by Constance Ray

Your home is your sanctuary, but if you’re suffering from chronic pain you oftentimes feel like there no way to escape its reach. The good news is that there are ways to rework your home life to better help you manage the pain. Before you turn to medication or spend money on outpatient therapies, try these tips for turning your home into a place where you can easily cope with your chronic pain.

Make sure your furniture is as accommodating as possible

Much of managing chronic pain isn’t getting rid of it, but instead figuring out ways to lessen its impact. You spend a lot of time in your home – and more specifically, on your furniture. This means that the comfort of said furniture should be a huge priority to you. Here’s one good suggestion:

“If a chair is too low, add risers to the legs. If a sofa is too high, consider removing its legs. And if a chair is too soft, add a portable raised cushion to make it easier to get out of the chair. By adjusting seating, you may reduce the strain on your hands, hips, knees, and ankles when you stand.

When dealing with chronic pain, the main goal is to make every movement you make as comfortable as possible. Sinking too deep into furniture or sitting too upright can both exacerbate your pain, depending on what and where it exists. You’re looking for a Goldilocks fit here.

If your chronic pain is most severe in your neck or back, your sleeping situation is of great concern. Firm mattresses usually help those in this situation by allowing you to maneuver your whole body at once, instead of twisting different parts of your body separately when you roll over or turn in bed.

Designate a quiet, focused exercise room

Exercise is both one of the scariest and most beneficial things for those who suffer from chronic pain. That’s the rub. You must overcome your fear of hurting yourself to reap the benefits of having a stronger, leaner body.

You should set up an exercise room where you can do stretching, yoga, light cardio, and other low-impact exercises. If the room is quiet and peaceful, you can also make it a place to perform relaxation exercises like meditation. Meditation has been proven to help people manage chronic pain. Apart from your exercise room, you should also get outside and get some exercise. Great options include taking up gardening, becoming your (paid!) neighborhood dog walker, or cycling to run your errands.

Get rid of the junk food

Diet plays a huge role in either minimizing or maximizing chronic pain. It’s up to you. What you put in your body as fuel directly affects how it performs. Feed it junk, it’s going to give you trouble.

Rid your refrigerator and pantry of foods known to increase inflammation and exacerbate chronic pain like red meat, fried foods, processed meats, and sugary sweet and sodas. Instead, add more leafy greens, fish, nuts, and berries to your diet. You won’t be able to completely rid yourself of any shred of chronic pain through eating healthy, but it will definitely help.

Chronic pain management starts at home, and you can achieve great results by making some small, but significant, lifestyle changes. In the end it’s best to just trust your body. You know you feel better when you eat healthy foods and lay off the french fries. You know what kind of exercise makes you feel better and what kind tires you out too much. You know if your seating and sleeping situation makes your pain worse or better. Listen to yourself and make changes accordingly!

Photo Credit: Pixabay.com

 

Constance Ray started Recoverywell.org with the goal of creating a safe place for people to share how addiction has affected them, whether they are combating it themselves or watching someone they care about work to overcome it. The goal is to share stories of hope from survivors who know that the fight against addiction is one worth having, because no matter how it affects you, life can get better.

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