Pain can consume your life, debilitate the body and distract the mind. Studies have shown that practicing yoga for pain management can help people with arthritis, fibromyalgia, migraine, low back pain, and many other types of pain conditions. Aside from turning to yoga for pain relief, this practice strengthens the body and improves range of motion and flexibility.
Yoga may seem like the last thing you want to do when in pain, but read on to learn what the practice is, the benefits, and poses or asanas you can do to find relief from pain.
Yoga is a mind-body and exercise practice that combines breath control, meditation, and movements to stretch and strengthen muscles.
It originated in India over 5,000 years ago, and a typical session lasts from 45 to 90 minutes. However, practicing yoga for pain relief at home regularly for 10 to 20 minutes also offers benefits. A session starts with breathing exercises to relax the body and help free the mind of worries and distractions. It then proceeds with dynamic stretches and movements, ending in a final resting pose called savasana, a time to focus on your breathing and meditation.
When doing this exercise, it is advisable to listen to your body and modify the poses to accommodate your strength.
Practicing yoga for pain management is very rewarding because of its numerous benefits, such as improvement in mobility and function, flexibility, full-body strength, and stress reduction. People who do yoga regularly may also develop a sense of self-discipline that can be useful both on and off the mat.
Apart from these health benefits, yoga can also alleviate pain and make it easier to manage. People with chronic pain like rheumatoid arthritis can reap the rewards of this exercise. Here is why it works:
Yoga may be the last thing you want to do if you're experiencing pain, but if you want to give yoga for pain relief a try, keep in mind not to push your body further than what feels comfortable. Check out some tips from experts on how you can get started comfortably in your practice:
Yoga for Neck & Upper Body Pain - People spend a good chunk of their week hunched over a screen. Neck and upper body pain are becoming some of the most common ailments that people deal with.
Yoga instructor Pinpeta Gina shares via Instagram (@thesunfloweryogini) eight poses, such as puppy pose and half frog twist, to help relieve the tension in the neck and upper body area. Learn the proper techniques for yoga for pain relief for the neck and upper body.
Yoga for Sciatica Pain - Sciatica pain is a sharp or throbbing sensation that shoots from your lower back down your leg. Poses such as reclined pigeon and cross cat are advisable to relieve the pain. Follow this mini flow for sciatica pain by yoga instructor Hannah Barrett via Instagram (@hannahbarrettyoga).
Yoga for Rheumatoid Arthritis - Doing gentle yoga can help ease the discomfort of tender, swollen joints for people with arthritis. Hand and foot yoga, seated twist, shoulder and neck soother, and modified downward-facing dog are gentle yoga for pain relief poses that can help with rheumatoid arthritis pain. You can get started with these poses by following this guide.
Yoga for All Types of Pain - Diaphragmatic breathing can have a therapeutic effect on pain. Our breath has a major impact on our nervous system and mental state. In this guide, learn how you can properly do diaphragmatic breathing and other yoga for pain management poses.
Doing yoga can help reduce pain, decrease inflammation, and improve mobility. After practicing, rest and recover by using an electrotherapy device like BioWaveGO. It’s a medication-free solution that uses electrical impulses to block pain signals for up to 24 hours after just one session.
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Golf is a fun sport that challenges both the mind and body and keeps you active while spending time with family or friends. While golf may seem like a low-risk sport, the potential for injuries can be high. Many golfers – amateurs and pros alike – experience pain from overuse injuries.
From walking the course to the repetitive swinging of the golf club, many factors can lead to common golf injuries. When playing, it is crucial to remember to avoid injury by maintaining proper posture, starting slowly, and wearing the proper footwear. Read on to learn about common golf injuries and how to prevent and treat them.
The number one injury affecting golfers is lower back pain, since golfers spend several hours playing a round of golf in a bent-over position doing repetitive swinging motions. A typical golf swing creates enough compressive load on the lower back to injure the intervertebral discs; lingering low back pain usually results from cumulative loads, or repetition, rather than from the trauma of a single swing. Poor flexibility and muscle strength can also cause minor strains in the back that can easily lead to severe injuries.
Preventing lower back pain starts with employing the proper mechanics in your golf swing. It is best to work with a golf professional to equip you with solid swing fundamentals. In the meantime, warming up the body before playing will help reduce the risk of common golf injuries and prevent chronic aches and pains associated with repetitive activity. Nobleton Physiotherapy shared via Instagram a series of warm-up drills like jumping jacks, squats and thoracic rotations that you can do before hitting the golf course. Follow them @nobletonphysiotherapy.
Additionally, working on core strength and flexibility-focused exercises like yoga can ease back pain and will also help prevent future golf injuries.
Golfers can experience several types of tendinitis in the elbow. Medial epicondylitis, or "golfer's elbow," is another common golf injury caused by over-extension during golf swings. It is a condition that causes pain where the tendons of your forearm muscles attach to the bony bump on the inside of your elbow. The pain might spread to your forearm and wrist. This kind of injury is similar to tennis elbow, which occurs on the outside of the elbow.
Symptoms of golfer's elbow include inflammation at the tendons that attach your forearm muscles to the inside of the bone at your elbow, weakness in hands and wrists, and numbness or tingling in one or more fingers.
Using a proper swinging technique is key to preventing this kind of common golf injury; consulting a local professional for a technique tune-up can help. Slowing your golf swing to lessen shock in the arm when you hit the ball is another way to stave off golfer's elbow.
Finally, strengthening your forearm muscles can help prevent this common golf injury. Try these simple exercises as part of your golf conditioning routine:
If you need guidance on how to do these progressive loading exercises, check out R&D Physio Global’s demonstration via Instagram. Follow them @r.d.physio.
Golf may be viewed as a relaxed sport to those who don’t play, but in reality, this game is exceptionally demanding on a golfer's joints and musculoskeletal system. A study revealed that up to 18% of all golfers (professional and amateur combined) have experienced a knee injury related to the sport.
As a golfer swings, his or her weight shifts and the leading knee bears most of the body's weight at the end of the swing. Walking the golf course for long hours can impact the knee as well. If the player has pre-existing knee injuries, they can be aggravated further by the sport.
To prevent knee pain and other common golf injuries, players should keep themselves healthy and take care of their joints by warming up before hitting the golf course, staying hydrated during their round, and practicing good body mechanics while bending, squatting, and swinging. It is also important to wear proper golf shoes to enhance your performance and alleviate foot problems that may contribute to knee pain.
Golf should be enjoyable and not painful. If you notice pain during or after a round of golf, begin with the RICE method, which includes rest, ice, elevation, and compression. This will help relieve pain and swelling.
Another way to help relieve pain and recover faster from common golf injuries is to use an electrotherapy device like BioWaveGO. This portable gadget powered by BioWave’s patented pain blocking technology is used by PGA champion Rocco Mediate and Golficity vlogger Frank Fasano as part of their daily routine to help relieve aches and pains. Learn more about how BioWave’s technology can benefit you.
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Athletes may sometimes find themselves sidelined due to a sports injury, keeping them from bringing their A-game or enjoying their workouts. When that happens, pain management for athletes is of the utmost importance so they can maintain their fit and active lifestyles. After all, athletes can't play well when pain gets in the way.
With today’s technology, athletes don’t need to rely on painkillers or on the RICE method (rest, ice, compression, and elevation) alone when it comes to pain management. Electrotherapy can help athletes combat pain and recover faster so they can focus on improving performance. Here’s how.
For many athletes, pain is part of the training cycle. When pain worsens, it can affect performance and take away the joy of the game, match, or race. That’s why pain management is key for every athlete.
One method of pain management that is popular with athletes is electrotherapy. Electrotherapy includes a range of treatments that use electricity to reduce pain, repair tissue, strengthen muscle, and improve circulation. There are a variety of electrotherapy devices on the market, so how do athletes know which one to use when dealing with pain?
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, or TENS, is a type of electrotherapy that uses low frequency signals to reduce pain. A traditional TENS machine uses small pads to deliver small electrical signals to the skin’s surface, which can help some people with pain management while the machine is in use. However, TENS cannot penetrate through the skin, so it doesn’t lend itself to long-lasting pain relief.
That’s where subcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation comes in. All BioWave devices, including the portable, wearable BioWaveGO, use subcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation to send high frequency signals through the skin and deep into the pain fibers of the muscles. BioWave’s patented technology uses these signals to create a type of barrier between the nerve and the brain, essentially blocking pain at the source.
What’s more, the electrical field creates a sensation known as hypoesthesia, or a light numbness in the area, which means you can use BioWave technology for 30 minutes and feel long-lasting pain relief.
The innovative technology that powers BioWave was researched and developed for 15 years, and now benefits athletes, fitness enthusiasts, and anyone seeking effective pain management. For example, chiropractor Dr. Kayte Susse (find her at @drkayte) shared via Instagram how she uses BioWaveGO to interrupt the pain cycle as someone who regularly works out.
“Fitness requires focused energy to muscle groups. When there is lack of activation and low energy, it’s easy for injuries to occur. Chronic, even low grade tension and pain will divert energy from the muscle you want to work out to perpetuate a vicious trigger point cycle. I’m excited to interrupt that unconscious loop with @biowavego.”
She adds: “BioWave’s patented, proven, effective neurostimulation leapfrogs today’s current technology with its advanced, patented pain blocking approach to pain relief. Because it’s designed to deliver therapeutic electrical signals into deep tissue.”
Like Dr. Kayte, athletes who play all different sports turn to BioWaveGO for pain management and recovery. Here are some examples:
1. Use BioWaveGO for Workout/Game Day Prep and Recovery
BioWaveGO can be used pre-, during, and post-workout to keep athletes at the top of their game. Six-time PGA Tour Champion Rocco Mediate says BioWaveGO is part of his daily routine and a must-have device on tour. He considers it to be the best treatment he’s found for pain relief and inflammation.
2. Wear BioWaveGO During Travel
Sitting for long periods of time during travel between competitions can contribute to joint and muscle stiffness and inflammation. Olympic champion Tianna Bartoletta wears her BioWaveGO device on plane rides with electrodes placed on her lower back to make travel easier on her body.
3. Integrate BioWaveGO into Your Rest Days
Rest is critical for athletes' bodies, making rest days necessary so their muscles can repair, rebuild, and strengthen. BioWaveGO is a great tool to use on rest days. Carlee Turner of the Boston Pride uses it a couple of days a week – whether she's “sitting on the couch, watching TV, or cooking dinner, BioWave is a great recovery tool to use at any time of the day.”
Like these athletes, if you are looking to improve your daily function, get back on the course, or recover after an intense workout, turn to BioWaveGO. Learn more about this handheld device trusted by elite athletes and people like you.
]]>You are out for an afternoon run to take some time for yourself. The sun is still out, the weather is perfect, and you feel invigorated. You’re in the zone until you notice you’ve got an ache at the front of your knee. You sit down to rest and as soon as you stand up, you immediately feel the knee pain again. A few days go by, and that knee pain after running persists even as you walk or just sit for too long.
If this sounds familiar, chances are you’re experiencing patellofemoral pain syndrome, commonly known as runner's knee. Before panicking, it is important to understand what runner's knee is, how to recognize it and ways to treat it before you start running again.
According to John Hopkins Medicine, runner's knee means you have dull pain around the front of the knee (patella). This is where the knee connects with the lower end of the thigh bone (femur). Several factors cause runner's knee, including a structural defect, poor running form, a tight Achilles tendon, excessive training, poor foot support or tight hamstrings.
How will you know if knee pain after running is truly runner’s knee? Amanda Benaim, a Toronto-based physical therapist, shared via Instagram (find her at @amandaphysio) some sure signs of runner’s knee:
Benaim adds, "Getting back to running is all about stabilizing the patella through strengthening, correcting muscles imbalances, and load management!"
The good news is there are runner's knee stretches, exercises, and treatments to help you recover and get back on your feet. However, if the pain is unbearable, it is best to visit your healthcare provider to give you a proper diagnosis.
Dealing with runner’s knee is no fun, but don’t forget to give yourself a pat on the back for getting out of the house and setting foot on the pavement. Your first steps for recovery after a tough run are to rehydrate, refuel and rest. However, if you feel pain during your run and you think it might be runner's knee, it is best to stop immediately. Once you get home, you can treat runner’s knee and knee pain after running with a formula known as RICE:
Doing this simple home remedy and taking anti-inflammatory medicines such as aspirin and ibuprofen will help relieve knee pain after running. So kick back, watch TV, drink some water and relax.
While rest is important, it does not mean you should lie on the couch for days waiting until runner’s knee pain goes away. Instead, you can supplement your routine with low-impact exercises to keep working on your physical conditioning before you start running again.
