Managing Pain Naturally - Natural Family Medicine

Millions of people suffer from pain on a daily basis. Pain can be from an injury, a health condition or from general inflammation in the body. Regardless of the cause, reducing inflammation may offer relief.

Avoid NSAIDs!

While it is easy to reach for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), they come with many other side effects that can create more health issues down the line.  Here is a list of potential side effects of NSAIDs:

• Gastrointestinal complaints such as stomach upset, vomiting, nausea, constipation, diarrhea, and reduced appetite
• Stomach problems such as bleeding and ulcers
• Dizziness or drowsiness
• Shortness of breath
• Elevated blood pressure
• Fluid retention which can cause swelling of the legs, feet, arms and hands
• Kidney failure
• Liver failure
• Heart problems
• Rashes

Chronic use of NSAIDs can increase the risk for fetal health conditions such as heart attacks, stroke and perforation of the stomach or intestines. Continued insult on the gastrointestinal lining, from chronic use of NSAIDs, increases the tendency to develop food sensitivities, poor digestion of food, and poor absorption of nutrients. When this happens, we suffer from secondary side effects of nutrient deficiencies. These deficiencies can negatively affect our energy, mood, sleep, level of pain, and much more. Nutrient testing is available to assess if this is contributing to the way you feel.

Go Natural!

Turning to natural anti-inflammatories can be much safer and quite effective. There are several options to choose from. If you don’t find that one works for you initially, I would encourage you to continue to try others. Here is a list of safe and healthy alternatives:

• Cooking spices such as turmeric, ginger, cloves, rosemary, cinnamon, oregano, sage, thyme, allspice, garlic
• Foods: leafy greens, fermented foods, shitake mushrooms, onions, garlic, blueberries and other foods high in anti-oxidants, and omega-3 rich foods, such as fish.
• Supplements: there are several natural supplemental anti-inflammatories that can be used. My favorites include Inflammatone, BCQ, Meriva-SR (sustained release turmeric), and Wobenzyme. These are all best taken away from food.  These are all 15% off this month, so give one a try!

Resolve The Underlying Issue!

Resolving the underlying cause of pain is ideal. Even though the pain may be from a health condition that is not curable, there are steps that you can take to reduce the overall amount of inflammation in the body. This can help to reduce pain and enhance the quality of life. Consider coming to this month’s WellnesSeries class on reducing inflammation through food choices.

Pain can change our lives drastically on many levels. Those who suffer from chronic pain are not just dealing with the pain itself but also the way it affects emotions, sleep, stress handling, their outlook on life, and much more. If you suffer from pain and are looking for someone to work with to help you feel better on all levels, please feel free to contact me. I would be happy to offer you safe and effective natural treatment options along with lifestyle recommendations to achieve optimal health and feel your best.