The documents and links contained within this web page will explain more about chronic pain, how this is different from acute pain and a bit more about how chronic pain is managed. Once completed you will have a better understanding of pain management and have the tools to improve your quality of life.
Chronic pain affects millions of people in the UK, so you’re not alone. It can have a huge impact on your quality of life and can also affect the lives of your family and those around you. Our goal is to use this website and other resources to support and empower you to improve your quality of life and live with pain.
Understanding Chronic Pain
The “Understanding persistent pain” leaflet below provides information for people who have been told they have chronic pain.
Medication in Chronic Pain
Only 30% of patients get 30% of the benefits from medication 30% of the time.
The video below ‘Some pain medications can make your pain worse’ is by Dr Deepak Ravindran, a Pain Consultant in Reading.
Opioid Side Effects & Reducing and Stopping Opioids
For information on the side effects of opioids and for information on how to reduce and stop opioids.
Patient Expert Chronic Pain Videos
Chronic Pain – An Introduction
This video is one of a series designed to help those with chronic pain that has been fully medically investigated. The videos cover a series of topics and aim to help those with long term pain gain a better understanding of the pain itself. They also provide help in dealing successfully with the effects of chronic pain, such as poor sleep, stress, lowered activity and flare ups.
Understanding Chronic Pain
Why do we need to understand pain?
- What we understand we can manage
- We all think we know what pain is
- All pain is not the same
- There are two parts:
- Part 1 – what is pain and how it arises
- Part 2 – what is chronic pain and can it be managed?
Chronic Pain and Setbacks
Setbacks are to be expected. They’re a bit like holes in the road – you can’t avoid them all. This is not necessarily a sign that things are worsening and you will find they do settle. Sometimes we can identify a reason for a setback and there are things you can do to reduce how often they occur and how long they may last.
Chronic Pain and Activity
Simple, everyday activities like walking, swimming, gardening and dancing can ease some of the pain directly by blocking pain signals to the brain.
Activity also helps lessen pain by stretching stiff and tense muscles, ligaments and joints.
Try to be active every day instead of only on the good days when you’re not in so much pain. This may reduce the number of bad days you have and help you feel more in control. Try to avoid overdoing it on good days to avoid payback and increasing bad days.
Self-Management
How to Pace Yourself
Living Well with Pain
Professor Tamar Pincus discusses how to live well with chronic pain.
Online Resources
Sleep Well With Pain Patient Leaflet
Physiotherapy Keep Active Videos
Aliss Community Health & Wellbeing
Pain Association Scotland Help and Support
Podcasts
#310 How To Heal Chronic Pain with Dr Howard Schubiner
#472 How to Break Free from Chronic Pain and Reclaim Your Life with Professor Peter O’Sullivan
Below is Peter’s story. He was told there was nothing else for him following an industrial accident and that he would be in chronic pain for the rest of his life.
Reading Resources
- Overcoming Chronic Pain by Francis Cole
- Mindfulness for Health by Danny Penman and Vidyamala Burch
- The Way Out: Approach to Healing Chronic Pain by Alan Gordon
- The Pain Free mindset by Dr Deepak Ravindran
Telephone Helpline Numbers
- Fibromyalgia 0300 999 3333
- Arthritis and low back pain 0300 790 0400
Facebook has a Partnering Pain page run by patients with chronic pain. You can also scan the QR code below.
NHS Help & Resources
NHS Inform Chronic Pain
For help and advice regarding chronic pain from NHS Inform
Active for Life
Active for Life is a referral-based programme which is initiated with a referral from a your GP or Practice Nurse. It is a 12 week guided activity programme committed to helping individuals increase their health and wellbeing with the overall aim of improving quality of life.
Psychological Support with Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
Chronic pain involves thoughts, feelings and behaviours. CBT is a form of therapy that helps us to retrain thoughts, feelings and behaviours to help you manage pain so it doesn’t manage you. It helps you to look after your whole self and improve your long term quality of life. It is an 8 week online course supported by a therapist who will check in on you weekly. It takes around 1 hour a week but you can go at your own pace, in your own home. You need to give it a chance to work so a bit like a tablet or exercise its results will build up over time. If interested in this or other options available, please discuss with your GP or Practice Nurse.
TENS Machine
A TENS machine is a small, battery-operated device that has leads connected to sticky pads called electrodes. The electrical impulses can reduce the pain signals going to the spinal cord and brain, which may help relieve pain and relax muscles. They may also stimulate the production of endorphins, which are the body’s natural painkillers. These can be purchased online or talk to your local pharmacist.
Occupational Health Support
Occupational health support is a specialist branch of medicine that focuses on the physical and mental well-being of employees in the workplace. Occupational health aims to prevent work-related illness and injury by: encouraging safe working practices for example ergonomics (studying how you work and how you could work better). Please ask your employer what Occupational Health services they provide.
Tayside Pain Service
Tayside Pain Service is made up of consultants, specialised physiotherapists and a psychologist who help people experiencing pain which causes a large impact on day to day life. It is a rehabilitative service so it cannot cure pain but instead help people to learn to live with their pain and improve their quality of life as much as possible.