Pain Management: Assembling a Tool Kit, Building a Life

The pain was becoming bolder. Not content with my hands and wrists, it invaded my elbows, annexed my back, and sent raids down my legs. It was conniving and multifaceted: dull aches, stabbing and throbbing sensations, and widespread tenderness. I fought back with medication, then physical therapy, chiropractic adjustments, stretching, elimination diets, and massage. But the pain grew stronger, while I grew weaker, anxious, and afraid. I was 20 years old when the pain began, and there was no explanatory pathology. I saw several physicians, whose localized diagnoses could not explain the pain's origin or why it was spreading. The relentless siege was wearing me down. I despaired for my future. Despite these advantages, building my tool kit was a slog, developed through trial and error. I was prescribed cyclobenzaprine, which helped with sleep and dulled pain but made me feel loopy and disconnected from my body. However, the relief was enough to help me start exercising.