Before you dive into strengthening and stretching, try to determine the root cause of your knee pain after running so you can focus your energy on correcting it. For many people who experience runner's knee, there may be weakness or tightness in the hips, quads, lower back and abdominal muscles, putting strain on your knees during high-impact exercises like running. Focus on stabilizing and strengthening those areas to prevent runner’s knee the next time you hit the pavement or treadmill.
The team behind the popular Instagram account @therunnersfix says doing mobility, stability, and strength exercises can ease tightness in the hips and core, which can help treat – and avoid – runner's knee. Check out their demonstrations of moves like the hip flexor lunge stretch, banded monster walks and lunge pulses.
Icing and resting will temporarily relieve runner’s knee and knee pain after running, but eventually you need to get back out there if you wish to pursue running as a form of exercise. "When you are dealing with any kind of pain or injury, due to overuse or improper form, it is important to work through your pain instead of waiting for it to go away," wrote Meg Takacs, a New York-based runner and coach, on Instagram (follow her at @meg_takacs). She showed seven physiotherapy movements, like the elevated pistol squat, to help expedite recovery, strengthen your muscles and improve your form.
In fact, a recent post on the website Podium Runner also indicated that a way to treat a runner's knee is to do as much running as you can within an acceptable pain range. The practice of what’s known as graded exposure entails doing no more and no less running than your body can handle, as signaled by pain. As you continue training, you increase the tissue durability your body needs to handle the intensity – and so, runner’s knee pain subsides as running improves.
Consider adding a tool to your arsenal to assist with alleviating pain as your training ramps up. Like many professional and amateur athletes alike, you may benefit from using electrical stimulation to ease pain. Using innovative pain-blocking technology, BioWaveGO is a handheld device designed to deliver therapeutic electric signals into deep tissue to block pain at the source. Try yours now risk-free for 30 days.
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Does your lower back ache from hunching over your keyboard, putting in another long day at the (home) office? Or maybe you tweaked something on your weekend long run and now all you want to do is lay on the couch with a heating pad. Perhaps your lower back pain is chronic; the result of an old injury or a condition like degenerative disc disease. No matter the cause, lower back pain is, at best, uncomfortable. At worst, it can be debilitating.
While severe lower back pain requires medical attention, the aches and discomfort you may feel from routine issues like poor posture, sitting at your desk for hours on end or going a bit too hard during your last workout can likely be alleviated with home remedies for lower back pain. Here, we share six simple ways to relieve lower back pain, from choosing the right home office chair and getting better sleep to strengthening your core.
Slouching over a laptop on the couch or in your makeshift home office day after day may be wreaking havoc on your lower back (and your neck and wrists, to name just a few areas of concern). For many, the shift to working from home sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic has become a permanent situation, and the need to invest in a high-quality home office setup that works for you and your body – especially your back – is critical.
One change to consider to find relief for lower back pain is your home office chair. Dr. Cassidy Boelk, DC, a San Diego-based chiropractor, shared via Instagram (find him at @doctorboelk) the two qualities a proper work-from-home chair should have to support your back:
“1. Supportive, we do not want the chair to be too firm or too soft.
2. The chair needs to be comfortable. As soon as you sit down, it should be comfortable. It isn’t something that will get ‘worked in’.”
The most important detail, he added, is to be sure your knees are not above your hips when you’re in a seated position. You want your legs to be parallel to the ground to avoid compressing or putting too much pressure on the lower back.
Head to our blog on home office ergonomics tips to learn more about setting up your work-from-home space for success – it could be one of the best ways to relieve lower back pain.
Giving your core a good workout regularly is one of the simplest and best ways to relieve lower back pain. Why? Your back and ab muscles play an important role in supporting your spine; the stronger your core is, the less pressure there is on the lower back’s spinal discs and joints. Exercise can also improve mobility, ease stiffness, increase circulation and unleash endorphins that may naturally relieve lower back pain.
Make an effort to include core work in your fitness routine. Simple moves like planks, bridges, leg raises and even sitting on a medicine ball can all engage and strengthen your core.
Stop stiffness from evolving into lower back pain with some gentle stretching and movement. The team at Perfect Stride Physical Therapy in New York City shared some moves you can perform to find relief, via @perfectstridept on Instagram, including:
Check out the Instagram post to see video tutorials of these moves and other ways to find relief for lower back pain.
Additionally, you can try to gently stretch muscles like the glutes, quads and hamstrings or use a foam roller to relieve tension in the back.
Like so much else in life, getting a good night’s sleep may just be the top home treatment for lower back pain. Sleep helps to heal a sore, strained or injured lower back. But, you must make sure the way you sleep isn’t interfering with its restorative powers.
For example, if your mattress is saggy, it’s time to look for something firm to better support your back. You can also use back or lumbar support to get better sleep. Incorporating something as simple as a rolled sheet or towel tied around your waist is an easy lower back pain home remedy. Be mindful of your sleeping position as well. Sleep in a way that maintains the natural curve of your spine – avoid sleeping on your side with your knees drawn up to your chest.
One of the easiest – and tastiest – natural home remedies for lower back pain is to add anti-inflammatory foods to your diet. Eating more foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish and certain spices can help ease the inflammation that causes pain. Instead of reaching for a snack that may actually cause inflammation – like a donut or a bunch of beef jerky – try a handful of almonds or a yogurt and fruit parfait. Read our roundup of our favorite healthy and natural anti-inflammatory foods and recipes for inspiration.
Another simple home treatment for lower back pain is applying hot packs or ice for instant relief. Heat therapy – which can include using a hot pack or heating pad, taking a warm bath or shower, or soaking in a hot tub – can improve blood flow and promote relaxation to help you find relief. Cold therapy helps reduce inflammation and alleviate pain. When using a heating pad or ice pack, remember to apply for just 15-20 minutes at a time with two hours of rest in between to avoid damaging your skin.
Finally, one of the best ways to find relief for lower back pain is using an electrical stimulation device like BioWaveGO. This handheld device is designed to deliver therapeutic electrical signals through skin directly to pain nerves, blocking the transmission of pain signals locally before they travel to the brain. Learn more about the innovative pain-blocking technology behind BioWaveGO.
For millions of Americans dealing with chronic pain, finding relief is usually not a simple process. Depending on the cause, it may take pursuing several different courses of treatment to find the right combination to alleviate pain. Designing a pain management plan with the help of your doctor and other healthcare providers can help you keep pain under control and stop it from interfering with your daily activities.
Simply put, pain management refers to the diagnosis and treatment of pain. For chronic pain sufferers, that means finding relief for pain that is ongoing, recurring or lasts longer than the expected duration of healing. Understanding the cause of pain is integral to developing the proper pain management plan. Chronic pain can stem from a variety of conditions, illnesses and injuries and is grouped into four categories by the Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement:
Once the cause of your pain is identified, your healthcare providers, which may include a pain management doctor or specialist, can evaluate the next steps for pain management.
Your first step to treating pain is to bring it to your primary care physician’s attention. Depending on the cause and diagnosis, you may be referred to a physical therapist, or even to a specialist such as a pain management doctor to provide advanced pain treatment.
Pain management doctors design your personal course of pain management with a step-wise approach, starting with medications, such as anti-inflammatories, pain-numbing injections or therapeutic electrical stimulation with devices like BioWaveGO. If these methods do not effectively get pain under control, your pain management doctor may recommend interventional procedures like radiofrequency ablation or implanting a pain pump or spinal cord stimulator.
To evaluate and treat your pain, your pain management doctor will discuss your symptoms and review your medical history, the list of medications you take, and any prior diagnostic studies like MRIs, X-rays and CT scans. Keeping a pain journal may assist you with articulating pain patterns to your doctors so he or she can better assist with your pain management plan.
Once you have your pain management plan in place, you can apply the treatments and techniques as prescribed by your physician, pain management doctor or physical therapist to your daily life. Depending on the root cause and severity of your pain, your pain management plan may include steps such as:
And now, it’s more accessible than ever to add therapeutic electrical stimulation to that list with BioWaveGO. BioWaveGO is a wearable device that blocks pain at the source. *Results show that for 80% of patients, BioWave technology provides relief from chronic low back pain for up to 24 hours post treatment. Learn more and try BioWaveGO risk-free for 30 days.
*Learn more about BioWave’s disclaimers and clinical studies here.
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What do cheese, sugar, bacon, beer, cream, hot dogs and butter have in common? They’re all foods we turn to during celebratory times of the year, like the holiday season or summer cookouts. They’re also inflammatory foods that cause pain.
When you’re dealing with chronic pain, it’s important to watch what you eat. Why? Inflammation, an autoimmune response, can be triggered by certain foods and exacerbate pain in the back, joints and throughout the body. Opt instead for natural anti-inflammatory foods that can ease inflammation and help with pain, like fruits, vegetables and lean proteins.
But there are times when avoiding foods that cause pain is easier said than done. When everyone around you is indulging in holiday feasts and cookies, or enjoying a freshly grilled burger and an ice cream cone on a hot, sunny day, it can be tough to avoid foods that cause pain altogether.
Here, we share tips for navigating seasonal festivities while focusing on foods that help you feel your best.
If you’re new to following a chronic pain diet, make sure you are familiar with foods that cause pain due to inflammation so you can work to avoid them in any setting. These foods include:
It may seem like a lot of foods are off-limits to someone following a chronic pain diet, but there are plenty of healthy choices to turn to – some that will even help reduce inflammation in the body.
Dr. Vivian Chen, who goes by @plateful_health on Instagram, shares this tip in a recent post:
“What we put in our mouth can either cause inflammation or calm inflammation… A good general rule of thumb: Foods in its whole form from the earth can help calm inflammation… Ultra-processed foods where the ingredients have been refined and processed, can cause inflammation.”
The top anti-inflammatory foods on rotation in her household are leafy greens, turmeric and spices, nuts and seeds, berries, leafy greens, green tea and grapes. Other natural anti-inflammatory foods that help with pain include coconut milk, salmon, apple cider vinegar and pomegranate and root vegetables.
Consider ways you can substitute anti-inflammatory ingredients for foods that cause pain. For example, use almond flour and natural sweeteners in your baking, spritz your salad with an apple cider vinegar-based homemade dressing instead of something store-bought and loaded with preservatives, or put grilled salmon on the menu instead of burgers and hot dogs.
You can memorize all the foods that can cause pain and name anti-inflammatory food swaps in your sleep, but the desire to dig into a holiday appetizer platter or Grandma’s sugar cookies can be overwhelming. During times when food is the focus of family gatherings and other celebrations, it’s key to remember “everything in moderation.” You can also set yourself up for success pre-festivity with advice from dietitian Paula Norris, who shared tips in a recent Instagram post (find her at @movingdietitian):
Using these tactics, enjoy yourself and be mindful about going overboard with foods that cause pain.
Managing chronic pain isn’t all about following a special diet and avoiding foods that cause pain. It’s also important to get adequate sleep, keep your stress in check and treat injuries that arise in trouble spots like your joints, neck and lower back.
You can also give BioWaveGO a try. BioWaveGO is a wearable device that blocks pain at the source with therapeutic electrical stimulation. Results show that for 80% of patients, BioWave technology provides relief from chronic low back pain for up to 24 hours post treatment. Try BioWaveGO risk-free for 30 days.
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Running has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity lately as a form of exercise to turn to when gyms and fitness studios are closed or limited in capacity. Beginners join seasoned marathoners on running paths and trails and test their newfound endurance in virtual races. Longtime runners, on the other hand, are navigating a world in which personal bests don’t necessarily matter, but are tempting to go after when you can choose your own half marathon or marathon race course.
Whether you’re a beginner training for a virtual 5K or an experienced runner attempting to conquer a previous marathon record, here are the running tips you need to know to facilitate your post-race recovery, treat pain after running and avoid a running injury in the future.
Congratulations! You’ve crossed the finish line of your first 5K or your fastest marathon! Your first running tips for post-race recovery are to rehydrate, refuel and rest.
Quench your thirst and make up for the sweat lost during your race with water or a sports drink with electrolytes. This is especially important during the heat of summer when you may sweat more, but you don’t want to skimp out hydration during cold weather.
The size of your post-race meal will depend on how hard and long your race was, but every runner can plan to incorporate carbohydrates and protein. Anne Mauney, the registered dietitian behind the blog Fannetastic Food (@fannetasticfood on Instagram), writes that you should “aim for roughly a 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein for after a workout.”
