The truth about chronic pain...

The truth about chronic pain is...it sucks! When a person hears that another person has chronic pain, I think they think "ok, they have pain. So what". Having chronic pain daily is depressing. It prevents you from socializing. It prevents you from doing your daily activities. This has been told time and time again. For a person that doesn't understand what is it to have chronic pain, I will try to explain.

1. Your back/hips feel as though someone has punched you.
2. Back muscles have spasms that just take your breath away.
3. When #2 happens, the pain can travel all the way down in your arms. 
4. Standing when trying to do dishes or cook a meal, your lower spine feels as though someone is griping it. Squeezing very hard.
5. The muscles in your arms feel weighted and you can hardly stand to pick up a pillow or blanket.
6. Pain radiates if you are standing to long. This must be alternated between sitting and laying. But if you lay too long the pain increases. So you sit up. Can't sit up for too long either. Now you have to stand. Kinda similar to #8.
7. Changing positions in bed feel like someone is poking you in just the right spot to make the back muscle spasm.
8. The evil "depression and pain cycle": You get depressed because you are in pain all the time. Then, the depression fuels the pain so the pain increased. In return, you get more depressed.
9. Crowded places, sound of chatter can also cause pain to increase. This is why during a flair up, you don't want to be around people.

Having chronic pain just drains you mentally and physically. Pain is invisible for which it is hard for people who do not have chronic pain to understand. Hopefully this will give some insight. I couldn't think of everything. Please feel free to add what chronic pain is like for you.

Jenn :0)