Chronic pain is an ongoing pain that persists for three months or more. It can come and go from hour to hour or day to day, but it never completely disappears. Unlike acute pain, such as when you cut your finger or bang your knee, chronic pain can last for months, years, or even a lifetime.

Read on to learn more about the most common causes of chronic pain, types of chronic pain, chronic pain symptoms, and treatments for chronic pain. For most people, chronic pain changes their lives and the lives of those around them in a negative way. However, there are ways to manage or eliminate chronic pain today so it doesn’t take over your life. Once you understand more about chronic pain, you can take the steps you need to get it under control so it doesn’t become the focus of your life.

Causes of Chronic Pain

There are dozens of possible causes of chronic pain. Knowing the source of your pain is helpful for treatment, although it’s not always necessary. There is such a thing as idiopathic pain, which is pain from an unknown cause.

We can divide chronic pain into two basic types: neuropathic and nociceptive. Neuropathic pain is a cause of damage to or dysfunction of the nervous system, such as neuropathic pain associated with diabetes. Nociceptive pain happens when pain receptors in the body are activated, often due to an injury or degenerative condition like arthritis.

Chronic pain can fall into one of five types:

• Nerve pain (neuropathy, sciatica, etc.)
• Muscle pain
• Mechanical or compressive pain (from a tumor or spinal disc pressing on the spinal cord or a nerve)
• Inflammatory pain (arthritis, soft tissue injury, infection, etc.)
• Psychogenic pain (not caused by one of the four types above, such as pain with depression that is often due to inadequate serotonin or norepinephrine)

Within those four types of pain, medical practitioners find many different unique causes of chronic pain. Some of the most common causes include:

• Back pain due to slipped or bulging discs, spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal), soft tissue injury (strain or trauma), fractures (including those related to osteoporosis), and spinal deformities like scoliosis or lordosis
• Headaches due to eyestrain, migraines, tension, hormones, or enlarged blood vessels
• Joint pain caused by various types of arthritis (osteo, rheumatoid, psoriatic, etc.), tendinitis, bursitis, and repetitive motion (such as walking, typing, sports, or physical labor)
• Nerve pain, such as sciatica, pseudo sciatica (also known as piriformis or deep gluteal syndrome), diabetic neuropathy, and postherpetic neuralgia after having had shingles
• Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, or another poorly understood chronic pain syndrome
• Post-surgical pain after an operation, including phantom pain after amputation
• Cancer and compressive pain caused by other types of lesions
• Post-trauma pain from an injury (anything from a car accident to a broken bone years ago)
• Endometriosis (growth of the uterine lining outside the uterus)
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBS) irritating the digestive tract
• Interstitial cystitis that results in pain due to bladder pressure
• TMJ or temporomandibular joint dysfunction
• Hypothyroidism (low thyroid function)

Risk Factors of Chronic Pain

While it may seem that chronic pain came out of nowhere, risk factors predispose people to long-term pain or a pain disorder. If you have had these health concerns, you may be more likely to suffer from chronic pain:

• Depression and anxiety
• Work involving strenuous physical labor or repetitive motion, especially in an environment without good ergonomic support (including driving)
• Participation in high-impact sports involving running, jumping, or physical contact
• Diabetes and kidney disease
• Diagnoses with certain disorders, like endometriosis, IBS, or TMJ
• History of physical trauma, injury, or major surgery
• Work that entails long hours reading or using a computer
• High-stress lifestyle
• Inadequate sleep for long periods or chronic fatigue
• Poor nutrition, including eating disorders
• Chemotherapy or certain medications that stress internal organs
• Being in the military or being a veteran
• Excess alcohol consumption and smoking
• Genetics (family members with a history of chronic pain)
• Lack of regular sunlight and vitamin D
• Being overweight
• Aging (chronic pain is more common in the elderly)

Many of these risk factors link with chronic pain symptoms. For example, people who work in high-stress jobs are already prone to chronic pain. When their work stress impacts their sleep, diet, alcohol intake, and exercise, chronic pain symptoms can worsen, leading to even worse sleep, overeating, more drinking, and obesity.

Treatments for Chronic Pain

A treatment plan for ongoing pain first looks at the cause and chronic pain symptoms, as different methods work best depending on the individual situation. Also, everyone’s threshold for pain is unique. Therefore, doctors may reserve some treatments, such as surgery or prescription medication, for when the pain becomes unbearable. A more conservative approach is to avoid costly operations with long recovery periods or the risk of addiction to pharmaceuticals like opioids.

