MY HEALTH RIGHTS

Many people suffer from ongoing back pain and the general approach to ongoing pain is described below. For patients with longstanding back pain there is a an additional emphasis on treating the soft tissue structure associated with back pain including muscle trigger points and the use of acupuncture to deal with local tissue inflammation. This is in addition to the biochemical and other interventions described below.Chronic Back Pain
Chronic back pain implies that the back pain is ongoing pain – pain that persists after the original source of pain or injury has stopped but where full healing and a full return to health has not occurred.
It is important for anyone suffering from chronic pain to obtain an appropriate medical opinion which will usually include an opinion from both their General practitioner and a consultant neurologist or neurosurgeon or other medical specialist as appropriate.
Getting the emotions and stress management right is also important.
For some patients there is a definite benefit from a consultation involving a multi-disciplinary team which will usually include a behavioural psychologist and / or a psychiatrist. This is not to imply that chronic pain is purely psychological but rather to recognise that, if we learn to relax our minds in a deep manner, our sense of relaxation will affect our body chemistry positively. This ‘relaxation response’ is well recognised scientifically and will have a positive effect on neurotransmitters and brain chemistry in general and frequently will contribute very positively on the mind and body.
My approach to chronic pain involves looking very broadly at anything in the body which may be prolonging inflammation or preventing healing and this would include looking at nutritional status, possible food intolerances, any possible role being played by ongoing bowel problems, any evidence of sluggish liver detoxification, hormonal aspects of well-being which may be involved etc. I will also, usually, use advanced acupuncture techniques both to address physical aspects and also ‘mind-body’ aspects (this would include individual tension holding patterns etc.) of the persons pain.
Acupuncture, used at an advanced level, is very potent in chronic pain. For some people who have already tried the ‘talking cure’ sometimes the more direct access to the emotions provided by subtle acupuncture techniques is immensely helpful.
My experience is that this holistic approach frequently has much to offer.
I would like to stress the importance of the patient being guided by their general practitioner and specialist (if also under consultant care). I do not see it as my role to prescribe any analgesic drugs or opiates – the prescribing of any pain-killing drugs is left solely to the patient GP or pain-management doctor.