Comfort Keepers In Home Elderly Care in Orange, CA: Seniors and Dealing with Pain 

Does your senior loved one have issues with pain? Comfort Keepers In Home Elderly Care in Orange, CA offer the following tips to help your loved one deal with chronic or acute pain. 

Pain can diminish a senior citizen’s quality of life. Therefore, if an older adult is experiencing any type of pain, our in home elderly care they should consult their physician to pinpoint its exact cause and find out which treatments can help alleviate it. 

Acute pain is short-term pain that occurs after a senior has undergone a surgical procedure or faced an injury. It typically disappears after they’ve recovered from their surgery or healed from their injury. Examples of acute pain include a toothache, burning a hand, or scraping a knee.

Chronic pain differs from acute pain because it can last for weeks, months, and even years. In home elderly care professionals recognize that older adults who are living with chronic pain have been diagnosed with a particular health condition. This condition may be:

• Arthritis:The inflammation of one or more joints is referred to as arthritis. Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are the most common types of arthritis in older adults.
• Nerve Damage: Hence its name, nerve damage is caused by damage to the nerve and is often the result of a variety of conditions, drugs, and toxins.
• Fibromyalgia: Widespread pain, fatigue, and cognitive challenges are all symptoms of fibromyalgia. 
• Low Back Pain: Degenerative disc disease, a bulging disc, arthritis, osteoporosis, sprains, and other conditions may all contribute to low back pain in seniors.
• Cancer: Senior citizens who have been diagnosed with cancer may experience nerve pain, bone pain, soft tissue pain, phantom pain, or referred pain.

Sadly, there is no cure for pain. However, older adults who are living with any type of pain can manage it through a wide array of treatments that their doctor may recommend. In home elderly care professionals offer the following treatments:

• Pain Medications: Pain medications such as analgesics, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and opioid pain relievers are the most common form of pain management.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Intended to teach individuals how to reduce their reaction to pain, cognitive behavioral therapy has proven to be a very effective pain management technique for senior citizens.
• Acupuncture: Acupuncture uses tiny needles to stimulate and relieve pain from certain parts of the body and can be very beneficial for back pain and neck pain.
• Exercise: Walking, yoga, tai-chi, and strength training are all examples of exercises that can improve an older adult’s pain.

Senior citizens should make every effort to try these treatments for pain relief so that they can age with comfort. A support team of family members, in home elderly care professionals, and medical professionals can all help.