If you’ve never experienced chronic pain, it’s very hard to understand what it’s really like. When interacting with someone who is struggling, what you see on the outside hardly scratches the surface! If you know someone who’s experiencing chronic pain, it’s important to understand what they are going through.
The Pain Specialist at Interventional Spine and Pain management Clinic, is a great place to start. We take an interdisciplinary approach to pain management, which is imperative to your health!
We have a short quiz below about chronic pain so you can test your knowledge and share what you’ve learned with your family and friends. The more we know about chronic pain, the better we can support those around us who are struggling.
Question: Why can chronic pain lead to sleep deprivation?
Answer: As you can imagine, sleeping when you’re feeling throbbing pain in your body is not an easy feat. Common sleep-related issues include trouble falling asleep, waking up multiple times throughout the night, insomnia and not waking up feeling refreshed. Chronic pain disrupts our sleep cycles, making pain feel even worse. Sleep and pain are interconnected and can vary from patient to patient.
Question: Is chronic pain only physical?
Answer: No! Long-term, nagging pain is mentally draining and can cause you to have more negative emotions than usual. Many times, patients who are dealing with chronic pain distance themselves from others because they do not have the energy to properly interact. Pain is both physical and mental—it makes simple tasks much harder which is overwhelming and frustrating. Things like memory loss, decreased energy, anxiety and depression are all common side-affects for those dealing with chronic pain. Our ISPM treats both the physical and mental symptoms of pain by offering comprehensive treatment plans and pain psychology.
Question: Is pain felt the same by everyone?
Answer: No! Pain is deeply personal and affects each individual differently. Two people may have the exact same condition and experience totally different levels of pain. One may be feeling debilitating pain, while the other may display no symptoms at all. There are many factors that contribute to this such as the patient’s background, genetics, nervous system sensitivity and much more.
Question: How can pain be treated?
Answer: Finding the optimal pain management treatment for each type of chronic pain is tricky! It’s important to find a doctor that specializes in pain and works to identify the underlying cause of your pain before treating you. At the ISPM, we offer customized treatment plans that can include one or many of the following: lifestyle alterations, minimally invasive/non-surgical solutions, interventional treatments, physical therapy, steroid injections, prescription pain medication and other options that will bring you sustainable relief.
ISPM doctors accepting new patients
Experiencing chronic pain? The team at ISPM are here to help you get your life back! Our doctors are here to help. We have convenient locations throughout Utah, Bountiful, Murray, Providence and Ogden.
Get in touch with us by calling 801-262-7246
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