Pillar B: A healthy lifestyle

In the ‘Learning about Pain’ section we discussed the downward spiral of chronic pain, and how it is understandable that our resources to cope with life can become depleted. By looking at how we can build a healthy lifestyle we can increase our energy and function, to give us a better chance of managing chronic pain. For example, pain can often disrupt sleep patterns, leaving us feeling more fatigued and irritable than we already do. Lack of sleep impacts our emotional state, psychological wellbeing and physical performance all of which contribute to an increase in pain. By learning about sleep hygiene and trying different tools to improve sleep, such as relaxation, activity, position, medications and so on, we may be able to improve our sleep patterns and in turn giving us a better chance of managing our pain.