Why? Your body uses carbs while you work out, so those need to be replenished. The protein helps to rebuild your muscles after your race. This is especially important -- as Mauney writes:
“Every time you exercise, your body breaks down muscle fibers and creates tiny tears in your muscles. Then, during recovery, your body repairs these tiny tears and actually strengthens your muscle fibers for the next time you exercise – that’s essentially how you get stronger as you keep exercising.”
Building strong muscles is key to warding off a running injury, like knee pain after running, calf pain after running, hip pain after running and other aches.
Finally, take some time to rest – you’ve earned it!
Once you have rehydrated, refueled and given your body a rest, it’s time to foam roll and stretch those muscles to ease aches like calf pain after running, knee pain after running and hip pain after running.
New to foam rolling? According to the American Council on Exercise, foam rolling is a self-myofascial release technique (SMR). Similar to a sports massage, SMR can enhance overall muscle health by increasing blood flow, increasing flexibility and relieving pain, soreness and stiffness, among other benefits.
The perks from regular foam rolling are especially helpful for runners, from improving range of motion to lead to better stride and increasing oxygen flow to promote muscle recovery and performance. Run coach Amanda Brooks, the creator of the blog Run to the Finish (@runtothefinish on Instagram), writes that foam rolling, when done properly, can even help prevent IT band and knee pain after running. Check out her guide to foam rolling for runners.
A good, old-fashioned stretching routine is also integral to post-race recovery to deal with issues like back pain after running, calf pain after running and hip pain after running. To Brooks, stretching eases muscle tightness that can impact stride or cause pain. For example, she writes that tight hips hinder your stride, a tight IT band can pull on your knee and cause knee pain after running and tight calves can cause more problems with your knees, plus your ankles and Achilles tendon. Furthermore, Brooks adds it’s incredibly important to maintain flexibility as we age to keep running a part of our lives.
Some of Brooks’ favorite post-run stretches include the quad stretch, hip flexor stretch and calf stretch.
Sometimes, no matter how much you foam roll or how nutritious your post-race meal is, you may still experience nagging issues like calf pain after running, knee pain after running and back pain after running. Using pain relief technology like that of BioWave can help you ease the pain and get back in the game. BioWave’s patented high frequency signal-mixing technology, targets past layers of skin into deep tissue to block pain signals at the source.
Just ask U.S. Olympic Track Gold Medalist Tianna Bartoletta, a BioWave “Performance Team” partner who uses our new BioWaveGO OTC product:
“As a 2x Olympian, 3x Olympic Gold medalist, and the current Olympic Champion, I train intensely several days a week and my body is always experiencing pain. BioWaveGO might be the single most effective recovery tool I have in my tool box. It’s easy to use and mobile.” said Tianna. “You can literally clip this on and forget about it!”
BioWaveGO is available in a wearable, non-prescription strength to help anyone in acute or chronic pain lead a fuller and active life, from pro athletes like Tianna to first-time 5K finishers.
Another principle of post-race recovery is movement. Yes, you can rest and foam roll and stretch in the immediate aftermath of your race, but don’t let too much time to go by before you incorporate light movement and cross-training into your routine. A brisk walk or a light jog within a few days after your race can help you pinpoint potential issues – like any calf pain after running or knee pain after running – and it gets the blood flowing to your muscles as they rebuild.
With these running tips and post-race guidance in mind, give yourself a pat on the back for your accomplishments and set your sights on your next race or challenge! Don’t forget to check out even more running tips to avoid pain and common running injuries.
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Running is one of the most universal sports out there. With the right pair of shoes, a running path, trail, track or treadmill and some grit, you’ve got what it takes to call yourself a runner.
While running is highly accessible, pounding the pavement (or treadmill) can take a toll on the body and cause common running injuries, like runner’s knee and hip, IT band pain, calf pain, shin splints, and lower back pain. Strengthening, stretching and maintaining proper form is crucial to success and avoiding common running injuries. Here, we share the best running tips for beginners and seasoned athletes alike from running pros and coaches.
One of the best running tips for dealing with common running injuries is to prevent them from happening in the first place.
Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi, who has won both the Boston and New York City marathons, shared one of the most essential running tips in a recent Instagram post. “I’ve always ‘Prehab not Rehab.’ Injury prevention is proactive, not reactive.”
In his post, Keflezighi added running miles makes your aerobic system strong, but “they can break down your muscles if you don’t keep them strong and balanced with some strength work every week.” Find him on Instagram at @runmeb. Exercises like leg curls and calf raises work the calf muscles, which need to be strong to provide the basic support the rest of the body needs to run efficiently. Add some “prehab” strengthening workouts to your routine to avoid common running injuries like calf pain after running and to run more efficiently.
Runner’s knee is one of the most common running injuries. Known formally as patellofemoral pain syndrome, it results in pain right behind the knee cap. Runner’s knee is often caused by poor running mechanics: Think shuffling as you get tired or knees rotating inward due to weak hips and quads.
While strengthening the muscles around the knees is the long-term solution to preventing common running injuries like runner’s knee, one of the best running tips you can follow each run is to work on your form. Proper form will help you run more efficiently, even when you get fatigued.
Knee-wise, make sure it’s in line with the middle of your foot so when you strike the ground, the foot is right under the knee so you don’t waste energy on the knee drive. Runner’s World shares more running tips to maintain proper running form.
Proper running form helps you run smarter, not harder. Not only will it help ward off common running injuries like runner’s knee, but will also minimize lower back pain after running. When you’re paying attention to your form, you’re less likely to force your back to pick up the slack of muscles that aren’t operating efficiently, like your core, glutes and hamstrings. (But don’t forget: The key way to prevent common running injuries is to routinely strengthen these important muscles!)
Running program RunRx shared key running tips to focus on your mechanics in a recent Instagram post (find them at @runrx). One way is to notice whether your foot is reaching ahead of you when you strike the ground: “Landing ahead of body adds up to 3X bodyweight and delays recovery to running pose. Your legs will usually let you know you are reaching with either early fatigue, pain/discomfort or an injury.”
Landing ahead may pull on the lower back, so focus on pulling your foot up after you strike the ground instead of reaching.
Another one of the most common running injuries to plague runners is hip soreness after running. Again, weak muscles are the likely culprit behind hip pain after running, so incorporating regular “prehab” and strength training is key to strengthening the hips to improve form and efficiency.
Limited mobility may also contribute to hip soreness after running. This problem has become even more apparent as people shifted to working from home in 2020, often with little ergonomic support and, for some, less daily activity without commutes or colleagues to visit.
Running coach Mary Johnson wrote in an Instagram post, “One of the biggest things I've seen pop up during Quarantine are a series of hip issues - from tight hip flexors to glute and piriformis nags that just won't go away. These new WFH work spaces (and, for many, we’re walking way less) are putting us in weird positions. And with the increased stress of...life: we're all feeling a bit rickity.”
She shares guidance for improving hip mobility over at @itsamarython on Instagram.
Running is simple, but it does take some getting used to in order to do it well and avoid common running injuries. Remember to strength train, pay attention to your form, run smart and work on mobility in between runs. Apply these running tips to your routine to help prevent common running injuries and enjoy the run.
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Turning to physical therapy for pain serves as a non-opioid alternative to provide relief. As experts in movement, physical therapists are well-versed in improving quality of life through education, hands-on care and exercise.
Here, we break down the key roles physical therapy plays in assisting individuals dealing with chronic pain, including tips from experts in physical therapy for pain relief.
Designing exercise-based programs to improve strength is a hallmark of physical therapy for pain relief. Depending on where a patient is experiencing chronic pain, a physical therapist may prescribe exercises to strengthen surrounding muscles to minimize discomfort when moving.
Often a physical therapist will create a program of graded exercises, meaning the movements are gradually increased according to a patient’s abilities. ChoosePT – the consumer-facing division of the American Physical Therapy Association – highlights the benefits of exercise-based physical therapy:
“Graded exercises help you improve your coordination and movement, reducing the stress and strain on your body and decreasing your pain.”
Furthermore, this form of physical therapy for pain relief “can help train your brain to sense the problem area in your body without increasing its danger messages.”
Physical therapy for pain relief may also focus on stretching and flexibility to reduce pain and improve range of motion. Stretching can help increase blood flow and get more oxygen to muscles and tissues; a physical therapist can identify the best stretches to target an individual’s primary area of concern (like a sore knee, wrist or back).
As experts in movement, physical therapists can help ensure you’re performing prescribed exercises and stretches without unintentionally causing further harm. Here’s a tip on stretching from Atlanta-based Dr. Elizabeth Selman Rudd, DPT, who goes by @well.equipt on Instagram:
“Stretching into pain?? Friends, this is NOT productive! ❌ The goal here is to work through pain-free ranges of motion so your muscles and body relax through the stretch. If you are stretching into pain, your muscles may tense up and not let your body push past that point. This will not improve your mobility! In addition, if you are pushing a stretch that hurts, it might not be ideal for the condition you have... Stretching can be beneficial, but make sure you’re optimizing your stretches for YOU!”
Another critical component of physical therapy for pain is education. Physical therapists can help patients understand their bodies and principles of movement so they can function better and with less pain. As the physical therapy staff at Texas-based First Colony Aquatic and Rehabilitation Center point out, most people aren’t completely aware of how they move in their day-to-day activities.
“You could be bending over, lifting, walking, running, sitting, or moving in some other manner that is contributing to your chronic pain. Learning how to improve the issues with your movements can significantly decrease the pain you experience.”
For example, a physical therapist can assess how the way you walk impacts joint and back functionality, how it plays into chronic pain and how to address the issue.
Phoenix-based physical therapist Megan Onofray (find her at @onofrayphysicaltherapy on Instagram) shares this tip about feet, your gait and stability:
“Your feet are your wheels! Riding on flats can result in damage to ankles, knees, hips and the lower back. A small amount of strengthening and stabilization goes a long way!”
Another way physical therapists use physical therapy for pain relief is with manual therapy, a hands-on approach that has been shown to effectively reduce pain and improve movement. According to the staff at North Carolina-based Peak Performance Sports and Physical Therapy, manual therapy helps to “relax tense muscles, increase blood flow to injured areas and mobilize soft tissue and joints.” The overall goal is to help patients dealing with chronic pain or recovering from injury or surgery to regain range of motion and return to their normal activities.
Manual physical therapy for pain relief options include:
A successful physical therapy for pain relief regimen may include a combination of strengthening and flexibility exercises, patient education and manual therapy, as well as the use of hot, cold and electrical stimulation therapies.
Hot and cold therapies involve the application of heat or cold to painful areas to promote healing and reduce inflammation. Heat packs, ice packs, whirlpool baths and ultrasound are all examples of hot and cold therapies.
Conventional electrical stimulation is used to send electrical impulses across the skin which may act as a distraction to pain. A more advanced, smarter approach to relieving pain may be achieved with BioWaveGO. BioWaveGO utilizes a patented high frequency electrical stimulation technology designed to deliver therapeutic electrical signals through skin directly to pain nerves to block the transmission of the pain signal locally before it travels to the brain. Physical therapists may use BioWaveGO in the clinic or recommend patients to purchase their own BioWaveGO unit to use at home.
According to the staff at Bay State Physical Therapy, electrical stimulation can be used for a wide variety of conditions, sports-related injuries, repetitive stress injuries, muscle strains and ligament sprains. You may feel some tingling during an electrical stimulation therapy session, but it doesn’t hurt – a common concern for prospective patients and all the more reason to make it available to use in the comfort of home if you find this modality works for you.
Learn more about the innovative pain-blocking technology that powers BioWaveGO.]]>More than nine months have passed since the COVID-19 pandemic first swept through the United States, sparking a nationwide push to work from home. At first, the change seemed temporary. Working from the couch, the bed or the kitchen table was meant to be a stopgap before returning to our ergonomic workstation at the company office.
But now, working from the couch full-time is no longer feasible. And, for many, it’s getting hard to ignore the discomfort stemming from a poor work-from-home ergonomics setup. Chiropractors across the country have reported a notable increase in reports of back, neck, wrist and shoulder injuries and pain from patients as months of hunching over a laptop have taken their toll.
One issue in particular – text neck, or tech neck – has been a concern for chiropractors since texting and scrolling on smartphones, tablets and other devices became commonplace. Text neck can be a frequent source of pain for people cooped up and working from home.
“While texting or browsing the internet, the head is placed in a downward position, and for some avid users, it’s often hours at a time,” explains Dr. Nesly Clerge, DC, CME, a chiropractor based in the Washington, D.C. area (find him at @painrehabdc on Instagram). “Head weight can increase from 20 to 60 pounds depending on the angle, and this creates massive stress on the cervical spine (neck), thoracic spine (upper back) and shoulders.”
