Life with Chronic Pain and Illness: Things Doctors Don’t Tell You

Life with Chronic Pain and Illness

 

 

Life with chronic pain and illness is like being on a roller coaster ride. And the longer you’re on it, the more doctor visits you have,the more you realize that there are many things doctors don’t tell you.

 

Here are just a few things I’ve learned over the decades I’ve lived with chronic pain and illness:

• You will be your best advocate. You are the one who needs to live with the decisions you make about your illness, and you are the one who will spend the most time researching what you can do to live your best life.
• Unless you are someone who lives with chronic pain and illness, you don’t truly understand what it  means to be in daily pain, knowing that it will likely be for the rest of your life … or how draining it is,  physically and mentally.
• People, including doctors, underestimate how much pain impacts your day-to-day life.
•  Your pain level may be extremely unpredictable from day to day, hour to hour, or even minute to minute.
• It is possible to start living with chronic pain and illness at a young age. It’s not just for “old” people.
• Exercise isn’t a cure-all, and neither is (fill in the blank). What works for one person may do the opposite for another.
• Doctors rarely admit when they have no idea how to help you (or that they have little intention of learning more about your particular situation/condition). And some may be reluctant to “give up” and issue a referral elsewhere.
• You have the right to refuse suggested treatments. You know your body better than anyone. Sometimes medication side effects are worse than your symptoms. What works for one person won’t work for everyone.
• You may have a hard time distinguishing whether or not your symptoms require an ER visit or if they are “normal.”
• No one tells you how lonely it is to live with constant pain that no one else can see or feel. 
• Anger and grief go hand in hand with chronic pain and illness. Don’t be afraid to seek out help if needed.

 

Is there anything you’d add to the list? Feel free to leave a comment.

 

I hope you have a low-pain day.

 

If you’d like to read more Life with Chronic Pain and Illness posts, click here.