The American Chronic Pain Association recognizes September as Pain Awareness Month in an effort to better educate the public at large while also recognizing the day to day impact pain, and more specifically chronic pain, can have on the millions of Americans who are living with it.
Chronic pain is clinically defined as, “pain beyond the expected time frame for healing or that occurs in disease processes in which healing may never occur” (Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee, 2016). But for those with chronic pain it can mean so much more; it can impact every facet of life. It can affect the person’s ability to work, be a friend, go out to eat, be a parent, or enjoy hobbies. Chronic pain can impact one’s interactions with others and result in feelings such as “no one believes I have pain”, “no one understands my pain”, and “my pain is all in my head.” It can also affect one’s attention, motivation, and interest. All of this can leave the person feeling like “I am not myself anymore”. Unfortunately, most of those experiencing these things blame themselves because they are not aware that their pain is the culprit.
The changes resulting from having chronic pain can be upsetting and disruptive to daily life and often lead to the seeking of medical treatment. For many of these individuals, the expectation is that proper medical treatment should cure or relieve their pain. When that expectation is not met it can lead to frustration and hopelessness.
But there is good news for those who are still experiencing pain, research tells us that individuals can become active participants in their own pain management. Many times those with chronic pain are not aware of strategies they can use to better manage their condition to limit the pain’s impact on their daily life. This is a big shift in thinking for those who are overwhelmed by persistent pain and all of its implications on their lives. Having an experienced team of health care providers can be very helpful for individuals who want to learn how to better cope with their pain and improve their overall quality of life despite having chronic pain. These teams typically focus on what is important to the person while providing training to the concepts and techniques that can be utilized for better pain management.
Occupational therapy (OT) can be an important member of that team. Occupational therapy staff can help individuals begin to identify how pain is not only affecting their body, but how it also impacts the way they see themselves, the way they interact with their loved ones, their motivation to do things, their ability to do their jobs or manage their homes.
OT partners with their clients to help them return to doing the things that are the most meaningful to them, such as going to their grandson’s baseball game, picking up their two year old, vacuuming the rug or working a full day. OT’s can help individual’s better understand the cycle of chronic pain and how to break it. Understanding that pain is an individual experience is the foundation that helps OT’s guide their clients to returning to their unique lives.
Some of the ways this can be done is by teaching individuals how to break down daily activities into smaller steps for pacing or altering the surroundings to support the person as they attempt to accomplish the task such as raising a laundry basket off the floor and onto a chair. Occupational therapy services also include teaching clients about their pain and what may be happening inside their bodies. Each person may have a different learning style and OT practitioners can use their training to assist them in better understanding pain, finding solutions for coping with their pain and strategies for managing pain flares. Improved understanding and coping can often can break the cycle of chronic pain.
During September, remember those who have chronic pain often face a lot of changes in their daily lives, but with the help of caring healthcare providers including OT those who have pain can learn to self-manage their pain and live their lives to the fullest.
Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee. (2016). National pain strategy. Retrieved from https://iprcc.nih.gov/docs/HHSNational_Pain_Strat- egy.pdf
