Living With Chronic Pain and Finding Gratitude
Chronic pain is one of the most misunderstood conditions a human being can struggle with, because it is so strange and unusual. Because of this, living with chronic pain can be extremely difficult. Most people understand pain as a sharp sensation, a temporary warning that accompanies some sort of immediate threat/danger, or injury.
If you cut yourself, your brain signals you to pay attention to the cut, treat it, and keep it away from any physical contact. Your skin becomes hyper-sensitive, and you prioritize getting away from that feeling of hurt.
Chronic pain is different. It doesn’t go away. It doesn’t have a good reason to exist in the first place. It’s just pain, coming and going, always there, making life miserable for anyone who suffers from it. But because it’s so difficult to comprehend, people often can’t help but say things like “it can’t be so bad” or “you’re just exaggerating”.
This makes living with chronic pain especially difficult. Not only do you have to deal with the pain, but with the stigma of not being able to do many “normal” things. However, even with these challenges, life is still worth it. And here’s how you can make it work.
What You Need to Know About Living With Chronic Pain
Firstly: you’re not alone. While chronic pain isn’t extremely prevalent, we do live in an increasingly small world, and there are countless places both locally and virtually where America’s chronic pain population can come together for support, motivation, and leisure.
It’s not just America. The Internet lets you see what it’s like living with chronic pain in other countries. It lets you see how different people from completely diverse backgrounds deal with many of the same issues, and still manage to find a little joy in life. There’s a whole community out there, ready to share with you what it’s like to not just struggle with chronic pain, but manage it. By interacting with others working with chronic pain management, you can do the same.
When living with chronic pain, it’s important to remember: you still have friends and family. People who care for you, are patient through the hard days, and make it possible for you to live a “normal” life with a clean home, healthy food and loving company.
No matter how bad some days get, life is still life. It goes on, and better days are always on the horizon. And even if you can’t do some of the things that you used to do, life can still make you smile, laugh, and love.
What Others Need to Know
The most important thing others should know about living with chronic pain is this: it’s seriously hard being in pain all the time.
It can cut into your appetite and keep you from moving, causing muscle atrophy, lowering your self-esteem and making you feel even more miserable. And when you just want to lie down and sleep, some nights the pain is so bad that you can’t even drift off in peace. Pain keeps you from enjoying time with your family, and time to yourself.
Thankfully, life isn’t all pain in most cases. Some days are good, good enough to allow walking. Some days, however, the pain is so much that you can’t even sit down, let alone stand or go for a stroll. Misunderstanding a good day for a sign of significant improvement just makes someone living with chronic pain feel worse about themselves.
Finally; they’re still human beings. They get angry. They can be miserable. It’s important to be patient and empathic.
The Role that Gratitude Plays When Living With Chronic Pain
When living with chronic pain, it’s important to appreciate the good things in life, because otherwise, the pain wins. It will swallow you whole and leave nothing but a shell of your former self. But you’re more than that. Just because you’re in pain doesn’t mean you’re no longer you – you’re still you, you’re still human, and you still have the power in your mind to mean something to others, have a purpose and achieve personal greatness.
The first step to realizing that, however, lies in being happy and grateful for the gifts of life that you can still enjoy to this day.
It’s true that life will never be easy living with chronic pain, but it can be great. Even with the pain, life is worth living if you have the power to feel grateful for the good days, and the happy memories. And with a little imagination, there is so much left for you to do despite the pain – far more than you could ever accomplish in a single lifetime.
Diseases like fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue don’t have to be a death sentence – they may be challenging, and hard to deal with, but with the help of your loved ones and your own sheer will, you can still live a fulfilling and happy life. Through different techniques for pain management, living with chronic pain can be easier.
