Yes, underlying physical and mental causes can also be a factor and definitely shouldn’t be overlooked. 🙂

I like how you draw attention to the double-edged sword of such a condition–thanks Traci!

Very good points, especially in regards to the long term effects of chronic pain. It does wear a person down, affects mood and can cause depression–all good stuff! Thanks so much for taking the time to share all of this 🙂

What I’ve learned to do is to exercise by walking as many days a week as I can and to keep distracted until the exhaustion of the day puts me to sleep (along with some medication to fight bipolarity). Creative distractions seem to be the best for me and that is why I write two to four hours in the morning everyday. What I didn’t see mentioned in the blog, is how draining pain is. It literally saps your energy away. This can lead to being exhausted and then to be being depressed.

My nephew and his daughter are “gingers” who are genetically able to handle more physical pain. However, there is a cost. Medication doesn’t work well on them or wears off too quickly.

I wanted to post this, not as a litany of problems or personal hells I go through, but just to give personal insight into the realm of pain on a daily basis.

Thanks for the blog. It’s a topic that I need to think about in the abstract at times to remember how well I actually have it.

Tim McCanna