BalanceOctober2016 - 44

S LUG HEA DER a t a h W pain! We've been conditioned to reach for drugs as soon as symptoms strike. However, holistic pain specialist Sophia Kupse believes there are other options Illustrations by S H A R M M U RU G I A H P ain is your body's way of letting you know it's been damaged or something is wrong. We've all experienced it and usually take immediate action to help put things right. Emotional pain, on the other hand, is a by-product of either short- or long-term psychological conditions, including stress, anxiety or depression, often brought on by life events. Sometimes, people struggling with pain will turn to a medical solution, such as painkillers or antidepressants, without addressing the underlying causes. But a holistic approach to relieving pain is important for recovery, as it means the root cause is being treated, as opposed to just the symptom. As a holistic pain specialist, I have seen people every day in my practice, for over 20 years, who have been down the medical route, but still cannot find a reason for their pain. According to the Health and Safety Executive Labour Force survey (2014/2015), stress, depression, anxiety, musculoskeletal disorders and back pain result in the loss of more than nine million working days a year. But new studies published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine suggest our most frequently-used strong medications are not only ineffective, they may even be dangerous. ORIGINS OF PAIN It is important to recognise different levels of pain, which fit in two classifications... 44 Acute pain is short-term pain of less In my experience, it is also important that than 12 weeks' duration; chronic pain a client recognises where and when their is defined as continuous long-term pain pain originated. For example, one client of that either lasts more than 12 weeks, or mine had suffered from chronic back persists for an unusual length pain for more than 10 years, which NOT EFFECTIVE of time following trauma or had led to sciatica (pain caused Reports reveal that by irritation or compression surgery, or due to conditions opioid painkillers that of a spinal nerve root). It including osteoarthritis. include morphine, If the cause of pain can't was only after we got to the tramadol and be put down to physical cause of the pain, which oxycodone provide only 'minimal trauma, or a diagnosed was related to his difficult benefit' for lower condition or autoimmune relationship with his mother, back pain. disease, it's likely to be from that we could begin to restore inflammation in the muscles his health. He worked on letting go - created by accumulated lactic acid of the past and learned to accept that his - which has formed knots that are putting mother's negative behaviour towards him was not his fault, but rather, it was related to how she had been rejected by her own parents. Following this, his pain healed within days and it never came back. However, it's worth remembering that A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO chronic pain can be debilitating and not RELIEVING PAIN MEANS straightforward to treat. But exploring the THE ROOT CAUSE IS BEING mind/body connection is important. TREATED, AS OPPOSED TO JUST THE SYMPTOMS POSITIVE BENEFITS pressure on the sensory nerves. There are three main habitual or environmental causes of inflammation: dehydration, lack of movement and sugar. It is essential to address these factors and many people have alleviated their symptoms through following an anti-inflammatory diet. Different people 'hold' stress in various ways; some hold it in their minds. They may worry so much about a problem they can't think clearly. Negative thoughts activate adrenaline and cortisol, our body's 'fight or flight' response. If you do not use it quickly, it converts to lactic acid, building knots and pressure pockets in the biggest BALANCE October 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BalanceOctober2016