TerryWhite Chemmart pharmacist Chris Campbell
answers some questions about pain management
and medications
Apart from pain
medication, what
else can I do to help
manage or alleviate
chronic pain?Many factors can
contribute to the ‘pain
experience’, such as stress,
your environment or an
injury. A multimodal
approach to pain means
addressing these factors,
and this involves seeing a
range of professionals who
specialise in different
aspects of pain care.
For example, a psych-
ologist can help support
the way we think about
pain, a pharmacist will
assist with pain relief
medications, and a
physiotherapist can help
plan an exercise program.
Together, these methods
can improve pain more
efficiently and effectively
than any one of them used
on its own. As a first step,
check out TerryWhite
Chemmart’s Pain
Information Hub
(terrywhite
chemmart.com.au/
pain). You’ll find
information and
resources from our
pharmacists
and allied health
professionals,
to help you under-
stand your pain and
the treatment
options available. ■My pain medication
doesn’t seem to be
working properly. What
am I doing wrong?While different pain relievers
are effective at helping to treat
mild, moderate or severe pain,
a common misconception is
that they’re able to take away
100 per cent of your pain.
It’s important to treat any
chronic pain with other
methods at the same time as
taking medication.
The best way to check how
well a pain reliever is working
is to score your pain on a scale
of 0-10 before taking your
medication, and then assessing
it again a couple of hours later.
This will give you an indication
of how well your pain reliever
is, or isn’t, working.
If your pain medicationisn’t working effectively,
speak to your local TerryWhite
Chemmart pharmacist for
their advice. You can also ask
them if you’re eligible for a
free Pain MedsCheck, during
which your medications will
be reviewed to identify any
medication-related problems
and improve how effectively
they’re relieving
your pain.diabetic living JULY/AUGUST 2019 17PH
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Q&A (^) ASK CHRIS