Fortunately, there are many options for treating chronic pain today, and there is a wealth of technology available to help diagnose pain and assess treatment progress. Some of the most common chronic pain treatments include:

• Over-the-counter medications, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) or NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), which work well for chronic pain and inflammation
• Antidepressant medications
• Muscle relaxants
• Corticosteroids
• Sleep aids
• Other classes of prescription medication, such as antirheumatics, anticonvulsants, and opioids
• Acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine
• Massage
• Application of heat or cold
• Deep brain or spinal cord stimulation
• Diet modification
• Nerve blocks
• Surgery
• TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) unit that interrupts pain signals between the body and the brain

Living with Chronic Pain

Sometimes practitioners cannot wholly eliminate chronic pain symptoms, even with the treatments listed in the previous section. Nevertheless, they do their best to relieve symptoms while helping patients learn to live with chronic pain, which in some cases can be a lifelong disability.

Other modalities help people manage their pain, especially those involving fostering a mind-body connection. For some people, meditation, gentle yoga, tai chi, and music or art therapy are very effective. Animal therapy is another growing area of assistance with chronic pain, such as small pet therapy or grooming horses.

Talk therapy with a counselor can be essential in helping those with chronic pain. It gives them an outlet for discussing pain-related psychological issues and can provide direction for managing stress, dealing with family, and handling work.

Take the First Step Toward Managing Chronic Pain

If you have chronic pain, you can take steps to make it better, and in some cases, you can eliminate the pain. The first step is to get a proper diagnosis to understand the cause of your pain. Then, you want to work with a medical professional to reduce risk factors and try treatment methods that may work for you. Sometimes you may attempt multiple treatments before you find one that relieves your pain, and you may need to pair several treatment modalities to get the best results.

Don’t let chronic pain ruin your life or assume that you can do nothing about it. Carolinas Pain Center is here to help empower you regarding chronic pain, particularly if you haven’t been able to find relief elsewhere. We offer various services for the different types of pain listed here, and we understand your pain requires a treatment plan tailored to your unique needs. To learn more or schedule an appointment, call us at 704-500-2332. Or reach out online to let us know how we can help.

Chronic pain is a debilitating condition that can seriously diminish a person’s quality of life. Living with chronic pain will often lead to other health issues that can exacerbate the pain, resulting in a negative cycle of worsening conditions. Managing chronic pain means breaking out of this cycle and gradually improving your health.

If you’re living with chronic pain, it can easily feel like there’s no way of making it better. However, this article is here to help you break out of that cycle. We’ll talk about how chronic pain can affect your body and mind and give you tips on how to improve your quality of life. Instead of your pain controlling you, you can learn how to control pain.

Effects of Chronic Pain

Physically, chronic pain creates a lot of challenges. Day-to-day activities can gradually become more and more difficult to do on your own, and you may find that you no longer partake in hobbies you once loved. Pain can also easily affect your ability to exercise. All of these together can have a serious effect on your physical health as you won’t be moving as much as you used to.

Chronic pain can also be hard on you because of how your body responds to it. Pain triggers the stress response in the body, preparing your body to run away from the situation. Unfortunately, you can’t run from your pain, and your body’s stress response is active far longer than what’s healthy. This prolonged stress response leads to a higher risk of cardiovascular and gastrointestinal issues.

On top of the physical issues, chronic pain often leads to poor sleep and mental health issues. It’s common for those suffering from chronic pain to experience a change in their mood, increased anxiety, and a heightened risk of depression. Because of this, pain management and treatment may involve psychological care.

Living With Chronic Pain

Suffering from chronic pain doesn’t have to mean that you aren’t living your normal life anymore. While there may be a temporary halt on some of the activities you once did, proper chronic pain management can help you return to your regular routine.

Managing Chronic Pain

Chronic pain management isn’t always easy, but it is rewarding. Here are some of the ways that you can manage your own pain:

1. Exercising

When we’re in pain, exercise becomes more difficult, and it’s much more tempting to just avoid it altogether. However, not using our muscles weakens them, and we lose our stamina. After some time, this can make physical activity even harder and more painful to do, creating a downward spiral. So, make sure to continue exercising. Regular exercise can also ease your pain by keeping your muscles strong and your joints flexible. If you find what you would normally do for exercise too difficult, you can speak with your doctor or a physical therapist to look into workouts that will be less strenuous and easier for you to do.

