{"id":28102,"date":"2021-04-22T09:30:43","date_gmt":"2021-04-22T13:30:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/?p=28102"},"modified":"2021-04-21T13:26:32","modified_gmt":"2021-04-21T17:26:32","slug":"living-with-chronic-pain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/living-with-chronic-pain\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019m living with chronic pain, and I\u2019m far from alone"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a seemingly healthy person in my mid-20s, most people don\u2019t suspect that I am living with chronic pain. When I tell people about my condition, it feels like many still doubt that I\u2019m serious or assume I\u2019m exaggerating. But truthfully, like many with invisible conditions, I\u2019m probably more likely to downplay the severity of my discomfort on the rare occasion that I do mention it. It\u2019s the kind of thing that seems to make people uneasy: pain that\u2019s frequent or constant, with no means to alleviate\u2014even though I always wish the ibuprofen in my bathroom cabinet would magically do the trick.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My journey: Living with chronic pain<\/span><\/h2>\n

My chronic pain started in my late teens and has been worsening for years. It\u2019s localized most intensely in my neck, shoulders, and back. Along with it are daily headaches and weekly migraines. The cause of it all is the weight of my breasts, wreaking havoc on my body and worsening my pain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is chronic pain?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Chronic pain is \u201cany pain that has gone on for more than 12 weeks,\u201d according to <\/span>Spencer Kroll<\/span><\/a>, MD, Ph.D., physician with the Kroll Medical Group in New Jersey. Though, many live with it for years or decades.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It is a common, wide-reaching problem. The <\/span>U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/span><\/a> (CDC) estimates at least 20% of adults in the U.S. have chronic pain of some type. In other words, many millions of Americans are dealing with invisible and ongoing pain. I\u2019m far from alone in my experience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Diagnosis<\/span><\/h2>\n

Large breast cup size is an <\/span>important cause<\/span><\/a> of upper back and shoulder pain. I wake up off and on throughout the night with shooting pain or headaches. Every morning my shoulders are stiff and achy, sending shockwaves of pain through from my neck through my back and into my head. Doing dishes or walking uphill pulls my upper body forward and leaves my <\/span>lower back<\/span><\/a> and neck completely miserable. Some days I know as soon as I get out of bed that the combination of migraine and neck pain means I just won\u2019t be able to sit at my computer and work for the day.<\/span><\/p>\n

A good healthcare provider can help you find the root cause of the pain while treating it. This is particularly critical for younger people. Because it\u2019s less common for chronic pain to appear at a young age, a medical issue can usually be uncovered\u2014and providers don\u2019t want lifelong chronic pain to be the diagnosis if it doesn\u2019t have to be. In these cases healthcare providers tend to be \u201ceven more aggressive in looking for the causes of pain,\u201d prioritizing things like MRIs, CAT scans, and bloodwork, says Dr. Kroll. The source of my pain was visually apparent and was diagnosable by a primary care provider and a physical therapist, though more elusive causes require tests like those mentioned above.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With older patients, these diagnostic tests are also fairly routine options, particularly if pain is persistent despite treatment or does not have a clear cause. However, there is often some pain to be expected during the normal aging process, so it\u2019s more typical to see older patients with chronic pain issues or for the cause to be clear (<\/span>such as arthritis<\/span><\/a>).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Causes<\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201cOftentimes there was physical trauma, emotional trauma, or chemical trauma that initiated the [pain] process\u201d for patients, says <\/span>Nona Djavid<\/span><\/a>, doctor of chiropractic and nutrition expert. With my case, my primary care provider and physical therapist came to the same conclusion: My large chest was causing my pain. Other common <\/span>causes of chronic pain<\/span><\/a> include:<\/span><\/p>\n