you know about pain management may not actually be what pain management
clinics are all about.
These clinics are here to help you heal, alleviate your chronic pain, and event help prevent
future pain.
Here are five things you may not know about pain management.
1. Treatment Will Vary from Person to Person
Every person and their body is unique.
While we all have very similar genes and chemistry, every person will experience pain
totally differently.
What hurts to you may not hurt to someone else, and what’s excruciating for someone else
may seem like a joke to you.
Since every person is unique, every treatment will be unique.
What works for one person won’t necessarily work for another.
You may need just one treatment to help alleviate your pain, or you may need a treatment
that consists of several different therapies put together.
This is nothing to be worried about.
Just remember that your treatment won’t be the same as another person’s when it comes
to pain management.
“If you prefer not to take medication,
you and your doctor can discuss different
things you can do to help alleviate your
pain without the use of medication.”
2. Becoming Addicted to Pain Medication Is Not the Goal
Many people have anxiety about becoming addicted to pain medication through a pain
management clinic or a doctor who prescribes such meds.
The truth is that becoming addicted to pain medication through pain management is actually
pretty rare.
The goal here is to get you feeling better, not get you addicted to pain meds.
Talk with your doctor about any concerns you have about taking medication.
If you prefer not to take medication, you and your doctor can discuss different things you can
do to help alleviate your pain without the use of medication.
Remember, these clinics are here to help you.
No one is benefitting from taking too many pain meds.
“When it comes to pain management,
it will be in your best interest
to be totally honest and open about
your pain with your doctor.”
3. Be Open About Your Pain
If you’ve been in chronic pain before, you know that at times you can feel embarrassed
about it.
Feeling awful more or less all the time can be completely draining, and it seems like no
one wants to hear about how you still feel bad.
However, when it comes to pain management, it will be in your best interest to be totally
honest and open about your pain with your doctor.
The more your doctor knows about your pain and your level of pain, the more he or
she and the team can help you.
Lying or covering up how bad or how light your pain truly is doesn’t help.
Even if your pain is minor, seeking help for it is nothing to be ashamed of.
Be honest with your doctor about your pain—where it hurts, how much it hurts, and
how often it hurts.
The more your doctor knows about your pain, the more he or she can help you.
4. Keeping a Journal May Help
Before you see a pain management doctor and during, it may help to keep a journal.
This doesn’t have to be a “Dear Diary” type situation, but rather keeping a daily log of
your pain can really help you and your doctor to determine what’s working and what isn’t.
For instance, this could be extremely beneficial after certain therapies—if you notice you
feel great for a couple days, write it down.
If you notice when you’re driving that your right knee begins to ache, write it down.
Keeping tack of these things can help you and your doctor to see a pattern and therefore
better help you.
5. Seek Help Before Your Pain Gets Worse
Many people tend to put off going to the doctor, even if they’re in pain.
The truth is that you should seek help before your pain gets worse.
Thinking it will go away on its own or trying different things at home won’t give you any
answers as to what’s causing your pain or how to make it go away.
Dr. Damita Bryant of Center for Spine, Joint, and Neuromuscular Rehabilitation in Nashville,
Tennessee explains how pain management can help patients by looking at the whole picture.
“A comprehensive approach to pain management
which includes multiple treatment options involving
more than just pain medications is the best approach
to treating chronic pain.
Addressing lifestyle changes, weight management,
physical therapy, and behavior modification are key
components to overcoming the challenges that
a person living with chronic pain faces.”
Working with a pain management doctor can help figure out how to handle this.
You’re not alone, and admitting that you need help is a strong thing to do.
Seek help for your pain before it worsens.
Your pain should also be easier to treat if you seek help for it when it first starts.
Pain management clinics are there to help you manage your pain and get you feeling
better again.
When considering pain management, keep an open mind.
Consider these five things you may not have known about pain management.
Have you or someone you know required help for pain?
Share your thoughts and comments with us.
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