Antidepressants Blog

What Is the Pain Message in RA?
We’ve stated that pain is a signal or message. What exactly is that message in the case of RA? In RA, inflammation that occurs in the joints can irritate nerve endings in the joint lining (synovium), capsule, and ligaments. This inflammation leads to swelling within the joints which causes these same structures to become stretched. Inflammation causes pain, and that pain is intensified by swelling. Pain from joints that are highly inflamed (warm, swollen, and tender) sends the following messages: (1) Respect your pain. (2) Slow down, you’re overdoing it. (3) Protect and rest your joints until the inflammation subsides.

Decreasing Pain
Just because pain is a valued signal doesn’t mean you have to suffer through it without trying to decrease its intensity. After all, pain is exhausting! The first step in decreasing the intensity of pain is accepting that pain exists in your present life. This doesn’t mean that you should surrender to a painful existence; it simply means that you must accept the fact that your joints are painful today and that you’ll need to direct your energies toward getting through today. If you are filled with regrets about the past and fears of the future, you are unsuccessfully fighting the presence of pain in your life. Regret and fear are wasted emotions that create feelings of guilt, blame, and anxiety, and these cause you further pain today. It is true but ironic that accepting pain is the first step in decreasing it.
Next, recognize pain as being a very personal experience. Understanding that each person has a unique awareness of his or her pain is critical because effective strategies for combating pain will differ for each person. You will need to take responsibility for your experience of pain, from how you perceive it to how you handle it. This does not mean accepting the blame for having RA. Rather, it means not viewing pain as an outside force that is directing you; don’t allow your pain to have that much power! Instead, view pain as a force over which you can exert some control. This will mean assessing the source of your pain, conditions that worsen it, your perception of it, and options that will allow you to direct it.
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Mrs LF, of Kent, England Age 35 years. “I would like to thank you for your help and support while I was taking CMO.”

“After suffering with chronic fatigue syndrome for about thirteen years I spent most of my time resting as I was too tired to manage the most simple tasks, it was like a living death as I have previously been very active. After taking CMO I had a very bad headache and nausea for the first few days but after that I felt much better. I felt relaxed and slept very well I carried on taking the CMO and noticed after doing things around the house I wasn’t feeling so tired and this continued. I tested myself by doing a bit more, I even ran across a field which was out of the question before.”

“I feel thanks to CMO I have got my life back. I feel young again and things I thought I would never be able to do I’m starting to rediscover, as you know I am planning to marry and thanks to CMO I can look forward to my future. Thanks again.”

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