According to the Institute of Medicine and a study from the Journal of Pain, more than 30% of Americans have some form of acute or chronic pain. Americans, while making up only 4.6% of the world's population, have been consuming 80% of the global supply of opioids. From 2006 to 2016, the DEA has stepped up the fight against the opioid epidemic in the United States by increasing the number of special agents in the Tactical Diversion Squad Program by 385%.
The majority of prescription opioids that being misused are coming not from people buying them off the street but from legally written prescriptions. In 2014, more than 60% of drug overdoses in the United States involved an opioid.
Because of these statistics, not only has the DEA stepped up their surveillance of prescription abuse, but insurance has cut reimbursement for opioids in most cases. Pharmacy Times estimates that the two largest pharmacy chains, CVS Health and Walgreens, combined handled nearly $100 billion of prescription sales in 2014.
Because of the huge profits gained by the pharmaceutical giants, there fails to be any incentive to try and encourage alternative means of pain management.
If anyone understands pain and suffering, I’ve been there. Having been in an explosion which gutted me like a freshly harvested elk, I welcomed the morphine given at the scene of the accident. Upon coming to in recovery, I was offered more of the drug to deal with pain. My primary concern involved the potential of addiction and what further harm I could experience.
Addiction from opioids can occur within only five days. This is a major reason for seeking safer alternatives to reduce pain and suffering. It’s not uncommon to see chronic use of opioids eventually requiring increases in dosage to continue to manage pain.
When we think about how we experience pain, it’s quite obvious our nervous system, the wiring from the sensory organs to the brain, carries the pain sensations from end organs. If the wiring is damaged, this causes pain, and if the sensory organ in affected, the information is then transmitted to the brain. In some instances of intractable pain, nerve ablation (destroying the wires) is a treatment chosen when no other pain relief is available.
Our sensory nerves are there to protect us from harm. The disease of leprosy is where sensory nerves no longer allow for pain sensation. Because of this, many would receive injury without knowing it. Appendages and limbs were lost due to not knowing they were injured. Our nervous system is critical for being able to properly care for the body.
The health and proper function of the nervous system is required to avoid pain. The neuropathy seen in diabetes can begin as an excruciating pain and eventually manifest much like leprosy with loss of feeling. It’s not uncommon to see the diabetic having lost toes or a limb due to infection which they weren’t aware of.
Inflammation associated with elevated blood sugar can destroy nerves. The initial response of pain can give way to eventual loss of nerve response. In fact, much of the pain that medication is dispensed for is directly linked to inflammation. This is where I frequently use a wonderful herb which is specific for inflammatory pain.
This herb is one mostly recognizable by it’s common name of this time of year. The botanical name is Boswellia. The common name is Frankincense. This herb is specific for many kinds of pain, especially from inflammation. Because herbs prepared in Australia must pass all the rigors of pharmaceuticals, I prefer to obtain my Boswellia and other herbs from an Australian company which I trust to provide the highest quality products.
Besides Boswellia, there are many other useful herbs. For crushed nerves, the use of St John’s wort employed homeopathically in combination with Arnica has proven as effective as many pharmaceuticals. California Poppy is an herb from which opioids are obtained, but doesn’t have the strong addictive nature. Jamaican Dogwood is another great pain reliever. These two used in combination with Corydalis can provide pain relief without the addictive actions of opioids. Instead of using potentially damaging drugs, consider the safety of herbs.
The majority of prescription opioids that being misused are coming not from people buying them off the street but from legally written prescriptions. In 2014, more than 60% of drug overdoses in the United States involved an opioid.
Because of these statistics, not only has the DEA stepped up their surveillance of prescription abuse, but insurance has cut reimbursement for opioids in most cases. Pharmacy Times estimates that the two largest pharmacy chains, CVS Health and Walgreens, combined handled nearly $100 billion of prescription sales in 2014.
Because of the huge profits gained by the pharmaceutical giants, there fails to be any incentive to try and encourage alternative means of pain management.
If anyone understands pain and suffering, I’ve been there. Having been in an explosion which gutted me like a freshly harvested elk, I welcomed the morphine given at the scene of the accident. Upon coming to in recovery, I was offered more of the drug to deal with pain. My primary concern involved the potential of addiction and what further harm I could experience.
Addiction from opioids can occur within only five days. This is a major reason for seeking safer alternatives to reduce pain and suffering. It’s not uncommon to see chronic use of opioids eventually requiring increases in dosage to continue to manage pain.
When we think about how we experience pain, it’s quite obvious our nervous system, the wiring from the sensory organs to the brain, carries the pain sensations from end organs. If the wiring is damaged, this causes pain, and if the sensory organ in affected, the information is then transmitted to the brain. In some instances of intractable pain, nerve ablation (destroying the wires) is a treatment chosen when no other pain relief is available.
Our sensory nerves are there to protect us from harm. The disease of leprosy is where sensory nerves no longer allow for pain sensation. Because of this, many would receive injury without knowing it. Appendages and limbs were lost due to not knowing they were injured. Our nervous system is critical for being able to properly care for the body.
The health and proper function of the nervous system is required to avoid pain. The neuropathy seen in diabetes can begin as an excruciating pain and eventually manifest much like leprosy with loss of feeling. It’s not uncommon to see the diabetic having lost toes or a limb due to infection which they weren’t aware of.
Inflammation associated with elevated blood sugar can destroy nerves. The initial response of pain can give way to eventual loss of nerve response. In fact, much of the pain that medication is dispensed for is directly linked to inflammation. This is where I frequently use a wonderful herb which is specific for inflammatory pain.
This herb is one mostly recognizable by it’s common name of this time of year. The botanical name is Boswellia. The common name is Frankincense. This herb is specific for many kinds of pain, especially from inflammation. Because herbs prepared in Australia must pass all the rigors of pharmaceuticals, I prefer to obtain my Boswellia and other herbs from an Australian company which I trust to provide the highest quality products.
Besides Boswellia, there are many other useful herbs. For crushed nerves, the use of St John’s wort employed homeopathically in combination with Arnica has proven as effective as many pharmaceuticals. California Poppy is an herb from which opioids are obtained, but doesn’t have the strong addictive nature. Jamaican Dogwood is another great pain reliever. These two used in combination with Corydalis can provide pain relief without the addictive actions of opioids. Instead of using potentially damaging drugs, consider the safety of herbs.
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