New Jersey-based chiropractor Anthony Porta, DC (find him at @hoboken_spine on Instagram) adds text neck “can lead to permanent C spine damage and kyphosis later in life, as well as pain which can radiate down the arms.”
Text neck symptoms include neck pain, upper back pain, muscle strain, stiffness, soreness, reduced mobility and headaches, according to Clerge. It can also affect the nerves and lead to a condition called cervical radiculopathy, a shock-like, tingling and radiating sensation into the neck and shoulders.
The forward head posture that defines text neck can also cause misalignment of the spine, leading to some of the aforementioned symptoms, Clerge says.
So, what’s a remote work employee to do to ward off text neck and other work-from-home injuries, and every ache and pain in between? We have rounded up the best work from home tips from chiropractors to help you set up your ergonomic home office and add more activity in your day, keys to preventing work from home injuries and discomfort.
You’re not doing your body any favors by working from the couch or the bed, which usually translates to operating in a slumped or slouched position for too long. Choose an area that you can dedicate as a home office space. Then get your work ergonomics in order with these tips for working from home effectively.
Applying office ergonomics at home can help prevent discomfort by maintaining your spine’s natural curves to avoid text neck and other posture issues. Wisconsin-based chiropractor Dr. Kevin E. Ritzenthaler, DC, DCBN, shares some guidance for setting up an ergonomic home office:
If you deal with existing back pain, the staff at County Line Chiropractic Medical & Rehab Centers in Florida says, “Consider a standing desk and a high stool for greater comfort. Also, if you can, invest in a separate keyboard which can be placed at elbow height so your screen can be placed in front of your eyes.”
To make the most of your space set up for work-from-home ergonomics success, focus on maintaining good posture throughout your work day. This will help keep the spine aligned and stop your head from leaning forward or down and causing text neck issues.
The staff at Muir Orthopaedic Specialists in the San Francisco Bay Area share these work-from-home tips to maintain good posture:
Slouching is a hard habit to break, but these tips for working from home effectively can help you sit up straight and ward off back and neck pain.
Chiropractor tips for working from home effectively include taking breaks! The experts at Arizona-based Goodyear Chiropractic (find them at @goodyearchiropractic on Instagram) have this to say:
“Working from home? Remember to give yourself small breaks. It is not wise to continue working at the computer for hours at a time. It’s best to work in smaller segments, getting a task or two completed before taking a break.”
During that break, focus on adding movement to your work-from-home routine. After all, you’re no longer walking from the parking lot to the office or down the hall to attend a meeting. Taking breaks and fitting in some light movement will help stave off the aches and stiffness that may lead to work-from-home injuries.
While you’re at it, don’t forget to stretch. You can do simple stretches right at your desk to keep your spine aligned throughout the work day. The staff at Denver-based Reinhardt Chiropractic & Wellness suggest completing a simple stretch each hour of the work day, like an office chair hip stretch or a lower spinal stretch.
Clerge reminds parents that with the significant increase in cyber-learning, it’s important to monitor and pay special attention to children’s posture during e-learning courses. Be sure to remind kids to take breaks to stretch and decrease muscle tension.
Keeping these tips for working from home from home effectively in mind can help you and all your household members working or learning remotely avoid text neck and other work-from-home injuries.
If you do head back to the workplace – or if you never left – review our guide on how to manage chronic pain at work.
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Football is returning to televisions across the country, bringing with it the spectacle, athleticism and injuries this tough sport is known for. Concussions and spine damage are often the most serious and highly publicized football injuries, but these athletes also deal with knee, back and hip pain in the form of sprains, strains, broken bones, ACL and meniscus tears, hip pointers and more – not to mention turf toe and Achilles tendinitis.
So how do sports organizations like football teams handle pain management for athletes, especially for athletes with chronic pain? Here are some methods of pain relief for athletes, whether they’re dealing with athlete knee pain, muscle pain or other injuries.
Electrical stimulation via a portable device like BioWaveGO delivers electrical pulses to help athletes in pain in two ways. Small electric pulses in low doses can help the body release endorphins, which are natural painkillers. Electrical stimulation devices also work to disrupt the nerve pain signals going to the brain. New technology, like BioWave’s, further enhances pain-blocking results by using high- and low-range electrical stimulation frequencies.
The regular use of a portable device like BioWaveGO allows players to access safe pain relief for athletes any time. Just ask pro golfer Rocco Mediate and Olympic track gold medalist Tianna Bartoletta, who both use the pain relief technology of BioWaveGO. Interested in purchasing a BioWaveGO device of your own? Head here.
Over-the-counter painkillers can serve as dependable pain relievers for athletes. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen not only help athletes with chronic pain find relief, but they also work to reduce inflammation surrounding an injury or overused muscle.
Acetaminophen (aka Tylenol) is another safe, non-opioid, nonprescription medication athletes in pain can turn to. Acetaminophen is thought to have fewer side effects than NSAIDs, which can sometimes cause stomach problems.
Keep in mind that aches and pains may signify tissue damage, so athletes who find themselves regularly turning to over-the-counter pain relievers should be sure to get assessed and find sustainable alternatives to muscle pain relief for athletes.
Massage therapy is particularly helpful for athlete back pain. Generally, massage helps release tight areas in the muscle, which can mitigate pain. It also encourages blood flow to tense muscles, which can relax tight areas.
Sports massage can help athletes with chronic pain by alleviating tissue injuries caused by overuse or overextension of the muscles that may occur during a game or in training. Sports massage can also assist athletes with conditioning to help prevent pain in the first place. Additional benefits of sports massage for pain management for athletes include:
Sports massage can also be effective in combating delayed-onset muscle soreness, typical pain that may affect all athletes, from amateurs to pros, when starting a new training program or increasing exercise intensity.
The best pain management for athletes is preventing it from occurring in the first place. Stretching and strengthening muscles as part of routine conditioning can serve as preventive muscle pain relief for athletes. A comprehensive, effective strength training program complements the sport you play, resulting in muscles, tendons and ligaments that are more durable and resilient to stress from athletic activities.
Additionally, stretching promotes flexibility, which is necessary for maintaining a range of motion in joints. Without that flexibility and range of motion, muscles may be too tight to manage activity needed for a football game or tennis match, which puts you at risk for injury and muscle pain. There are various views about when to stretch and how (Before or after a game? Static or dynamic stretches?) so athletes should consult with coaches and trainers before committing to a routine.
Pain management for athletes cannot begin without honest communication between players and their trainers and coaches. Athletes are known for playing through pain, but don’t let it hinder your performance or even career. Speak up when pain and injury strike. It takes a team effort to provide pain management for athletes so they can get back on the field, ready to play. Conditioning through strength training and stretching, muscle pain relief for athletes in the form of a portable device like BioWaveGO, sports massage and non-opioid pain medication all provide pain relief for athletes.
Still curious about how pain and injury impact athletes? Read our overview of common tennis injuries and how to treat them here.
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As tennis fans around the world tune into the 2020 US Open, tennis injury headlines from 2019’s event resurface: Shoulder injury knocks out defending champion Novak Djokvic. Injured Roger Federer ousted by Grigor Dimitrov.
Even the pros sometimes fall victim to the most common tennis injuries. The legendary Federer even admits he cannot play tennis forever. Though conditions like tennis elbow and patellar tendinitis can be painful, the proper training and knowledge about the most common tennis injuries can help even amateur tennis players prevent tennis injuries and play without discomfort.
Generally, maintaining an optimal level of fitness, using quality tennis equipment and getting proper rest post-match are key ways to prevent the most common tennis injuries. But playing this high-intensity sport comes with risks. Read on for an overview of the most common tennis injuries, their signs and symptoms and how to prevent and treat them.
Tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, is caused by inflammation of the forearm muscles and tendons on the outside of the elbow. According to Medical News Today, half of all tennis players will experience tennis elbow, making it one of the most common tennis injuries.
Repetitive motions of the wrist and arm – like repeated use of a backhand stroke with poor technique – are usually to blame for tennis elbow. It can be very painful and radiate to even your forearm and wrist. Tennis elbow can make it difficult to complete everyday actions, like holding a cup of coffee or turning a door knob.
To prevent tennis injuries like tennis elbow, stick to the middle of your arm’s range of motion, being careful not to bend or straighten your arm all the way during a swing. Use your whole lower body to power your stroke, not just your arms. Ask a coach for help with form, or stick to a two-handed backstroke to avoid putting strain on one arm.
If you find yourself dealing with the pain of tennis injuries like tennis elbow, be sure to rest and ice the area at home. Avid tennis players may treat serious cases of tennis elbow with soft-tissue massage and other muscle-stimulation techniques. Physical therapy to strengthen the shoulders, upper arms and abdominal muscles can also help. Find more tips for tennis elbow treatment here.
Rotator cuff tendinitis is another one of the most common tennis injuries, especially in amateur players. It is defined by pain and swelling in the shoulder area and sometimes limited motion or weakness of the arm. Rotator cuff tendinitis tends to develop over time with repeated stress on the cuff. If left untreated, rotator cuff tendinitis can result in a partially or completely torn tendon.
Unfortunately for tennis enthusiasts, the demands placed on the shoulder joint in a tennis match can sometimes be too much on the rotator cuff muscles, a typically weak group of muscles that absorbs the force and slows the forward motion of the serving arm.
Prevention of rotator cuff tendinitis requires exercises to strengthen shoulder muscles. A regimen to build endurance, like this one, may help tennis players avoid succumbing to shoulder tennis injuries like rotator cuff tendinitis.
Rest, ice and physical therapy are typical treatments for rotator cuff tendinitis. Pay attention to shoulder pain and take a step away from tennis as needed to allow rotator cuff tendinitis to heal. Otherwise, a torn cuff could call for surgery.
Patellar tendinitis (knee pain) is not just one of the most common tennis injuries; it afflicts athletes in just about every sport. Inflammation of the patellar tendon just below the kneecap is often caused by overuse, especially repetitive jumping in sports like tennis that causes microscopic tearing and injury of the tendon. The pain from patellar tendinitis – also called jumper’s knee – can worsen over time and interfere with your ability to play. (Just ask Rafael Nadal.)
Prevention of patellar tendinitis involves listening to your body and stopping play as soon as you feel pain. Strengthening thigh muscles helps alleviate the stress put on the knee that can cause patellar tendinitis. Finally, improving jumping and landing techniques can help you avoid knee pain on the court.
Treatment of patellar tendinitis begins with P.R.I.C.E.: Protection, Rest, Icing, Compression and Elevation. After pain resolves, stretching and strengthening exercise can help restore normal function and prevent recurrence of one of the most common tennis injuries. In severe cases of patellar tendinitis, surgery may be required.
Tennis is tough on the back. Acute and chronic low back pain are some of the most common injuries impacting players, even pros like Andre Aggasi. The storied tennis giant battled chronic back pain throughout much of his professional tennis career, until he retired from the sport in 2006
Constant back rotations and the twists necessary to connect racquet to ball can put strain on the back, not to mention that every time a player hits a serve or overhead, they’re at risk for hyperextending the lower back. To avoid tennis injuries like low back pain, follow these tips from Andrea Retolaza, an injury prevention coach:
Read more from Retolaza here.
Treatment of low back pain varies depending on the cause, severity and other factors. While many cases of low back pain can get better with rest, ice and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) at home, others may require physical therapy, surgery or other procedures.
Wrist pain is another one of the most common tennis injuries to plague players. The wrist is susceptible to wear and tear from overuse and repetitive motions in tennis. One common cause of wrist pain in competitive tennis players is hitting the ball with a lot of topspin, which causes the forearm to rotate violently. In amateurs, wrist pain is often the result of poor technique.
Wrist pain is a difficult tennis injury to treat, as it can be persistent and players often want to play through it. Focusing on preventing wrist pain may be the best way to combat such tennis injuries. Using a high-quality tennis racquet with specs like grip size, string types and string tension tailored to the individual is one significant way to prevent wrist pain. Wrist strengthening exercises like wrist curls can also help. If pain worsens, procedures like cortisone injections or even surgery may be required.
Rest, icing and bracing can help alleviate most cases of tennis injuries like wrist pain, tennis elbow, tendinitis and back pain.
Prevention is key to avoiding persistent pain from the most common tennis injuries. If you find you’re dealing with pain on or off the court, or are looking for a tool to help with recovery, you may benefit from using electrical stimulation like the pain-blocking technology of BioWave. Learn how it works here.
]]>Olympic Champion Tianna Bartoletta
BioWave is further building its “Performance Team” and increasing the national awareness of the popular BioWaveGO through a partnership with U.S. Olympic Track Gold Medalist Tianna Bartoletta that will help amplify the GO’s unique pain relief pedigree and patented technology.
