Chronic Pain
 For people with chronic pain the concept of a safe remedy has gotten muddier. Just this morning I was reading that a young girl has one a lawsuit against the makers of Motrin. Of course they plan to appeal. Evidently the girl had an allergic reaction to children’s Motrin. Since there was nothing published about the possibility of such a reaction the doctors treating her didn’t take her off before the reaction cost her sight and most of her skin. It came out at the trial that the makers knew about the possibility, but never published anything about it.
There is a new study out about daily aspirin use causing the wet form of macular degeneration. This is where eyesight is lost because the blood vessels in the eye burst or leak, damaging the surrounding tissue. This is scary because many doctors are advising their patients to start taking a daily aspirin just because of the number of birthdays they have had.
When my husband turned fifty his military doctor tried to force him to start an aspirin regiment. Fortunately he didn’t, and is one of the healthiest members of his military unit, even though he is the oldest.
Ibuprophen (think Tylenol) has been shown to damage the kidneys with extended use, or with overdose.
What are people in pain supposed to do? There are multitudes of natural pain killers. Which one you want to reach for depends on the source of your pain. Sometimes a combination works best.
White Willow: This is one of my favorites. It works great on my tension headaches. It is said that the salicylic acid in white willow is what prompted scientists to invent chemical aspirin.
Chaparral: The leaves of this plant are used. It is good for skin diseases and arthritic type pains. It is also great as a mouthwash to prevent cavities.
Cocklebur: This one isn’t very well known, but maybe this year it should be. Along with relieving pain of arthritis it opens nasal passages and clears sinus headaches.
Corydalis: Another herb we don’t hear a lot about. This one has been traditionally used for just about any kind of pain. In some cases it is said it is as effective as morphine, without the addiction and side effects.
Valerian: This is usually thought of as a relaxant, but because of its relaxing properties can help with pain from cramps or tight muscles. Others that work on cramping and spasms include Black Haw, Cramp Bark, and Lobelia.
Belladona: used for fever and infections that causes pain.
Aloe: Whether taken internally or externally this calms inflammation and encourages new cell growth. Aloe Juice can act as a laxative, so I take mine in a concentrated capsule form.
Turmeric: Not only good for pain and inflammation recent studies indicate it can also be helpful in preventing Alzheimer’s.
These are but a few of the pain relieving options available from nature. When these don’t work I would try acupuncture before I would reach for a pharmaceutical or an over the counter pain product.
Another option is to avoid nightshades. They may be making a mild inflammation much worse.
Sources:
http://www.naturalnews.com/038886_aspirin_blindness_AMD.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/038879_inflammation_fever_remedies.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/039009_arthritis_chronic_pain_foods.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/039176_Motrin_severe_allergic_reaction_blindness.html
Common Herbs for Natural Health by Juliette de Bairacli Levy copyrighted 1997 by Ash Tree Publishing.
Planetary Herbology by Michael Tierra, C.A., N.D. copyrighted 1988 by Michael Tierra
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