The holidays are full of fun, food, friends, and family — but for the millions of people living with chronic pain, holidays can also be filled with physical pain and emotional upset. Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take to help manage your symptoms while still enjoying the holidays to their fullest.
As a leading provider of interventional pain management strategies, Zaid Malik, MD, helps patients at Superior Pain Relief find a solution that works for their symptoms, their health, and their lifestyles. Here, Dr. Malik and his team offer five strategies you can use to reduce painful symptoms while making the most of your holiday plans.
The holiday season can be demanding, especially when you’re trying to do it all. When pain strikes, it can be tempting to simply push through it — but doing so can lead to worse symptoms that can last for weeks or longer.
A better choice: Plan your schedule to include opportunities to rest and recover between activities and events. Breaking big tasks into smaller chunks can help, too — for instance, prepping meals in advance or wrapping a few gifts at a time. Consider online shopping to avoid seemingly endless trips to the mall; you can even opt to have gifts wrapped and delivered.
You’ve probably heard it before: Sleep is when your body repairs itself, and it’s also important for reducing inflammation that leads to painful symptoms. Unfortunately, busy holiday schedules often leave you short on sleep, and when you do catch those all-important Zzzs, you may not be getting the quality sleep you need to stay healthy and comfortable.
The good news is that it’s a lot easier to optimize your sleep than you might think. This list of 20 tips can help, but in a nutshell, begin by establishing — and sticking to — a normal sleep-wake schedule. Make sure your bedroom environment is focused on relaxation, eliminating distractions that can lead to restless nights. Using pillows to support your back, neck, or legs helps relieve stress on sore joints, too.
When you’re in pain, staying active may sound counterintuitive. But pain — including joint pain — benefits from regular exercise, as long as you don’t overdo it. Exercise improves circulation, flooding tissues with oxygen and chemicals necessary for healing and reducing inflammation.
For optimal benefits, choose low-impact activities, like walking, swimming, or cycling, to avoid straining your joints. Regular activity helps lower stress levels, too, making it easier to cope and manage your pain more effectively.
Holiday foods and celebrations often include excess sugar, sodium, alcohol, and unhealthy fats, each of which can increase inflammation and worsen pain over time. Being extra busy often means reaching for processed foods, chock full of preservatives and other chemicals and compounds that promote inflammation.
Holiday season or not, if you’re dealing with chronic pain, your body can benefit from an anti-inflammatory diet focused on vegetables, fruits, lean protein, whole grains, and healthy fats. These ingredients support your body’s natural healing processes and help fight off cellular changes associated with inflammation.
Drinking plenty of water is important, too, to avoid muscle cramps, joint pain, and general fatigue.
Emotional stress can increase your sensitivity to pain, making symptoms feel more intense. The holidays often come with added pressure that can make it especially challenging to cope with pain and manage your symptoms successfully.
Make it a priority to set aside some time each day to decompress, whether that means practicing meditation or yoga or simply doing something you really enjoy, like reading or listening to relaxing music. When you relax your mind, you relax your muscles and your body releases “feel-good” hormones that reduce pain levels naturally.
The team at Superior Pain Relief has years of expertise creating treatment plans aimed at helping people manage their pain, with long-term solutions focused on relieving symptoms and improving overall quality of life during the holiday season and throughout the year.
To learn how we can help you find a pain solution that works for your needs and your lifestyle, request an appointment online or over the phone today at the Superior Pain Relief location near you — in Baytown, Willis, and The Woodlands, Texas.
