Want to Manage Your Pain Quickly? Supportive Therapies Help!

Are you looking for something other than narcotics or medications to manage your pain quickly? Or, perhaps you wish to know more options to help support a pain management plan for another?

Supportive therapies can provide a complement to pain relief. These modalities may reduce the amount of chemical medication needed or possibly lessen the need all together!

Narcotics can give pain relief quickly. However, serious side effects can linger or cause other concerns. Can you obtain adequate pain relief with complementary remedies? Absolutely!

 "Various evidence-based complementary therapies have proven to be effective in the management of acute and chronic pain." 
Hamlin & Robertson, 2017

Evidence shows exercise, relaxation, and meditation can reduce pain and improve function and quality of life.

Busy lives look for quick fixes, but this does not get to the root of the problem. The opioid crisis escalated during the pandemic and caused us to look at opioids for pain relief and their long-term harmful effects. Regulating agencies and other groups demand that alternatives be considered other than opioids and other traditional therapies for pain management. Healthcare providers and others are searching for options to assist with adequate pain relief while not creating more significant work on clinical staff.

Healthcare administrators are scrambling for complementary interventions to use that are evidenced-backed and well supported for the clinical setting. In addition, there are concerns about how to educate nursing staff on these modalities and incorporate them into a plan without being perceived as extra work.

The Supportive Therapy Engagement Program or S.T.E.P. offers many tools and strategies that health professionals can utilize in their plans for pain management.

These therapies are found under three categories:

• Relaxation Techniques, 
• Aromatherapy, and 
• Gentle Movement.

Relaxation Therapies offer a quick Remedy for Comfort.

• A simple technique such as focused breathwork can help to reduce discomfort. 
• Consider combining breathwork with visualization or imagery practices which can quickly reduce pain. 
• Include environmental enhancements for comfort such as low lighting, reduced stimulation, gentle music to aid in calming and relaxation.

Aromatherapy to Aid Comfort & Peace
Several essential oils have shown to have qualities, based on their chemistry, to be beneficial for pain relief. 

• Deep inhalation on a tissue or via an inhaler, if no breathing contraindications, can offer quick relief to reduce pain scores and provide a sense of peace. 
• An example of some essential oils used includes peppermint, lavender, orange, copaiba, and more.

Gentle Movement Releases Feel-Good Hormones to Ease Pain
Gentle movement such as simple stretching can ease muscle discomfort. 

• Hormones called endorphins are released when we move or exercise. Endorphins act like natural morphine, which can alleviate pain. 
• Gentle movement has been beneficial for chronic type conditions like back pain. I have found stretching helpful for my sore back tightness to ease my discomfort and give me greater flexibility.

Synergy Amps up the Comfort!
Each of the above categories gives examples that can be helpful for pain relief. Each modality may be beneficial by itself. 
However, combine 1, 2, or 3 modalities, and you create a synergy to bring about comfort and balance quicker.

The beauty of the S.T.E.P. program gives you so many tools and guides you to combine them to enhance a patient plan for comfort and meet the demands by regulating agencies for integrating other options successfully. A bonus is that you can use these strategies to amp up your own healing and well-being!

Yes! You do have so many options for pain relief besides narcotics. The research shows complementary therapies can give long-lasting comfort quickly and with ease. However, you must have the education about supportive therapies and recognize how to combine modalities to create a difference in managing pain quickly. Different people will have different responses to treatment. So, you must be able to interchange a modality based on effectiveness and response from the person. When you can individualize a plan in this manner, you make it specific for each person's concern or needs. 
You can use this type of plan in any setting - for yourself, your patients, or your practice.

The S.T.E.P. system will guide you to knowing about different modalities and how to combine them for the most significant benefits while assuring comfort without harm. 

You can learn more about S.T.E.P. and how to bring these modalities into your practice for pain management and more by going to my website: www.debrareis.com

Wishing you Peace & Balance on your healing journey :-)