“As a 2x Olympian, 3x Olympic Gold medalist, and the current Olympic Champion, I train intensely several days a week and my body is always experiencing pain. BioWaveGO might be the single most effective recovery tool I have in my tool box. It’s easy to use and mobile.” said Tianna. “You can literally clip this on and forget about it!”
The development and enthusiastic reception of the new BioWaveGO OTC product is the natural evolution of a patented neurostimulator pain relief technology that BioWave has perfected over more than ten years. BioWaveGO is available in a wearable, non-prescription strength to help anyone in acute or chronic pain lead a fuller and active life. Unlike old-fashioned TENS, BioWave’s patented high frequency signal-mixing technology, targets past the layers of skin into deep tissue. BioWaveGO is designed to block the pain signal directly at the nerve inside the body, making it ideal for quick, daily 30-minute treatments that can provide long lasting pain relief.
“I am excited to introduce the BioWaveGO pain relief technology to more people through our partnership with a top U.S. athlete like Tianna,” said Brad Siff, Founder & President of BioWave Corporation. “BioWave is a great tool to use following exercise or sports to reduce pain and facilitate motion to accelerate recovery.” Siff expounded that “BioWave is a life-changing non-opioid, non-addictive, effective, and inexpensive smarter pain blocking technology that is athlete proven and that helps all people manage their acute or chronic pain.”
BioWave’s other prescription products have been used in and prescribed by many pain and ortho doctors, and has been prescribed to 500 professional athletes and has been used by 125+ college sports teams. BioWave’s FDA-cleared, high-frequency neurostimulation technology, described in more detail on its website, delivers soothing therapeutic signals through the skin into deep tissue, blocking pain signals at the source.
BioWave is available under Federal Supply Schedule contract number V797D-70205.
BioWaveGO is available for purchase here.
To help you get started, here are 10 recipes with foods that reduce inflammation to add to your diet. From seasonal side dishes to simple weeknight dinners and everyday snacks, enjoy these natural anti-inflammatory foods year-round.
The perfect healthy drink for a hot summer day, Beet It Juice includes ginger, a plant with antioxidants and other nutrients that may reduce inflammation in the body. Evidence shows compounds in ginger may limit production of cytokines that contribute to inflammation.
Photo Courtesy of EpicuriousWhen it comes to treats that are delicious and nutritious, nothing beats a cool and creamy frozen yogurt sundae on a balmy summer evening. Top your treat with frozen blueberries, one of our favorite low-inflammation foods, for a boost of antioxidants and vitamins that may decrease inflammation and inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Bonus: The spiced nuts contain turmeric, which may reduce pain and swelling associated with conditions like arthritis, thanks to the powerful phytonutrient curcumin.
Photo Courtesy of DelishA warm bowl of soup can be an excellent source of comfort and nutrition, whether it’s on a crisp fall evening, snowy winter afternoon- or even a summer day in cool AC. One of the stars of this recipe is antioxidant-rich coconut milk, which contains lauric acid, a compound that may have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.
Photo Courtesy of Running On Real FoodTurmeric Ginger Energy Balls require just 10 minutes in the kitchen to deliver a well-balanced snack packed with nutritional hemp seeds and almond butter. Plus, they’re spiced with ginger and turmeric, two plants with the potential to relieve pain and improve inflammatory conditions.
Photo Courtesy of Hashtag Vegan
This Walnut-Crusted Salmon recipe makes a great addition to your weeknight dinner rotation for a simple meal with high levels of nutrients, including alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid found in walnuts. ALA may have anti-inflammatory properties and benefit heart health. Salmon is another well-known source of omega-3s.
Photo Courtesy of Rachel Cooks
Add your favorite grilled lean protein to this salad for a healthy and hearty lunch. Crunchy red bell peppers are a good source of immune-boosting vitamin C, which can reduce damage from inflammation.
Photo Courtesy of EpicuriousServe Roasted Root Vegetables, flavored with a sweet Honey-Dijon Drizzle, as a healthy seasonal side dish, especially when the holidays roll around. Root vegetables like potatoes, carrots and parsnips are loaded with vitamins and nutrients. The apple cider vinegar in the drizzle is believed to have anti-inflammatory properties that may help with chronic pain and swelling. Season with rosemary to add even more antioxidants and natural anti-inflammatory foods to this dish.
Photo Courtesy of Two Healthy Kitchens
Add Spiced Chicken Tacos with Avocado and Pomegranate Salsa to your Taco Tuesday lineup for a zesty dish boasting plenty of foods that help with inflammation and other healthy benefits, especially the antioxidant-rich salsa. Pomegranates contain disease- and inflammation-fighting polyphenols, while avocados are rich in monounsaturated fats that may help reduce risk for stroke and heart disease.
Photo Courtesy of Delish
There is a reason recipes featuring ginger keep popping up on this list – it’s believed to be a truly powerful antioxidant and a key ingredient in a low-inflammation diet that may even alleviate exercise-induced muscle pain. Try this Ginger Dumpling Soup after an action-packed day of sports or exercise.
Photo Courtesy of Kate Cooks
This healthy, homemade Anti-Inflammatory Turmeric Tonic is an inexpensive alternative to pricey elixirs and supplements with dubious health claims. In addition to low-inflammation foods and spices like turmeric and ginger, this drink is packed with produce with disease-fighting potential, such as carrot juice and oranges, resulting in a tasty beverage that may ease joint pain and boost your immune system, among other benefits.
Photo Courtesy of Root and Revel
Reap the tasty benefits of incorporating recipes with foods that reduce inflammation like these into your diet regularly, and avoid foods that may worsen inflammation, especially if you deal with chronic pain.
Which of these recipes will you try first? Share with us on social by tagging us and using the hashtag #biowaverecipe in your post!
]]>You know what it’s like: you’ve finally got to sleep, then you roll over and wham! A jolt of pain wakes you up again.
Every chronic pain sufferer understands this scenario. It’s a regular nightly routine for many, and insomnia results as interrupted sleep patterns feed chronic pain. But what is the link between poor sleep and pain – and how can you reduce the impact chronic pain has on your sleep?
Sleep is when your body heals and restores itself. It’s as much about mental rest as physical – so disturbed sleep means your health and wellbeing both suffer in the long-term.
Some chronic pain issues, such as fibromyalgia, are directly related to neurological disruptions in sleep cycles. Others are exacerbated by lack of sleep because your body doesn’t have time to heal and rest if you keep waking up due to pain.
Fatigue is a common side-effect of chronic pain even when you’re awake – so not getting enough sleep at night makes it all a lot worse. The pain-sleep-pain cycle worsens over time: the more exhausted you are, the lower your pain tolerance. This means more sleep disruption, which means more fatigue, more pain, and even less sleep!
Lack of sleep feeds into mental health problems, such as depression, too. These disorders make sleep harder still, so the cycle continues.
It’s tempting to reach for sleeping pills and prescription-strength painkillers to attempt a decent night’s sleep. However, without creating a sustainable long-term sleep routine, you risk developing a dependency on these medications.
Taking prescription medications might help pain in the short-term – but has a wide impact on your overall health. It can even make your sleep worse! Plus, these medications often make you feel groggy and ‘zombified’ the next day, adding to your fatigue and limiting your enjoyment of daily activities.
There are lots of ways to manage your sleep with chronic pain to reduce the insomnia risk and even break the pain-no sleep-more pain cycle, without turning to strong medications.
Even on days when you’re feeling tired and ache to the ends of the earth, a little gentle exercise goes a long way.
Exercising daily helps to build your overall strength and flexibility. You’ll also find your muscle tension is alleviated with regular exercise: keeping sore joints rigid creates tension, which then contributes to pain. So, exercise helps loosen these tense areas, boosts blood flow, and strengthens muscles. Exercise also boosts mental wellbeing, which helps you lay your mind to rest when your head hits the pillow at night.
You don’t need to go all-out with a HIIT routine every day: gentle exercise helps improve sleep, too.
Try to avoid raising your heart rate too high a few hours before bedtime! This disrupts sleep as much as too much caffeine or alcohol can.
One of the easiest ways to start your journey to improved sleep is the introduction of a bedtime routine. Things like going to bed at a different time each night or using your phone until the small hours impacts sleep.
Your body loves routine! We work on natural rhythms of the day: that’s why we wake up at certain times, feel hungry, and – in theory – feel tired in the evening. Create a regular routine and follow the same every night. It’s like training your brain to recognise “It’s bedtime now!”. After a short while of following the same routine, your brain will automatically start to ‘power down’ towards bedtime, making it easier to fall – and stay – asleep.
Try:
Following a routine like this helps you take time for yourself, too – so you’re taking care of your mental wellbeing at the same time as reducing your pain.
Step away from the coffee! If you’re a caffeine addict, try reducing how much you drink. Switch to decaf in the afternoons if you can’t give up coffee altogether. It’ll help keep your heart rate steady – instead of rocketing through the roof just before bedtime!
Alcohol is a common culprit for disrupted sleep, too. Turning to a nightcap because it makes you feel sleepy might seem like a great way to battle your pain-induced insomnia. Stop!
First, if you take medications, combining them with alcohol can be dangerous. Second, alcohol disrupts sleep – so even if you fall asleep faster with it, your sleep patterns won’t be restorative. You’ll wake up exhausted and start the cycle all over again the next day.
Before you go to bed, try using BioWaveGO on your problem pain areas. Unlike a traditional TENS machine, that targets pain at a skin-deep level, the patented frequencies used by a BioWaveGO machine get right to where it matters, deep in the muscle tissue.
BioWave has been prescribed by many pain and ortho doctors, been used by 125+ college sports teams, and has been prescribed to 500 professional athletes. For 80% of patients, the device offers up to 24-hour pain relief from chronic lower back pain after one 30-minute session. So, while you’re following your bedtime routine, add in BioWaveGO to help reduce pain without painkillers before bed. While you’re reading your evening book or listening to your favorite podcast before bed, BioWaveGO will do its thing.
With pain relief that works without prescription medications, you’ll be able to fall asleep – and stay asleep – to finally break the chronic pain and insomnia cycle.
Buy BioWaveGO from our online shop, or get in touch with our team to ask any questions about using the handy device as part of your regular pain management program.
]]>Gathering with family and friends might not be possible for this year’s July 4th celebrations – but you can still have a good time!
Even if you’re celebrating at home with your household, there are plenty of ways to keep your chronic pain away to enjoy the day.
]]>Gathering with family and friends might not be possible for this year’s July 4th celebrations – but you can still have a good time!
Even if you’re celebrating at home with your household, there are plenty of ways to keep your chronic pain away to enjoy the day.
Food is a really important – and often underestimated – factor in reducing inflammation. Chronic pain may be caused by different things, such as injury or arthritis. However, inflammation around the sore areas is the common thread in all chronic pain cases.
What you eat affects inflammation in your body. So, trying some healthy anti-inflammatory recipes for your July 4th celebrations is a great way to make sure you have tasty food that’s not going to cause your pain to flare up!
BBQ Salmon Recipe
Salmon is great for you. The Omega 3s in oily fish works as an anti-inflammatory, while the protein helps you maintain your muscle mass (essential for strengthening around your pain or injury sites). Asparagus is delicious – and also anti-inflammatory too, alongside delivering a bundle of nutrients in an easy-to-cook package.
Try this super-easy recipe for your summer grill:
Portion: 1 person (easy to multiply for as many portions as you like!)
This recipe is so easy – and prevents lots of mess on the grill, too. Put two pieces of aluminum foil on top of each other (to prevent splits). Lay the asparagus on the foil, then top with the salmon. Wrap the sides together, into a boat shape, then add the butter, seasoning, and lemon slices. Finish wrapping the foil at the top to make a sealed package. Grill on high for around 10 minutes, or until the asparagus is tender.
Super Anti-Inflammatory Salad
Step away from the pasta dishes and breadbasket! Refined carbohydrates are inflammatory triggers that’ll make your pain worse. Instead, opt for a super anti-inflammatory salad.
The great thing about salad is that you can pick and choose the ingredients you like and enjoy eating. If there’s something you prefer, add more – and if you don’t like it, just omit. Pick from a range of anti-inflammatory foods, like tomatoes, leafy greens, olive oil, nuts, and berries.
The turmeric dressing for this recipe suggestion is well worth trying! Turmeric has been used for centuries to help with chronic pain management – and it actually works.
Portion: One hungry person or as two side salads
This is your starting point – think about adding things like blueberries, sunflower seeds, or cooked and cooled beets to add extra color, flavor, and anti-inflammatory properties. Throw it all together in a bowl and prepare the dressing.
