Getting the Best Treatment for Your Fibromyalgia
Imagine being in pain and none of your doctors can find a clear reason for it. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon experience for many of the 4 million Americans living with fibromyalgia, a chronic, painful condition. People with fibromyalgia experience widespread pain, aches, and stiffness in muscles and joints throughout the body, as well […]
Working from Home Can Be a Real Pain
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed just about everything in our lives, including the drastic increase in working from home. It’s a trend that’s bound to continue, as countless people have gotten used to the convenience of working in their pajamas without needing to commute to the office. But for some, working from home has, literally, […]
The Perils of Pain
Searching for new solutions to chronic suffering Pain — ongoing, chronic pain that plagues us day after day — can seem almost unbearable at times. Whether it’s a nagging pain in the neck or a constant stabbing in the back that limits mobility, no one wants to be afflicted by it. About 20 percent of […]
Pain and Mental Health
When chronic pain strikes, depression and anxiety can follow Chronic pain is more than a physical problem. Those who suffer from long-term pain often experience emotional and psychological aspects as well, particularly depression and anxiety. Add to that potential anger, frustration, hopelessness, fear and jealousy, and the emotional symptoms of chronic pain can quickly become […]
Unexplained abdominal pain could be a pinched nerve
The Medicine Cabinet: Ask the Harvard Experts Q: I have been struggling with a persistent pain on the right side of my belly. Sometimes it feels like it moves from the back to the front and back again. My doctor first ordered blood tests and an abdominal ultrasound. Most recently I had a CT scan […]
Technology Can Put Your Neck on the Line
Collectively, Americans check their smartphones over 8 billion times per day. And young adults age 18 to 24 send or receive an average of 109.5 text messages on a typical day. While this constant use of electronic devices may be great for keeping in touch and staying informed, it’s not great for the human body. […]
Creative Shoe Lacing Helps Ease Foot Pain
The Medicine Cabinet: Ask the Harvard Experts Q: I just bought my third pair of gym shoes, and none of them seem to be comfortable. Could I be tying them wrong? A: Today’s mass-produced shoes often don’t accommodate the quirks of individual feet, which may be wide or narrow or have arches that are high […]
Music can be good medicine
Jan Stouffer, who works as a board certified music therapist at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, uses music to help control patients’ pain and anxiety, to ease their adjustment to the hospital setting, and to promote physical rehabilitation. “Health is a dance back and forth between physical and emotional needs, so the […]
Diet can impact migraines
Eliminating that morning cup of joe, consuming processed foods high in nitrites or monosodium glutamate (MSG), and enjoying too much alcohol are potential headache triggers for individuals battling migraines, says Vincent Martin, M.D., professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Medicine. There are two different approaches to […]
Chronic pain: The ‘invisible’ disability
Sometime back in 2010, a good friend of mine from college who had since become a pediatrician posted a complaint on Facebook about “made up” health conditions. “Fibromyalgia, I’m looking at you,” she wrote. At this time, pain was more of an occasional visitor in my body rather than the permanent tenant it has since […]
Ask the Harvard Experts: Seeking relief for morning foot pain
The Medicine Cabinet Q: Every morning when I get up my right foot hurts so much that I can hardly walk. In addition, I feel a burning and tingling sensation in my right foot and leg during the day. What could be causing this? A: You definitely need to seek medical evaluation. Your symptoms could […]
How to banish aches and pains
Harvard Health Letter Is your back bothering you? Do your hamstrings hurt? Is your neck or shoulder sore? If so, you’ve got a lot of company. Garden-variety tightness, aches, and pains in the major muscles and joints — especially the lower back — are among the most common day-to-day health complaints, according the National Center […]
Ask the Harvard Experts: Trapped nerves can happen in many sites
By Howard LeWine, M.D. Q: What is a trapped nerve? How does it happen? A: The term “trapped nerve” refers to a condition in which a nerve is compressed or pinched. This causes pain, numbness, weakness or other symptoms. There are many sites and causes of nerve compression. Here are some of the common ones: […]
Health Mastery
Pain: A Love Message from the Body of You Dear Self: I would like to address your so-misunderstood and overlooked sensation of pain. Before I do, though, I’d like to clarify who I am. I am not just (as in only) a body, such as those hollow, plastic ones of your Barbie and Ken dolls, adorned and controlled […]
Where Does It Hurt?
Untreated or mistreated chronic pain can lead to the pangs of depression By Morgan Lord When Bill Lipscomb, 60, was in the tightest grips of chronic pain, he couldn’t stand up for more than a minute at a time, and his right leg was so red, hot and sensitive that wearing long pants was out of the question—which […]
Pinpointing cause of lower back pain first step toward relief
Source: Harvard Health Letter Lower back pain is among the most common complaints of older age. The lumbar or lower area of the spine can suffer from many different ailments. “You do most of your bending in the lower back, and that’s probably why the lower back tends to be affected more,” explains Dr. Jeffrey […]
When Everything Hurts
Diagnosis and treatment of fibromyalgia are often elusive By Nancy Maes Diagnosing this disease isn’t easy. It usually takes years, following chronic widespread pain and fatigue and sometimes sleeplessness, depression, migraines, irritable bowel syndrome and brain fog. People who suffer from this disease often spend three to five years consulting one doctor after another seeking a […]
Critical Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Back Pain
1. Should I change my daily activities or exercise routine? 2. Are there positions or activities I should avoid at work or at home? 3. What are the potential risks associated with the proposed treatment? (This is an especially good question when surgery is involved.) 4. What are the potential risks of not treating my back pain? […]
Navigating Back Pain
The spine is, arguably, the most important structure in the human body. It is an extension of the brain, a pathway for the neurological signals that keep us beating, breathing and moving. It is the base of our skeleton, where our limbs and movements begin—it is our backbone. So, it’s no surprise that when something is wrong […]
