It's no secret that seniors have pain.
Talk to even the most active seniors and they will tell you that at one time or another, they have experienced pain.
So what is pain?
It is a protective mechanism that signals potential or actual damage to the body, prompting us to take action to prevent further harm. Pain serves as a crucial aspect of survival, alerting us to injuries or threatening situations. Here are key aspects to understand about pain:
Pain can mean different things to different folks.
It depends if we have pain in one local area or if the pain is chronic.
Chronic pain tends to thrust our emotions into chaos. For example, many of you have heard of people who get angry when they're hungry, also known as hangry. There is also pain that can make us angry called “paingry”.
Pain will keep us from doing the very things that bring us an amazing life.
Productivity: We find it challenging to focus and stay on task when we are hurting. Every time we move, we want to scream, “Ow-Ow”. Headaches can tell us we are dehydrated. It signals us to drink more water.
See our Super Ager's Starter Guide Chapter 2 with a 17-question quiz on your mobility.
Physical Activities: Who wants to walk when their foot hurts? Many of our family members who care for their seniors do not understand what it is like to live with pain. We suggest they put a small pebble in their shoe and walk around with it for a day. When they do this, they get the picture.
Social Events: Super seniors do not go out and enjoy events while talking about pain and doctor’s appointments. Instead, they find that these social events get their mind off the pain. They feel better after they’ve enjoyed an outing. But many times we tend to pass up opportunities to socialize because of pain.
Mental & Emotional Health: Pain leads to depression. It can cause overall mood swings and irritability. While most people hate going to the dentist, when they have a toothache, they are loving their dentists when the pain goes away!
Sleep Quality: Pain can disrupt sleep patterns, leading to difficulties falling asleep or staying asleep. Poor sleep quality contributes to fatigue, exacerbating the challenges associated with pain management. Many seniors do not realize that waking with pain in their joints may very well be due to their mattress and not them. Changing a mattress is the first step.
Daily Tasks: Doing everyday things like cooking can be a challenge. Combing our hair when our arm won’t raise due to pain. How can we put a dish in the refrigerator when it hurts to lift the dish?
Travel and Transportation: Getting in and out of a car. Even turning the steering wheel. How about turning our heads to see who is in our blind spot? Can’t? Because it hurts too much.
With the effects pain can have on our daily lives, what is the solution?
Do we really want another pill?
How do Super-agers deal with pain?
Here are some natural ways to alleviate pain. I’ve seen patients with complete bedrest get out and start moving again because they changed a few choices.
1 - Get moving. Get some stretches in. See Julia Marie’s 30-day Yoga Weight Loss Challenge. She is spot on and does a wonderful job of challenging you to get stretching and moving without ripping your joints apart. Plus, her tips are amazing!
2 - Eat more fiber. This is going to change your gut microbes and the amount of inflammation you have. As a side note, how much food are you eating? How overweight are you? Do your bones and muscles like the added weight? Food for thought: What do healthy seniors eat? We see them eating fruits and vegetables they cut up themselves. Not “healthy” sugar-filled fiber bars.
3 - Eat foods that have 1 or 2 items on the label. Healthy seniors will not eat foods with ingredients they cannot pronounce. Since there is no regulation on what is “organic” or “natural”, food marketing companies have gone hog-wild putting these words on labels.
4 - Warm up your muscles and joints. When you warm a local part of your body you are getting blood to that particular area by dilating the blood vessels in that area. Blood is the healing power of the body. Get blood to those joints and muscles.
5 - Social Networks. Get out more and stay active. You won’t dwell on your pain when you are busy thinking or doing something else. Besides, your friends and family miss you and want to see you. Stay in touch!
6 - Try natural herbs. A better bet is to see a functional medicine doctor. They are experts on what will work for your pain and get you moving again. I’ve seen super seniors go from lousy marriages and attitudes to wonderful new relationships with their spouses. Nothing changed but the advice and habits they embraced.
7 - Sleep well. Go to bed at the same time every night and try for 7-8 hours of good sleep. Waking up? Keep your phone nearby and listen to soft music or an audiobook. Audiobooks are great if you are a worrier because you get into the book and fall asleep again. The only problem is when you wake in the morning, you don’t know where you left off so you have to start all over again!
8 - Relax more. Besides stretching, take time out for yourself. Unplug the cell phone and TV. Try living in the moment. What’s it like to have nothing to do? Hmmm.
Let's not forget our family caregivers! If you are struggling to figure out how your loved ones are doing, check out Chapter 6 of the FREE Caregiver's Starter Guide. This has an amazing trick that will give you a reference point on how well your senior is doing!
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