What Alternatives Are Their To Pain Drugs? In addition to analgesics, there are some other important approaches to treating chronic pain, and the AGS recommends using these as part of a multifaceted approach to pain management .
Pain Treatment Methods One of the most important is patient education. This includes teaching patients and their caregivers about the causes of the pain and what they can do by way of diet, exercise, relaxation techniques, medications, and conserving energy to help
manage pain symptoms. Many of these interventions have been used effectively.
Relaxation Pain Treatment
A National Institutes of Health (NIH) technology assessment panel found strong evidence that relaxation techniques and hypnosis helped to alleviate chronic pain, including cancer pain. The panel theorized that relaxation techniques reduced pain by decreasing a person's oxygen consumption, by lowering blood pressure, respiratory rate, and heart rate, by increasing EEG slow brain waves, and possibly by blocking pain from entering a person's consciousness.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy The NIH panel also explored the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy and biofeedback to reduce pain and concluded that they work moderately well in
lowering pain intensity. Cognitive-behavioral therapy works even more effectively in reducing pain patients' anxiety and depression.For some elderly people experiencing pain, it might help to initiate an exercise program that includes walking and mild resistance training.
Different Types Of Pain Therapy Pain therapy that is common involves administering hot and cold packs to minimize discomfort and decrease inflammation. Research shows that a combination of 20 minutes of heat followed by 20 minutes of cold is effective. Older adults also may enjoy hydrotherapy as a way to relieve their pain and as a form of distraction. The only caution here is to make sure someone carefully monitors the temperature of the hot packs or hydrotherapy because of the potential for tissuedamage.
Learn How To Use The Devices
Patients with
arthritic or joint pain should be shown how to use devices that minimize the need for joint action. These include hand-adjustable utensils, walkers, and elevated toilet seats.Massage therapy is another effective nonpharmacologic treatment. There should be supervision to monitor how they respond to the exercise and to teach them correct postures and positions to avoid injury.
Learn To Relax
It helps to minimize the pain and relax the patient's body and mind. Any of these approaches will work if it reduces stress, which in turn decreases a patient's perception of the severity of his or her pain. A cognitive-behavioral theory about pain is that the more isolated a patient becomes, the more the person focuses on the pain, causing the pain to be perceived as being more severe.
Alternative Pain Treatments Pain treatments that are available are acupuncture, chiropractic, and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS). Though expensive to buy, TENS units can be rented. Patients often will try alternative pain treatments without consulting their clinician, so it is a good strategy to approach the subject with chronic pain patients and ask them to work collaboratively in selecting these treatments.
Be Positive Some alternative therapies have shown positive results in reducing pain, and they have few adverse effects. If a patient admits to using alternative therapies that have little or no scientific backing, it is a good idea to avoid debunking the patient's choices because this could leave the patient with feelings of inadequacy, powerlessness, and hopeLessness.
* Note: Image(s) the courtesy of http://www.dreamstime.com.