4 Strategies for Living With CRPS

You used to jump out of bed every morning, but these days you greet the day with dread, not knowing how much impact your complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) will have on your ability to function.

CRPS is a fairly rare condition, affecting about 200,000 people each year in the United States. While CRPS is uncommon, Americans are no strangers to pain — chronic pain affects more than 20% of adults in the US. 

As pain management specialists, our team here at Pain Medicine Consultants knows a thing or two about treating tough pain conditions like CRPS. 

In the following, we explore a few strategies that our patients use to minimize the impact that this painful condition can have on your life.

Get the right team in your corner

When it comes to uncommon conditions like CRPS, it's important that you have medical experts who understand the behavior and nuances of this neurological condition. 

With CRPS, your nervous system is malfunctioning and causing no small amount of discomfort, usually in an arm or leg after an injury or trauma.

As experts who put pain management at the center of what we do, we start there with patients with CRPS. Through different techniques, such as nerve blocks, corticosteroid injections, and ketamine infusion therapy, we leave no stone unturned in finding ways to keep you comfortable.

We also work with you to encourage fast and healthy nerve growth, which can help put an end to CRPS.

Stay active

We know that the discomfort that often comes with CRPS can make exercising the last thing you want to do, but it’s important to move and stretch.

This movement gets your blood flowing to:

• Combat inflammation
• Encourage nerve growth
• Deliver healing resources
• Maintain strength and flexibility in your affected limb

Whether through physical therapy or a practice like yoga, staying active delivers key physical and mental benefits when you’re dealing with CRPS.

Stay connected through support groups

It can be difficult to always have to put on a brave face for loved ones around you, so we recommend that you find solace and better understanding in CRPS support groups. The participants understand what you’re going through and can not only offer support, but practical advice. Click here to find a support group.

Improving your state of mind

When people say that the pain is in your head, it might sound ignorant, but in reality, this is true. As ground zero for your nervous system, your brain is very much involved in CRPS, so we suggest finding ways to soothe and distract your brain. 

For example, you might try mindfulness techniques like meditation. Or perhaps you can try distraction — keeping your mind focused on a new activity, such as a game or hobby.

Deep breathing exercises are great for managing pain, as they soothe your sympathetic nervous system. A good exercise to start with is 4-4-4-4 (or box) breathing — breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, breathe out for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds. Visualize the four sides of a box when you do this.

You know yourself best and what works for you to stay healthy in both mind and body. We’re also happy to share more tips that our patients have found helpful when dealing with CRPS.

For more information about coping with CRPS, please contact one of our offices in Pleasanton, Pleasant Hill, or Corte Madera, California, to schedule an appointment.