Dressing:
Put it all in a bowl and whisk together. Serve immediately with your salad. If you want to dress the entire salad, an easy way to do this is put the salad in a large Tupperware box. Cover with the dressing, pop the lid on, and shake away for a minute!
As well as eating well during your 4th July celebrations, think about preparing your body for a long day of fun (especially if you’re able to get out and about to celebrate).
Start your morning with some gentle exercise to relieve tension and prevent muscle strains. Even if you’re not feeling great, a brisk walk or some yoga stretches can help get the blood flowing and reduce the tension in tight muscles.
Working exercise into your daily routine is an excellent way to keep chronic pain at bay, too. Check out our recommendations for safe at-home workouts for chronic pain sufferers.
Ease your pain with BioWaveGO, either before, during, or after your July 4th celebrations. It’s a portable, safe, drug-free pain relief device that’s used by pain sufferers across the country.
]]>BioWave’s new partnership with 6-time PGA Tour Champion Rocco Mediate proves how much professional athletes trust the technology. But how does it help them combat pain and carry on competing at the top of their game?
Rocco uses BioWaveGO as part of his pain management and recovery routine. When the partnership was announced, he said: “I couldn’t be more excited to partner with BioWaveGO as their brand ambassador on PGA Tour Champions. I’m looking forward to it helping me stay pain-free so I can continue to perform at the highest level.”
Professional athletes need a pain management and recovery program to stay ahead of the competition. Injury and slow recovery can take vital time away from training schedules – so the regular use of a portable pain management device like BioWaveGO means they can access safe pain relief at any time.
BioWaveGO takes the decades of research and proven prescription BioWave technology to bring an over-the-counter portable pain relief solution to everyone.
“BioWave is a life-changing non-opioid, non-addictive, effective, and inexpensive smarter pain blocking technology that helps people manage their acute or chronic pain,” says Brad Siff, President and Found of BioWave Corporation.
The pain relief technology has already been effectively used by thousands of patients. The prescription products available have helped patients in recovery, chronic pain sufferers, college sports teams, and over 500 professional athletes. It’s a high-frequency neurostimulation technology that works to relieve pain long after the treatment session – unlike traditional TENS machines.
The unique current delivered by BioWave products gets into the fibers below the skin, creating a pain block in the muscle tissue and around nerve fibers. Unlike traditional TENS machines, which only deliver surface-level relief, these blocks produce up to 24 hours of deep tissue pain relief with just a 30-minute treatment session.
The new partnership with Rocco Mediate demonstrates the proven efficacy of BioWaveGO in professional athletes. Pain management becomes easy and immediate, with the portable and discreet device available wherever and whenever it’s required.
The opioid-free pain relief treatment is ideal for acute or chronic pain problems. Avoiding strong prescription painkillers to manage your pain as a professional athlete means you’re still alert, ready to train, and won’t risk developing a damaging opioid addiction.
The FDA-cleared device is already used by thousands of college and professional athletes – and now any serious sports enthusiast can make the most of the tried-and-tested BioWave technology with BioWaveGO.
BioWaveGO is an over-the-counter product: it uses the technology developed for prescription BioWave products and makes it accessible for everyone.
It’s easy to get hold of BioWaveGO at our online shop. The 30-day money back guarantee gives you peace of mind that this safe pain relief device will work for you – or you’ll get a full refund.
If you’ve got more questions about BioWaveGO before you buy, our web chat team is here to help. Alternatively, contact us here and we’ll get in touch as soon as we can.
]]>Staying active and working out regularly can help reduce your chronic pain. Sitting around at home without exercise can make your pain feel worse – and that means you’ll feel like exercising even less.
The good news is that there are lots of online resources to help you find the home workouts you enjoy. You don’t even need a lot of space or special equipment for many of the workouts, either. Try these ways of exercising at home to manage your chronic pain!
If you can safely get out to exercise, a walk or jog around a few blocks can boost your mood as well as your pain-relieving endorphins.
If you’re not used to running, start off with regular walks. Slowly introduce a few minutes of running alternated with walking, and build up the time you run. Try the free trial at Aaptiv for the Walk to Run One Mile training course. It’ll keep you motivated and help you train safely.
You don’t have to run, though: walking is still fantastic for your health, and is a great weight-bearing exercise to keep your bones strong.
Not able to go out? If you can, invest in a treadmill to carry out your exercise at home. If that’s not possible, use the space you’ve got to walk back and forth at a high pace. Walk around your home more, too. Not sure how? Try taking each single piece of laundry one-by-one to the washer and drying rack – you’ll quickly build in a workout then!
Indoor biking has become more popular as virtual rides are easy to find. You can load up a video on YouTube and follow the path just as if you were riding it in real life!
If you need more motivation and like to have an instructor, look up spin classes on YouTube. If you’re really serious about at-home biking, you could invest in Peloton – but at a couple of thousand dollars (plus subscription), that’s certainly not for everyone.
Some people prefer to listen to music or podcasts instead of looking at screens when they’re working out on their bike. Try CycleCast, a free app with guided audio workouts combined with music.
Biking is great for cardio exercise – but be careful of joints like your knees, wrists, and back. A poor cycling posture can exacerbate pain. If you feel pain during your workout, adapt or stop.
Pilates and yoga are both excellent at improving your core stability and flexibility. Chronic pain sufferers often have tight muscles surrounding the area of pain. This is because we naturally tense up when we’re in pain. The tension means we often move rigidly, reducing the range of movement and lessening the chance of further pain. However, this tension causes knots in the muscle and stiffness in your movement.
Try an online class like the ones run by Gaia Online Yoga for a guided workout. There are often several adaptations you can use to make sure you’re working out within a comfortable range. Beginners or those with severe pain can modify workouts with ease to slowly build flexibility without straining anything.
Simple stretches can help you stay fit, too. Healthline has some easy exercises for chronic pain here – including how to do simple moves like a lower back and glute stretch.
Cardio and flexibility are essential elements to keeping fit. However, weight-bearing exercise and strength training is the best way to maintain your body’s functional fitness to overcome your pain.
Strengthening the muscles around your injury or problematic joints will help you to move more freely and support the painful area. Strength training doesn’t mean lifting super-heavy barbells or lots of pull-ups.
At-home strength training workouts can be easily done in a small space, too. Take a look at body conditioning workouts like the ‘Prison Workout’ – so called because all exercises can be done in a very small space and require no equipment.
Using your own bodyweight helps you build strength in a functional way. You’ll soon find basic movements like bending to pick something up, walking up or down stairs, and carrying groceries all become much easier.
Bodyweight exercises also have a range of levels to achieve. This makes it easy for beginners to start training – but also gives you a progression route as you get stronger, too. Variations on each exercise mean you can alter the difficulty and adapt your workout to ensure you manage your pain while staying fit.
If you’re lucky enough to have a swimming pool or even a hot tub at home, working out in water is great for building strength without putting strain on your joints.
Swimming is great for cardiovascular exercise and helps mobility. It’s non-weight bearing, so you’ll need to do some other strength workouts each week to balance this out. However, swimming is ideal if you struggle with painful joints precisely because you don’t have to bear weight on the joint.
If you’ve got a hot tub, you can still work out in water! Waist-high water is ideal for working out with knee, hip, or lower back injuries – especially if the water is warm. Squats, knee raises, and walking around all help you gain strength. Plus, you can relax in the tub afterwards, too!
Part of reducing your pain through fitness includes working out your mind, too. Guided meditation can help you focus your mind and teach you how to mentally cope with your pain.
You can find online videos for guided meditations – but some people find the visual aspect distracting. Look on apps like Spotify for free guided meditations aimed at chronic pain sufferers. Taking time to learn these meditation techniques will help you manage your pain in daily life, too.
If you usually have a personal trainer or go to a gym regularly, you’re probably missing this part of your daily routine while everything is shut down.
Get in touch to see if your gym is running virtual classes online, or if your personal trainer will run Skype or Zoom one-to-one sessions with you at home. This will keep you in touch with familiar faces – and make sure you’re working out as safely as possible with your injury or pain condition.
Now you can see how easy it is to start a workout routine at home to combat your chronic pain, it’s tempting to go all-out right away!
Follow these tips to make sure you’re working out safely and improving your fitness (rather than risking further injury).
Following these tips will help you stay active and enjoy your workouts. It’ll also reduce the risk of further injury and keep you in good health for your next exercise session!
]]>BioWaveGo is coming to a small screen near you!
The first commercial demonstrating the pain relief benefits of our portable opioid-alternative pain relief device is finally here.
]]>The first commercial demonstrating the pain relief benefits of our portable opioid-alternative pain relief device is finally here.
Decades of research went into the development of BioWaveGO. It’s the portable, consumer version of a technology that’s been used by physicians, athletic trainers and professional athletes for years.
The portable pain relief device is discreet and easy to use anywhere. Treat your chronic pain at work, on vacation, or when you’re out running errands. There’s no need for strong prescription painkillers anymore: BioWaveGO is the safe alternative that anyone can use.
This isn’t a TENS machine. It’s better than that.
Traditional TENS machines only work on the surface. You might feel pain relief during use, but this wears off almost immediately after you switch it off. With BioWaveGO, just one half-hour treatment session can provide pain relief for up to 24 hours.
We’re so proud of our pain relief technology – and so confident you’ll notice the difference – that we offer a 30-day risk-free money-back guarantee.
]]>Chronic pain is exacerbated by anything that causes inflammation. Did you know that includes some foods, too?
Inflammation is an autoimmune response. Some foods can trigger the same response in the body: if your gut is irritated by a certain food, this can increase the overall inflammatory response, making your pain much worse.
]]>Inflammation is an autoimmune response. Some foods can trigger the same response in the body: if your gut is irritated by a certain food, this can increase the overall inflammatory response, making your pain much worse.
Before you embark on this test, chat with your doctor first, as it might not be suitable for some people. It could help if you suffer from arthritis or fibromyalgia, or other chronic pain conditions.
An elimination diet sounds drastic, but it’s only temporary. The idea is to cut out groups of food known to be inflammatory triggers, for a period of six to eight weeks at a time. Keep a record of your pain levels during the elimination period. If your pain doesn’t decrease, it’s time to try cutting a different food out for a further six weeks. Continuing this process helps you identify which foods aggravate your inflammatory response.
Let’s take a look at the foods and food types that you can try cutting out to reduce inflammation and pain.
Gluten is a known irritant for celiacs, an autoimmune disease of the gut. There is a link between celiac disease and autoimmune conditions, like rheumatoid arthritis.
You’ll find it in many grains, like wheat, rye, and barley. That means foods like bread, pasta, pizza, and even breakfast cereal could be increasing your inflammation – and pain levels.
Gluten-free foods are much easier to find these days, making it much easier to cut it out of your diet. Look in the ‘free from’ section of the grocery store or visit a health food shop for a wide range of gluten-free options.
Lactose is another known irritant for many people. Some are intolerant to lactose, the natural sugar found in dairy products.
You need to avoid milk, yoghurt, butter, and cheese if you’re trying to cut out dairy as part of your elimination diet. The good news is that, as it’s an increasingly common intolerance, you can easily find lactose-free alternatives in the grocery store. Or, try switching cow’s milk for nut or oat milk, and opting for ‘vegan cheese’ made with coconut oil instead of dairy.
As yet, there are no definitive studies to prove that vegetables in the nightshade family cause inflammation. However, there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that they may cause food sensitivities in those with other inflammatory response issues (like chronic pain).
These vegetables, part of the Solanaceae plant family, include potatoes, eggplants, tomatoes, and peppers. Try taking them out of your diet for a while to see if your pain reduces.
Highly processed foods and food high in refined sugar can stimulate the inflammatory response in the body.
This includes a wide range of foods, such as fried food, refined carbohydrates, sodas, margarine, and processed meats. Desserts will also have a high level of refined sugar in them, which is known to aggravate inflammation, too.
Cutting food types out of your diet to find out if they cause inflammation is just one way to tackle your chronic pain without strong painkillers.
Other things to try include physiotherapy, meditation, and acupuncture. You can also try BioWaveGO, a portable device that blocks pain with electrical impulses. One half-hour session can provide medication-free pain relief up to 24 hours. Try it risk-free for 30 days here.
]]>Chronic pain puts us off working out – but we know that exercise makes us feel better. Numerous studies confirm exercise can reduce chronic pain symptoms and improve physical function at injury sites.
But when you’re tired, sore, and moving hurts, working out doesn’t seem like a good idea. It’s a tough Catch-22: your pain stops you wanting to work out, and if you don’t work out your pain gets worse.
The best way to maintain a healthy lifestyle in spite of your pain is to learn how to adapt your workouts. You’ll get the benefits of regular exercise – and your pain could even reduce as a result. It’s a great pain relief alternative to addictive painkillers, too.