2. Stretching

Stretching is another effective way to keep your body healthy and minimize your pain. Stretching helps to improve posture, blood flow through the muscles, flexibility, and range of motion. All of these can help reduce muscle and joint pain and overall stiffness. Here are some simple stretches you can try out. If you find it difficult to get started, try taking a hot shower or soak in the tub first.

3. Balanced Diet

Ensuring you’re eating a healthy and balanced diet isn’t likely to directly impact your pain, but it does come with benefits that will improve your health and indirectly reduce your pain. It’s easy to fall into bad habits and start eating poorly. However, a poor diet can lead to more health issues that will make chronic pain management even more difficult. A poor diet combined with difficulty exercising can also lead to weight gain, which can directly worsen chronic pain. The extra weight on your joints will create more pressure, which can increase pain. A balanced diet will make sure that you stay healthy and can help you lose weight if you need that.

4. Relaxation

Some of the health issues caused by chronic pain are a result of the body’s stress response. An effective way to counteract that response is to actively relax. Our bodies cannot be stressed when we’re relaxed, so relaxing will stop the stress response. On top of that, relaxing will also release muscle tension, which can contribute to your pain. There are plenty of ways you can relax, but we would suggest one of the following relaxation techniques: progressive muscle relaxation, breathing exercises, or meditation. These are all techniques that will take a bit of learning to do well, but the benefits are worth the bit of effort to learn one or more of these techniques.

5. Support

Going through something difficult like chronic pain on your own is hard and can contribute to mental health issues. We would encourage you to seek support from friends and loved ones who are able to help you. It would also help to seek out others dealing with the same condition. You’ll be able to share your struggles with someone who truly understands you. If you don’t personally know anyone else suffering from chronic pain, you can check out some support groups.

Treatment for Chronic Pain

There’s only so much that you can do on your own. If it feels like chronic pain is killing you, consider getting treatment on top of doing things on your own to manage your pain. Chronic pain treatment will often consist of medical interventions that will be able to diminish your pain more than you’d be able to on your own. This will make learning to manage your pain and take care of your health much easier.

Finding Care for Chronic Pain

When chronic pain becomes too much, it’s time for you to seek treatment at a pain clinic. There, you’ll meet with pain specialists who will be able to devise treatment plans to minimize your pain and return your life to normal.

To get chronic pain treatment at a pain clinic, you can start by speaking with your primary care physician. If they believe a pain clinic will be helpful for you, they’ll refer you to one. However, you can just start by contacting a pain clinic directly. That would speed up the process if you’re looking for care as soon as possible.

The Carolinas Pain Center Can Help

If you need help managing your chronic pain, reach out to us at the Carolinas Pain Center. Our pain specialists will create a treatment plan specifically for you so that you can go back to a fulfilling life without constant disruption. Visit our resources page to learn more about chronic pain, what it means for you, and what you can do to manage it.

If you’re one of the millions of people that suffer from chronic pain, you should be undergoing chronic pain treatment. Why? Because persistent pain decreases quality of life, often significantly. Moreover, untreated or even undertreated pain can lead to serious consequences.

Treating chronic pain is extremely important, as untreated pain can have profound impacts on your body. It can affect all the major organ systems, causing immense discomfort and interfering with essential daily activities. In some cases, chronic pain that has gone untreated may even threaten your life.

In this post, we cover the basics of chronic pain and provide chronic pain examples and information to help folks from all walks of life reduce discomfort and avoid the consequences of untreated chronic pain.

Types of Chronic Pain

So, what happens if chronic pain is left untreated and you don’t get chronic pain treatment? Well, pain can intensify and complications can occur, which could be dangerous. But, before we get into that, we will answer the question, “What is chronic pain?” and look at the types that can affect people.

Chronic pain is pain in the body that persists for three months or longer. It may be constant or intermittent, as well as mild, moderate, or severe. Sharp, dull, aching, stinging, gnawing, nagging, throbbing, pounding, shooting, stabbing, and radiating are words commonly used by sufferers to describe their pain.

There are various types of pain that can affect an individual chronically. These include back pain, neck pain, headaches, testicular pain, and pain from diseases such as arthritis or cancer. People may also experience neurogenic pain, muscular pain (e.g., from fibromyalgia), and pain from injuries.

