Chronic pain is the #1 qualifying condition that patients visit Compassionate Certification Centers seeking to treat, and one of the most prevalent medical conditions in the world.
What characteristics does a physician look at to classify pain as chronic? Is pain a diagnosis itself, or is it a symptom triggered by other causes?
What is Chronic Pain?
Chronic pain is defined as any pain persisting for 3 months or more, sometimes even years. For varying reasons, many people’s nervous system continues to send pain signals that linger even after the causative issue is resolved. Pain can sometimes be a result of injury, trauma, surgeries, or malignancies – other times recurring pain is the primary condition. At the end of 2018, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) analyzed the 2016 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and estimated that 50 million adults across the United States suffer from chronic pain. That equates to about 20% – or 1 in every 5 people.
For many, pain gets so intense it has a direct negative effect on a person’s ability to go to work, perform basic tasks, or even get out of bed… interrupting quality of life, personal relationships, and mental health. In fact, chronic pain is the #1 cause of long-term disability in the United States, according to the National Institutes of Health. How is it that so many individuals all suffer from the same condition?
Causes of Chronic Pain
Pain is most commonly associated with an injury or trauma, operative procedures, malignancies or cancers. Other times, such as in neuropathic pains or autoimmune disease, the body’s nervous and immune systems are unbalanced, causing pain receptors to misfire in response. Some of the most common complaints are migraine headaches, back pain, joint pain, cancer pain, arthritis, and inflammatory diseases such as IBD and endometriosis. There are hundreds of conditions that have the potential to trigger chronic pain in nearly any part of the human body.
How does Medical Cannabis Help Pain and How Do I Know What to Use?
CBD and THC target pain and inflammation by supporting and optimizing the body’s natural endocannabinoid system. When you supplement your endocannabinoid receptors, they are able to send stronger support to the immune and central nervous systems, as well as suppress pain receptors. The body is able to process natural medicines better than synthetic, the same way it absorbs more nutrients from organic foods.
Unfortunately, the market has become flooded with products. It can be tricky to decipher quality products from ones full of false claims and additives. It is best to go to a dispensary, physician’s office, or natural health store for your products, and don’t be afraid to do your research.
Compassionate Certification Centers offers CBD products you know you can trust. High-quality is what we strive for, our focus is your well-being!
CCC’s brand of THC-Free CBD products are triple lab-tested, free of impurities and GMOs, and grown in the United States! Our physician-approved CBD is made from all-natural botanical oils and organic ingredients. CBD is a much safer, alternative treatment option for relief from many common medical conditions and symptoms – without the risk of side effects or dependency that comes with many pharmaceuticals.
In our store, you will find tinctures and oils (some infused with natural supplements), capsules, topical creams and muscle balms, hard candies, capsules, beverages, and even Pet-CBD! Wholesale is available. For more information or to browse our products, visit www.compassionatecertificationcenters.com/product/mmj-certification-and-recertification
If you suffer from daily, debilitating pain that affects your quality of life – know that you have options. At Compassionate Certification Centers we can help you to find the Cannabis-derived treatment plan (with or without THC) to relieve your symptoms, without the side effects. Our physicians are all licensed professionals who believe in your right to choose how you want to heal. We offer Medical Marijuana Certifications, natural treatment plans, Lab-tested CBD-Free THC products, educational events, patient advocacy and so much more. Our Cannabis consultants are standing by now waiting for your call at 888-316-9085. All conversations are confidential, and HIPAA protected health information. You can find more information or use our web-chat feature online at www.compassionatecertificationcenters.com or stop in any of our offices during normal business hours.
This article was written by Melissa Rigby, Compassionate Certification Centers
Sources:
- National Institutes of Health (2011) Pain Management. [Online] Available from:
https://report.nih.gov/nihfactsheets/ViewFactSheet.aspx?csid=57 - Treede, Rolf-Detlef et al. “A classification of chronic pain for ICD-11” Pain vol. 156,6 (2015): 1003-7. [Online] Available from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4450869/
