Mayo Clinic Guide to Pain Relief

When pain interferes with daily life, find the latest advances on treating arthritis, migraines, fibromyalgia, and more from an authoritative source.

Mayo Clinic doctors know how pain interferes with sleep, work, social life, and simple daily life, and help patients meet these challenges every day. This book is based on the take-charge approach to managing chronic pain practiced at Mayo’s Comprehensive Pain Rehabilitation Center. Inside this book you’ll find thorough, easy-to-read information about the solutions we offer to our patients. Mayo Clinic Guide to Pain Relief is divided into three parts:

Part 1: Understanding chronic pain: To control your pain, you need to understand how it develops. Part 1 discusses the parts of your body involved in the development of pain—and why some people respond to pain differently than others.

Part 2: Treating chronic pain: Learn about the various drugs used to treat pain, why some medications are more effective for certain types of pain, potential side effects, and more. In addition, you’ll learn about other types of treatments that are available, such as pain-site injections, nerve stimulators and medication pumps, as well as alternative and complementary therapies.

Part 3: Managing chronic pain: Part 3 focuses on strategies for managing chronic pain so it doesn’t interfere with your life. This self-care section covers steps that you can take on your own to get yourself on course to a life with less pain, including details for designing your personal pain control program.