With 1/5 Australians over the age of 65 struggling with chronic pain, many of us can understand the frustration that persistent pain can bring. Chronic pain is any type of pain that stays with us for over 6 months, and this generally increases with age.
As common and ‘normal’ as pain is, we are continually learning about and so the way we treat and manage pain is continually evolving. To begin managing pain, we have to understand it a little better. Pain is one of our body’s natural protective systems- its intention is to change human behaviour. This works as an alarm system to notify and protect us. For example, if we touch a hot stove, we feel pain which notifies us to remove our hand and protect us from further tissue damage. However, with chronic pain, sometimes this alarm system can become too over-protective. A basic example of this- Imagine coming home from work to find your house has been burgled and your belongings stolen… You’d probably purchase an upgraded, more efficient alarm system to prevent this negative experience from occurring again. Now imagine a few weeks later, a cat walks by your house and sets off the new alarm system. The cat poses no actual threat to your house, but the alarm is very sensitive and alerts you to potential danger.
Our nervous system follows a very similar response to this. It becomes hyper vigilant and protective to even the smallest posture, movement, or task – even ones we found easy prior to our initial injury.
Greg Lehman, A Canadian Health Professional used an overflowing cup as an analogy to help understand and manage chronic pain. Certain injury/pain ‘stressors’ begin to fill our cup – joint changes, fear, work stress, depression, anxiety, social isolation, frustration, false beliefs, lack of support, etc. These stressors begin to rise and eventually our cup overflows – signifying a pain experience. There are 2 ways we can manage our cup – we can reduce our stressors (reduce the water level) or we can increase our ability to manage these stressors (build a bigger cup). Good news – Exercise can help both of these strategies.
Thinking about exercise and getting started can be the most daunting and hardest part. We have to keep in mind how resilient and adaptable the human body can be. With graded exposure to movements our systems gradually learn a more effective and comfortable way to move again. Think of it like stepping into a hot shower on a cold winter day. At first the hot water can hurt a little, but after a little time it feels normal. The temperature of the water hasn’t changed, our body has simply adapted to tolerate this.
Current research tells us that exercise and movement is beneficial for those suffering from chronic pain and is a vital part of treatment. Exercise can also help build resilience, confidence, and the feeling of control over your lifestyle. However, as everyone’s pain is different it is important to be assessed by an exercise physiologist or physiotherapist to ensure your exercise is specific for you and help you to resume the activities that pain may be limiting.
