How To Minimize Pain Without Pain Pills

Sometimes pain medication is a miracle drug. Other times, it's less than helpful. Sometimes doctors don't prescribe you with a high enough dosage or you have a bad reaction to it. In those instances, you need something more to help you with your pain.

This is especially an issue with people who were addicts in the past. Pain pills have less of an effect on them and doctors are wary of giving them higher dosages because they might get addicted to them. But no one should have to suffer with pain unnecessarily.

I'm not a big fan of pills, so I try to get away with taking as little medicine as I can. Because of this, I've learned to handle, sometimes severe pain (like kidney stones), without taking any pain medication at all.

Here is a list of some of my tricks.

Ice can be used to dull the pain your nerves feel.

Crushed iced or a bag of peas work better than giant ice cubes. Smaller pieces of ice are more pliable and can mold to your body more comfortably. But they also melt faster.

Be sure to take breaks every once in a while when you use ice, though, to avoid causing permanent damage to your nerves. When you remove the ice, feel your skin and it will still be cold, so the effects of the ice will still be working, even during your short breaks.

I've found that ice often works best with sharp pains, while heat can sometimes work best with sore pains.

Make sure it's the hottest you can stand and that you put the part of your body that is hurting underneath the water. This is my favorite way to deal with pain. Something about the heat being wet causes it to soak into your body more strongly than it otherwise would.

I find that hot showers, with their constant flow of new water work best, but a jacuzzi or bath could work as well.

Taking hot showers can also help your body release endorphins that allow you to relax and lessen the pain.

Sometimes showers are unavailable and there is only so much hot water you can use, even when you can take showers. Lying next to a heater or using a heating pad won't be as effective as taking a shower, but it can still help to lessen pain by a lot.

Just be careful not to fall asleep with the heat still on or lay too close to it because you can get burns.

Exhaustion can trigger pain or make it worse.

Sleeping is like a giant reset button. It helps your body rejuvenate itself and heal faster.

Try taking a nap and see if you feel any better when you wake up.

This especially works when you're just out of surgery or have teeth pain.

It's questionable whether hypnosis and distraction can take away your pain completely, but it can definitely help you cope with it. When you are hysterical, focused on the pain, and stressed out about it, it will hurt worse than when you are at peace with it.

Unfortunately, it takes a lot of mental power and strength to be able to use your brain to lessen pain, but it's something you can learn over time with some patience.

There are free videos on you tube that you can use to try out hypnosis before you commit to spending the money hiring an actual person. I've included an excellent example in the video below.

You can also try breathing in and out slowly while relaxing your entire body.

It's good to be nice to yourself when you are in pain. Make yourself as comfortable as possible. Use it as an excuse to watch a movie or take a break that day from your usual chores and routine. Doing nice things for yourself when you are in pain can help take your mind off of it and release endorphins, which will decrease your pain.

It's difficult to relax when you are in pain, but if you can do it, it will take the edge off of your suffering.

Rubbing a painful area can sometimes cause temporary or permanent relief. This works especially well if someone else can massage the area for you.

I've used this technique when dealing with both migraine headaches and kidney stones.

The pressure of the massage can temporarily mask any pain you are feeling.

Sometimes, when you have muscle pain or something similar, a massage can actually relax the muscles enough to take away the pain completely.

In the case of kidney stones, massage can help your body pass the stone a little more quickly and soothe some of the cramping.

Massage also releases endorphins.

The human touch is powerful. Don't underestimate it.

Acupuncture can help stimulate the body and its blood flow in ways that will make you healthier and relieve pain.

Unfortunately, this is not something you can do at home, you'll have to look for a local professional. It's better to get someone who is either highly recommended online or by a friend, so you know you're getting someone who knows what they are doing.

With certain types of pain, like muscular pain, stretching and exercise can help you recover faster.

Be cautious when choosing this option. Start out slow. Some exercise with certain types of pain can actually make you get worse, so you might want to consult with a doctor before starting this one.

When I've gotten a Charley Horse in my leg, stretching the leg out, even though it caused the muscle to spasm worse at first and pull into a tighter knot, slowly helped my body work through the pain and get better. Eventually, the stretching made the knot release itself.

It also helps your body produce endorphins, which help to lessen pain.

Sometimes stretching can help your mind focus on a different part of your body as well. Like let's say you have a stomach ache and you try stretching your legs to distract yourself from it.

It boosts your metabolism, too, so, if you have a slight stomach ache, again, it can help your digestive system work out the problem faster, It can also help cleanse your body of any toxins it has inside it that are making you feel unwell.