Try these tips to adapt your workouts and exercise routine to improve your physical fitness without suffering from more pain in the process.
When you’re having a good day, it’s tempting to go all-out on your workout. However, this could set you back with additional fatigue or further injury.
Instead, plan to exercise little and often throughout the week. You don’t need to take an hour-long gym session every day. Instead, look at building activity into your day to build up to longer workouts.
For example, if you can, walk a few blocks to the next subway station. Or, while you’re watching your favorite show in the evening, practice some yoga stretches in the advert breaks. A few minutes here and there quickly adds up.
When you’re ready to approach a longer workout, take a class. Talk to the instructor before the class starts and tell them about your chronic pain or injury. They’ll keep an eye on you and make sure to suggest alternative ways to carry out exercises safely.
A class also adds a social element that can lift your mood. Feeling happier is related to reducing chronic pain symptoms. So, even if you’re at the back of the class making the most of the Child’s pose while everyone else is in Downward Dog, just being in a group setting and chatting with others after class can help you enjoy your workout and reduce your pain.
As you build exercise back into your regular routine, it’s easy to get carried away and want to work out every day.
This won’t give your body time to heal. Worse, you might experience Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) the second day after a big workout. If you don’t plan rest days, this could set you back in your pain management and recovery process.
If you absolutely must exercise every day, choose a gentle activity on your rest days. Perform some yoga poses, take a Pilates class, or swim a few (slow) laps. Even if you feel good on your planned rest day, take the day off –your body will thank you for it!
It’s much easier to exercise with chronic pain if you’ve got someone cheering you on. Find an exercise buddy who’ll be stubborn enough to encourage you out to that class or walk you’ve arranged to do together.
They need to understand your pain, too. So, as well as being stubborn and insistent, make sure they also realize when you need to stop!
If you’ve fallen in love with a sporting activity or gym workout that your chronic pain just won’t let you enjoy anymore, seek an appointment with a professional coach.
Find a specialist trainer in your chosen sport or activity. Book a one-to-one session with them and pick their brains about adapting exercises. They’ll show you how to get the most out of the workout you love – without causing more pain.
If you have to strap up your knee, back, wrist, elbow, or hand to cope – do it. Regularly using support aids can stop your muscles from gaining strength and flexibility: but if you need them to get back into working out, use them.
Elasticated support bands, knee braces, or similar support aids can help you adapt your workout without changing everything about your routine. They provide extra support to lax joints or muscular injuries, preventing you from injuring yourself further.
One of the most important things about managing chronic pain is to treat your post-workout routine as seriously as your workout.
Regular massages will help increase blood flow and prevent knots in the muscles (which can lead to more pain). You may also find having a bath with Epsom salts can help relieve sore muscles.
If your pain is stopping you from working out regularly, try BioWaveGO. It’s a medication-free solution that uses electrical impulses to block pain signals for up to 24 hours after just one session. You can use it at home, at work under your clothes, and even as you’re traveling to or from your next workout
]]>A new rheumatoid arthritis (RA) diagnosis can be alarming. You’re already in pain and the doctor says there’s no cure, and the disease can get worse over time. The good news is that there are plenty of rheumatoid arthritis treatment options to help you. Some treatments help with immediate symptoms, such as pain relief, while others help to slow the progression of the disease.
Some treatment options, like changing your diet, you can do yourself. Others involve teamwork with your consultant to find the best combination of medications to suit your personal needs.
Familiarize yourself with the most common rheumatoid arthritis treatments so that you can start making an action plan to combat pain today.
An anti-inflammatory diet can help to reduce overall inflammation in your body. This, in turn, will help your RA symptoms as your pain from inflammation reduces.
Simple changes, such as avoiding refined carbohydrates, can be all it takes to help your body. If you’re not sure how to start, your rheumatology consultant may be able to recommend a nutrition expert to further advise you on a personalized food plan.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) form the first step to RA treatment. Common NSAIDs, such as naproxen, will be prescribed to help minimize your pain. Taking NSAIDs long-term can affect the stomach. Your physician may prescribe additional medication to prevent damage to your stomach lining if you take NSAIDs.
NSAIDs are an inexpensive and readily available treatment option for pain. They’re effective in reducing pain for a few hours; however, they’re not the only painkiller option you may be offered.
For severe pain, your physician may prescribe opioid-based painkillers. These are much more effective at reducing your pain but come with a high risk of serious side effects – including opiate dependency. Other side effects include nausea, drowsiness, and mental confusion.
Your doctor may prescribe a course of steroids in pill form to help manage inflammation and reduce your pain. However, you can also ask for corticosteroid injections directly into your worst-affected joints.
These injections provide longer-term pain relief with fewer side effects than a pill-based course of steroids.
Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs (DMARDs) help people with rheumatoid arthritis by slowing the damage the disease causes to the body.
Common DMARDs include:
Methotrexate
Sulfasalazine
Hydroxycholorquine
Leflunomide
Your rheumatology consultant will recommend a combination of these to start your treatment program. They can take several months to make a difference, so it’s important to start them as early as possible to make sure your RA doesn’t become more severe before you receive treatment.
DMARDs can’t reverse RA, but they can help to slow the degenerative processes that affect your joints and make the disease worse over time.
When RA progresses to a greater level of severity your physician will recommend trying anti-TNF biologic drugs. These drugs come with more serious side effects than DMARDs but have a good chance of significantly reducing the symptoms of serious RA.
Most of the new biologics work by targeting a protein in the body called Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF). These drugs are still quite new and may be used as an alternative to, or in combination with, DMARDs.
Both DMARDs and anti-TNF biologics treatments attack elements of the immune system to be effective. This means your immune system can become compromised, leaving you prone to infections and other illnesses.
However, they will significantly reduce the progression of the disease, so it’s important to discuss your options with your consultant before you decide whether to try these treatments.
Some RA patients benefit from surgical intervention to manage their pain. Hip replacements, for example, can help reduce the pain of eroded cartilage in the natural hip socket.
Surgery isn’t always as serious as hip replacements, either. Smaller procedures, such as arthroscopy on the knee, help to clean out and smooth roughened cartilage in the joint to reduce pain.
Managing your day-to-day pain is the hardest part of RA. Some days you’ll feel fine, while other days you will want to stay in bed all day.
Electrical stimulation devices like BioWaveGO help you to manage your pain wherever you are – so you don’t have to let RA interrupt your life. Electrical impulses sent through the skin create a nerve block that can last up to 24 hours to significantly reduce your pain.
Contact us to find out more about using BioWaveGO as part of your pain management and rheumatoid arthritis treatment plan.
]]>From lower back pain to repetitive strain injury, chronic pain makes holding down a job tricky. The pain distracts you from your work, and it can also affect your mood and concentration.
You don’t have to think about giving up your job, however. There are plenty of things you can do to manage your pain levels during the workday. Follow these tips to make sure you can stay focused and productive at work.
Whether you’re recovering from an acute injury or have a long-term condition such as arthritis or spondylosis, make sure you have a chat with your boss about it. Talk to them about ways you can adapt your working day to help manage your pain levels. For example, if you find your commute difficult during rush hour, ask about a flex schedule whereby you come in early and leave early. Or if early mornings are when your pain is worst, look at starting and ending work later in the day.
You can also discuss remote working if traveling to work is a big problem. Even if you can have one or two days a week working from home, this will drastically increase your ability to manage your pain over the course of the week.
Even on your busiest days, block out your lunch break and step away from your desk to do it. Roughly 40% of office workers eat lunch at their desk every day, which leads to additional health problems and can worsen your pain.
If your day is simply fully booked, move a meeting from the office to a walking meeting instead. The gentle exercise and fresh air will help you to stay focused, while the motion of walking will stretch your muscles that have been cramped in a chair all day.
You could even take a lunch-time yoga or meditation class to help reduce pain levels, boost blood flow to the brain for afternoon concentration, and gently stretch out painful areas.
Find out if other people at the office would like to participate in a lunchtime exercise class like this. If a group of you agree to take part each week, it’ll help you maintain motivation to attend as well as build your working relationships.
Sitting still at a desk all day can cause healthy people to experience pain, so it’s no surprise that you’re finding it hard to push through your own chronic pain in the same situation.
There are things you can do to make working at a desk as comfortable as possible. If sitting down causes you pain, switch to a standing desk and a tall chair or stool to rest on when you’re tired.
If you’re experiencing hip pain, consider changing your chair or adding a foot rest. Changing the angle of your hip position by raising or lowering your hips or feet can help to alleviate your pain.
Consider the equipment you use, too. Wrist pain is common in office workers, so try a vertical mouse to move your wrist and hand into a more natural position. Consider using desk-mounted arm rests, split keyboards, or monitor risers to adapt your workstation in a way that reduces the strain on your muscles and posture.
While narcotics can take the edge off your pain, they also take the edge off your focus and concentration. Opioid-based painkillers cause drowsiness, too, and there’s nothing worse than feeling sleepy in an important meeting, or making a simple mistake because your mind is foggy.
Instead, opt for opioid alternatives during the day wherever possible. You can try other painkillers, such as NSAIDs like ibuprofen, but these can cause stomach problems when taken consistently over time.
Other opioid alternatives include taking five minutes for a short walk to boost blood flow and reduce muscle strain, a short meditation session on your break, or heat or ice packs on the painful area.
Another way to manage your pain during the day without the use of opioid medications is to use electrical stimulation to block the pain signals to your brain.
BioWaveGO is a portable machine that you can take with you and use discreetly at work. It’s safe to use in conjunction with prescription medications, and won’t affect your cognitive ability like opioid medicines do.
The battery-operated module can be managed via a phone app, helping to maintain the discretion of use and giving you full control over the treatment cycle.
If you’re using BioWaveGO to reduce your pain and improve your performance at work, you’ll be pleased to hear the device is also HSA and FSA eligible.
]]>Many chronic pain sufferers will have turned to a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) machine to try and alleviate their pain. When they find it doesn’t work for them, they feel that electrical stimulation simply doesn’t help reduce pain.
However, with the latest innovations, electrical impulses can deliver long-lasting pain relief. Just one 30-minute session can provide relief for up to 24 hours.
We developed BioWave to counter the common problems people experienced when using TENS machines to reduce their pain. Keep reading to find out why BioWave is different – and could work for you, even if traditional TENS machines haven’t helped in the past.
A traditional TENS machine uses small pads to deliver small electric pulses to the skin’s surface. This can help some people to experience some pain relief during the time the TENS machine is being used.
However, there are no long-lasting pain relief effects, which means pain returns very quickly after using a TENS machine. This is because the electric impulses are only delivered to the skin’s surface. The twitching of the muscles that this causes can provide some pain relief, but it doesn’t get deep enough to block pain pathways.
BioWave technology isn’t like traditional TENS machines. It took 15 years to research and develop the innovative tech that reduces pain for up to 24-hours.
The patented technology uses alternating electric pulses that reach further into the body than the skin. The pulses reach the pain fibers deep in muscle tissue, creating a type of barrier between the nerve and the brain.
This blocks the pain signal, which is then felt as pain relief in the user. The electrical field also creates something called hypoesthesia, which feels like a light numbness around the area.
The unique way BioWave technology works means you can use it for 30 minutes and feel a reduction in your pain for up to 24 hours.
That’s why the patented technology is trusted by professional athletes. BioWave is cleared by FDA and is safe to use alongside, or as an alternative to, traditional pain relief methods such as prescription painkillers.
BioWave has been in use with the BioWave HOME prescription device for a while – but now the technology is available over-the-counter for anybody to try as part of their pain management program.
The BioWaveGO requires no prescription, and can be used for pain caused by acute injuries, post-surgery aches, or chronic conditions such as arthritis. The unique patented electrical stimulation technology can be taken anywhere, such as the office or on vacation, as it’s so discreet and easy to use.
The portable pain relief of BioWaveGo makes it an ideal solution for anyone who wants to stop pain disrupting their daily life. It can be operated by an easy-to-use smartphone app, helping you to track and monitor your pain treatment and relief over time.
We’re confident that BioWaveGO will help you to manage your pain effectively. We offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, too: if you don’t think it works for you, we’ll give you a full refund.
The best bit is that BioWaveGO is eligible for HSA and FSA schemes, so you may be able to claim any costs from your health insurance provider, too. We also offer monthly payment plans to help everybody access the drug-free pain relief they deserve.
Buy online today to start your risk-free trial, or call us on 1-877-BIOWAVE to speak to our expert customer service team to have your questions answered.
