Sports Pain Management

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An active body is a body that is prone to injury. Repetitive motion of a body part can cause wear and tear. Traumatic injuries also occur in sports. This can be caused by a fall or improper body placement during an activity. For example, a wrong step can cause a sprained ankle.

When a sports injury occurs, it’s important to put a proper pain management plan into place. Because you never known when you’re going to receive a sports injury, it’s important to have this pain management plan in place just in case.

Immediate Pain Management

athlete_runningDepending upon the severity of the pain that you experience from a sports injury, you may seek out instant relief immediately. Over the counter pain relievers like Acetaminophen (paracetemol), Ibuprofen, or naproxen sodium may help if the pain is not severe. It’s important to remember that Acetaminophen will not reduce swelling because it doesn’t work as an anti-inflammatory. To help reduce swelling, you’ll want to ice the injured area. You may also want to consider compression therapy, such as wrapping the injury in a bandage or a support brace purchased at your local drugstore.

Knowing When to Seek Medical Attention

While the most common sports injuries tend to be minor, major injuries can occur. Minor injuries can also become aggravated and develop into major injuries if they are not treated properly. Because of these reasons, you need to be aware of the signs of a major injury.

Signs of a Major Injury

When evaluating a sports injury, look for serious bleeding or swelling. Consider how the injury happened and what area of the body is affected. Consider the appearance of the injured body part. Does it look abnormal? Try to describe the pain. Is it sharp, dull, aching, or throbbing?

If you’re experiencing any pain in the head, neck, back, or abdomen, you need to seek medical attention. If there is excessive bleeding or swelling, you need to seek medical attention. If the injured body part looks abnormal, seek medical attention. If the pain is sharp and continuous, you may want to seek medical attention. Seeking medical attention may be costly, but it will save you time, money, and prevent further pain down the road.  When you get to the point where you need to buy serious pain relief such as opiate medicines like codeine and dihydrocodeine, then the time has come to talk to your doctor about pain management.

Discuss Pain Management With Your Healthcare Provider

hrhhhIf your injury is minor, then a healthcare provider can assist you with a pain management plan that isn’t invasive and allows you to return to normal activity as soon as possible. If you’ve suffered a serious sport injury, discuss the available options with your healthcare provider. You need to be in charge of the decisions made in your pain management. If you don’t like the direction in which your healthcare provider is leaning, get another opinion. It’s your body. Choose a pain management plan that you feel comfortable with.

Don’t Walk Off a Sports Injury

How many times has an athlete been told to simply “walk it off”? That’s bad advice. You need to evaluate and respond to sports injuries with a planned pain management plan to prevent further injury.

Pain relief options during labor and childbirth

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The most feared pain among the young women is the pain experienced during childbirth and labor. The basic underlying cause behind this fear is the fear for unknown. Labor and childbirth even in today’s age of medical advancement remains largely unpredictable and coping with labor pain a major concern, and many new mother’s are left wondering why childbirth is so painful.

originalIn this article, we will discuss in brief the various pain relief options and painkillers available to be accessed by the laboring mother during labor.

Labor is a natural, demanding and challenging process and the pain increases considerably as the labor progresses and at this particular point of advanced labor, pain management options are often required by the mother.

Painkillers: During the initial stages of labor and delivery, pain killers or analgesics as they are commonly known does the trick. But as the labor progresses and the pain becomes more intense, systemic painkillers are unable to work efficiently.

And besides, they comes with their share of cons. Pain killers given during labor in excess can cause drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, skin itchiness & irritation and headache and a head spin to the laboring mother which is not at all desired. Hence, painkillers/analgesics are only an effective pain relief option during the early stages of labor. Also, many painkillers are contraindicated for women who are pregnant.

surprising-labor-and-delivery-facts-woman-in-labor-fullTranquilizers: Sometime, if the mother is unable to bear the severe labor pain, tranquilizers are occasionally administered to her as a pain relief measure. They are usually administered through IV and are said to reduce vomiting tendency and anxiety during the laboring process.

Laughing gas: Yes, you heard it right! In some hospitals, laboring mothers are administered nitrous oxide, commonly known as the laughing gas. The mothers are usually given the gas and is recommended to them to inhale the same in between the contractions.

Spinal bock: Spinal block is considered as an effective pain relief option during labor as it is administered quite easily directly into the spinal fluid and numb the pain sensation very quickly and the pain relief is complete throughout the body.

Though it is quick in its action, it lasts only for few hours and is only delivered if your physician thinks that you are to deliver very soon and your labor is progressing rapidly.

Epidural: This is considered a boon for the mother. Pain relieving medication is administered continuously through a catheter into the nerve in the spinal membrane which numbs the sensation waist down and is very effective. Though having epidural in the initial stages of labor could stall the labor.

During a C-section delivery, a combination of an epidural and spinal block is effectively used.

