The numbers are staggering,
especially among the most common
afflictions:14percentofpeople
willsufferchronicbackpainintheir
lives, around three million people
suffer from migraines (which most
commonly affect women in their
30s and 40s) and up to 10 per
cent of people have fibromyalgia,
a painful musculoskeletal illness
that’s seven times more prevalent
inwomenthanmen.Alsoaffecting
hundreds of thousands are chronic
fatigue syndrome, neuropathy
(aka nerve damage) and
autoimmune disorders like
rheumatoid arthritis and lupus.
Swelling alongside such
conditions is a flood of pain
medication: opioid prescriptions
have quadrupled in Australia,
accordingtoarecentstudy
published inThe Lancet.Butpills
can’t mask all problems. Adding
tothephysicalagonythatcauses
chronically ill patients to lose
sleep, take sick days and blowSometimes Ashli thinks it’d be
easier if she did look sick. To
bystanders, she’s just another
overworked, overtired young
woman. In reality, Ashli, who
survivedacatastrophiccarcrash,
is like the one in five Australians
living with chronic pain. They
belongtoagroupofon-the-rise
‘hiddendiseases’–ailments
without obvious visible symptoms.their savings on prescription meds
and treatments is the fallout from
friends, colleagues and even doctors
calling them fakers, says Dr Beth
Darnall,apainexpertatStanford
University in the US. “Compared to
those with obvious illnesses, women
who deal with chronic pain often
feel the biggest blow because
they look perfectly fine.”FINDING
RELIEF
“WhenIwasinhighschool,
Iwasinacaraccident.Thecar
flipped four times, and I was
ejectedoutthewindow–and
leftwithabrokenfemur,pelvis
andback.Ican’treallyignore
thepain,butI’mtoostubborn
to give up on activities I love.”
Ashli Stempel, 30, back pain£Formostpeople,painworksin
a straightforward way. Say you stub
your toe, or you overdo it while lifting
weights. Pain receptors in your skin,
musclesorjointssendelectrical
signals through nerve fibres to your
brain. Your brain processes the
messageand–ouch!–youfeelthe
hurt. Eventually, it subsides.
Womeninchronicpain,ofcourse,
are different. When those electrical
signals go from one-offs to
omnipresent, they inundate the
brain’s pain centre. To accommodate
alltheaction,thatcentregrowsin
size,heighteningthebody’sability
to perceive pain, says immunologist
Dr Nancy Klimas. Shanelle Gabriel’s
lupus(seeShanelle,above),which
causes extreme fatigue, stabbing
aches in her joints and numbness inDIARY OF AN ALL-DAY
PAIN SUFFERER
Nineyearsago,writerLisaKaneff,35,
was diagnosed with Morton’s neuroma
in her right foot. The nerve condition
makes her feel like she’s constantly
stepping on broken glass. Two surgeries
have yielded little relief, forcing Lisa
t o m i c r o m a n a g e ev e r y h o u r o f h e r d a y.7:30am
IfI’minagony,Iicefor
15 minutes, then do an
awkward dance in the
shower, trying not to
putpressureonmy
right side.8:30am
Cute shoesneverfit my
orthotics.Ihavetobaseevery
outfit around ugly shoes, which
onlyremindsmeofmyillness.
Inmybag,Ipackapairof
super-comfysneakers,asurgical
shoe, and lots of ibuprofen.11:30am
I’ve become good
at giving
presentations while
sittingdown.Ihope
clientsseemeas
casual and
relatable – not
meek or lazy.“People brush
me off, saying
things like,
‘Yeah, we’re
tired too’.”
–Shanelle
Gabriel94 womenshealth.com.au DECEMBER 2016