How To Get Rid of Pain

What is Pain?

The best way to reduce pain is to accept it.

Sounds crazy?

Not at all.

Think about it: pain is a signal that you've done something wrong -- ate something, pulled a muscle, or got stressed out. Essentially, your body's "feelings" are hurt and it is sending you a message with a black spot: stop and change.

Same as in traffic law if you do not stop, the penalties will escalate. The harder you press, the more stubborn you act, the more you desire to rid yourself of pain, the greater your defeat will be. The single most effective way to reduce pain is to acknowledge its right to exist, and accept it as a sensible mechanism that limits our irrational behavior.

It may seem strange that a specialist in pain management advocates a complete surrender to pain. Yet this is not my intent. I only suggest that we don't commit ourselves to Einstein's definition of insanity! If you want the pain to stop, then stop antagonizing it. This simple step acts as the primary pain relief. We need to learn how to listen to our body, instead of arguing with its feedback.

A Compromise with Pain

Those who have suffered from an unbearable headache, a toothache, or a backache know that even during the most agonizing moments of pain there are moments of peace. It is up to you to either extend or to reduce those moments.

When you calm yourself in those moments of relief; pulses slow, stress levels drop, and muscles relax. This triggers a course of deep breathing to relieve the inflammatory swelling pressing on the nerve endings. As a result, microcirculation improves and nourishes muscle tissue, calming inflammation -- the driving force behind pain.

Those patients that do not seek peace, but instead wage a war on pain, lock themselves into a vicious pain cycle. They don't let their pulses and breathing relax, so their agitation just adds fuel to the fire. As a result, the short pause brings on a tsunami of pain that can only be settled in the emergency room.

The Real Cause of Pain

There are situations when a pain in your stomach or heart can be life-threatening, and ignoring it could yield tragic results. Obviously, in these cases, immediate medical attention is absolutely necessary. However, even in such critical cases, you can promote your recovery if you do succumb to panic. Trust that the pain is not your body killing you but a cry for help.

Of course, when suffering patients come to our clinic, we don't limit ourselves to this kind of "psychotherapy." We have more effective methods to adequately meet the demands of pain. For example, a muscle spasm that is compressing nerve endings and restricting the flow of blood and oxygen can easily be relaxed with the right neuromuscular massage or laser reflex therapy. A pinched nerve, compressed by a slipped disk readily responds to well-directed manual vertebral axial decompression. Muscles afflicted by lack of exercise and lack of blood flow are granted long awaited mobility and nourishment as a result of specialized core muscle exercises that liberate the patient from chronic pain.

Remember, don't force and abuse your self-regulating biological computer. It uses tension, discomfort, and pain as a mode of communication. Try to listen to the whispers and screams, learn to interpret them correctly, then address their needs. This is the most simple and effective way to deal with pain.

Ivanchenko M.D. Pain and Rehabilitation Center is dedicated to improving the quality of life for patients.​Our emphasis is on the integrative medicine and nonsurgical comprehensive decompression of acute and chronic pain arising from spinal problems, sports, accidents, work related injuries or other conditions.