Better Diet
Eat healthy. If you have an inflammatory
condition, the wrong
foods can trigger pain. Eat a diet
rich in colorful produce that is
high in antioxidants and reduce
your intake of sugar and white
flour products.
Better Sleep
Hygiene
While chronic pain may reduce
your ability to sleep well, setting
yourself up for a good night’s
sleep is a combination of talking
to your doctor, creating a relaxing
environment, and winding
down an hour or two before bed.
You should also select the right
mattress for your body.
State Of Mind
Your state of mind is one of the
most important things to move
forward into a fulfilling life. Below
are a few tips from people
who have risen above their
chronic pain struggles:
Lauren Zalewski, who has lupus
and has chronic pain from this
incurable illness, writes at The
Mighty. She doesn’t allow herself
to say, “I’m suffering” from
pain and illness. “But suffering is
a state of mind I no longer want
anything to do with. I believe the
opposite of suffering is pleasure
or happiness. That I want!” Of
course, she doesn’t always feel
happy, but this choice has helped
her to turn her life around.
Alisha Nurse, a writer at The InvisibleF.
com, has fibromyalgia.
She too has several tips for living
a fulfilled life. “Taking your life
back from chronic pain is worth
the time, energy and pain,” she
writes. “Your life is worth it, and
you are worth it.”
A post at Psych Central, Making
Friends With Your Pain, on the
steps that Tracy Rydzy MSW,
LSW, took to make peace with
the pain. It didn’t happen overnight,
and she stopped looking at
pain as “something that was ruining
my life…. I started looking at
it as something I simply had to
work around.”
Chronic pain is a real challenge,
but it doesn’t need to keep you
from living a purposeful and fulfilling
life. Take these steps today
to move forward.
Need more resources? Visit the
www.internatioanlpain.org for
tips, tools, and information such
as the latest clinical trials.
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/www.internatioanlpain.org