]]>A fibromyalgia diagnosis can be scary and leave you facing a lot of unknowns. How do you manage the pain? What causes it? Does it get worse over time?
While fibromyalgia is not a degenerative musculoskeletal disease, there are things that make it feel like it is worse than before. This is caused by overworking, stress, diet, and even developing a tolerance to painkillers.
There are things you can do to reduce the chance of a fibromyalgia flare-up and manage your pain.
Little is still known about the cause of fibromyalgia, but it has been shown to be related to sleep cycles. The less sleep you get, or the more disturbed your sleep, the higher the likelihood you’ll experience a fibromyalgia flare.
Assess your bedroom and sleep routine. Do you go to bed early enough? Is your mattress supportive? Do your pillows make your neck ache? All of these factors will affect the quality of your sleep.
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine or alcohol close to your bedtime too, as these will disrupt your deep sleep. Some people find introducing a set routine, such as having a warm bath before going to bed at the same time each night, also helps to achieve better sleep patterns.
There are common triggers for many fibromyalgia patients: stress, too much exercise, not enough exercise, and some dietary choices.
However, you may find that there are other things that also trigger a fibromyalgia flare-up. Pay attention to your pain levels on a day-by-day basis, and keep a diary of your main activities and emotions each day over a 30-day period.
You will soon seen patterns in your activities and emotions related to increased pain. For example, some people find that typing on a computer all day causes more problems, while others might be fine with that but struggle to carry their grocery bags.
When you know your triggers, make plans to avoid them. If you struggle with typing, invest in a speech-to-text software program such as Dragon Naturally Speaking. This allows you to perform the same work tasks without using your hands. If you find grocery shopping difficult, try an online delivery service instead.
Some foods cause an inflammatory response in the body, and this can worsen fibromyalgia symptoms.
Eat a healthy, balanced diet rich in fruit, vegetables, and lean meats – and avoid too much sugar, which is known to cause inflammation.
Just as each fibromyalgia patient has different physical and emotional triggers, diet is a very individual influence too. Try cutting out suspect foods one at a time for two week periods and track your pain levels. This will help you to identify which foods you should avoid.
There is also a link between fibromyalgia and being celiac, so speak to your physician about tests for this if you find glutenous foods cause you problems.
Painkillers can be addictive and also contribute to your fibromyalgia problems such as ‘memory fog’. Try finding alternative pain relief methods to complement your prescription medication program supplied by your doctor.
Relying on painkillers for fibromyalgia also limits how you feel throughout the day. If you’ve taken your maximum dose, and still feel pain, it’s a good idea to have other pain relief techniques.
BioWaveGO, for example, is a portable TENS machine that uses electrical pulses to block the pain pathways to your brain. You can use it in conjunction with any medications, and you can take it with you when you’re out and about.
As well as alternatives to painkillers, consider simple self-care strategies such as having a warm bath or applying ice packs to sore points. Some fibromyalgia patients find that heat is very soothing, while others discover that it worsens the pain. The same happens with ice packs, too.
Experiment with warmth and ice to find out which approach helps you, and then stock up on heat or ice packs so you always have them on hand.
It’s easy to let fibromyalgia slowly – but steadily – flare up when you have busy demands in your life. Work, family, children, friends, and relationships all take up your time, and you may choose to ignore the nagging signs that your pain is about to get worse.
Prevent a severe flare-up by saying no more. Educate your friends and family about your condition, and explain that you may need to adapt your social plans to ensure you don’t run out of energy or cause yourself more pain.
It’s hard to say no and put yourself first in today’s busy world. However, your own health needs to come before everything else if you want fibromyalgia to take a back seat in your life!
]]>Chronic pain affects more than the sufferer. Watching your spouse, sibling, child, or friend suffer with long-term pain is hard – but there are things you can do to help.
While you can’t take their pain away, you can offer your support and proactive help to aid their approach to pain management – and improve their mental health, too.
Here are a few ways you can help someone who suffers with long-term chronic pain.
Chronic pain sufferers often feel like they’re being a burden to their friends and family if they answer honestly to the question: “How are you?”
That means they’ll often tell you that they’re fine, even if you can see them limping from knee pain or struggling to walk from back pain.
Ask a more direct question if this helps you to receive a more honest answer. “How is your neck feeling today?” or “Are your new painkillers working better?” are examples of ways to open up the conversation about pain without your loved one feeling guilty for talking about it.
Consultants, physical therapists, hospital scans… there are many appointments attached to chronic pain conditions. It can become overwhelming, especially when your mind is already clouded by pain.
Offer to attend medical appointments with them to help share the load. Prepare a list of questions they – and you – want to ask the consultant. Write anything down that you think they’ll want to remember after the appointment, too.
Sometimes, having someone else at the appointment can help to get the best treatment, too. You’ll have noticed changes in the person that they might have brushed off or not considered.
For example, you’ll know if your spouse isn’t sleeping as well as they think they are, or if their pain has caused their mood to change.
Information like this can help physicians to create a more personalized treatment plan for better pain management.
Pain fluctuates and this makes it difficult to make social plans. When your loved one or friend cancels last-minute, be as understanding as possible.
It could be that they had a bad night’s sleep and feel too tired to be sociable. Maybe their pain is particularly bad and they don’t want to be distracted by it when they should be enjoying your company. Whatever the reason, don’t take cancellations personally.
If your loved one cancels a plan, find out if there’s something you can do instead. Perhaps you can go to their home and cook dinner instead of going out for a meal. Or if they’re worried about traveling alone with their pain, offer to give them a lift.
Adapting a plan is a good way to show your support to your loved one. Accepting repeated cancellations risks your friend or spouse feeling isolated and depressed because of their pain. Bringing your social plans to them – when they’re feeling up to it – helps to show your support and reduces the risk of social isolation for them.
Chronic pain is exhausting. It’s very easy to accept the painkillers provided by the doctors and not seek out any other pain relief options.
There is so much information out there about alternatives to prescription medications, the fact-finding can be daunting to an already-exhausted chronic pain sufferer. You can help by researching other pain management techniques that they could use in conjunction with – or alternative to – their prescription medications.
There are techniques you can do together, such as meditation or gentle exercise, to show your support as well as help to strengthen your relationship.
Other techniques require in-depth research to help arm your loved one with the information they need to make a personal choice about their pain management strategy.
For example, your spouse or friend may not know about opioid alternatives to pain management. Learning about the alternative options, such as smarter pain block technology like BiowaveGo, allows your loved one to make more informed choices about their pain management.
]]>Opioids take the edge off your back pain – but they can also be addictive, impact your cognitive function, and interfere with sleep cycles.
There’s a direct link between long-term use of prescription narcotics and increased risk of misuse, dependency, and addiction. At least 21 percent of chronic pain patients misuse their prescription opioid medications, and at least 8 percent of patients become truly addicted.
The good news is that there are plenty of opioid alternatives for back pain sufferers. Try these solutions to manage your back pain without the risks associated with opioids.
There are some painkillers that will help manage your back pain. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen, for example, reduce inflammation. However, like opioid painkillers, other painkillers are not ideal for a long-term pain conditions. For example, NSAIDs can affect your stomach lining and it’s easy to build up a tolerance, which reduces how effective painkillers can be.
You can use non-opioid painkillers in conjunction with other opioid-alternative treatments, however, to manage your pain as effectively as possible.
Massage can be used to reduce back pain. Often, the reduced range of movement and tension you hold in your back due to pain can worsen the pain over time. Massage helps release tight areas in the muscle, which can reduce pain. The stimulation of massage also encourages blood flow to tense muscles to help relax tight areas.
The type of massage that works for you may be different from another patient. Some people find only a light-touch massage is bearable, while others prefer a trigger point massage that targets specific myofascial ‘knots’ in tight muscles. This type of massage can be painful at first but is reported to reduce pain in the longer term.
There are techniques you can try at home for a DIY massage, or you can visit a qualified massage therapist. When choosing your therapist, make sure they are familiar with treating back pain conditions before you get started. This will help them to adapt your massage treatment to aid and relax you.
An ancient Chinese therapy used for thousands of years, acupuncture involves the insertion of a series of very thin needles into affected areas of the body. A skilled acupuncturist will perform this with no pain to the patient.
Studies show that acupuncture can work for chronic back pain patients. It is thought to work by interrupting the pain signals in nerve pathways from the affected area to the brain.
Chronic back pain comes with a tough cycle: you feel the pain and try not to move in order to avoid it. However, staying immobile can actually worsen your pain in the long term. Immobile muscles and joints will stiffen up over time and it is this which causes a great deal of pain problems.
Many back pain sufferers have weak muscles caused by inactivity; a physical therapist will help to build these muscles back to strength. They can show you gentle exercises to keep you moving, maintain flexibility in your back, and reduce your pain over time. Other exercise, such as a short walk every day, will also improve your mood, blood flow to tight muscles, and boost natural painkillers called endorphins.
You may have heard of a TENS machine: a battery-operated, portable device that uses electrical pulses to reduce pain. Pads are attached to the skin and a small electric current passes through the area into the deeper muscles below the skin.
Some people find the electrical stimulation helps in one of two ways: a) the small electric pulses, at a low dose, can help the body to release its own painkillers called endorphins, and b) the machines work to disrupt the nerve pain signals going to the brain.
New technology, like BioWave’s, uses both high- and low-range frequencies to further improve the pain-blocking results of electrical stimulation in pain patients. Ready to end your chronic back pain? Talk to us today.
]]>Even if you think you’re sleeping the whole night through, your chronic pain could have a bigger impact than you realize on the quality of your sleep.
Do you often wake up tired even though you think you slept like a log?
It’s likely that your pain problems are disturbing your ability to reach the deepest, most relaxing stages of sleep. The routine of pain – poor sleep – more pain – terrible sleep is a tricky one to face, but the good news is that you don’t always need to reach for the sedatives to break the cycle.
Pain impacts sleep in several ways. The most obvious, of course, is a sharp twinge that wakes you as you turn over. The constant pattern of turn, pain, wake, sleep means you’re not spending enough time in the most restorative stages of deep sleep.
Chronic pain is also as emotional as it is physical. If you go to bed worrying about your pain, that worry will have a negative effect on your sleep, too.
Stress causes a physical response in the central nervous system, such as raising heart rates and increasing the level of cortisol. The impact this has on sleep, including waking up frequently or an inability to fall asleep when you feel tired, is significant.
There’s a tough catch-22 with pain and sleep: not only does pain cause sleep disturbances, but a lack of sleep can worsen chronic pain symptoms, too.
This has been recognized in certain pain conditions, such as fibromyalgia: flare-ups are directly linked to sleep patterns.
However, all chronic pain sufferers are at risk of their sleep habits exacerbating their pain further. Poor sleep can cause mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety. These problems then feed into the pain-sleep cycle, causing even more sleep disruption, or worse, total insomnia.
When you realize that sleep affects pain just as much as pain affects sleep, it’s easier to learn techniques to finally break the vicious pain – poor sleep – more pain cycle.
A good night’s sleep won’t cure your pain, but it’s the first step to reducing chronic pain, improving wellbeing, and boosting your mood to help you feel more able to cope with pain.
If you feel that your pain means that restorative sleep isn’t possible, don’t panic! There are plenty of actions you can take to help improve sleep, even when you have chronic pain.
It’s hard to break a lifetime habit of being a side sleeper, or preferring to sleep on your back, but changing the position in which you sleep can reduce pain. If you try to change your position but wake up back in your normal one, use pillows as a prop to stop you from rolling over in your sleep.
A simple solution for many chronic pain conditions is to change your pillows. If you constantly wake up with neck, shoulder, or back pain, your pillow could be the culprit. Find a pillow that suits the way you sleep. For example, a side sleeper pillow has extra depth to it to reduce the strain on your neck.
Your mattress may be too hard or too soft to provide the right support for your pain type. If it’s a few years old, the natural dents and wear will also impact the level of support you’re getting in your sleep. Test several mattresses out before you buy a new one. Lie on each one for at least ten minutes to determine if it is too firm or too soft for your needs.
Caffeine and alcohol are stimulants: they won’t help you sleep. Alcohol might make you feel sleepy at first, but it will restrict the quality sleep you actually get. Avoid stimulants a few hours before you go to bed to help your brain and body feel ready for sleep at the right time.
Some painkillers, in particular opioid-based medications, might make you feel sleepy – but they also interrupt the quality of sleep you’ll get. Other over-the-counter pain medications can include caffeine too, which isn’t ideal for sleep.
Natural pain management strategies, such as electrical stimulation, meditation, and relaxing breathing techniques can help minimize pain without interrupting sleep. Try using different natural pain management techniques before bedtime to find which ones work best for you.
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