Chronic pain is no fun. It affects everything you do from work to play and often times, even sleep. Here are four different causes of chronic pain you may not know about:
Hormonal imbalance: Sudden changes in hormone levels can lead to widespread pain. Some of these hormones are cortisol, estrogen, thyroid hormone and progesterone. When there's a lower production of cortisol and thyroid, your body will experience inflammation and the sensation of pain. Chronic pain is a symptom experienced by women who aren't able to produce enough progesterone and too much estrogen.
Food sensitivities: Depending on your body, your chronic pain can be caused by a variety of food sensitivities. Some symptoms that can result from unfortunate food sensitivities include rashes on your skin, trouble breathing and digestive discomfort. Part of the reason why people are often not able to connect their chronic pain with foods they're eating is that these symptoms don't always happen immediately after a meal. Sometimes these sensitivities can make themselves manifest hours or even days after certain foods have been eaten. Conventional food allergy testing only detects the instantaneous response (IgE allergic response) and not the slow response (IgG4 immune response).
Ligament laxity: This cause of chronic pain is due to loose ligaments. Your body's ligaments can loosen up when your body is regularly under physical stress and trauma that comes from activity such as running, twisting, lifting. Over time, your body can lose its elasticity much like a rubber band. When your ligaments are loose, joints can shift out of proper alignment resulting in chronic pain and discomfort. Joint damage can increase when these problems aren't addressed quickly enough. Ligament laxity is often experienced in the shoulders, hips, knees, and neck.
Neurogenic inflammation: Your body has many sensitive nerves in the skin. These nerves can be damaged and inflamed over the span of your life due to trauma or overstretching your skin. Nerve inflammation leads to a production of chemicals that send constant pain signals to your brain. The pain signals to your brain can be severe and increase over time. This form of chronic pain is evident in different diseases and health issues such as eczema, rosacea, asthma, and fibromyalgia.
For a more information and treatment of chronic pain and other conditions a consultation with Dr. Jacob Schmutz, a specialist in natural and alternative medicine, can be made by visiting our appointment page.
Integrative Medica specializes in complementary and alternative medicine. Patients that come into Integrative Medica can feel comfortable knowing they are receiving the most effective alternative medicine treatments available.
