Chronic pain is pain that continues for more than 12 weeks and is either persistent or comes and goes. Whatever type of chronic pain you have, you will already know how frustrating it can be and how much of a challenge it is to find something that works to relieve the pain. Maybe you have had medication that worked for a while but that you are no longer getting the same relief from. Or perhaps you have never been able to find a suitable medication that provides any relief from your pain. Thankfully, there are other treatments that can help.
What Treatments are Available for Chronic Pain?
As mentioned, medications – or pharmacological treatment as it is known – are available for the treatment of chronic pain. There are three main types of medication prescribed for those with chronic pain: antidepressants, anti-inflammatory drugs, and opioids. The type of medication prescribed to someone with chronic pain will depend on the type of pain they have and how severe it is. Opioids are perhaps the strongest and most effective type of pain relief, but they have the potential for addiction and are as such meant to be taken for more than three days.
People with chronic pain are often referred to pain clinics such as KindlyMD if they are not responding to medication. This is because these clinics are staffed by specialists when it comes to treating pain. They are known as pain management doctors.
Pain management doctors have a wealth of knowledge pertaining to diagnosing and treating pain. They will use non-pharmacological as well as pharmacological treatments to help their patients overcome chronic pain. They may use medication in conjunction with non-pharmacological treatments or a combination of different non-pharmacological methods to help relieve a patient’s pain. Non-pharmacological treatments include things like:
- physical therapy
- acupuncture
- meditation
- massage
- chiropractic care
- yoga
- diet and exercise changes.
Choosing Treatment for Your Chronic Pain
If you are referred to a pain clinic, you will work closely with the staff there to develop a tailored plan of care that is expected to work well for you. Pain doctors will ask you questions about your medical history, your current health, and any family history that might be relevant. They will then ask about your pain and what things might be triggering it. The doctors will want to know the severity of the pain and how often you get it. With the information you provide, along with any tests or screenings they run, they should be able to provide you with a treatment plan containing methods that will help to relive your pain.
A pain doctor will discuss your treatment plan in depth with you, explaining what each type of treatment is and how it is expected to help you. If you are uncomfortable with any type of treatment, you can discuss this with the doctor. For example, you may not want to take opioid medication because of the risks involved.
The wonderful thing about visiting a pain clinic is that whatever treatment plan you are provided with, it can be changed if necessary. It is usually recommended that you try the plan to see how it goes and then this will be evaluated after a period of time with adjustments being made as necessary. This can be done until you get it right.
To conclude, choosing an effective treatment for chronic pain can be difficult, but working closely with pain management doctors can mean you have plenty of options for pain relief. A treatment plan at a pain clinic will usually include more than just medication. It will include non-pharmacological treatments too.