What's new on www.NationalPainFoundation.org
Addiction and Chronic Pain
By Jennifer P. Schneider, MD, PhD
Opioids are medications derived from morphine or chemically similar drugs created in the laboratory—they have been used to treat pain for centuries. They are the most effective pain relievers we have. Why, then, are many physicians reluctant to treat chronic pain with opioids? It's for the same reasons that many patients fear strong pain medications — the many
myths surrounding the use of opioids.
Click here to read the facts about opioids and chronic pain.
Spotlight on Dan -- Living with a Stigma
Dealing with stigmas is something every person living in pain deals with, and one of the most ironic is that associated with taking opioids. You take opioids to relieve your pain so that you're able to function and not "complain" but, in the minds of many uneducated individuals, taking opioids long-term makes you an addict — an abuser. Hopefully,
Dan's story will help educate those around you about how long-term use of opioids is not an indication of abuse and decay, but rather a way for a person dealing with chronic pain to live again.
Web Site Offers Help with Pharmaceutical Patient Assistance Programs
The cost of prescription medications can be prohibitive, especially when you're on disability or out of work because of your chronic pain condition. A new web site features information and applications for more than 170 pharmaceutical-sponsored patient assistance programs offering more than 1,000 brand name medications.
Read more!
Transcending your Pain — Meditation
By Richard Stieg, MD, MHS
Meditation can be as simple an act as resting to watch a sunset over the sea or to walk quietly in a garden, stopping from time to time to "smell the roses." It may be as complex as an advanced yoga session or sitting silently for days with Buddhist monks in a temple. Whatever the technique, the idea is to "quiet the mind."
Read more about how meditation can help you.
Healing Steps to Wellness — The Role of Ester E
By Michael W. Loes M.D. M.D.(H)
Vitamin E is a nutrient essential to health as it protects cells against damage. One thing the nutritional industry has done is to preserve and formulate products better, so that they are available throughout the day for our cells as they look for them. Ester E is one such product.
Click here to read more about ester E.
Call for Comments on the Use of Prescription Pain Medication
The Drug Enforcement Administration is asking for comments from health care professionals and others regarding the use of controlled substances for the treatment of pain.
Read more!
Latest Research News
News this month includes research about diabetic neuropathy, osteoarthritis, interstitial cystitis, surgical treatment of migraine, sciatica, chiropractic and more.
Click here to read the latest research on pain recently published.
Pelvic Pain
Chronic pelvic pain is a debilitating, life-changing syndrome with many causes. It affects both men and women, but as many as 61% of women never receive a diagnosis. The National Pain Foundation is proud to include a new disease area on pelvic pain written and peer-reviewed by renowned experts Drs. Jack McDonald and Andrea Rapkin from the University of California, Los Angeles, Dr. Kristene Whitmore of the University of Pennsylvania, and Dr. Adam Steinberg of Cooper University Hospital. Click here to read about the cause of pelvic pain and the treatment options available.
What's New Index
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