Using naturopathy for pain management and relief treatment

What is acute and chronic pain?

Acute pain is a survival response; it alerts the body to a potential danger and we respond in a protective way. Similarly, when someone picks up a hot kettle and immediately drops it, it is a response to prevent further injury.

Acute pain is usually of limited duration and subsides long before healing has occurred. Acute pain is our harm alarm - like all alarms, if it keeps going long after it’s useful it becomes a problem. In chronic pain, the alarm becomes disconnected from the initial danger. The nervous system becomes programmed to a hypersensitive and overprotective setting, which means that the body produces increasingly painful responses, and the pain is amplified. If pain continues for 3 months or longer, it becomes chronic, but many people are on that pathway long before then.

1 in 5 Australians over the age of 45 experiences chronic pain. However, how each person experiences pain is different. An individual’s overall health and sleep patterns can impact this as pain can increase when we're tired. Exercise regime and psychological wellbeing play a significant role in how much pain they might experience. Additionally, over time the nervous system becomes more sensitised causing pain to spread, making previously tolerable sensations or activities potential pain triggers.

Can chronic pain be treated with Naturopathy?

Naturopathy can help to treat and manage a range of conditions that contribute to chronic pain, including fibromyalgia, neuropathy, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, irritable bowel syndrome, and many others.

A Naturopath will develop a holistic treatment or management plan that is specific to a person’s situation and the type of pain they are experiencing. Whether they're seeking treatment for endometriosis-related pain, fibromyalgia or migraines will guide the specific treatment approach.

When working with someone experiencing chronic pain, the Naturopath begins by building a shared understanding of what is happening in the body.

The client may describe their symptoms, and the Naturopath will expand on this understanding by asking questions such as:

• Is the pain worse during times of stress?
• How is the pain affected by poor sleep?
• Does the pain change with alcohol consumption or lack of time spent outdoors?

Together, they explore the ways the body is telling them that something needs to change. The first step is to help the individual make sense of what's happening in their chronic pain state. This sensemaking can reduce fear and increase coping skills.

It can allow them to think, “If I put some strategies in place, I might feel better about myself and I might have the capacity to do more”. This shift in mindset can have a profound positive impact.

The Naturopath will then help the individual address key factors such as sleep patterns, because sleep is often a primary contributor to worse pain outcomes. Diet and lifestyle strategies are also explored to help dampen down amplification of the nervous system.

Withdrawal from one’s community, isolation and loneliness can worsen people’s experiences of chronic pain. The Naturopath may also encourage the client to reconnect with their community and help them to find their sense of purpose.

Naturopathic pain management and relief

Pain relief will most often be required in acute pain situations or acute flares in chronic pain. The Naturopath will assess the client for complementary medicines such as curcumin and boswellia that can reduce inflammation and therefore reduce acute pain responses. These treatments may work with chronic pain during an acute flare.

More complex pain management requires a holistic perspective. The Naturopath will unpack some of the drivers that are contributing to the sustained chronic pain response. They then work with the individual to put in place strategies to manage that pain, such as changes to lifestyle and diet.

How can Naturopathy treat chronic pain among Australians?

It is important to educate both people living with chronic pain and those who support them about how Naturopathy can help. Open conversations can help people recognise that chronic pain is a part of many conditions. Conditions such as migraines, lower back pain and endometriosis can be forms of chronic pain.

Naturopaths help individuals better understand their specific condition. When chronic pain is part of that condition, they will explain how the pain can be effectively treated or managed.

Naturopaths are well placed to work with many drivers that contribute to chronic pain. They can work with the biology, with the nervous system, and the brain. This comes back to the importance of working with the whole person and assisting them to explore the many factors that might contribute to their pain and find ways to manage or treat it.