For years, the medical profession has treated pain symptoms with a variety of medications, many of which contain opioids. Pain management often includes taking prescription drugs, such as Tylenol 3, Percocet, morphine, OxyContin and others. Over the years, certain regulations have been put in place to help prevent abuse of these substances.
Dealing with Pain Management
Pain clinics have been on the rise to help people use a variety of methods other than opioids to handle pain. Some people have great success with biofeedback systems. With electromyography or EMG, biofeedback has been shown to reduce musculoskeletal pain. It is also helpful in reducing pain from psychosomatic origins.
With biofeedback, patients are taught how to monitor and control the sympathetic nervous system. In a sense, it truly is mind over matter. Relaxation exercises are used, in biofeedback, to reduce stress and help you become more attuned to your body and what’s happening with it. This method of pain reduction has been helpful in reducing the discomfort of many sources of pain, including chronic backaches and migraine headaches.
Non-Traditional Methods of Pain Relief
Some patients have found acupressure or acupuncture therapy helps with pain management. Both therapies maintain that the energy of the body flows along certain meridians, and when the flow of energy is interrupted or jammed, pain ensues. The purpose of acupressure and acupuncture is to restore the flow of healthy energy and alleviate the pain.
Acupressure relies on using pressure from the fingers or hands to stimulate certain points along the body, to reactivate energy balance. Acupuncture uses very thin needles, which are strategically placed to activate the body’s energy flow. While these methods are relatively safe, they need to be performed by a qualified professional. There are some situations in which they should not be used. Some acupressure points, for example, could cause miscarriage in a pregnant woman.
Studies have shown acupuncture to be very effective in certain types of pain management. This method of helping the body use its own healing power has been successful in treating back and neck pain, osteoarthritis, chronic headaches, and shoulder pain.
Pain management should not negatively impact your health. Becoming dependent on opioids, whether or not they are prescribed by a doctor, is not a healthy way to handle chronic pain, if there are other, healthier methods available. Talk to your doctor about alternative treatments for pain in lieu of opioid drugs. You may find a pain management treatment that helps without harm.
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