Every single one of our community members has experienced, will experience, or chronically experiences stress and pain.
There are too many causes to list, but one that is true to my heart is stress and chronic pain tied to under-represented illness and disease.
Unfortunately stress and pain are unavoidable. Fortunately, a constant support system we have available is each other. Our community is strong.
I’m sure you’ve witnessed how community members come together in times of need, disaster, and unknowns. Destructive fires, crime, the pandemic – I’ve witnessed it first hand and I’m certainly thankful to be connected to a strong, caring, all-hands-on-deck community.
If we collectively come together and support each other on a regular basis – envision how much of an impact on each other’s health we could make! Whether it be through listening, offering welcomed advice and guidance, or helping with a task that is tough for another.
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were ways to lessen the burden?
A resident living with chronic pain said, “In my opinion the worst thing a person living with chronic pain can do is to isolate themselves.”
“It helps to get out in the community and meet people. Many of us deal with chronic pain.” Recommendations include, “staying as active as possible, getting out and being around other people as much as you can, and try to focus on positive things in the community around us.”
It’s important to remember our physical bodies are closely intertwined to our mental wellbeing. “Our mental outlook is very important because it is easy to continue to feel down when you’re experiencing chronic pain,” the resident continued.
“I think if you’ve had success managing chronic pain as best as you can you have advice to offer other people. You develop ways that work for you and you’re able to share them with others. That doesn’t mean everything will work for someone else, but there may be something that may work for someone else. I think that’s the silver lining. Just learning, going along and refining what can help you.”
You are not alone.
The pain, stress, and any other emotions or struggles you experience are valid. Pairing with the right medical team for you is a vital piece of the puzzle of managing your health. In my opinion, the community we surround ourselves with is just as important.
I hope that if you haven’t reached out to other community members, joined an organization, or sipped tea at a local coffeehouse ‘just to get out’ and lift your spirits that this article inspires you to do so.
It’s my belief that by doing so it helps combat mental health struggles (anxiety, depression), allows for greater understanding and personal experience sharing amongst neighbors, and offers things to look forward to!
It’s up to us to find the silver lining in life’s struggles. Fostering friendships, learning from others, and finding joy in the beauty, people, and opportunities in our community is wonderful.
I would like to share key insight from experts I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing,
Dr. David Clarke: “Stress is capable of causing every bit as many and severe symptoms as organ diseases and structural abnormalities.”
Dr. Richard Lipton: “People do much worse following a high-stress day than they do following a low-stress day, and the magnitude of that effect is equivalent to about four years of normal aging.”
According to Lipton, “Half of older adults meet the International Association for the Study of Pain criteria for chronic pain.”
A helpful link to the understanding the Stanford 1-10 pain scale can be found at this link.
Victoria Karian, CPNP-PC, “Anxiety and stress are the most prevalent migraine and headache trigger.”
Sharon Terry, “The biggest piece of advice I have is to get support.” She continued on stating that individuals “don’t have to be completely on [their] own, completely strong standing on [their] own two feet, and really reach out” for support.
As we know with “invisible illnesses,” it can be difficult for others to understand or acknowledge them.
Dr. Francesca Puledda, “It’s so important to share your medical experiences.”
Dr. Rashmi Mullur, “Sometimes [patients] learn to ignore certain symptoms just to kind of get through the day,” when living with chronic disease. Running on empty “promotes a stress response in the body,” Mullur said. “It makes it much harder for patients to feel effective in terms of making other changes and it decreases their ability to cope long-term.”
Living with pain and stress is challenging but linking up with other community members can ease your mind, give you hope, and propel you in a positive direction.
Stress is all around us. It impacts us in many apparent and invisible ways. It’s important to step back from the stress and lean into support.
This website does not provide medical advice. No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It is for informational purposes only. Always seek the advice of a medical professional or other qualified health care provider on any health matter or question.