7 Natural Pain Relief Options To Consider Before Taking Prescription Drugs
Millions of Americans suffer from chronic pain every year. Some people develop chronic pain over time, while others deal with it as a result of an accident, injury, or surgery. Whatever the cause of your own chronic pain, it can be difficult to find the best methods to manage it.
The medical community has changed the way it approaches pain management significantly in recent years. This is due to the fact that many of the more traditional pain treatments that used to be routinely offered to patients, such as opioids and harmful drugs, are now causing far more harm than good. For this reason, in most cases, other pain management alternatives are considered before resorting to such medications.
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In addition, society in general is far more concerned with finding natural solutions for pain management than synthetic ones. For many people, natural remedies prove to be more effective in the long run when it comes to promoting general health and wellbeing.
If you are currently looking for the best method to manage your own chronic pain, here are a number of natural pain relief methods to consider. As always, it is important to clarify all pain management options with your doctor before trying them out.
CBD
One naturally derived substance that many people turn to for pain relief is that of CDB. This is the chemical component in marijuana that can potentially help relieve chronic or acute pain.
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Although CBD was once discounted as a recreational substance, there are many in the medical community who have found, through extensive research, that CBD may be an option for better alternatives to pain management when compared to harmful narcotics and opioids.
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It is important that you get your CBD from a reliable and certified manufacturer. It’s also a good idea to consider some of the best weed vape pens for your purposes, as they will greatly reduce the irritation caused by smoke inhalation that comes with standard methods of consuming marijuana can.
physical therapy
Depending on the nature of your chronic pain, you may be advised to seek treatment from a physical therapist. Through a series of strength building and mobility exercises, it may be possible to take great relief from the area of your body that is causing pain so that it is less pressurized and working throughout the day. This can result in a significant reduction in the pain you experience day-to-day.
acupuncture
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One of the more holistic natural pain management options available to you is acupuncture. Acupuncture, which originated in Eastern medicine, tries to relieve pain in one area of the body by targeting nerves in another area. Many people have found great pain relief from acupuncture and have appreciated the completely natural and non-addictive nature of this type of treatment.
Lavender essential oil
Lavender and its flavor have been used much more widely lately to help people relax and unwind, but while there is increased movement from people who believe it can help with mild pain relief as well. One of the main areas that lavender can help a lot in is managing headaches and migraines, as studies have shown it works better than a placebo. It also has the potential to be anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.
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When using essential oils of any kind, including lavender, it is important to never ingest them as they can be noxiously toxic and cause poisoning. Also, if you’re applying the oil directly to the skin, use a carrier oil to dilute the substance, as some oils can cause irritation in the form of rashes or even burns.
ginger
Ginger has been used as a form of pain relief in many different and unrelated civilizations for millennia, which may illustrate that ginger can be a great source of relief. Modern studies have shown that eating 2 grams of ginger a day for at least five days can help relieve muscle pain through resistance exercise and running, which makes it really well suited for athletes. This is because ginger can reduce inflammation, which speeds recovery.
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One of the best ways to include more ginger in your diet is to add raw ginger to teas or smoothies. In addition, you can also get ginger supplements at herbal stores as well as online retailers. However, it is believed that the natural variety could be more beneficial to you.
turmeric
In addition to ginger, the spicy turmeric is another aromatic food that can relieve pain. The reason turmeric can be useful in managing pain is because it contains the active ingredient turmeric, which has pain relieving properties.
This ingredient is also quite potent as it has been found to be as effective as this routine drug when compared to ibuprofen at treating pain. However, this was only true of concentrated and isolated turmeric, which means that turmeric benefits may be slightly milder. However, it can still help improve your feeling, which means adding it to curries and juices can be a good idea.
yoga
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Yoga is a form of exercise, but due to its nature focused on stretching, it can actually be very effective for relieving muscle pain, especially in the back and joints. This is because these stretches help strengthen your muscles and keep them from becoming stiff.
In general, exercise is very helpful in dealing with mild pain, as too much inactivity can weaken muscles and injure them even more. In addition, yoga is great for self-care, as breathing exercises and meditation are paramount to keep you calm and relaxed.
This article originally appeared on Cannabis.net and was republished with permission.
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