Tag: Pain
Chronic pain patients reveal hidden truths to a future doctor
What one med student learned about chronic pain treatment from hundreds of honest, unfiltered responses on Reddit—and why it should change how we train physicians. Learning about chronic pain is a depressingly low priority for US medical schools, despite the fact that pain is the number one reason that Americans access the health care system…
Chronic Pain Pillows: Your Ultimate Guide to Every Type
Chronic pain pillows that quickly reduce your pain while helping you sleep Chronic pain pillows are a crucial part of life when it comes to managing the pain of an illness, injury, chronic condition or disability. It’s hard to overstate the effect that the right combo of pillows can have: not just on easing your…
Top 7 Gifts To Make Chronic Pain Easier
Gifts to make life with chronic pain easier, more productive, and less painful Finding the perfect gift for someone with chronic pain requires understanding both their daily challenges and their desire for independence. This curated guide highlights seven categories of gifts that genuinely improve quality of life: pillows, stretching tools, massage tools, heat and cold…
Beyond the Pain Scale: A Patient’s Guide to How Nurses Can Improve Pain Management & Combat Stigma
Last weekend (October 2024) I had the incredible opportunity to speak at the 2024 American Society of Pain Medicine Nursing conference about the importance of communication between patients and their medical providers. I’m no medical pro, but as a chronic pain patient for over two decades, I’ve experienced firsthand the transformative power of compassionate, patient-centered…
Can you see pain?
Different ways to see pain, even when your condition is invisible Can you see pain? It’s a tricky question! Pain is such a complex and subjective experience, and the word “pain” covers a whole host of very different experiences. It gets even more complicated when you’re talking about chronic pain or illness. It’s not like…
The Best Type of Heat To Help You Feel Better
Types of heat & how each helps pain differently Living with chronic pain can feel like an endless battle, but sometimes, the simplest solutions can offer the most profound relief. Heat therapy may be a time-honored tradition in pain management, but your options have evolved far beyond the humble hot water bottle. Let’s look at…
Exactly what to say to your doctor to get refills on the meds you need
Urgent med refill? Learn how to effectively communicate with your doctor and pharmacy, track prescriptions, and get quick refills. Includes printable script!
Poems about mental health & chronic pain– & despite them!
Poems about mental health & chronic pain that are wise, not sappy This post has been updated on 4/23/25. Poems about mental health, chronic pain or other invisible disabilities, just like quotes on the subject, tend to be sappy as hell (except those quote pages I put together, of course). And that is extremely not…
Is your room causing your insomnia? W/ a free printable to find out!
Using your five senses to figure out if your room is causing your sleeplessness If you’re someone who beds down at night only to stare at the wall, have you ever considered whether your room could be contributing to your insomnia? Not being able to sleep sucks, and the combo of chronic pain and insomnia…
10 Quotes About Chronic Pain & Joy to Motivate Your New Year & Beyond
Inspirational quotes about chronic pain that actually resonate with what we’re going through can be hard as hell to find. Living with constant pain or chronic illness is a tough slog, rougher than “able-bodied” people can ever know. Finding the joy in a life filled with pain is more difficult for us, but it’s also…
Quotes About Self Care (& Self Care Quotes About Invisible Illness)
Quotes about self-care, especially self-care quotes about invisible illness, are hard to come by. Well, good ones at least– you can find sappy schlock everywhere. But there are also gems, little bits of wisdom that remind me to take time for myself, helping me through the chronic pain of my invisible illnesses. Click one in…
Acupuncture for Pain: Complementary Medicine That Works
Acupuncture for pain is one of the oldest forms of treatment out there: this ? can help chronic pain, neck pain, lower back pain, nerve pain, and a lot of non-pain related issues as well. Read on to learn more about the history and science behind acupuncture, and to find out how it can help…
Best Quotes About Chronic Pain, Disability, & Mental Health
A lot of “inspirational’ quotes about chronic pain & mental health are too sweet or sappy to be helpful for me. I’ll keep updating as I find more quotes that are encouraging without being… too much. (I promise, no “live laugh love” posters.)
Top 15 Chronic Pain Gifts To Help Patients Around the House
These are the top 15 around-the-house gifts for chronic pain patients that they’ll appreciate long after the holidays have passed.
Top Qs about Invisible Illnesses & Disability Pride Month
Invisible illnesses are tough: you never quite know where you belong. Since July is Disability Pride Month, here are answers to the top questions people with invisible illnesses ask about disability.
Why I Didn’t Write About Medical Cannabis On 4/20
Happy 4/21! I didn’t write about medical cannabis yesterday, even though I wanted to. Why? Texas, mostly.
Gift Guide For Chronic Pain, Part 1 — UPDATED!
This story was most recently updated on 11/1/2024. Christmas is coming, and that’s got me thinking about all the little gadgets I continually recommend to my friends. Some of this stuff took me 20 years to learn about (Theracane, where were you all my life?!) and some are old standbys that can help a surprising…
Pain Scales (1-10): How To Explain Your Pain
1-10 Pain scales have real limitations: keep the bigger picture in mind when using a 1-10 scale to measure your pain.
Complementary Medicine: What Works and What Doesn’t
Over the last 20 years, I’ve tried (and retried) many more options. Some of them helped; most of them didn’t. The majority of complementary treatments I’ve tried have been an expensive way of pissing money away. But there ARE things that can really, truly help. Everyone is different, and everyone’s pain is different. But here’s…