⚡️Live well, despite pain!
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Communication is important as it helps you to stay informed about your condition and any treatments. This way, you can have a say in the decisions that affect you.
It can be hard to talk to others about your experience of your condition, or needing surgery, as well as your thoughts and feelings about your condition. But this is normal, and you can get better with practice and feedback.
Check in later this week for our next post on developing your communication skills!
Today is ! Rare disease impacts 1 in 12 Canadians, 67% being children and adolescents (Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders: https://www.raredisorders.ca/canadas-rare-disease-strategy/). Rare disease can come with pain - which is why the and .cope have been adapting our digital health solutions for youth living with different types of conditions like and .
If you’re looking for pain support, consider trying the Portal. Link to join the study is in bio!
How do you rest after a long day?
Happy Lunar New Year from everyone at the and .cope team!
Wishing all those who celebrate a wonderful fun filled weekend!
Happy Tuesday! Today’s tip is on stretching. Don’t forget you can stretch anywhere, anytime. It’s perfectly valid to stretch sitting or laying down in your bed. The important thing is you’re moving!
Have you made your #2023 vision board? A vision board is a visual representation of the goals you hope to accomplish. It’s a reminder for you when you’re feeling lost or uninspired. Copey and Owee put their brains together to come up with a vision board for 2023. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
A new year is always a time for reflection. What are some of the things you’re leaving behind in 2022? What do you want to bring with you into 2023? Here are some of our picks!
Happy New Year from the .cope and team! We are grateful for this community of pain warriors. There is lots in store for 2023 so keep an eye on your emails and socials! If you’re interested in participating in research and patient partnership, send us an email or DM.
Another new word in the language of pain is Hyperalgesia. Hyperalgesia is an unusually high amount of pain in response to a painful stimulus, for example, feeling extreme pain after a paper cut.
Yesterday was the Winter Solstice, which means we just made it past the darkest moments of the year. This is your reminder that even in the darkest of times, the sun will rise again. Navigating through darkness isn’t easy - but you have a toolkit that includes a flashlight.
It can be easy to feel guilty about what you need to do to cope with pain and other symptoms. This is your reminder to be proud of all the progress you’ve made this year. Living with pain is difficult and you’re doing your best to cope. Use your tools without guilt this holiday season!
This we challenge you complete 12 days of self care. Try tracking your progress to see if there are any differences in your pain levels!
When coping with and other complicated conditions, it’s easy to believe your health is linked to your choices. While there are great choices you can make for self-management, it doesn’t mean increases in pain or illness are your fault. So if it’s in the past, begin to let go of any sense of regret or shame. You’re doing the best you can.
Sometimes it can also feel like you’re not doing enough to prevent increases in pain or symptoms. This may lead to worry. Just like you can’t change the past, increases in pain and other symptoms are part of life. We can do our best, use all our tools, and still flare. All that matters is you keep moving towards the things you value - little by little.
You’re doing your best to manage a complex condition that impacts every element of your life. Be compassionate to yourself and focus on what you can do in this moment.
Complex emotions can exist simultaneously and it's important to hold space both negative, neutral, and positive emotions.
You can be...
- happy it's Friday and hold space for the sadness that comes with isolation from no weekend plans
- grieving what your life was like before pain, but hope you'll find new ways to cope
- hurt by someone you love
It's time to get winterized! Today is the first day of December and that means it's your last chance to complete a few fun things before the end of the year. Remember, progress is not linear, even if this year has been filled with ups and downs, you have all the tools you need to cope.
Self-compassion is a hard skill to learn. Our brains are wired to remember the negative. It takes tons of active work to begin to apply compassion to yourself. Here are some ways you can retrain your brain and apply more compassion to yourself.
Pain can be divided up into acute and chronic pain. An example of acute pain is stubbing your toe. This pain is adaptive. It tells our body to send help and avoid the painful area so it can heal.
Chronic pain involves different processes. The best way to explain it is like a switch that gets turned on in your brain to send pain signals all the time. Pain is no longer adaptive in this case. The experience of pain for most of a 3-month period means this pain is now chronic. It's important to remember that experiencing pain is worthy of treatment. By talking to your healthcare providers, you can begin to understand, accept, and cope with your pain.
Congratulations - you made it to Friday! This is your reminder to keep working towards the things that bring value and meaning in your life. Sometimes we can't see the bigger picture, but we can keep moving toward the things we value.
