I am struggling. I am sure anyone with chronic pain struggles with discouragement. I am also struggling with self image and self esteem. My pain shows and there is nothing I can do about that. I walk with a definite limp/hitch in my step. My right hip and right knee are painful with walking and sometimes just standing still for a length of time (as in when I am working in the kitchen or worse stopped at work to chat with a patient). The pain increases significantly.
I even had a patient ask me 'how long have you been crippled'! I have never considered myself crippled. Geez. Very depressing! Getting up and sitting down are difficult for me. I used to be an athlete. I ran 3-9 miles a day in high school. Had 5 children and was always very active with them. When my children left home I continued to be active. About 15 years ago my right knee started hurting once in awhile. And once in awhile it was bad enough I sought help from a chiropractor who said my knee was fine, adjusted my hips and off I went feeling better. The frequency of my pain increased with frequency and intensity to the point where about 10 years ago I began to experience pain every day. I began seeking answers.
I am unable to take any of the opioids, they make me deathly sick. I would rather be in pain. So I sought PT, therapeutic massage, chiropractic, supplements, ND's, DO's, Orthopedic advice and at present I am going to a special kind of Physical therapy called restorative muscle balancing. I had prolozone therapy and stem cell therapy. I've taken Ibuprofen 400-800mg experementing with combining the ibuprofen with some tylenol. Everything helps for a little while but nothing seems to help for the long term. My present supplement program consists of NAC three times a day, methyl folate once a day and methyl cobalimine B-12 once a day and just a week ago I started taking the collagen chews with Hyluronic acid for bone support once a day.
At what point will I feel better? Is that never? I do try to compensate for and deal with the pain in healthy ways. I distract, I also do mega research on how to address the underlying cause of my pain.
Pain, depression and discouragement serve as an impetus to research deeper, more intense and revisit some research. I use my discouragement to spur me to renew my search for answers! I seek out new research and revisit old. Just this last week I took a hard honest look at my diet and found I had let some processed foods and sugar sneak back into my daily eating so I stopped eating sugar and once again removed processed foods from my diet! I do feel better without the sugar.
I revisited Acupressure and trigger point therapy! I have started doing acupressure on key points and I seem to be finding some pain relief. I also researched cobblestone walking. The internet has sure made research so much easier. Thank goodness. I don't have cobblestones to walk on but I do have a wooden roller I can use to massage my feet!
My point with this post is to encourage. I know chronic pain is discouraging! There may be no answer but you will never know if you do not look. I refuse to say there is nothing I can do about my pain. There is a lot I can do! Most of it take effort on my part and I constantly have to battle wanting a one pill solution. Dealing with chronic pain and health issues is a multifaceted adventure.
Till next time. Keep your chin up and never give up!
Healthbug
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