How about sleeping to ease pain?

[glacier]

They say migraine is hereditary and that is why I did not question anymore why I have it. I am a witness on how my mom suffered from it. I got it because of her. Over the years, i have been taking pain relievers to kill the pain, but now that I am more mature and always think of what the possible reactions of my body with the drugs that I always take, I eased on pain relievers and divert to other ways to ease the pain. Sleeping is one of the ways that worked effectively on me. On the onset of the attack, I would sleep it over. It may require long hours of sleep, though. Like two or so. But at least, I do not take drugs anymore. THe only time I take pain relievers is when I am in the work place or when I am on the road. Other than that, sleep is the best option.

If this works on migraine, this may work on other pains too!

 

[1sweed]

Glacier,
thanks for your tip. Since I see you have a relative that deals with fibro, might you ask that relative about how this person handles pain and if sleeping helps or not. Lots of folks with fibro have trouble getting to sleep because of the pain and might do okay for a while, but general the pain wakes them up again.
As for migraines I took over the counter migraine headache medication and used cold cloths on my forehead to relieve the pain. Lets us know what your relative thinks about just sleeping off the pain and then come back and tell us how it worked or did not work for them. Thanks again for sharing.

 

[Melissast]

I've used sleep to get rid of a migraine before, but I do not get them regularly. As for fibro, when it gets bad. I hurt to much to sleep, even when I try to sleep I just lay there and feel pain. I think its better for me to keep my mind as busy as it can be. I also couldn't spend all my time sleeping. I have two little ones that depend on me for everything. I wish I could just sleep and the pain would go away, I would hibernate if it worked for me.

 

[TheMagician007]

I have been dealing with chronic pain since 2011, and I'm still trying to get an actual diagnosis. I'm uninsured and I'm still trying desperately to get access to a specialist, so I only get pain medicine. I'm fairly certain I have RA (some possibility of MCTD) and additional symptoms may warrant a concurrent diagnosis of Fibro. I'm not sure. Anyway, I think my best time of the day is when I'm asleep. Unfortunately, I have a heck of a time getting to sleep because of pain. When I wake up, that's a whole new animal. I feel like I'm being punished for getting sleep.

 

[Fibonacci]

My friend has the condition, and he says that sleep is a good way to cope with the pain, however sleep is also an escape from reality and not a great way to deal with it. Sleep should be seen as a relatively short-term relief for coping with the pain, and the real issue is to look for methods to cope whilst being awake.

 

[mariposa]

If this works on migraine, this may work on other pains too!

I can see how sleeping would be beneficial to get rid of headaches and migraines and other certain types of pain, yes. But the people I know who are dealing with Fibro and other chronic pain issues can't fall asleep because of the pain. I know they'd love to be able to sleep the flares away, but it's not possible. One friend finally manages to fall asleep and then is soon awake again with pain worse than when she finally dozed off.

It becomes a vicious cycle because not having enough rest can make many of the symptoms worse, but sleep won't come.

 

[Libragirl67]

It becomes a vicious cycle because not having enough rest can make many of the symptoms worse, but sleep won't come. [/QUOTE]

This is so true. And I can relate so much to this. I know alot of us probably understand this as well. It is bad enough in itself to be in such pain. But to add to it the sleep deprivation it can be very hard to take. Alot of times I will actually move from the bed to the couch and back again. I try to shift and bend my position to try and aleviate some of the pressure on my legs and lower back. This is where it hurts the most for me. And the last few days it has worked but for some reason I wake up and I cant move my fingers they are stuck in a sore crooked swollen position. But I soak them in warm water and it helps.

 

[ponooch52]

With rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia, (which was diagnosed in april 2011)... I find sleeping very difficult. And when I do get to sleep, I don't get a good, long, restful or restorative sleep. I wake up in pain & very stiff! I've taken to sleeping on the couch, which didn't settle well with my hubby... but he now gets it! I would keep him awake with my constant moving & restlessness... constantly moving my legs, my arms, turning over then back again! He needs his sleep to work the next day & has become used to me being on the couch. I try to go to bed on weekends when I know he doesn't have to work the next day. I'm lucky if I can sleep more than an hour or two at one time & most of that time is the restlessness, trying to find a comfortable position. No wonder I am so tired all the time, totally drained & fatigued... to say nothing of the "fibro fog". If I'm at my wits end, I will take a percocet or eat one of my "special" baked goods! I'm just starting on Methotrexate & hoping it kicks in soon to relieve some of the symptoms.

 

[glacier]

I guess not all pains can be eased through sleeping, so, yeah, it is effective in migraine -- the head -- but not in other parts of the body. I can imagine how pain and lack of sleep can be so bad in overall being. Lack of sleep and pain is not a good combination at all! The fact that we need to rest but we cannot find the means to do it is torture! Not to mention also that we have to wake up the next day to perform and to attend to our daily tasks.

 

[Happyflowerlady]

I have found that sleeping will often relieve a headache, or maybe it just finally wears off during the night. However, I have not really found it to be consistently helpful in joint pains. Sometimes, if I take a pain pill, and go to sleep, I am better by morning, but sometimes, I go to sleep fine at nite, and wake p the next day, barely able to move.
However, some of that seems to be related to how well I have kept my back, shoulders, etc, covered during the nite. When my shoulders are uncovered and get even a little bit cold, then it stiffens right up, and may take a day or more to get better. Also, it is important to eat enough raw food to keep my bowels working properly. Being constipated will seize up my lower back every time. I guess it puts pressure on the nerves of my back, so probably not related to fibro, but still a painful thing to deal with .

 

[Amalia]

Sleeping help but it depends on how bad the pain is. When I'm in a lot of pain I can't fall asleep, so giving up pain killers to take sleeping pills isn't much of trade.

 

[btatro]

I think it is great that your hope is to not have to rely on pain killers, although I do not condemn anyone who does have to resort to that measure. I suffer from migraines that occur just 2-3 times per year, but they are quite severe. Even if I am unable to drift to sleep, the best I can do is to lay down in a quiet/dark area and close my eyes. I try to cover my head and just rest. Like I said if sleep does not come, that is OK because it is the rest/dark/quiet that allows the pain to subside.