While you can't always control the things happening in your life, a lot of times can often control your reaction! After validating your feelings and giving yourself emotional space to process, try to look at things in your circle of control. For example, while you can't control your current pain level, you can choose how to respond to it. For some people, this may be choosing to distract themselves using something funny. For others, this could mean using deep breathing to cope. Remember, you got this!
Did you know that chronic pain was only recently recognised by as a disease in its own right? can impact all ages, from children to older adults.
This National Pain Awareness Week, let’s and advocate for improved care for all people with pain. www.PainCanada.ca
It’s National Pain Awareness week! Our piece of the pain puzzle is
🧩co-designing
🧩building
🧩evaluating
🧩and implementing
solutions for managing pain in children and youth like and portal! What’s your piece of the ?
Pain can be daunting to face, but luckily we have ways to scare it away for a few moments! What do you prefer for your pain, ice or heat?
You can think of the nervous system as the volume control on your devices. Like your devices, the body can be thought of as "on". This level may depend on different factors like stress, movement, and pain. In someone without chronic pain, this volume changes depending on the body's needs, but if you have chronic pain, your nervous system volume is higher than normal. You can do things to turn down the volume, like using medication and mind-body strategies. Things like worry or sadness may increase the volume in the nervous system. Unfortunately, this raises the volume on everything your nervous system is processing, including pain. This is why managing your mind and mood helps your pain - it lowers the volume of your nervous system.
Pain is processed in the brain, but what's even cooler is that the brain has switches or gates that decide whether the pain signals are processed. When the gate is open - pain is let right into the brain. Sometimes your brain has to make decisions quickly and certain signals are even sent through a fast-track pathway. In those with chronic pain, we know these gates work a little differently and we may have to use things from our 3P toolkit to cope with pain. Medication, physiotherapy, movement, mindfulness, psychological therapy, and doing things that make you happy can actually lower or begin to close these gates.
Have you ever heard someone say pain is like the wind? Like the wind, sometimes we can only see the result of the wind. We can assume it's there based on blowing leaves or waves in the ocean. Pain can sometimes be the same way. Unfortunately, we don't have technology that allows us to "see" pain. We often assume or validate it's there when we see damage to the body, but pain doesn't work this way. Pain can be present without any damage, and you can assume it's there based on the person saying they are in pain. Remember, if you are experiencing pain, it's valid!
Did you know…when we have pain, the injured site can become more sensitive to pain. We’ve all experienced this. Have you ever gotten a sunburn? Usually when we have a sunburn we feel discomfort and pain. Things that touch the burnt part of our skin normally don't cause pain when you aren't sunburnt. This is because the brain uses pain to tell your body to protect this area. In the case of the sunburn, this means, don't touch me until I heal. Sometimes the brain gets mixed up and sends those kinds of pain signals even though there is no damage. It's important to remember not all pain is bad!
Brain games are a good distraction for pain days! Let us know what word you see first 👀
Living life with pain means celebrating every milestone! Celebrate and claim your badges with all the confidence that comes from self-management!
💡Did you know💡
Many people change the way they breathe when they are in pain. They start taking short, shallow breaths and may not even realize they are breathing differently.
Deep breathing can help reduce stress and lessen how much your pain bothers you, so your mind can focus on other things.
Here's how:
🧘♀️ Sit comfortably, and place one hand on your chest and belly.
🫁 Breathe in through your nose and count to five, filling your belly with air.
⏸ Hold your breath and count to five. Your belly should get round.
💨 Now breathe out through your mouth, letting your belly down while you count to eight.
💆♀️ As you breathe out slowly until your stomach is flat, feel all the muscle tension flow out of your body.
🔄 Repeat slowly, 10 times. Remember to breathe from your belly slowly and calmly.
✨ Notice your body beginning to feel more relaxed with each breath out.