 

Common sporting injuries and how to alleviate the pain

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We are often encouraged to get active and play a sport early in life. Kids are taught early in their life various different sporting activities that are not only fun, but teach discipline and tolerance as they get older. While sporting activities keep you active and often encourages good health and an ideal lifestyle, sporting injuries are unavoidable and most sport players will experience a series of injuries throughout their professional or non-professional career. Whether you play a sport for fun and enjoyment or as a professional career, once you have experienced a serious sporting injury that causes pain, you must seek treatment immediately.

gggWhile most sporting accidents can easily be treated with the use of painkillers, more severe injuries will require more invasive treatments that may include constant pain management techniques.

Sporting injuries, like the industry, comes in various different forms and affect different areas of the body. If you are an avid sports player, knowing some of the possible injuries that may occur can keep you on the ball and ready for almost anything in the event of an accident. To learn of some possible sporting injuries that you may experience during the life of your career, continue reading and get informed.

Common types of sporting injuries

Strains – strains are injuries that may affect your tendons (tissues connecting your muscles to your bones) and or muscles. There are various degrees to strains, which are more commonly referred to as muscle pulls.

Tendinitis – can affect any player, especially if they are known to apply poor mechanics. This injury is the inflammation of tendons.

Sprains – are possibly the most common sporting injuries and a sprain is an injury to ligaments.

Fasciitis – is the inflammation of the fibrous tissues covering tendons and muscles. The most common type of fasciitis is what is known as plantar fasciitis, which can affect regular people who walks or jogs a lot.

If you experience any of the mentioned sports injuries or some of the more severe injuries, applying simple home treatments may alleviate the pain. The acronym PRICE best explains the process of taking care of pain in the home.

girl-in-painProtection – protect your injuries immediately by applying bandages and other protective materials.

Rest – give your injury time to heal by allowing it to rest.

Ice – is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to treat a sporting injury.

Compression – applying pressure will cause an inflammation and swelling to decrease.

Elevation – by elevating your feet, fluid will be drained from the injured area.

While PRICE will help to heal early and minor injuries, this method will not work with all injuries and you may need medication or even rehabilitation to treat your pain caused by sporting injuries. Medications with the ingredient Acetaminophen are perfect for pain; however, this may not be enough and you may need time to rehabilitate.

Rehabilitation is not as drastic as it sounds and there are various rehabilitation centers that offer effective care to sport players who need their services. So, if you have a severe injury that needs treatment, do not hesitate to seek help.

Quality of Life: The Goal of Pain Management

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Quality of Life: A Change in Healthcare Trends

Quality of life has become a buzzword in healthcare. More and more, healthcare providers are taking quality of life into consideration when suggesting treatment options. With so much emphasis being placed on quality of life, you need to understand what quality of life means and how it relates to pain management.

Quality of Life Defined

Quality of life is a measurement of your overall well-being. It takes into consideration your physical, emotional, spiritual, and social needs. Your quality of life is negatively impacted by pain. One of the goals of proper pain management is to implement pain control to improve your quality of life.

Pain Relief and Your Life

It’s important that your pain management plan takes into consideration the various aspects of your life, not just your condition and treatment. For instance, your personal religious beliefs need to be considered. Your social life is impacted by pain, too, so your involvement in social activities needs to be thought of, also. You are more than just a body. The emotional or psychological impact of pain needs to be addressed.

Pain Management is Your Choice

The point is that proper pain management takes the whole person into consideration. It’s your life, and you should be able to live it the way you want to, in spite of pain. Pain management should be a collaborative effort between you and your healthcare provider to ensure that your quality of life is maintained at a level of your choosing.

Tools to Measure Quality of Life

There are numerous tools available to your healthcare provider that aids in measuring your quality of life. Most of these tools come in the form of a survey or inventory. Of particular importance to any tool used to measure quality of life is your input.

Your Role in All of This

Any of your responses to questions asked by your healthcare provider will be included in any pain management plan. It’s important that you give accurate and honest answers to any questions asked of you by your healthcare provider. Also, be sure to address anything that wasn’t covered by the survey or inventory. When it comes to quality of life and pain management, your voice matters.

A Means of Discovery

As you complete the quality of life measuring tool, you may discover situations or activities in your life that may actually impact your level of pain. As you think of these issues, discuss them with your healthcare provider. Remember, pain management is a team effort. Your healthcare provider will not know about the particular details of your life unless you bring them up.

Pain and Relationships

Another important area that pain can affect is your relationships, especially since pain can cause you to feel depressed or stressed. Any negative emotions that are caused by pain will affect your relationships. Pain management that considers quality of life will include your relationships within the discussion of a pain management plan. It’s also good to include your loved ones as part of the pain management team. They are the ones who are with you daily, and know you better than anyone else. They may be able to provide information that you leave out or may not even consider. Your quality of life includes your relationships.

Pain Management Restores Quality of Life

The purpose of a pain management plan is to bring relief to your pain so that you can resume life at a level that is close to the level you were experiencing before the pain. Pain management is about restoring quality of life. Quality of life takes a holistic look at your life, and so should any pain management plan.

If your pain management plan doesn’t take your whole life into consideration, speak with your healthcare provider. You don’t have to settle for a lower quality of life because you are in pain. There are options available to you that will help you deal with the pain and enjoy the things in life that you enjoyed before your pain. Good pain management goes beyond simply addressing the pain and considers how pain affects you as a person.