How can changing my lifestyle help ease my pain?

Women's health expert and advocate Donnica Moore, MD, discusses how changing your lifestyle can help ease your pain.

Transcript

00:00

Women, the first thing you need to do if you have back pain, hip pain, knee pain, et cetera, or any kind of joint pain,

00:06

is get rid of the high heels. [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:16

Many patients get very frustrated when their doctors talk to them about making lifestyle changes to reduce their pain.

00:24

I want you to understand that your doctor is not telling you that your lifestyle is the cause of your pain,

00:30

but making lifestyle changes can help manage your pain or reduce your pain. So women, the first thing you need

00:38

to do if you have back pain, hip pain, knee pain, et cetera, or any kind of joint pain, is get rid of the high heels.

00:45

I know how much you like them. I know how much fashion is important to you. But high heels are going to make the pain worse.

00:54

I'm not saying they caused the pain. They're going to exacerbate the pain. Similarly, if you're carrying around a lot of baggage,

01:01

whether it's that heavy, over-the-shoulder pocketbook or whether it's 10, 15, 20 extra pounds,

01:07

you want to reduce the amount of weight that you're carrying. Especially if you have back pain, your doctor will probably tell you not

01:14

to lift anything that's more than 10 pounds. But if you're already carrying your pocketbook, that's probably 7 pounds, and you've only got 3 to go.

01:23

If you are overweight at all to begin with, losing 5 to 10 pounds will make you feel better, first of all, because of the cosmetic advantages,

01:30

but second of all, you're decreasing the pounds of pressure per square inch that you're putting on each one of your joints.

01:36

Similarly, even if you have chronic pain, we want to figure out a way to get you

01:43

more of an active lifestyle. Now, that seems like a contradiction. When you're in pain, all you want to do

01:50

is lie there and watch TV. It seems like a contradiction, but work with your doctor.

01:56

Work with your physical therapist to find an exercise program that's right for you. And you may have to start out with walking from the house

02:05

to the mailbox. And that's exercise. When we say exercise, we don't mean you have to go to a gym for two hours a day.

02:11

Exercise might be one minute the first day and a minute and 15 seconds the next day. Increase gradually. Do better tomorrow than you did today.

02:20

And finally, find out what the activities are, the activities of daily living, that are particularly bothersome for you

02:27

and figure out a way around it, all right? For example, many cities have online grocery stores

02:35

which will deliver your groceries for a very nominal fee directly to your kitchen counter. For people with back pain, this can be a lifesaver.