then, if you can) start to do the real work of recovery, which is all the things you need to do to prevent cravings in the first place, and it’s what this book is all about.
Narcotic Pain Pills (for People with Chronic Pain)
The following tips are for people with chronic pain who want to cut down or eliminate their use of narcotic pain pills by managing their pain in other ways.
Move. The biggest risk factor for worsening chronic pain is sitting still. Don’t get frozen. Sometimes fear may get in your way, but it’s absolutely critical that you get active (within the safe limits prescribed by your doctor, of course). It may seem counterintuitive, but people who move have reductions in chronic pain more than those who stay still. Not sure what activities are safe for you? Ask your doctor.
Sleep. The research on sleep and chronic pain is clear: sleep deprivation worsens chronic pain. If you aren’t sure how to get a good night’s sleep, try these tips from the Mayo Clinic: www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep/HQ01387 . Research shows that simple actions can be more effective for insomnia than sleeping pills. Sound too good to be true? The research is in: cognitive-behavioral methods for improving sleep are as effective as pills and may be even more so in the long run.
Remember that narcotic pain pills can make it easier for you to feel pain in the long run. There is a fancy medical term for this: opiate-induced hyperalgesia. What you need to know is that your individual threshold for pain (how bad it needs to be before you really feel it, before it bothers you) can go down with long-term exposure to narcotic pain pills. Making an effort, with your doctor’s approval/assistance, to reduce or eliminate your dependence on narcotic pain pills can actually improve your pain threshold in the long haul.
Address the stress. Stress has been shown time and again to worsen chronic pain. People with higher stress levels also tend to take more narcotic pain medications. Reducing your stress can make it much easier to taper off your pain medications (under a doctor’s supervision, of course).
Connect with others. Chronic pain support groups can really make a difference. Chapter 7 of this book explores the power of groups, and they can work for chronic pain too. There are many groups to choose from. One place to start is the American Chronic Pain Association. See www.theACPA.org for more information.
Do things you enjoy. As long as they are safe for you (and your doctor can tell you whether they are), staying involved in hobbies and interests that you enjoy can reduce pain.
Reduce or eliminate alcohol. Alcohol can worsen chronic pain and can interact with pain medications in a way that makes pain worse over the long haul. Also, alcohol can worsen sleep—and good sleep is critical to managing chronic pain. Finally, alcohol use can make it harder to wean yourself off narcotics.
Ask your doctor if you can come off narcotic pain medications. If you can, detoxing from these medications and following the suggestions in this book can dramatically reduce or eliminate cravings for addictive pain medications.
Sugar
Too much sugar can cause many health problems, including weight gain, heart disease, diabetes, tooth decay, and depression. If you have a health condition or illness, connect with your doctor or nutritionist to make sure these tips for cutting back on sugar and dealing with sugar cravings are right for you.
Stop eating sugar and refined carbohydrates. This is the hardest suggestion of all. You may go through sugar withdrawal, and it can take a couple of weeks for the cravings to calm down, although each individual craving will generally only last a few minutes. One thing is clear: sugar cravers should detox from sugar if at all possible. And white flour should be avoided at all costs. To be clear: the sugar in natural foods like fruits are fine, but the white powdery/granular stuff that looks like cocaine should be
Narcotic Pain Pills (for People with Chronic Pain)
The following tips are for people with chronic pain who want to cut down or eliminate their use of narcotic pain pills by managing their pain in other ways.
Move. The biggest risk factor for worsening chronic pain is sitting still. Don’t get frozen. Sometimes fear may get in your way, but it’s absolutely critical that you get active (within the safe limits prescribed by your doctor, of course). It may seem counterintuitive, but people who move have reductions in chronic pain more than those who stay still. Not sure what activities are safe for you? Ask your doctor.
Sleep. The research on sleep and chronic pain is clear: sleep deprivation worsens chronic pain. If you aren’t sure how to get a good night’s sleep, try these tips from the Mayo Clinic: www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep/HQ01387 . Research shows that simple actions can be more effective for insomnia than sleeping pills. Sound too good to be true? The research is in: cognitive-behavioral methods for improving sleep are as effective as pills and may be even more so in the long run.
Remember that narcotic pain pills can make it easier for you to feel pain in the long run. There is a fancy medical term for this: opiate-induced hyperalgesia. What you need to know is that your individual threshold for pain (how bad it needs to be before you really feel it, before it bothers you) can go down with long-term exposure to narcotic pain pills. Making an effort, with your doctor’s approval/assistance, to reduce or eliminate your dependence on narcotic pain pills can actually improve your pain threshold in the long haul.
Address the stress. Stress has been shown time and again to worsen chronic pain. People with higher stress levels also tend to take more narcotic pain medications. Reducing your stress can make it much easier to taper off your pain medications (under a doctor’s supervision, of course).
Connect with others. Chronic pain support groups can really make a difference. Chapter 7 of this book explores the power of groups, and they can work for chronic pain too. There are many groups to choose from. One place to start is the American Chronic Pain Association. See www.theACPA.org for more information.
Do things you enjoy. As long as they are safe for you (and your doctor can tell you whether they are), staying involved in hobbies and interests that you enjoy can reduce pain.
Reduce or eliminate alcohol. Alcohol can worsen chronic pain and can interact with pain medications in a way that makes pain worse over the long haul. Also, alcohol can worsen sleep—and good sleep is critical to managing chronic pain. Finally, alcohol use can make it harder to wean yourself off narcotics.
Ask your doctor if you can come off narcotic pain medications. If you can, detoxing from these medications and following the suggestions in this book can dramatically reduce or eliminate cravings for addictive pain medications.
Sugar
Too much sugar can cause many health problems, including weight gain, heart disease, diabetes, tooth decay, and depression. If you have a health condition or illness, connect with your doctor or nutritionist to make sure these tips for cutting back on sugar and dealing with sugar cravings are right for you.
Stop eating sugar and refined carbohydrates. This is the hardest suggestion of all. You may go through sugar withdrawal, and it can take a couple of weeks for the cravings to calm down, although each individual craving will generally only last a few minutes. One thing is clear: sugar cravers should detox from sugar if at all possible. And white flour should be avoided at all costs. To be clear: the sugar in natural foods like fruits are fine, but the white powdery/granular stuff that looks like cocaine should be
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