You Should Build a Pain ‘Tool Kit’ to Manage Flare-Ups

If you’ve ever had a painful injury or illness, or if you deal with chronic pain, you’re probably familiar with the phenomenon of a flare up, in which your pain spikes. Not only is this pain uncomfortable, but it can also interfere with cognitive abilities and affect vision and other senses. These kinds of episodes can be debilitating, especially if you can’t predict when they will occur. But there’s something you can do to prepare for a pain emergency before it happens and soften the effects while it’s occurring so you can get through it and get back to your everyday life: You can build a “tool kit” for pain flares to help you stay calm and respond quickly. Here’s how it works.

Prepare for a pain emergency

Anyone with an ongoing pain condition will likely have certain things they do to try and minimize pain spikes, even without realizing it. If you have migraines, you might turn off lights, or if you have knee pain, you might have a favourite ice pack. These things are part of building your tool kit.

While part of your tool kit can be a container with physical objects in it, other parts can be reminders for coping mechanisms or skills you can use as pain escalates. Since pain can get in the way of reasoning skills and make you feel anxious, having some key reminders set up ahead of time can be a big help.

Make yourself a pain emergency plan

Having an idea of what helps you when you’re experiencing extreme pain is the first step to building a kit. If you don’t already have a full arsenal, begin with what you know works and then take some time to take notes on yourself and your preferences. No two people will be identical, so your tool kit should really be guided by your own assessment of what benefits you.

It should go without saying that if you haven’t consulted a doctor about your pain, you should do so before embarking on any pain relief experiments to avoid making things worse or missing things that might help. Once you have an idea of what works for you, make yourself a list of all the things you can do when you feel a pain flare coming on, and where appropriate, how or where to find your pain management tools.

Collect your pain relief objects

Tools to keep in a box or kit may include:

• Any rescue medication you take for pain
• Physical aids like self massage tools or a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) unit
• Items like aromatherapy supplies and meditation aids like worry stones

Consider adding notes or reminders for yourself as well, such as:

• A mindfulness meditation script for pain
• Illustrations of helpful stretches
• Breathing exercises

You can also choose to include comfort items like a favourite type of tea or a heating pad.

Include your list of resources as a part of an overall pain intervention plan and add contact information for doctors and relevant medical personnel in case things escalate beyond what you can manage yourself. The idea is to make it easy to reach out for help.

You can think of this part of your tool box like an emergency preparedness kit for storms and power outages, except this one is focused on a pain emergency instead.

Ready larger pain relief items

There will be some things like ice packs or favourite pillows that might not fit in your physical container, but putting them on your list of helpful items is a good reminder to access them when you need to. Anything that doesn’t physically fit into a container but is still helpful should be kept at the ready in case a pain flare occurs so you don’t have to hunt for it while you’re in the throes of severe pain.

Set up a digital toolbox

There are some tools, like audio and video soothing techniques, that only exist in digital form. Try keeping some links or downloads on your phone or tablet so you can access them quickly when you need them. Write them into your pain intervention plan and make sure to update them if you find newer or better versions. Soothing images like forests and ocean waves as well as soundscapes and music can help you to calm your nervous system down if you’re in pain, and guided meditations can be a help to refocus as well.

Digital tools that can help include:

• Apps like Calm and Headspace
• Breath timers
• Soundscapes like waves or forest sounds
• Guided meditations for pain relief