Managing your pain

Persistent pain can be managed well. Playing an active role in managing your health and having a toolkit of skills and strategies is the best way to keep your pain under control.

Self-management tools

There are many strategies and skills you can develop to help manage your pain. Some of the common tools include, but aren’t limited to:

Healthy sleep

While sleep can help you cope with your pain, your pain may prevent you getting a restful night’s sleep. You can help improve your sleep by:

• going to bed and waking up at roughly the same time
• having a routine before bed can also help train your body to expect sleep
• before going to bed, spend time doing something relaxing to help you wind down.

You can also speak to your GP about other solutions.

Healthy diet

Maintaining a healthy diet by eating nutritious foods may help to reduce your persistent pain. Tips for maintaining a healthy diet include:

• eating more nutritious foods, including fruits and vegetables
• minimise all stimulants—caffeine, alcohol, tobacco and sugar (refined and artificial)
• drink plenty of water
• treat yourself once in a while

You can ask your GP how you can improve your nutrition to manage your pain better.

Graded movement and exercise

Motion is lotion—completely avoiding movement won’t be helpful in the long run. Specific movement is safe and effective for people living with persistent pain. Daily movement may help you:

• stimulate the release of hormones which turn the volume down on pain
• keep your heart and lungs in good condition
• improve your sleep
• create new nerve pathways which will help override some of the ‘pain networks’ that have dominated for so long.

Having a good understanding of your pain and your body is a good place to start with exercising. If you’re unsure where to start, speak to a health professional.

Stress management and relaxation

Living with pain can lead people to feel low mood, anxiety and stress. These feelings of being stressed and overwhelmed can in turn affect your experience of pain. Practicing mindfulness and relaxation can help calm or reduce levels of stress and anxiety.

Some relaxation techniques focus on:

• movement, including yoga, tai chi or walking
• stillness, including meditation and deep breathing
• calming activities including reading or listening to music

Making time to do things you enjoy can also help with managing your stress.

Your support teams

It’s important to remember that you don’t have to go it alone. You may find support from a healthcare team and a support team of family and friends.

Healthcare team

Depending on your pain condition and what skills you would like help with you may need the support of different health professionals. This healthcare team can include:

• doctors
• physiotherapist
• occupational therapist
• psychologist
• nurse
• dietitian
• pharmacist
• exercise physiologist
• social worker.

Your GP can assist you with creating and coordinating this pain management team.

Community support team

Your family, friends, and carers can play a positive role in helping you achieve your pain management goals. Some of the tools in a pain toolkit can be beneficial for their generall wellbeing as well.

You might also find it helpful to connect with others through support groups online or in your local community, your GP might know of support groups in your area.

Tips to remember about dealing with persistent pain

Everyone deals with persistent pain different, here are some points to remember as you work through your pain management:

• Recognise that not all stress is bad. Stress can be motivating and can encourage you to take care of yourself.
• Don’t try to cope alone, coping is not about being superhuman—many factors may not be within your control and accepting that is part of coping. Try to be objective and look at how other people cope. Always seek help if you or your loved ones are finding it hard to cope.
• Know your inner strengths and use these to manage your pain.
• Be realistic and don’t set goals which are too difficult.
• Think about trying different solutions to a problem, don’t panic if the first solution is not successful.
• Take one step at a time, learn to prioritise what is important.
• Practice relaxation and plan enjoyable activities.