As mentioned, chronic pain can affect the major systems of the body, including the endocrine system, the cardiovascular system, the immune system, the neurologic system, and the musculoskeletal system. When this occurs, pain may spread and intensify. Harmful conditions can develop, along with new symptoms.

Consequences of Untreated Chronic Pain

What can chronic pain lead to? Why do you need chronic pain treatment? Can chronic pain lead to death? These are questions that people suffering from persistent pain frequently ask, and they should. Knowing the answers to them can help avert potentially fatal complications and improve life quality.

Chronic pain, when it affects the mechanism inside the body that regulates blood pressure, increases the risk of developing hypertension. This can lead to heart attacks and strokes. When the pain affects the endocrine system, the immune system may weaken, reducing the body’s ability to prevent and fight infections.

“Deconditioning” is another reason why chronic pain management is necessary. Pain affecting a particular part of the body, such as an arm or leg, often causes persons with pain to limit the movement and use of it. This can result in mobility issues and injuries due to weakness of the muscles, nerves, and joints.

In many individuals, there can be neuropsychiatric problems from untreated chronic pain. Issues such as memory loss, attention deficit, anxiety, and depression are common in long-term pain sufferers, and some increase the risk of suicide. Brain disorders and sexual dysfunction can also result from enduring pain.

Treatment for Chronic Pain

Typically, chronic pain does not go away. Chronic pain treatment is required to reduce discomfort and prevent complications and other symptoms. Treating lasting pain generally involves identifying and addressing its cause.

Medical professionals treat and manage chronic pain in a variety of ways. The approach that is taken depends on the type of pain you have, the cause of the pain, and your age and overall health. Often, healthcare providers will use a combination of treatment methods and strategies to alleviate pain.

Healthcare specialists may prescribe lifestyle changes (e.g., stress, exercise, diet, sleep, etc.) and medications to relieve chronic pain, such as corticosteroids, anticonvulsants, opioids, muscle relaxers, and NSAIDs. Medical marijuana can also be useful, and sedatives can help with insomnia and anxiety.

Other medical treatments for chronic pain include transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, nerve blocks, epidural steroid injections, and specialized therapies. Cognitive behavioral therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and talk therapy are the main therapy treatment options. Additionally, some people may find alternative pain treatments helpful.

Finding Treatment

Finding chronic pain treatment isn’t hard; it’s just a few clicks or phone call away. However, prolonged pain can be a complex medical issue that is difficult to diagnose and treat. When that is the case, chronic pain sufferers may have to see one or more specialists. In severe cases, a multidisciplinary treatment team may be required.

Different types of specialists are available for treating chronic pain. They include pain medicine specialists, orthopedic doctors and surgeons, osteopathic doctors, and rheumatologists. Your GP can refer you as appropriate. There are also various types of therapists and neurologists that can help with the pain.

What does a neurologist do for chronic pain? They can diagnose and treat neuropathic pain caused by nerve disease. Pain signals are sent by the nerves, and neurologists can prevent pain signal generation and keep pain signals from reaching the brain using advanced medical techniques and technologies.

Depending on where you live, there may be pain centers and clinics that you can visit. These are healthcare facilities that focus on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain and provide physical, behavioral, and psychological therapies.

Don’t Leave Your Chronic Pain Untreated

Chronic pain can last for years and make it difficult or impossible to work, enjoy life, and take care of yourself or others. And because untreated and undertreated chronic pain has a tendency to get worse and can have dire consequences, chronic pain treatment is not something that you want to put off.

How long can you live with chronic pain? That depends on the patient and cause of the pain. But why put yourself at risk and suffer unnecessarily when there are life-altering treatments available? If you’re a chronic pain sufferer, seek treatment. There are ways to reduce, manage, and possibly eliminate your pain.

At Carolinas Pain Center, we specialize in dealing with all kinds of pain and have successfully treated hundreds of patients. If you’re interested in getting professional chronic pain treatment, make an appointment today. Alternatively, you can browse our website and learn more about us here.

 Chronic Pain Overview

Do Chronic Pain exercises help?

Firstly, chronic pain isn’t mild or occasional; it’s persistent and, at times, excruciating.  

Given that chronic pains indicate the sensitiveness of the nervous system and hinder various bodily functions, many people with chronic pain experience a sharp decline in their mobility.