You Should Create a “toolkit” to Deal With Pain Flare-Ups

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If you’ve ever had a painful injury or illness, or suffer from chronic pain, you’re probably familiar with the phenomenon of flare-ups, where your pain gets worse. This pain is not only uncomfortable, but can also affect cognitive abilities and affect vision and other senses. Episodes like these can be debilitating, especially if you can’t predict when they will happen. But there is something you can do to prepare for pain before it happens and mitigate the effects while it occurs so you can get through it and get back to your daily life: you can put together a “toolkit” to combat attacks of pain, which will help you. stay calm and react quickly. Here’s how it works.

Prepare for Emergency Pain

Anyone who suffers from constant pain will likely take certain steps to minimize pain attacks without even realizing it. If you have a migraine, you can turn off the lights, and if you have knee pain, you can grab your favorite ice pack. These things are part of your toolbox.

While part of your toolbox may be a container of physical objects, other parts may serve as reminders of pain coping mechanisms or skills you can use when your pain flares up. Because pain can interfere with your judgment and make you feel anxious, setting key reminders in advance can be a big help.

Make a plan for dealing with pain

Understanding what will help you when you are in severe pain is the first step to creating a kit. If you don’t have a full arsenal yet, start with what you think works, and then spend some time making notes about yourself and your preferences. No two people are the same, so your toolkit should be based on your own assessment of what benefits you.

It goes without saying that if you haven’t already consulted a doctor about your pain, you should do so before attempting any pain relief experiments to avoid making the situation worse or missing out on something that might help. Once you know what works for you, make a list of all the things you can do when you feel a twinge of pain and, where appropriate, how and where to find pain relief tools.

Collect items to relieve pain

Tools that should be kept in a box or kit may include:

  • Any rescue medicine you take for pain.
  • Physical aids such as self-massage tools or a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) machine.
  • Items such as aromatherapy supplies and meditation aids such as worry stones.

Also consider adding notes or reminders for yourself, such as:

  • Mindfulness Meditation Script for Pain
  • Illustrations of useful stretches
  • Breathing exercises

You can also include comfort items such as your favorite tea or a heating pad.

Include your list of resources as part of your overall pain management plan and include contact information for doctors and appropriate medical personnel in case the situation gets beyond what you can handle on your own. The idea is to make it easier to ask for help.

You can think of this part of your toolbox as an emergency preparedness kit for hurricanes and power outages, except that it’s focused on pain-related emergencies instead.

Ready-made large painkillers

There will be some things, like ice packs or favorite pillows, that may not fit in your physical container, but including them in your list of useful items is a good reminder that they can be accessed when you need them. Anything that doesn’t physically fit in the container but is still useful should be kept on hand in case the pain flares up so you don’t have to look for it while you’re in severe pain.

Customize your digital toolkit

There are some tools, such as calming audio and video techniques, that only exist in digital form. Try saving some links or downloads on your phone or tablet so you can quickly access them when you need them. Work them into your pain management plan and be sure to update if you find newer or better versions. Soothing imagery such as forests and ocean waves, as well as soundscapes and music can help calm your nervous system if you’re in pain, and guided meditations can also help refocus.

Digital tools that can help include:

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