How is chronic pain treated?
To relieve chronic pain, healthcare providers first try to identify and treat the cause. But sometimes they can’t find the source. If so, they turn to treating, or managing, the pain.
Healthcare providers treat chronic pain in many different ways. The approach depends on many factors, including:
- The type of pain you have.
- The cause of your pain, if known.
- Your age and overall health.
The best treatment plans use a variety of strategies, including medications, lifestyle changes and therapies.
If you have chronic pain and depression and/or anxiety, it’s important to seek treatment for your mental health condition(s) as well. Having depression or anxiety can make your chronic pain worse. For example, if you have depression, the fatigue, sleep changes and decreased activity it may cause can make your chronic pain worse.
What medications can treat chronic pain?
Your healthcare provider may recommend certain medications to relieve chronic pain, including:
- Anticonvulsants (medications that prevent seizures) for nerve pain.
- Antidepressants such as tricyclic antidepressants.
- Corticosteroid.
- Muscle relaxers.
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or acetaminophen.
- Topical products (applied to the skin) that contain pain relievers or ingredients that create soothing heat or cold.
- Opioids (narcotics). Opioids can be addictive, and you can build up a tolerance to them over time. Because of this, healthcare providers usually try other pain treatment options before prescribing opioids.
- Sedatives to help with anxiety or insomnia.
- Medical marijuana.
Other medical treatments your healthcare provider may have you try include:
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS): This procedure delivers small shocks through patches on your skin. The electrical impulses can relieve pain.
- Nerve blocks: For this treatment, your healthcare provider injects an anesthetic near the site of your pain to reduce feeling in the area. Nerve blocks can also sometimes provide diagnostic information and locate the source of your pain.
- Epidural steroid injections: This procedure is an injection of anti-inflammatory medicine — a steroid or corticosteroid — into the space around your spinal nerves known as the epidural space to treat chronic pain caused by irritation and inflammation of spinal nerve roots.
Are there side effects or complications of medical treatment for chronic pain?
Every medication has a potential for side effects — some are more serious than others. Be sure to discuss the possible side effects of your chronic pain medications with your healthcare provider.
Complications from medical treatments for chronic pain can include:
- Acute liver failure from acetaminophen treatment.
- Opioid addiction and/or overdose.
- Mood changes, confusion and respiratory issues from nerve pain medications.
- Spinal cord damage or infection from spinal cord stimulators.
Can lifestyle changes help with chronic pain?
Four major lifestyle factors can affect your chronic pain and help minimize it. Healthcare providers sometimes call them the four pillars of chronic pain. They include:
- Stress: Stress can play a major role in chronic pain, so it’s important to try to reduce your stress as much as possible. Everyone has different techniques for managing their stress, but some techniques include meditation, mindfulness and deep breathing. Try different options until you find what works best for you.
- Exercise: Participating in low-intensity exercises, such as walking or light swimming, for 30 minutes every day may help reduce your pain. Exercise can also be a stress reliever for some people, which is important to manage when you have chronic pain.
- Diet: It’s important to eat a healthy diet to boost your overall health. Your healthcare provider may suggest trying an anti-inflammatory diet by eliminating foods that cause inflammation, such as red meat and refined carbohydrates.
- Sleep: Getting enough quality sleep is important for your overall health. A lack of sleep can cause you to gain weight, which could make your chronic pain worse. Getting quality sleep is also important for stress management.
Be sure to discuss these four lifestyle pillars with your healthcare provider to determine how each applies to your type of chronic pain and how you can incorporate changes into your day-to-day life.
Can therapy help with chronic pain?
Certain therapies may help you manage chronic pain, including:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): This counseling method helps you think differently about pain and teaches you ways to cope.
- Counseling: Talk therapy can help you manage chronic pain, especially psychogenic pain.
- Occupational therapy: Occupational therapy teaches you how to do everyday tasks differently to lessen pain or avoid injury.
- Physical therapy: Physical therapy involves exercises that stretch and strengthen your body, which can help reduce your pain.
What alternative treatments are available for chronic pain?
Alternative treatments that have been shown to relieve chronic pain over time include:
- Acupuncture, which uses small needs placed in the body.
- Aromatherapy, which uses aromatic plants and essential oils.
- Biofeedback, which teaches you how to tweak the way your body works, influencing such things as heart rate, breathing and muscle tension.
- Hypnotherapy, or hypnosis.
- Mindfulness training, which teaches you how to calm yourself.
- Music, art or pet therapy.
- Reiki or Healing Touch™, with a therapist using touch to change energy fields in your body.
- Relaxation techniques, such as massage, meditation and guided imagery.
Is there a cure for chronic pain?
Currently, there is no cure for chronic pain, other than to identify and treat its cause. For example, treating arthritis can sometimes stop joint pain.
Many people with chronic pain don’t know its cause and can’t find a cure. They use a combination of medications, therapies and lifestyle changes to lessen pain.
