The Western Way For Pain

The western approach to chronic pain specializes in “fixing” the problem. This approach is the legacy of the marvelous discoveries led by the rationalist contribution that began in 17th century. Rationalism was an advancement in many respects on the period of Humanism that was the focus of the Renaissance during the earlier 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, a time when the human body, and the physical aspects of ‘the real world’ were welcomed under such masters as Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Shakespeare, and many others. As a branch of philosophy, Rationalism allowed human beings a new discipline from which to evaluate the human experience. An expansion of previous interpretations of mysticism, religious meaning, and biblical views of life allowed Western medicine to offer innovations and answers that have improved the lives of people around the world.

But is western medicine- as it developed over the past 200 years- sufficient for the needs of people today? Practitioners are often trained in such as way as to approach the maladies presented in the exam room solely through tests, X-rays, MRI’s, or invasive explorations. There are times when those methods are incomplete when considering the totality of the human experience. We are entering into a new Renaissance in our understanding of treating the human person. While the western model of health care is crumbling, showing evidence of an unsustainable model, people are expanding their knowledge and understanding of the human body along with what is possible. Renaissance actually means “new birth” and today we are at the advent of a new understanding of HEALING.

In just the past century alone, medical advances have taken leaps in terms of surgical interventions and pharmacological resources. However, there is a limit to what western medicine has to offer for a person living with chronic pain. When surgical solutions such as spinal blocks, morphine pumps, discectomies, spinal fusions, or other treatments are exhausted, currently most medical solutions rely upon prescription drugs.

To repeat, the contributions of western medicine are mighty and have altered the trajectory of mankind. Today, in the second decade of the 21st century people around the world live longer lives, largely in part to the innovations of the medical advances driven in the west. But the approaches of western medicine as the sole arbiter of answers for chronic pain has met a threshold. As doctors prescribe pharmacological solutions, or surgical interventions, it has become evident that for those who suffer from a chronic pain condition, a more complete approach is required for those who live with daily pain.

Medications For Pain

Types of pain medications

•*Peripherally active analgesics*- aspirin, Motrin, Tylenol, etc.
•*Centrally active analgesics*-narcoticsthat bind to opiate receptors in the brain such as oxycodone, morphine, codeine, etc.
•*Local analgesics*-Novocain, sometimes ice or heat to blunt the nerve ending, etc.
•*Indirectly acting drugs*- alcohol,Xanax, SSRI’s, and SNRI’s

Medication can be a really good thing. Surgery and prescription drugs are important tools in that neither are ‘bad’, in the sense that both offer some help. But for most chronic pain patients, surgery and pharmacological aids offer limited answers. Therefore, to most people who suffer with a chronic pain condition, once a threshold is reached from the traditional western approach, it can appear as if there are no further resources.

UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF MEDICATION

Medication is a tool, simply a tool. For chronic pain sufferers it can make the difference between lying in bed all day or the ability to be active. But it is important to understand the role that medication plays in your body, in your psychology, in your energetic levels, and in your relationships. Oftentimes, those who offer complementary therapeutics to a patient who has access to medication tend to characterize the use of prescription drugs as “bad” or “unenlightened” or an indication that the person is unwilling to get better. All of those interpretations are harmful and should be discarded if you are using your medications appropriately. However, it is important for you to fully understand the perspective drugs that you are taking, and WHY. It is important that YOU are in the position of using the medicine and never in the position of the medicine using you. And it is important that you have a range of modalities and tools and techniques that are just as valuable to you as you manage your chronic pain condition.

It is also important to understand that your body will work with all the tools you provide it; this includes non-pharmacological help. We need to find what works best for you. In my programs, you will learn to view your prescribed medications no longer as the only answer, but instead as merely one of the tools in your toolkit.