February 5, 2018, 9:00 a.m. Francis was prompt at 9:00 a.m. And I was ready. He spent a full hour with me, starting with a general overview of my current pain history. He was very thorough and professional and very holistic, asking me about other facets of my life, besides mobility, such as social and…
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Quotes & Rants
2/2/18 Collected here and there, from Facebook, from my own head…. “The challenge with chronic head pain is that it is invisible. If you tell people you really hurt, then you are complaining. We are disbelieved simply because we are women, and dismissed as having a ‘women’s disease.’ If we don’t tell people about our…
Pain Group Acupuncture #1
February 2, 2018, 12:30 p.m. Finally met Sophie, the acupuncturist, who conducted the group acupuncture session. She was not there on the first Friday of the program (January 26) and will not be there on the 4th week (February 16) due to Chinese New Year. So we will get only 3 sessions instead of the…
Day 7 Pain Management
February 2, 2018 With Francis: Meditation & Breathing Exercises (with breathing) Homework: Exercises 5-7 (in addition to 1-4) “L” (backside stretch) Wall plank Lying down “bridge” Most in the group have lower back issues All 7 exercises are included in yoga and Tai Chi Introduction to Tai Chi (10 exercises) – lots of arm movements…
Day 6 Pain Management
January 31, 2018 Francis was back and was the first presenter, beginning promptly at 10:00 a.m. with a half-hour of meditation. He played an audio file which he said was accessible in the members’ area of the Kaiser website. I could understand about 50% of what the female speaker said. After that, he took a…
Day 5 Pain Management
January 29, 2018, 10:00 a.m. Dr. Whitehead was, again, the main presenter. We started with a half hour of meditation and breathing, this time imagining we are on a beach. She seemed to be talking a little louder and I got 90% of what she said (instead of missing 90%!). The “gentle movement” was another…
Office Visit with Dr. Whitehead
January 29, 2018, 9:00 a.m. Nine o’clock seemed way too early to be up and doing anything! But it was a good session, casual and comfortable. It was mostly giving an overview of my current neck pain history and what else was going on in my life during the past year. I was relieved that…
Things I’ve tried and things I haven’t tried
January 28, 2018, 1:55 p.m. These are the thoughts that come to mind today as I think about what I have been doing over the past year to relieve what was first discomfort in my neck and then became painful enough to interfere with my normal, everyday life. These things that I’ve listed here are…
acupressure, acupuncture, anti-inflammatory, aroma therapy, biofeedback, CBD/THC, codeine, cold, ergonomics, essential oils, Flexeril, gabapentin, heat, kratom, medical cannabis, meditation, mindful breathing, NSAIDs, Pain Management Program, physical therapy, pillow, prednisone, reflexology, reiki, shiatsu massager, spinal decompression, tapping (EFT), TENS unit, traction Day 4 Pain Management
January 26, 2018 End of the first full week. Dr. Whitehead started the session with a half hour of meditation. Again, she was so soft-spoken that I could barely hear her and couldn’t understand most of it, but she seemed to be wanting us to imagine we are in a forest. The music that was…
Pain Medications
Thursday, January 25, 2018 After spending the last three years getting off prescription medications (Paxil, simvastatin, glipizide, metformin, atenolol, nortriptyline, and even sumatriptan if the CBD/THCA tinctures keep working to prevent migraines!), I’m majorly bummed right now to be even considering more pharmaceuticals to deal with my chronic neck pain. But I just can’t handle…