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You can think of the nervous system as the volume control on your devices. Like your devices, the body can be thought of as "on". This level may depend on different factors like stress, movement, and pain. In someone without chronic pain, this volume changes depending on the body's needs, but if you have chronic pain, your nervous system volume is higher than normal. You can do things to turn down the volume, like using medication and mind-body strategies. Things like worry or sadness may increase the volume in the nervous system. Unfortunately, this raises the volume on everything your nervous system is processing, including pain. This is why managing your mind and mood helps your pain - it lowers the volume of your nervous system. #PainNeuroscience #PainNeuroscinceEducation #PainEducation #ManagingPain #Pain #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #Spoonie #Disability
Pain is processed in the brain, but what's even cooler is that the brain has switches or gates that decide whether the pain signals are processed. When the gate is open - pain is let right into the brain. Sometimes your brain has to make decisions quickly and certain signals are even sent through a fast-track pathway. In those with chronic pain, we know these gates work a little differently and we may have to use things from our 3P toolkit to cope with pain. Medication, physiotherapy, movement, mindfulness, psychological therapy, and doing things that make you happy can actually lower or begin to close these gates. #PainNeuroscience #PainNeuroscinceEducation #PainEducation #ManagingPain #Pain #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #Spoonie #Disability
Have you ever heard someone say pain is like the wind? Like the wind, sometimes we can only see the result of the wind. We can assume it's there based on blowing leaves or waves in the ocean. Pain can sometimes be the same way. Unfortunately, we don't have technology that allows us to "see" pain. We often assume or validate it's there when we see damage to the body, but pain doesn't work this way. Pain can be present without any damage, and you can assume it's there based on the person saying they are in pain. Remember, if you are experiencing pain, it's valid! #PainNeuroscience #PainNeuroscinceEducation #PainEducation #ManagingPain #Pain #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #Spoonie #Disability
💡Did you know💡 Many people change the way they breathe when they are in pain. They start taking short, shallow breaths and may not even realize they are breathing differently. Deep breathing can help reduce stress and lessen how much your pain bothers you, so your mind can focus on other things. Here's how: 🧘♀️ Sit comfortably, and place one hand on your chest and belly. 🫁 Breathe in through your nose and count to five, filling your belly with air. ⏸ Hold your breath and count to five. Your belly should get round. 💨 Now breathe out through your mouth, letting your belly down while you count to eight. 💆♀️ As you breathe out slowly until your stomach is flat, feel all the muscle tension flow out of your body. 🔄 Repeat slowly, 10 times. Remember to breathe from your belly slowly and calmly. ✨ Notice your body beginning to feel more relaxed with each breath out. #relaxation #deepbreathing #mediate #copewithpain #icancope #chronicpain #painmanagement #breathing #grounding #managingpain #stressmanagement
Current research tells us that you can experience pain without any physical damage to your body. The experience of pain and pain being processed in your brain is enough of a reason to be experiencing pain. That's why pain requires management of both mind and body! #ChronicPain #PainManagement #PainEducation #Mythbuster #ChronicPainMyths #Pain #Pain
June 8th is #BestFriendDay! For a lot folks with #ChronicPain or #ChronicIllness, friendships are not simple. Here are some tips and reminders for you as you navigate socializing with pain! #BestFriends #Socialzing #SocialSkills #Communication #CommunicationTips #ChronicIllnessSupport
You got this, keep going! Text reads: You don't have to feel hopeful about the future, just curious about the possibility and potential for change. #Pain #ChronicPain #PainManagement #Pain
#WednesdayWisdom: Never forget all the lessons you've learned, the compassion you've given, and the knowledge you've gathered are with you as you continue on your journey.
Happy May (the) Fourth! For those of you who aren't fans of #StarWars, May the 4th is a fun play on words from the movies, referencing the saying "May the force be with you". There are some great mental health lessons from the Star Wars franchise, like being mindful of your actions, staying focused on the present moment, healthily coping with negative emotions, and managing your "dark side". Are there any movies or tv shows that have lessons which help you cope with your pain? #Pain #ChronicPain #ChronicPainWarrior #ChronicPainCommunity #ChronicPainManagement #PainEducation
#WellnessWednesday Taking a deep breath is an act of compassion and love for your body. Breathe in rhythm with this video, and let it carry you into the next moment. #ChronicPain #Pain #Breath #Breathing #Mindfulness #MindfulBreathing #PainManagement #ManagingPain
Our friends from Canadian Institutes of Health Research invited @drcchambers from Solutions for Kids in Pain to talk about coping with #NeedleFear. Some of her great science-based suggestions include: ⚡take your mind off the needle with distraction ⚡take deep breaths ⚡try a numbing cream or patch ⚡try over-the-counter pain reliever to help with any soreness or discomfort Check out the full video and find helpful resources by visiting https://cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/52778.html #PainManagement #PainEducation #NeedlePain #NeedleFear #VaccinationEducation #ItDoesntHaveToHurt
We had an iCanCope community member share a great distraction technique - watching videos that make you feel like you’re in a different environment, like horseback riding. Visit YouTube and type in the activity you’d like to do or the place you’d like a tour of. For example, you could search “bike tour of London”. Choose a video, sit back, relax, and enjoy. #ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #painmanagement #distractiontechniques #distractiontactics
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